Serie A Team of Week for Round 7
An exciting weekend of Serie A action saw Roma draw within one point of Juventus at the top of the table and Lazio and Milan record important wins to move up the ladder.
Torino, Palermo and Atalanta were the other sides to gather all three points (pending Empoli's trip to Genoa on Monday), while Inter and Napoli both turned in bipolar performances to end up with a 2-2 draw.
Here is the team of Round 7 made up of the best players over the course of the weekend's action.
We have opted for a 3-4-3 formation and taken a few liberties with players' positions so as to squeeze in the best of the bunch.
Goalkeeper: Andrea Consigli
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No goalkeeper in Serie A has managed to keep Juventus' attacking juggernaut at bay so far in 2014-15, though Sassuolo's Andrea Consigli did a magnificent job of restricting them to one goal.
That was enough to make Sassuolo the first team to take points off the reigning champions this season.
Juve streamed forward in the second half, but Consigli was at his brilliant best to deter efforts from Carlos Tevez and Paul Pogba.
The 1-1 draw was an excellent result for the side in green and black, who remain in the relegation zone.
Centre-Back: Mapou Yanga-Mbiwa
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While he may have struggled in his last season at Newcastle United, central defender Mapou Yanga-Mbiwa is thriving in Italian football.
The 25-year-old Frenchman is a powerful defender who is also very comfortable on the ball and passing out from the back, which makes him perfectly suited to the kind of football countryman Rudi Garcia is promoting at Roma.
He once again displayed all his best qualities in the Giallorossi's 3-0 win over Chievo.
If he keeps up his fine form he will surely be adding to his three national team caps in the not-too-distant future.
Centre-Back: Adil Rami
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A perfectly weighted ball over the top to assist Keisuke Honda for Milan's third goal was the highlight of a strong showing from defender Adil Rami.
While his partner in the centre of defence did not make things easy by giving the ball away on several occasions, Rami was the rock at the back who ensured his team were not punished too heavily on the scoreboard.
The 6'2" Frenchman is establishing himself as a certain starter in the centre of defence for coach Filippo Inzaghi.
Centre-Back: Stefan de Vrij
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Dutch defender Stefan de Vrij has had a mixed start to his Lazio career, but he put in his best performance so far in his side's 2-0 win over Fiorentina on Sunday.
The lanky centre-back was composed enough to deal with anything the Fiorentina forwards threw at him, and it is no small task to contain the likes of Khouma Babacar and Juan Cuadrado.
Still just 22, and coming off a good World Cup, de Vrij could yet become one of Serie A's finest defenders.
Right Midfield Jose Callejon
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Like most of the attacking players on the pitch, Jose Callejon was quiet for much of Napoli's match against Inter, but he came to life in the closing stages.
He put his side ahead with a sweet strike in the 79th minute, before repeating the dose as full-time approached.
The Spaniard has amassed six goals already in the league, and he is often proving Napoli's saviour as Gonzalo Higuain struggles to find the net.
Central/Defensive Midfield: Daniele De Rossi
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Roma very rarely lose when Daniele De Rossi plays one of his dominant games in midfield, and that was the case once again when the Giallorossi swept aside Chievo.
The visiting side's midfielders had no answer to the veteran Roma man, who sat deep and shielded the defence.
His rhythmic passing allowed fellow midfielders Radja Nainggolan and Miralem Pjanic to shine alongside him, and he won the penalty which Francesco Totti converted in the 33rd minute.
Central/Attacking Midfield: Hernanes
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Brazilian playmaker Hernanes has yet to consistently produce the form for Inter which made him such a star at Lazio.
His display against Napoli, however, was arguably one of his best for the Nerazzurri, and it augers well for the rest of the season.
Mateo Kovacic has regularly outshone Hernanes in midfield this season, but the tables were turned in this match, where the South American was seemingly involved in all of Inter's best attacking moves.
He was also the man to score Inter's dramatic late equaliser with a powerful header in injury time to cap off a man-of-the-match performance.
Left Midfield: Dodo
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Along with Hernanes, left-sided wing-back/midfielder Dodo was Inter's best player in their San Siro draw with Napoli.
The Brazilian assisted his countryman's goal at the death, and he always looked one of the most likely to create chances for his team.
He must take some responsibility for Callejon's opening goal along with Nemanja Vidic, but aside from that moment he was generally well-positioned in defence.
Right-Winger: Antonio Candreva
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Italian international Antonio Candreva can be a nightmare for opposition defenders when he is in the mood, and he was in the mood when Lazio travelled to Florence on Sunday.
The energetic 27-year-old was up and down the right flank all game and set up Filip Djordjevic for the opener.
He was involved in Lazio's second goal as well, this time putting the ball on a plate for Senad Lulic to tap home in injury time.
Candreva is off to a flying start to the 2014-15 campaign, having racked up five assists already.
Centre-Forward: Paulo Dybala
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Palermo fans have long known their club has a striker with massive potential on his books and now the rest of Serie A is beginning to realise just how good Paulo Dybala is.
The dynamic forward, who at times looks like a younger version of Sergio Aguero, was buzzing all over the attacking third and making a real menace of himself during the Sicilian club's 2-1 win over Cesena.
He even scored a delightful goal, curled into the top corner with his left foot after an evasive run down the right.
Left-Winger: Keisuke Honda
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Though he played on the right for Milan, we have shifted Keisuke Honda over to the left-hand side for our XI as we couldn't possible have left either him or Candreva out.
Honda has been superb in his second campaign for the Rossoneri, proving the theory that it often takes a season or so to get accustomed to life in a different league.
Thus far he has six goals and two assists from his seven appearances and would no doubt command a place in an overall Serie A best XI at this point.
Against Hellas Verona he was brilliant once again, adding two classy goals to his tally to lead his side to a 3-1 victory.
