Premier League Top four XI: 11/12 season

This article is a bit late. No wait, it’s hideously late. But I was bored and I’ve always wanted to make a top four XI, especially considering I did a relegation XI.

But doing a top four XI is tough and controversial. On one hand there is no Chelsea, as they didn’t finish in the top four. But on the other hand the Blues have only gone and won the Champions League, so you ask yourself do I consider the Chelsea players or do I leave them out?

These are the questions that keep me awake at night..

Well, for the sake of the challenge, I have decided to keep Chelsea out of it. Now Chelsea fans, don’t be hurt, I have done this as I wanted it to literally be the Top Four XI.

Here we go,

Goalkeeper

Green =best, Red = worst

For me, the keepers argument is quite simple. It’s gotta be Joe Hart hasn’t it? He is the man, he makes goalkeeping look cool.

But in terms of football, he has been fantastic. Hart is incredibly well rounded, focused and often saves his team’s bacon countless of times.

But what impresses me about Hart is his leadership and organisational skills. He really settles and calms Man City’s backline, the understanding between him and his defenders is fantastic and is visible to anyone who watches City.

Right Back:

Again, this area is relatively straight forward for me. Although he didn’t feature as much as expected last season, I do feel Bacary Sagna is the best right back in the Premier League. A few months ago, I did an analysis on right backs here. And Sagna dominated over a number of leading right backs in the Premier League.

Sagna offers something many full backs crave, and that’s balance, in terms of offensive duties and defensive duties. Sagna’s great positioning and reading of the game allows him to roam forward and defend adequately.

Centre Backs:

Stats via EPL Index

 This is tough, probably because most of the top four have very gifted centre backs.

Looking at the stats, im going for Vincent Kompany and Joleon Lescott. Now, I know it’s dead boring and is a bit like someone having the chance to pick anything to have for dinner and they go for the old routine of bangers and mash. But these two are pretty good and cover a lot of bases.

Kompany is arguably the best centre back in the Premier League. He dominates his opponents; he wins most of his tackles and reads the game very well. While with Lescott, we have a left sided centre back, who is a tackling specialist. Lescott is dominant in the air too.

Left Back:

This is an interesting one to call. If Chelsea made the top four, Ashley Cole would certainly be up there. But even so, it’s still a hard question. A few months ago, I also did an analysis on some left backs in the Premier League, and Gael Clichy really impressed me. Like his former Arsenal team-mate Sagna, Clichy is well rounded in regards to his offensive and defensive work. But my one issue with Clichy is that he doesn’t play as many games as he really should at Man City. Perhaps that’s due to Mancini..being well, Mancini. It’s quite clear, Roberto loves to shuffle his full backs. But, I love the balance Clichy brings at full back. He defends well, and support attacks pretty effectively too.

Defensive midfield:

The Premier League is actually blessed with some very talented defensive midfielders.

Looking at the stats, it’s hard. It’s like choosing a chocolate from a Celebrations tin. There are too many tasty, yet different types of defensive midfielders. But I will go for Mikel Arteta. His passing, composure and ball retention is absolutely key in that role.  Furthermore, his tackling isn’t that bad either. The Spaniard is a resilient leader who really gets his teams to tick and can often dictate the tempo of games. Something which I feel Carrick, Parker and Barry struggle to do.

Midfielders:

Comparison of the deeper lying central midfielders

Yaya Toure has to be in this side, without a doubt. One could easily argue, Toure is the best box to box midfielder in the world. Toure has the characteristics to dominate games and he’s proven time and time again he is the man who can make the difference for Man City. One of the things I admire about Toure is his vision and passing abilities, they compliment physicality and the dominant stature he has. 

Comparison of the play makers in the top four

 Toure’s partner in this midfield is no other than the great Luka Modric. I feel both players would link well together. Modric’s movement and passing range would bring a slickness and fluidity the side. While Toure’s physicality would give the side a bit of drive.

Attacking Left

David Silva – He has got to be in the team hasn’t he? David Silva is like the bread of a sandwich, he is the one who completes the team. He is the one gives the team texture. David Silva’s quick feet, agile style and his creativity make him imperative for this team. The Spaniard is class, he makes creating chances look like a simple task.

David Silva is silent, but deadly.

