La Liga Team of the Week: Neymar Again in Form, Sevilla Trio Boss Real Madrid
Jornada 11 in La Liga brought some scintillating performances and very watchable matches once again, with Barcelona ending the weekend top of the table heading into the latest international break.
Our team of the week takes those individual displays from Spain's top flight and combines the best player from each position into a viable formation, with our selection process seeing us analyse every game to pick out a star XI from the weekend's fixtures. This week we feature a 4-3-3.
Only the best players in each position from this weekend's action are included here, leading—as always—to several tough decisions along the way. In addition to individual form, we take into account such factors as opposition quality and overall contribution to the team's display.
GK: Antonio Adan, BET
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Just edging out last week's choice, Ivan Cuellar, is Real Betis stopper Antonio Adan.
The former Real Madrid reserve was in great form to keep out Malaga on Saturday, making a number of big saves as the home side threatened to strike back—but Adan proved unbeatable and Betis eventually took a critical 1-0 victory.
Good distribution, competent aerial work and, of course, several decisive saves make him our Liga goalkeeper for this week.
RB: Mariano, SEV
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Mariano made our team of the week in Jornada 9, was left out of Sevilla's starting XI last week and is back in again this time out—regular starter Coke should be getting the message by now, as should manager Unai Emery.
The former Bordeaux defender was excellent in both halves of the pitch for the Andalusian club as they beat Real Madrid 3-2. He defended well against the infrequent threats of Cristiano Ronaldo down Real's left flank; and in the second half, once the home team had got on top of the match, the 29-year-old was a huge threat himself going forward.
His quick overlapping and sensible use of the ball kept Real on the back foot, and he has certainly staked his claim to be first choice going forward.
CB: Victor Ruiz, VIL
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One of La Liga's most in-form defenders this season, Victor Ruiz was once again excellent for Villarreal at the weekend, despite his team being beaten 3-0 by Barcelona.
The 26-year-old was the leader again and the reliable last line to continually repel the Catalan side's attack. He cleared the ball repeatedly, in the air and on the ground, and certainly can't be blamed for any of the goals as his full-backs eventually let him down with disappointing decision-making.
The Spanish defender makes it two weeks in a row in our team with this outing.
CB: Diego Godin, ATM
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Atletico Madrid's experienced Uruguayan centre-back Diego Godin hasn't quite been at the top of his game this season, with some odd mistakes and up-and-down form in the back line—but he was right back up to his usual level at the weekend.
Atleti won 1-0 against Sporting Gijon, and though they dominated long spells of play in the second half, the 29-year-old had to be at his best to make a number of blocks and tackles as Stefan Savic struggled a little beside him early on.
At the other end, Godin proved decisive as he raced forward in the last seconds and flicked on a high ball to let Antoine Griezmann score in injury time.
LB: Benoit Tremoulinas, SEV
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Mariano on one side, Benoit Tremoulinas on the other. Sevilla's full-backs were exceptional throughout, and if the right-back was impressive, the left-back was simply superb.
The French defender doubled up brilliantly down the flank in attack and was near-unbeatable in defence as he proved to be one of the best on the field. Tremoulinas was a constant threat with his delivery from the flank but also passed and dribbled infield with intelligence, attacking the space behind Madrid's midfield.
Having started the year slightly off form, the 29-year-old is back to his best in recent weeks and will aid Sevilla's push up the table.
CM: Sergio Busquets, FCB
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Barcelona dominated their match against Villarreal more and more as time went on and key to that was the positional work, defensive acumen and incisive passing of holding midfielder Sergio Busquets.
The Spain international was impressive with his ability to manoeuvre around the Villarreal midfield and continually find his attacking team-mates in the final third with line-breaking passes, the most critical of which was the instant assist threaded through to Neymar for the first goal.
Defensively, the 27-year-old was as impressive as ever as he contributed to the clean sheet in the 3-0 win.
CM: Mikel San Jose, ATH
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Also impressing in a holding role this weekend was Athletic Club's Mikel San Jose, who celebrated another good display with a call-up to the Spanish national team.
San Jose, 26, has been in a holding midfield role rather than centre-back for the past year for Athletic, where his rugged presence, aerial ability and natural defensive inclination means he protects the defence with aggression and persistence.
He was a key figure in Athletic's 2-1 win over Espanyol.
CM: Dani Parejo, VAL
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Celta Vigo looked by far the better side for long stretches at home to Valencia, but the away side ran out 5-1 winners in an improbable outcome.
A big part of the reason for that turn of events was Dani Parejo's consistent ability to pick holes in Celta's midfield line and exploit the spaces on the counter, allied to his tremendous end product both from set pieces and open play.
Parejo hit a top-corner free-kick right on the verge of half-time and added his second goal after the break. He also set up two goals, including a great cross to Shkodran Mustafi for the final effort.
WF: Neymar, FCB
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Our front three contributed four goals and two assists between them, and we'll start with the stand-out performer from La Liga this weekend, Barcelona's Neymar.
His irrepressible recent form has shot Barca to the top of La Liga, and he was immaculate once more against Villarreal. His footwork and dribbling gave Mario plenty of problems coming in off the left, while his two goals owed as much to composure as to technical excellence.
Neymar's second goal will live long in the memory and is a genuine candidate for goal of the season.
CF: Sergi Enrich, EIB
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Eibar picked up another big victory at the weekend, winning 3-1 at home to Getafe, with Sergi Enrich netting twice to send the team into sixth place in the table.
The 25-year-old scored his brace inside the first half-hour to twice put Eibar ahead, his first two goals of the season after returning to the starting XI for the first time in five games.
Enrich's all-round game was impressive with his work rate and link play, while he won the penalty for the killer third goal, too.
WF: Yevhen Konoplyanka, SEV
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Tremoulinas was impressive at left-back for Sevilla, but ahead of him was the real star player—winger Yevhen Konoplyanka.
The Ukrainian, 26, was a constant menace as he tormented Danilo throughout the encounter with his pace, dribbling and terrific ability to find a team-mate in the box, with Konoplyanka ending the match with two assists in the 3-2 win.
His outstanding recent form has helped push Sevilla closer to the top four in terms of points, if not positions yet; and his unstoppable running and defensive work make him a key part of his new side.
