Premier League Awards For Matchday 31: Best XI?

Matchday 31 Awards

None of the teams that were in the top 5 before the start of the matchday managed to win this week, which obviously means that we have witnessed some very interesting results over the weekend.

Arsenal failed to beat Everton at Goodison Park but still narrowed the gap at the top by one point thanks to Fulham beating Liverpool in a pulsating encounter.

The Manchester Derby left us all feeling like we could have done something much more entertaining with our time, while Chelsea could only play a blank draw against Brentford.

At the foot of the table, once again all three bottom-placed teams lost. Southampton were mathematically relegated after losing to Tottenham, Newcastle took Leicester apart and Wolves pulled further clear of the drop with a comeback win against Ipswich.

As usual, you can click here to check out all our reports from this round’s action.

And you can visit our YouTube channel for previews of each matchday, as well as predictions and hot takes on current EPL topics.

But back to the task at hand: who earned our Premier League awards this time? Read on to find out.

Best Player

This one goes to Newcastle’s Jacob Murphy, who scored an early brace against Leicester to ensure that his team are on their way to fifth place, now level on points with Chelsea.

It was a great performance from a player who has shown a new level to his game this season and is one of the people Eddie Howe is hoping will be pushing the Magpies all the way to a Champions League spot.

Also, Fabian Schär’s assist via the crossbar for Murphy’s second goal was a thing of beauty, right?

Leicester City 0 Newcastle United 3 | Premier League Highlights | Murphy Strikes Twice!

Best XI

GK – Mark Flekken (Brentford)

RB – Tino Livramento (Newcastle)

CB – Josko Gvardiol (Manchester City)

CB – William Saliba (Arsenal)

LB – Antonee Robinson (Fulham)

CM – Youri Tielemans (Aston Villa)

CM – James Maddison (Tottenham)

CM – Joao Gomes (Wolves)

RW – Jacob Murphy (Newcastle)

ST – Jorgen Strand Larsen (Wolves)

LW – Alex Iwobi (Fulham)

Best Goal

While Liverpool were definitely not at their best in their game against Fulham, with an exceptionally bad performance in the first half, our award for Best Goal goes to Alexis Mac Allister, who unleashed a vicious shot from 25 yards out that left Bernd Leno with no chance.

You can see it below, along with the highlights from a great game.

Highlights: Fulham 3-2 Liverpool | Mac Allister screamer, but Reds beaten!

Best Game

As we’ve already mentioned, we thoroughly enjoyed the match at Craven Cottage and it’s the same Fulham vs Liverpool game that wins our Best Game award this week.

Best Stats

No team has been relegated from the Premier League earlier than Southampton did this season, with seven games of the campaign still left to play.

Ruben Dias’ yellow card after 38 seconds on Sunday is the earliest a player has been booked in the Manchester Derby since records began in 2006.

Best/Worst VAR Decision

Big Ange, we agree. The VAR delays are really getting out of hand, mate.

https://twitter.com/i/status/1908920031917777106

Best Substitution

Pablo Sarabia came off the bench to help Wolves turn it around against Ipswich and, boy, did he deliver.

Subbed on in the 65th minute, he found the net seven minutes later and then assisted Strand Larsen with six minutes left to play for the winning goal.

You couldn’t ask more from a substitute.

Funniest Moment

It’s fair to say that Gary Neville did not enjoy the Manchester Derby.

“They’re going to go for a roast dinner together now. They’re micromanaged to an inch of their lives, so robotic and it’s symptomatic of a lot of games that we’re watching nowadays.”

We hear you, Gary.