Reluctant scorer Huth, effective Costa feature in EPL team of the week

Robert Huth doesn’t score much, but he did this week, twice against Manchester City.

If strengthening Leicester City’s title chances was not enough, we reward him with a place in the Premier League team of the week.

That divisive figure who goes by the name of Diego Costa too has made it.

Here’s our pick:

Formation: 3-4-3

Goalkeeper

Petr Cech (Arsenal): Four saves against Bournemouth got Cech another clean sheet for the season. He now has 12 in the Premier League, more than any other goalkeeper. A fingertip save was the Czech international’s most memorable contribution of the game. Following that, he stood strong to withstand a barrage of Bournemouth attacks without a single leak.

Defenders

Robert Huth (Leicester City): A terrific overall display from Leicester City saw them create a comfortable cushion between themselves at the top of the table and clubs chasing the top spot. Stand-out player Huth scored two goals as his side convincingly beat title contenders Manchester City to record a fantastic 3-1 away victory.

Maya Yoshida (Southampton): The Japanese defender scored a Premier League goal for the first time since December 2014. It was the only goal of the match and helped Southampton better West Ham United. The victory helped seventh-place Southampton close the gap on sixth-placed West Ham to one point.

Joleon Lescott (Aston Villa): Relegation battlers Aston Villa have been stringing together some decent performances at home and their 2-0 victory against Norwich City on the weekend was another great result for their hopes of staying in the Premier League. Lescott was a pillar in defence to keep a clean sheet. He also headed in the opening goal with the help of a deflection.

Midfielders

Tom Cleverley (Everton): Cleverly received praise for his incredible work rate in Everton’s 3-0 away victory against Stoke City. Cleverly put himself about all over the pitch as required; defending as Stoke hammered at Everton’s defence in the first half, and attacking on the break to get his side the three points. He earned a penalty for the first goal and swung in a corner which was headed in for the second.

Mesut Ozil (Arsenal): The previously hailed ‘King of the Assist’ was not able to claim an assist for himself this weekend but did make a vital impact on Arsenal’s victory against Bournemouth. Ozil opened the scoring by getting on the end of a knocked-down pass in the box and connected with a clean strike on the bouncing ball to score the game’s first goal.

Gylfi Sigurdsson (Swansea City): Sigurdsson was the best player for Swansea on the day. He created many chances for his striker’s as he built-up play from his attacking midfield role. The proverbial cherry on the cake from the Icelander was a goal of some class which he scored by curling in a brilliant free-kick over the Crystal Palace wall for the opener.

Riyad Mahrez (Leicester City): The Algerian has been in flying form since the season began and has not slowed down in spite of facing the best opposition. His powerful run into the box, crossover to side step the defender and calm finish left the Manchester City defence gaping as he stamped his mark on a famous away victory.

Forwards

Diego Costa (Chelsea): The controversial striker found it hard pickings for most of the game but stuck by his task to be rewarded in the end. Usually a slighted figure for his gamesmanship, Costa showed the positive qualities that brought him fame as he waited patiently and pounced on the error of a young, inexperienced full-back to equalize the scores in the dying minutes of the match.

Roberto Firmino (Liverpool): It was a day to forget for Liverpool as the team lost a two-goal lead in the last 10 minutes on the pitch while fans vacated the stands in protest of a hike in next season’s ticket prices. All the same, Firmino seemed to be focused on the job at hand as he headed in his fifth goal in five Premier League matches. He also claimed an assist by setting up Adam Lallana for the team’s second.

Jermain Defoe (Sunderland): The Englishman continued his fine run of form to score the equalizer for Sunderland and help cap off an excellent comeback. Defoe has now scored six goals in his last six league games for Sunderland. He has scored six goals in the Premier League in 2016; second only behind Sergio Aguero (seven goals) for the calendar year.