  

Attacking Right:

Seeing there are so many quality strikers and wingers in the Premier League, it’s hard to pick someone, over another talented player. As you can go with someone like Nani, and think, ‘yeah, he’s a good player.’ Then later you may ponder, what about Bale, his directness, assertiveness and powerful left foot makes him a must have.

But, for the attacking right position, I am going for Robin Van Persie.

Van Persie is awesome. And let’s be under no allusions, he is a complete striker. He has wonderful feet, great variation in his finishing and can create chances for his team mates too. Van Persie proved last season, if he can stay injury free, he can score for absolute fun. He really can. His positioning, composure and decision making is first class.

Centre Forward:

Originally, I wanted to compare Aguero, Rooney and Van Persie to each other, but I liked them so much I wanted them all in the team. It was a bit self indulgent of me, it’s like finishing that whole box of celebrations by myself.

But I have gone for Sergio Aguero up front. This man is sensational. I think his price tag has made people not recognise how crucial he was last season for Man City. People forget, he joined the club aged 22. In his debut season in English football, he scored an impressive 23 league goals. And if you watched him with Man City, he was fully embedded into the side. His understanding and vision of the game was complimented by his City team mates. Aguero himself bagged 8 assists too, a symbol of his cohesion in the team. One aspect of Aguero’s game which impressed me was his physicality. Although he may not be the biggest player, he certainly stood his ground and led the City line very effectively.

So here's how the team would look on paper.

 

(Stats from EPL Index, taken from the 2011/12 season) 

Five Observations from Week 5 in the Premier League

1.) Fernando Torres takes one step forward then two steps back – For the first time in his Chelsea career, and for the first time in 2011, Fernando Torres has scored in two games in a row. It’s fair to say the old Fernando, the world class version is coming back to the surface. However, he seems to eclipse his positives actions with Chelsea with a negative action. His sending off this weekend symbolises this. Torres had no real need to lunge in with two feet up in the air. It was a woeful striker’s tackle. But just when you think Torres is finding his form, sharpness and goals, he commits an act which could possibly affect his consistency. Ironically, consistency is something he has craved for since moving to Chelsea.

2.) Man United gain a credible draw at Stoke – Yes, Man United’s 100% winning record is over. But it’s by no means a disaster. Already this season, Stoke have held Chelsea and have beaten Liverpool at home. Many of United’s league contenders will come to Stoke and will struggle to get all three points. Man United can also learn a lot from this result too. Although United’s defending has been relatively strong this season, at times they have shown their frailties. Peter Crouch’s goal for Stoke highlighted United’s poor defending from the set piece. Perhaps young Phil Jones should have been more tighter and more aware of the positioning of Stoke’s target man Peter Crouch. While just after Stoke’s goal, Rio Ferdinand’s miss kicked his clearance which nearly and should have given Crouch a chance to score his second goal of the game. But Sir Alex, the fans and the players will be even more aware that the champions need to put more focus in their defending, as the defensive lapse could have cost them the game. Indeed, David De Gea stood up to Stoke’s aggressive and direct nature. The new Man United goalkeeper made some crucial saves which helped preserved United from losing. With every game, the young Spaniard looks more confident, more settled and more of a natural successor to Van der Sar.

3.) Man City’ strength in depth is the difference – City had a very tough encounter versus Everton. The Merseysiders were committed, focused and organised in restricting Man City the opportunity to create and finish chances. For most of the game, Everton frustrated Man City. They simply couldn’t find a break through. Everton did a very good job in nullifying in- form players such as Edin Dzeko. However, for all the talent City started in the match, this could be matched by Man City’s quality on the bench. Step up James Milner and Mario Balotelli. Both substitutes scored both of the goals in the game. Everton could not cope with City’s quality on the bench, as a result, the likes of Silva and Aguero’s both stepped up after the introduction of Balotelli and Milner. It’s fair to say, against tough oppositions, Manchester City’s strength in depth could be the potential decider in the title race. After all, they possess many attacking threats, while as the game progresses and the opposition tire, the quality of attacking depth, especially on the bench could prove to be the difference. Just as it proved to be against Everton this weekend.

