EPL Hot 11: Emmanuel Adebayor, Juan Mata Shine in Match Day 13

Two Tottenham stars occupy a couple of slots in the top three in this week's EPL Hot 11, as Emmanuel Adebayor and Gareth Bale were integral components to Spurs' continuous run of winning football.

Chelsea's Juan Mata is every bit as good as advertised when he arrived from Valencia in the summer, and he provided a great spark in Chelsea's triumph over the weekend.

Surprisingly, given his red-hot scoring form, Robin van Persie did not score, effectively dropping him in the rankings. Nevertheless, there is no footballer in better form than the Arsenal captain.

Every Wednesday, 11 footballers in the Premier League will make up the EPL Hot 11, a fluctuating power ranking that highlights the top performers over the course of the entire season. Dependent on their match-day performances, players may move up or down the list each week.

Emmanuel Adebayor

Emmanuel Adebayor shoots to the top of the rankings this week by following up his double last weekend with another two-goal effort in Tottenham's 3-1 win over West Brom in Match Day 13.

After Aaron Lennon drew a foul in the box in the 25th minute, Adebayor stepped to the spot. The on-loan striker took it poorly, but the rebound luckily came right back to him before finishing into the net.

The lanky Togolese added an assist in the 81st minute with a clever flick to Jermain Defoe at midfield, and the speedy striker took it the rest of the way, scoring at the near post with his right foot.

Not to be denied his double in the third minute of stoppage time, Adebayor took a late Gareth Bale pass in the middle of the box. Although the keeper managed a hand on the ball, it was not enough to prevent Adebayor from recording his fourth goal in two games.

Juan Mata

Seventh minute - Mata put in a cross from the left side, finding captain John Terry.

29th minute - Mata took a lay-off from Raul Meireles on the left side of the box before beating the defender and finding Daniel Sturridge with a cross.

45th minute - Mata took Ashley Cole's cross first time from just in front of the spot, giving the keeper no chance.

Gareth Bale

Gareth Bale continues to produce for Tottenham.

With an assist to Emmanuel Adebayor in Spurs' 3-1 triumph over West Brom, Bale's dime makes four straight Premier League games with at least a goal or an assist.

The Welshman maintained that streak against the Baggies in the 93rd minute after corralling a long-distance ball and leaving it onto Adebayor in the middle of the box.

Apart from his statistical production, Bale's on-ball form continues to stay at a high level, which means challenges ahead for Tottenham's future opponents.

Robin van Persie

After five weeks atop the EPL Hot 11, Robin van Persie's goalless outing against Fulham drops him in this week's rankings.

If it were not for a fantastic display of defense in the 59th minute from Chris Baird, van Persie easily would have had a goal in his sixth straight league match. After corralling a Mikel Arteta through-ball, the Dutchman reversed before lashing a left-footed shot past the keeper, but Baird was perfectly positioned to block the ball away to maintain the scoreless draw.

Despite the captain's failure to net a goal, he still remains the hottest footballer in England's top flight.

But, rest is on the way, as Arsene Wenger has flagged van Persie as being "in the red."

Demba Ba

Demba Ba ended his two-game scoring drought with a penalty in the 64th minute.

The Rio Ferdinand challenge was quite controversial, but despite the debate, Ba converted to equalize for what would be a 1-1 final with United.

It was a cool and collected finish from the Newcastle striker, a characteristic that has had the Frenchman score nine times this season.

Theo Walcott

Theo Walcott is emerging.

For the past few matches now, Walcott's form is slowly increasing. His speed is standard, but his finishing touch and ball control is bettering the offensive prowess of the Gunners.

And for a match that did not see Robin van Persie score for the first time in five games, Walcott had an ever-important assist that brought the game level at 1-1 with Fulham in the 82nd minute.

For the speedy winger, that makes consecutive Premier League matches with an assist—the first time he has done so since December 2010.

Thomas Vermaelen

Gunners' defender Thomas Vermaelen went from villain to hero in Arsenal's 1-1 draw with Fulham Saturday.

Fulham got on the board first, but from an unlikely source. Danny Murphy lifted a troubling ball into the Arsenal defense, and after John Arne Riise chested it down, it was Vermaelen who got the final touch as the ball dribbled into the corner of the net for a 65th-minute own goal.

Vermaelen would make amends in the 82nd minute after the Belgian rushed unmarked into the final third to receive Theo Walcott's cross just outside of the 6-yard box. With a powerful header into the ground, Mark Schwarzer could do little to prevent the Gunners from equalizing to salvage a point.

Grant Holt

Grant Holt has done most of his damage for Norwich City from the bench this season, and he continued that run in the Canaries' 2-1 win over QPR Saturday.

Holt came on as a substitute in the 70th minute, replacing Simeon Jackson. Barely three minutes later, Norwich's No. 9 was at the end of a Wes Hoolahan cross just inside the 6-yard box to net the winning goal, snapping the club's two-game losing streak.

The goal was Holt's fourth of the campaign and his third consecutive from the bench.

Tim Krul

A couple of keepers in the Premier League had incredible matches this weekend, most notably City's Joe Hart and Newcastle's Tim Krul. Although both guarded the goals for two clubs that finished with draws, Krul did so against a determined Manchester United team that laid 29 shots towards his net.

After giving up three goals in last weekend's contest against Manchester City, Krul was in top form against United.

The Dutch keeper made several fine saves, but perhaps the most critical of them all came seconds before the 80th minute. A Ryan Giggs cross connected with Nemanja Vidic from point blank, but Krul's shoulder proved to be the difference between a 2-1 United win and a 1-1 result for the Magpies.

Newcastle may have dropped points against City, but Krul made sure to secure at least one point against United.

Diniyar Bilyaletdinov

Diniyar Bilyaletdinov provided some encouraging support from the left flank in Everton's 2-0 win over Bolton at the Reebok, and it began in the 19th minute after the Toffees went a man up after the Russian drew harsh challenge from David Wheater, who was immediately sent off.

With the man-advantage going into the second half, Bilyaletdinov put a delicate ball into Marouane Fellaini, whose sliding effort put Everton ahead in the 49th minute.

The 26-year-old nearly had another assist in the 70th minute from about the same spot as the first. But, Tim Cahill's header was parried away nicely by the keeper.

Franco Di Santo and James McCarthy

In a weekend of goal-snatching victories, Wigan may have gotten the most dramatic in the Latics' 2-1 win over Sunderland.

Poor defense from keeper Kieren Westwood and defender Wes Brown during the third minute of extra time left substitute James McCarthy and Franco di Santo with an open chance at goal, and di Santo could never miss.

Di Santo's fourth goal of the campaign was a cheap way for Wigan to collect three points for its second win of the season and the first since a 2-0 win over QPR on Aug. 27.