Team of the Week: Rampant Robbie

Eurosport - Mon, 28 Sep 20:25:00 2009

Robbie Keane tops our Team of the Week after scoring four at White Hart Lane, while it was a weekend to forget for Hull and Burnley after they conceded 11 goals between them.

FOOTBALL 2009-10 Premier League Tottenham's Robbie Keane celebrates scoring against Burnley - 0

HOW IT WORKS

We take marks out of 10 awarded to Premier League players from a selection of six national newspapers - The Sun, Daily Star, Daily Mirror, Daily Mail, The Times and the Guardian - then create an average and round to the nearest half. The top player in each position will be rewarded with a spot in the team of the week, while the worst scorers will be named and shamed in our Flops XI.

TEAM OF THE WEEK

Fernando Torres has rarely been out of the Team of the Week this season and with another three goals to his name in Liverpool's 6-1 win over Hull, it's little surprise the Spanish hitman once again makes up one half of our strike-force.

This week, though, he had solid competition in the form of Keane , who just pips Torres to player of the week with an outstanding 9.5 average rating thanks to his four goals against Burnley. Keane only missed out on the full 10 out of 10 on account of the fact he should have had a fifth goal.

Hendry Thomas gets the nod on the left wing for his part in Wigan's shock 3-1 mauling of Chelsea, while Andy Reid is rewarded for his creativity on the left after Sunderland put four past Wolves. They are joined by Tottenham's Jermaine Jenas and Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard.

Gary Cahill and Christophe Samba lead the back four while Emiliano Insua celebrated his maiden call up to the Argentina squad with a solid performance for Liverpool.

Third-choice Arsenal stopper Vito Mannone was comfortably the pick of the goalkeepers this week and rightly takes his place between the sticks.

Team of the week (4-4-2):

GK: Vito Mannone (Arsenal) - 8.5

RB: Emiliano Insua (Liverpool) - 7.5

CB: Gary Cahill (Bolton) - 8

CB: Christophe Samba (Blackburn Rovers) - 8

LB: Leighton Baines (Everton) - 7

RM: Andy Reid (Sunderland) - 7

CM: Jermaine Jenas (Tottenham) - 8

CM: Steven Gerrard (Liverpool) - 7.5

LM: Hendry Thomas (Wigan) - 8

FW: Robbie Keane (Tottenham) - 9.5

FW: Fernando Torres (Liverpool) - 9

FLOPS OF THE WEEK

It was a bad weekend for former Reading players with no fewer than four ex-Royals making our Flops of the Week, lead by Ibrahima Sonko, whose abysmal performance at the back saw Hull ship six goals at Anfield.

Team-mate Paul McShane hardly fared better with Stephen Hunt and Jan Venegoor of Hesselink also making the team thanks to lacklustre displays.

Chelsea get two spots in the line-up, with Petr Cech paying for his foul on Jack Rodellega with a red card, while John Obi Mikel was also singled out for derision.

Burnley duo Andre Bikey and Tyrone Mears were tortured by Jermain Defoe, Jenas and Keane and rightly take their place in the back four, and are joined by team-mate Graham Alexander in central midfield.

Flops of the week (4-4-2):

GK: Petr Cech (Chelsea) - 4

RB: Paul McShane (Hull) - 3.5

CB: Ibrahima Sonko (Hull) - 3

CB: Andre Bikey (Burnley) - 4

LB. Tyrone Mears (Burnley) - 4

RM: John Obi Mikel (Chelsea) - 4.5

CM: Graham Alexander (Burnley) - 4.5

CM: Stephen Hunt (Hull) - 4.5

FW: Dave Kitson (Stoke) - 4.5

FW: Jan Venegoor of Hesselink (Hull) - 4.5

TEAM OF THE SEASON (Minimum four starts)

David Dunn may have just missed out on a spot in Team of the Week, narrowly edged by Andy Reid, but his match-winning penalty for 10-man Blackburn against Aston Villa sees him take up his place in the midfield of Team of the Season.

Otherwise there is no change, with Ashley Cole just holding on to his spot at left-back, although Patrice Evra is snapping at his heels - another poor performance should see the England defender slip out of the running.

Team of the Season (4-4-2)

GK: Shay Given (Manchester City) - 7.33

RB: Glen Johnson (Liverpool) - 6.90

CB: Thomas Vermaelen (Arsenal) - 7.11

CB: Gary Cahill (Bolton) - 6.89

LB: Ashley Cole (Chelsea) - 6.86

RM: David Dunn (Blackburn) - 7.25

CM: Darren Fletcher (Manchester United) - 7.44

CM: Gareth Barry (Manchester City) - 7.40

LM: Ryan Giggs (Manchester United) - 7.25

FW: Emmanuel Adebayor (Manchester City) - 7.67

FW: Didier Drogba (Chelsea) - 7.62

FLOPS OF THE SEASON (Minimum four starts)

Hull's spanking by Liverpool sees both Kamil Zayatte and Kevin Kilbane slip into our Flops of the Season, while Wolves' Greg Halford's ignominious defeat by former club Sunderland also earns him a place in the team.

Carlo Cudicini fails to haul himself out of the team despite keeping a clean sheet against Premier League newboys Burnely, while special mention should also go to Clarets duo Ibrahima Sonko and Paul McShane, who are one start short of a much unwanted place in the team.

