From Leicester City’s continued dominance atop the English Premier League table with a win over Manchester City to Chelsea salvaging a single point in the final minutes against rival Manchester United, there was certainly plenty to talk about from a dramatic weekend in England’s top flight. Here is a look at the top individual performances based on position from this past weekend in the Premier League.
GK: Petr Cech, Arsenal
Arsenal managed to leapfrog Manchester City in to third place in the Premier League table with a 2-0 win over Bournemouth. Cech was the biggest beneficiary from an EPL fantasy perspective despite not having to do very much. Cech made only one save, but he earned bonus points for the win, clean sheet and full 90 minutes played. That was enough for him to edge out Everton’s Joel Robles and Aston Villa’s Mark Bunn for the best fantasy score among Premier League goalkeepers. With the performance, Arsenal now finds themselves in a tie with Tottenham with 48 points.
Honorable Mention: Joel Robles, Everton; Mark Bunn, Aston Villa
D: Robert Huth, Leicester City
Leicester continued its improbable run atop the Premier League standings with a 3-1 win over Manchester City. This time, it was their defender Huth who stepped up and played a starring role. Huth opened the scoring in the third minute and then added an insurance marker in the 60th minute to seal the victory. That was good enough to edge out Southampton’s Maya Yoshida and Tottenham’s Kieran Trippier for the best fantasy score at his position. Leicester City now has a five-point buffer between themselves and Tottenham/Arsenal in second place.
Honorable Mention: Maya Yoshida, Southampton; Kieran Trippier, Tottenham; Joleon Lescott, Aston Villa
M: Riyad Mahrez, Leicester
Mahrez continued to his run as Leicester’s most complete player this season with another outstanding performance versus City on Sunday. Mahrez’s goal wound up standing as the eventual game-winner and he also had an assist. He was awarded bonus points for the fact that his team did not concede a goal in the 76 minutes that he played as well. Jamie Vardy received the majority of the attention for his record scoring run, but Mahrez has been Leicester’s best player overall so far this season.
M: Roberto Firmino, Liverpool
Liverpool followed up a 2-0 loss to Leicester with another disappointing result this past weekend, as they barely managed to earn a point in a 2-2 draw with Sunderland. However, Firmino was a big reason they even managed to earn that point as he registered a goal and an assist. Liverpool would have liked the win, but Firmino certainly deserves credit for another strong performance as he edged out Everton’s Tom Cleverley and Arsenal’s Mesut Ozil for the second-best score in EPL fantasy for midfielders this past weekend. Liverpool is ninth in the table with 35 points.
Honorable Mention: Tom Cleverley, Everton; Mesut Ozil, Arsenal; Gylfi Sigurdsson, Swansea
F: Diego Costa, Chelsea
Chelsea fans haven’t had much reason to celebrate so far this season, but Costa provided them with a moment of elation when he scored in the opening minute of added time in order to secure a 1-1 draw with Manchester United. It was a relatively quiet weekend for Premier League forwards. Costa’s goal and bonus for a full 90 minutes played was enough for him to edge out the competition as the top performer at his position. Chelsea has now moved up to 13th in the standings, which has them seven points clear of the relegation zone.
F: Romelu Lukaku, Everton
Everton registered its second consecutive victory thanks in part to Lukaku’s contribution up front. He scored once in a 3-0 win over Stoke City. Lukaku’s goal in the 11th minute stood as the game-winner in the match and was enough to edge out Aston Villa’s Gabriel Agnoblahor and Newcastle’s Aleksander Mitrovic with the second-best fantasy stat line among Premier League forwards this past weekend. Everton continues to be a great source for EPL fantasy even though they are eighth in the table. Their 46 goals are the second-most in the EPL.
Honorable Mention: Gabriel Agnoblahor, Aston Villa; Aleksander Mitrovic, Newcastle; Sergio Aguero, Manchester United
