The Premier League returned after a long break for Gameweek 32, and it was a big one.
Arsenal were beaten by Bournemouth, which allowed Manchester City to close the gap at the top of the table to six points after their victory against Chelsea. Liverpool also strengthened their top five hopes by beating Fulham.
At the other end of the table, West Ham United beat Wolverhampton Wanderers 4-0 to move out of the relegation zone. And the Hammers have four players in our Squawka Score Team of the Week. Man City have three players, while Liverpool also contributed two.
The Squawka Score is our proprietary performance rating, combining multiple Opta stats into a single percentage. It benchmarks players against their positional peers, allowing quick comparisons. Learn more about how it works here: https://www.squawka.com/en/news/squawka-score-explained/
GK: Bart Verbruggen (Brighton)
- Squawka Score: 84%
Brighton and Hove Albion looked comfortable in their victory over relegation-threatened Burnley on Saturday. But Bart Verbruggen still had a fair bit of work to do. He made four saves, all of which came from shots inside his box and prevented 0.91 goals. And, of course, he kept a crucial clean sheet.
Honourable mention: Gianluigi Donnarumma (83%)
Gianluigi Donnarumma was another to keep a clean sheet, and he prevented 1.18 goals despite only making three saves.
RB: Kyle Walker-Peters (West Ham)
- Squawka Score: 70%
Kyle Walker-Peters played a key role in West Ham United’s comprehensive victory over Wolverhampton Wanderers, at both ends of the pitch. He won three tackles, made one interception retaining possession and was part of a defence to face just three shots on target. But he also completed two take-ons, created one big chance and completed 100% of his open-play crosses.
Honourable mention: Nordi Mukiele (70%)
Nordi Mukiele has still been credited with Sunderland’s winning goal against Tottenham Hotspur. He also won two tackles and blocked one cross.
CB: Marc Guehi (Man City)
- Squawka Score: 77%
Marc Guehi was a goalscorer for Man City in their win over Chelsea, but that’s not the only reason he made the TOTW. Guehi was excellent on the ball, boasting a retention rate of 97.46% and completing 20 passes into the final third. He was excellent defensively too. The Englishman won two tackles, made three interceptions retaining possession and blocked two shots as well as having a 100% success rate in his ground duels.
Honourable mention: Jaydee Canvot (68%)
Crystal Palace fans are in love with Jaydee Canvot. The 19-year-old made seven clearances and won four possessions in the defensive third at the weekend.
CB: Konstantinos Mavropanos (West Ham)
- Squawka Score: 72%
Another goalscoring centre-back, Konstantinos Mavropanos actually netted twice for West Ham against Wolves. But he also won possession and impressive five times in the defensive third, the second-most of any centre-back this week. Mavropanos made five clearances, won four aerial duels and 100% of his ground battles.
Honourable mention: Olivier Boscagli (68%)
Olivier Boscagli won possession four times in the middle third for Brighton, alongside seven clearances.
LB: Nico O’Reilly (Man City)
- Squawka Score: 71%
Nico O’Reilly kicked off the scoring for Man City in their win over Chelsea, and it was another strong performance. The Englishman had four touches in the opposition box and completed three passes in to the final third, alongside his goal. At the other end of the pitch, O’Reilly only faced one shot on target while he was on the pitch and won two tackles.
Honourable mention: Tyrick Mitchell (69%)
Tyrick Mitchell won two tackles for Crystal Palace in their win over Newcatsle United, creating one big chance and providing an assist.
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DM: Amadou Onana (Aston Villa)
- Squawka Score: 78%
Aston Villa may have had to settle for a draw with Nottingham Forest, but Amadou Onana put in an excellent performance. The Belgian boasted a retention rate of 94.29% with six completed passes into the final third, looking confident on the ball. He was also breaking up play with two interceptions retaining possession, including one in his own box, and three possessions won in the defensive third.
Honourable mention: Pascal Gross (75%)
Pascal Gross made seven passes into the penalty area for Brighton against Burnley. He also provided an assist, setting up Mats Wieffer for the opening goal.
DM: Dominik Szoboszlai (Liverpool)
- Squawka Score: 75%
Dominik Szoboszlai was another strong midfielder in winning the ball back this weekend. He made an impressive four interceptions retaining possession, and won possession three times in the middle third. Two of those interceptions came in his own box too! Szoboszlai was just as good on the ball, with 92.42% open-play passing accuracy and 100% accuracy for passes into the final third.
Honourable mention: Granit Xhaka (73%)
Granit Xhaka will have loved Sunderland win over Tottenham more than most. He made 20 accurate forward passes and won three tackles in a good midfield battle.
RW: Jarrod Bowen (West Ham)
- Squawka Score: 74%
Jarrod Bowen helped get the weekend underway in emphatic fashion, recording two intentional assists in West Ham’s thumping of Wolves. He created three chances overall, two of which were big chances, with 50% success rate in his open-play crosses. Bowen had one shot on target himself and posted 0.52 non-penalty xG, though he was definitely more creative. He also made six ball recoveries.
Honourable mention: Antoine Semenyo (69%)
Antoine Semenyo completed five take-ons in Man City’s win over Chelsea and also had two shots on target.
No.10: Rayan Cherki (Man City)
- Squawka Score: 77%
Rayan Cherki ran the show for Man City in their victory against Chelsea, setting up two of their three goals. They were the two chances he created, both of which were big chances. The Frenchman completed 75% of his attempted take-ons and had four touches in the opposition box. Cherki also posted 0.49 non-penalty post shot xG and completed 27 final third passes.
Honourable mention: Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall (75%)
Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall scored Everton’s late equaliser against Brentford, and hit the target twice while having two chances created.
LW: Rio Ngumoha (Liverpool)
- Squawka Score: 80%
The star of the week was inarguably Rio Ngumoha, who has staked his claim to be a consistent starter for Liverpool. The teenager opened the scoring for Liverpool against Fulham with one of his two shots on target, posting 0.25 non-penalty post-shot xG. He had a whopping 10 touches in the opposition box in total, completed 14 final third passes and completed all of his open-play crosses. Not to mention, he also created two chances.
Honourable mention: Jeremy Doku (75%)
Jeremy Doku had 13 touches in the opposition box against Chelsea and scored with his only shot on target.
ST: Taty Castellanos (West Ham)
- Squawka Score: 77%
Taty Castellanos was excellent in West Ham’s win over Wolves, scoring two goals. He led the line expertly well, and was the focal point the Hammers have been missing for a long time. He had three shots on target in total, with 1.06 non-penalty post-shot xG from 0.55 non-penalty xG. So he was increasing his chances of scoring based on shot placement. Castellanos also had four touches in the opposition box, won three aerial duels and completed two lay-off passes.
Honourable mention: Beto (73%)
Beto scored with his only shot on target in Everton’s draw with Brentford, from 0.7 xG.