EPL Team Of The Week, Game Day 4: Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool Players Included
Another weekend of Premier League action brings another plethora of excitement and upsets.
Manchester United were stunned by Everton in injury time by conceding two late goals. Everton manager David Moyes also received a further shock when the referee blew for time as his side were on the counter attack just yards from the United penalty area.
Chelsea and Arsenal both continued their scoring with three and four goals, respectively. Chelsea also conceded their first goal of the season against West Ham.
Liverpool, Manchester City, and Tottenham all played out draws and joined United by gaining just a single point in the fourth weekend of play.
Blackpool continued its winning form by upsetting Newcastle 2-0.
The following is the best starting XI from game day four of the Premier League, with the formation in use being the newly trendy 4-5-1.
Goalkeeper: Pepe Reina - Liverpool
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Liverpool was far from entertaining against Birmingham City, but there was one Liverpool player who earned his week's wages and was worth the price of admission, and that was Spanish keeper Pepe Reina.
Coming back from international duty, where one of Argentina's four goals was a result of a terrible blunder from Reina, he put in a world-class performance.
Reina made two top-quality saves, which showed Liverpool's No. 1's cat-like reflexes.
The Reds have Reina to thank for at least gaining a point from their trip to Saint Andrews.
Right Back: Stephen Carr - Birmingham City
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Birmingham put on a great team display in not only preventing Liverpool from generating any attack of its own, but also in attacking Liverpool and trying to go out and take the game.
Stephen Carr put in a nice performance for the Blues, as he nullified anything that came down Liverpool's left.
Neither Jovanovic or Konchesky could really make anything up against Carr. The Irish defender also helped his side in attack, when possible.
Center Back: Robert Huth - Stoke City
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Aston Villa faced Stoke City in the final game of the Week 4 matchups. Aston Villa was hoping to take advantage of a Stoke side that had yet to get a win in Premier League, but thanks to Robert Huth, Stoke got its first win.
Huth was solid in the back alongside Ryan Shawcross. Aston Villa's strikers had very little to work with thanks to Huth.
He also popped up at the most important time for Stoke to net the winner.
Center Back: Sebastien Squillaci - Arsenal
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There is nothing new about Arsene Wenger signing a French player, although the age of the centre back he brought to the Emirates was questioned.
He was proven correct after a very solid performance against Bolton. Sebastien Squilaci has done nothing wrong at the back for Arsenal, and he performed superbly in a one-on-one situation to prevent a sure goal-scoring chance for Bolton.
The sending off made his day easier, but still Arsenal fans should be feeling a lot more secure.
Left Back: Ashley Cole - Chelsea
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Great left backs are at a premium in football, and Chelsea is blessed to have one of the best. Ashley Cole has not been at his sublime best just yet, but he is certainly at a point where he is helpful for the London side.
Ashley Cole made no mistakes, and nullified everything that West Ham threw at him—which was not much, but he still did his job.
Cole also pitched in with the majority of Chelsea's attacks.
Defensive Midfield: Phil Jones - Blackburn Rovers
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Blackburn is a tough, hard-nosed, defensive team. Sam Allardyce drills his team to play with discipline and courage—and that is exactly what Phil Jones has done.
Originally a centerback, Phil Jones was moved farther up the pitch so his footballing ability could be put to better use for his team.
Since the move, he has become a very important part of the Blackburn team. Jones used his great feet and passing to move the ball around for Rovers, while also getting stuck in to break up City attacks.
Centre Midfield: Michael Essien - Chelsea
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Last week, I said that Essien was showing signs of returning to the great form that had many considering him as the best defensive midfielder in the league.
He just took another huge step against West Ham towards reaching his very best. Essien dominated the centre of the pitch against West Ham.
The Ghanaian midfielder was involved in everything Chelsea put together, and he came forward to net twice with his head.
Centre Midfield: Cesc Fabregas - Arsenal
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Arsenal fought all summer long to keep his services, and Cesc Fabregas showed just why Arsene Wenger was so intent on retaining him.
Cesc Fabregas ran the show against Bolton. Fabregas was in the middle of everything for Arsenal. His passing and possession was second to none, and his assist for Carlos Vela was an exquisite chipped pass.
He also set up a goal by sending in a cross for Arsenal's Moroccan striker.
Right Winger: Nani - Manchester United
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Manchester United forked out quite a significant amount of money to take the Portuguese winger to Old Trafford, and Nani has slowly started to repay Alex Ferguson for his faith in him.
Nani caused a lot of problems when he ran at the back four of Everton. He sent in an inch-perfect cross, which was unmissable for Darren Fletcher.
Nani also whipped in a great ball for his Serbian teammate Nemanja Vidic to head home.
Left Winger: Adam Johnson - Manchester City
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Adam Johnson is just what England has been missing, and the form he has hit in the England jersey is slowly starting to transform over into the sky-blue shirt.
Johnson was a constant threat for Manchester City against Blackburn. Gael Givet was tortured all day long and just could not handle the young English starlet.
Johnson could have easily scored twice, coming close in the first half, but just failing to hit the back of the net.
Forward: Moussa Dembele - Fulham
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Fulham paid £5 million to bring the young Belgian from AZ to Craven Cottage, and he has gone a long way toward repaying Fulham already.
Wolves looked set to take all three points, until Dembele popped up and struck two strikes into the back of the net, one of which was from a free-kick.
He was a constant threat and could have had a hat trick.
With Bobby Zamora out with an injury, Moussa Dembele is going to see a lot of time for Fulham.
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