De Bruyne, Firmino, Costa and Lukaku in team of the week
There are plenty of goals in this week's selection with three Man City players and two from Spurs and Bournemouth
Pep Guardiola's impact is visible just four games into the new Premier League season with his Manchester City side sitting top of the table with a 100 per cent record after their victory in the Manchester derby at Old Trafford.
After the latest round of games they are the only team left in England with a perfect record.
Close behind them are Everton and Chelsea who remain unbeaten with ten points. After the shocks of last season there is a distinctly familar feel to the top seven, which also features Manchester United, Spurs, Liverpool and Arsenal.
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Fans of champions Leicester may be fearing the worst after their 4-1 defeat to Liverpool on Saturday. They are 16th with four points from four games.
After the latest round of games that also featured handsome wins for Spurs and Everton who were the star of the show? Here's The Week's pick of the experts' picks:
Goalkeeper: Artur Boruc (Bournemouth)
One of only three keepers to keep a clean sheet this weekend Boruc was impressive as the Cherries beat West Brom 1-0, says the Daily Mirror. "The ex-Celtic and Fiorentina keeper has a reputation for being eccentric, but he proved a formidable last line of defence at Dean Court, making five smart stops across the 90 minutes, most notably one to deny Saido Berahino."
Defence: Adam Smith (Bournemouth), Kyle Walker (Spurs), Nicolas Otamendi (Man City), Laurent Koscielny (Arsenal)
The stats tell the story for Smith, says Goal.com. "Assisted the only goal of the game for Callum Wilson and made one tackle and two interceptions in defence. Also made 25 passes in the final third of the pitch from right-back." Walker also provided an assist as Spurs beat Stoke 4-0 and "his speed charging forward was a huge factor in Spurs' huge win", says the Daily Star.
Man City's defence was not at its most convincing against Man United on Saturday with one exception. Argentine centre back Otamendi kept Zlatan Ibrahimovic under control and provided "the bite and muscle his team-mates lack", says ESPN.
Like Otamendi, Koscielny spilt blood for the cause on Saturday and his performance impressed Metro. "Not only did Arsenal’s stand-in captain score a brilliant overhead kick, but he also kept an impressive Southampton at bay for much of the game."
Midfield: Fernandinho, Kevin De Bruyne (both Man City), Roberto Firmino (Liverpool)
The defence will need all the cover it can get this week and Fernandinho may have his work cut out. But he is the man for the job says the Star. He "did a brilliant job of shielding his defence at Old Trafford before later moving into a more attacking role.
His team-mate De Bruyne was the only ever-present player in the pundits' selections after a stellar show against United. "It was [United boss] Mourinho who told De Bruyne he wasn't good enough at Chelsea and sent him packing with a career to rebuild," says Garth Crooks of the BBC. "De Bruyne has come back to the Premier League with a vengeance and tore the heart out of Mourinho's side in the derby. In fact, the Belgium international already looks like a contender for player of the season."
Firmino is another midfielder-cum-striker who makes this week's selection after two goals for Liverpool against Leicester. "Firmino was a constant danger, with the pondering Foxes defence unable to contain him or deal with the high pressing which the Brazilian was leading," says Metro.
Attack: Son Heung-min (Spurs), Romelu Lukaku (Everton), Diego Costa (Chelsea)
Spurs forward Son Heung-min was the top point scorer on Fantasy Premier League with 19, partly because "the Korean scored with his only two shots on target in Spurs' 4-0 rout of Stoke City", as Goal.com notes. He also managed an assist and a clean sheet.
Lukaku had gone more than 1,100 minutes without scoring for Everton but hit three in 11 minutes against Sunderland on Monday. It was the first hat-trick of the season notes the Star and was worth 17 Fantasy Premier League points.
"Costa looks back to his very best this season and took his tally to four goals in four games with a brace against Swansea," says ESPN. "Love him or hate him, Chelsea would not be the same this season without him."