Flops of the Season (4-4-2)

GK: Carlo Cudicini (Tottenham) - 5.27

RB: Anthony Vanden Borre (Portsmouth) - 5.40

CB: Kamil Zayatte (Hull) - 5.58

CB: Marc Wilson (Portsmouth) - 5.11

LB: Stephen Jordan (Burnley) - 5.67

RM: Greg Halford (Wolves) - 5.62

CM: John Obi Mikel (Chelsea) - 5.25

CM: Hayden Mullins (Portsmouth) - 5.50

LM: Kevin Kilbane (Hull) - 5.42

FW: James Beattie (Stoke) - 5.33

FW: Andrew Johnson (Fulham) - 5.33

Eurosport

Comment 41 - 60 of 60

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  1. comment 40 get real! united will faulter like eny other­ team en wen they do then liverpool will seize the­ oppurtunity. if liverpool dont win premiership then i­ wnt eny other team. oh en torres should be team of the­ season coz hes done the best 4 liverpool en so haz glen­ johnson ! but torres haz done betta than most other­ teams alone. i think rooney should be up there en giggs­ even though i h8 man u en team players. but there both­ beta than ronaldo.
    You'll Never Walk Alone (YNWA)­ Liverpool
    MinaX

    From Aamina, on Fri 2 Oct 9:20AM

  2. its manchester United O' Clock. always ask fergie­ the time......

    From langbojang, on Wed 30 Sep 3:13PM

  3. If Torres rarely out of Team of the Week, why is he not­ in the Team of the Season ?

    From Liv4ever, on Tue 29 Sep 12:23PM

  4. When is Giggs please

    From nexhatkoxha, on Tue 29 Sep 11:30AM

  5. i hav no idea how it works..

    From wlinnp, on Tue 29 Sep 3:19AM

  6. the only reason man u are top is to keep the spot warm­ for bolton who are going to surprise us alll

    From andrew l, on Mon 28 Sep 11:41PM

  7. Insua at right back shows how much of a numpty the OP­ is.

    From bob, on Mon 28 Sep 10:07PM

  8. Gary Cahill for England, way better than Rio

    From Colly, on Mon 28 Sep 8:18PM

  9. Post 53, are U suffering from malaria? Read ur comment­ again and see if u'd nid to visit ur doctor.­ Eurosport Yahoo! Point of correction in dis article.­ Sunderland put 5 past Wolves and nt 4 as reported.­ Secondly, why was Ryan Giggs nt part of the team of the­ week? He's had more assists than any other player­ in the EPL including 5 in the last 2 matches. Also, why­ wuz Didier Drogba nd nt Wayne Rooney listed in the team­ of the season now that his Chelsea side were battered­ at Wigan? Get ur facts right pls

    From okparajerry, on Mon 28 Sep 8:09PM

  10. Post 53, are U suffering from malaria? Read ur comment­ again and see if u'd nid to visit ur doctor.­ Eurosport Yahoo! Point of correction in dis article.­ Sunderland put 5 past Wolves and nt 4 as reported.­ Secondly, why was Ryan Giggs nt part of the team of the­ week? He's had more assists than any other player­ in the EPL including 5 in the last 2 matches. Also, why­ wuz Didier Drogba nd nt Wayne Rooney listed in the team­ of the season now that his Chelsea side were battered­ at Wigan? Get ur facts right pls

    From okparajerry, on Mon 28 Sep 8:05PM

  11. yAYA... ARSENAL took cups when there was a genius­ henry.... now no one is as genius as him.. arshavin­ came to that level last yr, but not reaching to that­ par this yr.. atleast 2 grt players shuld be there to­ reign in d top 4.. so arsenal is in grt danger of out­ of chmp lg next yr
    liverpool(gerrard nd­ torres)
    manu(vidic nd ronaldo[last yr])
    chelsi(lampard­ nd cech)

    Arsenal have to do some thing....its players,­ not managers on ground

    From al_cet_cs_in, on Mon 28 Sep 7:55PM

  12. I SLEEP WITH A BLOW UP DOLL OF RYAN GIGGS SOMW NIGHTS I­ HARDLY GET ANY SLEEP AT ALL AND RYAN'S 35 !!

    From rafascrackingup, on Mon 28 Sep 7:47PM

  13. GIGGS SHOULD ALSO TAKE A SHOWER WITH ME AND MY YOUNG­ BOYFRIEND

    From rafascrackingup, on Mon 28 Sep 7:30PM

  14. What about cheese on toast, amazing stuff top left and­ bottom right.

    From joanneproctor26, on Mon 28 Sep 7:17PM

  15. One thing is clear as day, all man u fans comment on­ every story, SHAME on them though they walk in the­ shade of Shyte. Dont care what team your tied 2, In a­ way thats sad an lame to you all blog muppets anyway.­ Im sure as left is left an right is right Donney will­ show on her get your anigma matchine out ready.

    From joanneproctor26, on Mon 28 Sep 7:16PM

  16. WHAT ABOUT TITUS BRAMBLE???

    From miniroll32, on Mon 28 Sep 7:07PM

  17. Robbie Keane. What a player! The best forward of Spurs­ ever. He was doing a great job at Liverpool. He claimed­ his place and went out six months later. Why? Better­ for Tottenham.

    From Pedro, on Mon 28 Sep 6:21PM
  18. Comment hidden due to its low rating. Show

    lol...really? I found a place that many players are­ hoo king up with h ot mo dels, seems the club called:­ __Tallconnect Co M___, do you hear this before?

    From sallymart3333, on Mon 28 Sep 5:57PM

  19. what about wayne rooney?

    From anthonyak88, on Mon 28 Sep 5:54PM

  20. In the begining there was light, and god said "let­ there be sausage rolls" and yay there were sausage­ rolls aplenty, then god said "let there be Ian­ dowie" and yay the earth fell under a deep­ darkness...

    From Gaylord, on Mon 28 Sep 5:49PM
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