4.) Liverpool becoming ever more dependent on Luis Suarez – Liverpool were not great against Wolves this weekend. At times they were on top, and created many chances. But there were also periods when Wolves asked all the questions of Liverpool and The Reds didn’t defend that impressively. Offensively, the difference for Liverpool again was Luis Suarez. His movement, energy and creativity often left the Wolves defence feeling dizzy. But at times during the game, it was as if Suarez was the only Liverpool player looking to move in and out of pockets of space. Without his movement, it would seem as if Liverpool’s performance was lacklustre and short of creative ideas. It’s evident the other attacking Liverpool players need to show more intelligent movement in order to create space. But when Luis Suarez is in form, its not surprising a team becomes dependent on him. He is arguably a complete striker, who can create and finish himself, so is it surprising he becomes the focal point of team?

5.) The Newcastle United revolution gets bigger and bigger – Newcastle were widely tipped as the team who would be in and around the foot of the table at the start of the season. Due to the club selling key players such as Enrique, Nolan and Barton. But Alan Pardew and his new look Newcastle side have started the season off very impressively. After 6 games, they find themselves unbeaten, and are in fourth place with 12 points. The new signings seem to have given the club some balance and variation of quality. Attackers Demba Ba and Leon Best have so far consistently provided goals. One could argue that Ba has been rather inconsistent for Newcastle so far and has drifted in and out of games. It’s a fair point, he hasn’t been great. But against Blackburn he was a consistent threat, his pace, strength and instinctive finishing was the difference. His hat-trick will not only give The Toon Army some optimism, it will give them some pride. Furthermore, the return of Hatem Ben Arfa gives Newcastle even more quality and technical strength. Newcastle have rather quietly constructed a very good outfit which is proving to be a decent side.

Five Statistics from this weekend

1.) Fernando Torres has scored against 24/28 of teams he has faced in the Premier League.

2.) Four different players have scored a hat-trick for Newcastle United since the start of 2010/11 season

3.) Peter Crouch has scored for 6 different Premier League clubs in his career.

4.) Tottenham are the only team this season to pass more than 600 times in more than one game.

5.) Aston Villa are the third team in Premier League history to draw 5/6 of their opening games.

Five Observations from Week 3 in the Premier League

1. Manchester United has most definitely improved on last season. – To some, Man United’s away game against Bolton was supposed to be a litmus test to inspect the quality of Man United’s credentials this season. Of course, last season the champions struggled away from home, especially in the early part of the season. But fast forward 12 months, the team have been dominant and far more productive on the road. Against Bolton, Man United looked dynamic, powerful and incredibly lethal.
2. Sergio Aguero has settled perfectly into Premier League – The majestical Argentine’s finishing was at its clinical finest against Wigan. His hat trick demonstrated his incredible composure in and around the box. All in all, his technical expertise, along with his creative footballing brain has given Manchester City another dimension this season. Aguero has only played four Premier League games in his career and he has returned with scored 6 Premier League goals. Absolutely Sensational. It’s fair to say, the prominence of Sergio Aguero has marginalised the significance of want away striker Carlos Tevez.
3. Arsenal remember how to win in the Premier League – Arsenal’s first league win wasn’t pretty or that impressive. They relied on a horrendous mistake from Swansea keeper Michel Vorm to pick up all three points. Indeed, Arsenal were on top for most periods of the game. But the Gunners didn’t create that much nor did they play with the level of fluidity which is normally accustom to Arsenal. However, the team will be more than content to get their first their points of the season. As they say, ‘a win is a win.’
4. Stoke – a team looking like European Contenders – Stoke armed with their new additions, Peter Crouch and Wilson Palacios came away with a win against Liverpool. Although at times Stoke rode their luck, and were second best, especially in the second half. They still managed to scrape a win, thanks to Stoke’s fantastic defending. The Potters defence was extremely organised and committed to the Stoke cause. Asmir Begovic deserves his plaudits too. There were countless amounts of times when he single handidly kept Liverpool out too. Stoke’s awkward nature is a fundamental reason why the side will make further success at home and in Europe.
5. Fulham will be banging their heads against the wall after this weekend – Prior to Fulham’s match against out of form Blackburn, The Cottagers, who haven’t won a league game this season must have thought this was the game to reignite their season. However, Fulham failed to capitalise on their dominance and decent chances. Fulham’s new signing Bryan Ruiz had an uninspiring debut, and it’s clear he will need time to settle. But more importantly, Fulham’s winless run continues. Bearing in mind the chances Fulham had. They will be rueing at the fact they didn’t get all three points against the Premier League’s basement club.

Find out who won The Football Front’s prediction challenge here.