Eden Hazard, Raheem Sterling and Alexis Sanchez dominate team of the week
30 August
Could the Premier League turn out to be a three-horse race this season, with a trio of big clubs under high-profile new managers leading the way?
Manchester City, Chelsea and Manchester United are sitting pretty at the top of the table with three wins out of three.
Pep Guardiola's City and Antonio Conte's Chelsea cruised to victory over West Ham and Burnley.
Man United, however, left it late against Hull, although Marcus Rashford's injury-time goal was greeted as proof that the old United, who made a habit of scoring late winners under Sir Alex Ferguson, are back.
Arsenal and Leicester won for the first time this season, but they are both five points behind the pacesetters.
So who were the stand-out performers over the long-weekend? Here's The Week's pick of the experts' picks:
Goalkeeper: Shay Given (Stoke)
The 40-year-old is only filling in for Jack Butland but he still has what it takes. "The Potters may have lost 1-0 to Everton, but if it wasn't for the efforts of their Irish keeper, it might have been much worse," says ESPN.
Defence: Antonio Valencia (Man Utd), Danny Rose (Tottenham Hotspur), Curtis Davies (Hull City), Wes Morgan (Leicester City)
The Red Devils left it late against Hull, but Valencia "was a constant threat out wide for United and fired in the most crosses in the Premier League this weekend (14)", says Goal.com.
Spurs full-back Rose "did brilliantly to bring the ball down and hammer home the equaliser for Tottenham against Liverpool and helped keep out the Reds' army of attacking midfielders", says the Daily Star.
Davies of Hull makes the team for the third week running. It was "yet another sterling performance from the Hull City captain," says Garth Crooks of the BBC. "He has been immense so far this season and it was only down to the brilliance and composure of Manchester United captain Wayne Rooney that he and his team-mates did not share the points with a rampant United."
Defending champions Leicester registered their first win of the season against Swansea on Saturday. "The Leicester captain [Morgan] scored some important goals last season on the way to the title and he added another to the collection at the weekend. The Foxes desperately needed to get that first win under their belt and thanks to Morgan’s thunderous strike they got it," says Metro.
Midfield: Danny Drinkwater (Leicester City), N'Golo Kante (Chelsea), David Silva, Raheem Sterling (both Man City), Eden Hazard (Chelsea)
"I was really worried that Danny Drinkwater would suffer from midfield partner N'Golo Kante's departure to Chelsea. Instead, he's continued his superb form and... was at the heart of Leicester's excellent first half against Swansea and laid on yet another assist for Jamie Vardy," says Jamie Redknapp in the Daily Mail.
Talking of Kante, "Chelsea's big summer signing is showing what he can do for Antonio Conte's system," says the Star. "Brilliant at shielding his defence, breaking up play and starting attacks."
Silva "was integral" to Man City's win over West Ham. "The Spaniard assisted a goal and created four more scoring chances during the game," notes Metro. But player of the weekend could well have been Sterling, an ever-present in the experts' teams this week after two goals against the Hammers. "Sterling has had a hand in five goals in four appearances under Pep Guardiola (2 goals, 3 assists); as many has he produced in his last 22 under Manuel Pellegrini," notes Goal.com
Hazard is another unanimous pick after a fine display and a goal against Burnley. It looks as if the "Belgian attacker has returned to something like his top form", says ESPN. "He showed glimpses of his finest toward the end of last season and while some thought he might not respond well to Antonio Conte's relentless managerial style, it seems to be working so far."
Attack: Alexis Sanchez (Arsenal)
Someone has to play up front and of the many attacking midfielders in this week's team it's Sanchez of Arsenal who gets the nod. He is "not afraid to go in where it hurts", says Crooks of the BBC. "His goal was world class and the cross for Ozil's header had me jumping out of my seat on Final Score. He was the difference between Arsenal and Watford and why the Gunners demolished the Hornets in the first half."
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