Barclays Premier League Top 3 Players - Week 5

This blog post is going to be my pick of the top 3 players in the Premier League this weekend.

Brad Guzan (Aston Villa):

Brad Guzan may seem like a weird selection, but at the end of the day sometimes it boils down to the result and not how you got there. Against Norwich Brad Guzan didn’t make eight or nine world-class saves but he did produce enough to mean he was the difference between the two sides. Not only did he stop a penalty but he also kept out Gary Hooper right at the end, with a couple more stops in between. What that meant was that Villa kept their first clean sheet of the season, a first in 27 games, and recorded a first win in three Premier League games. Their run since their opening day victory at the Emirates had started to get concerning, especially when they suffered a home reverse against Newcastle. This win gets Paul Lambert’s men back on track and it is in no small part down to Guzan. The American was arguably Villa’s most consistent performer last season (barring Christian Benteke) and his performances justified the exile of the experienced Shay Given.


Mesut Özil (Arsenal):

I resisted putting in the German after his encouraging debut last week but on Sunday he stole the show against Stoke. With three assists he played a huge hand in Arsenal’s victory and his set-pieces were a constant threat to a Stoke side that are normally good in those situations. Aside from his dead balls he looked the usual composed figure on the ball and he put in another excellent outing for his team. The thing about Özil, apart from his assists, is that he possesses terrific movement, almost unparalleled to any other player. He was at it again against Stoke and the defense had no way of coping with him – and you suspect they won’t be the last. Özil is a world class player and we should expect many more showings like this throughout the rest of the season.

Vincent Kompany (Manchester City):

I could have just about put the entire Manchester City XI in this week, they were that good against Manchester United in the derby. United were poor no question, but City were terrific and didn’t give United an inch. My pick though was Kompany. Watching the match you got the impression that Kompany was in the zone, and there was little Wayne Rooney could do to faze him. It might have been different had Robin van Persie been fit to play but Kompany shut down every United attack and looked unbreakable at the back. When Kompany is fit and on form he is one of the best in the world and provides a huge boost to everyone else in the team.