Manchester City are represented in the latest Premier League team of the week that has been selected by BBC pundit Garth Crooks.
Actually Garth is now down as a ‘Football Analyst’ these days, a posh term for a pundit then!
The performance by Fernandinho in the three two victory over West Bromwich Albion at the weekend at The Hawthorns was enough to earn them a place in the side alongside the other, in the opinion of the former Spurs striker anyway, most impressive performers in the topflight over the latest weekend.
I think we’ll already know ourselves, and not just based on the latest performance, why Crooks, we’ll also not argue with it, selected Fernandinho as part of his team but explaining his choice he told the BBC.
‘I love unsung heroes, and in a team of superstars Fernandinho is about as unsung as it gets. The 32-year-old Brazilian made my team of the week on a number of occasions last season at full-back, as well as in midfield, but in this star-studded outfit he complements Kevin de Bruyne and David Silva perfectly. Against a totally outclassed West Brom, Fernandinho seemed to continually enjoy finding Leroy Sane on City’s left-hand side with a lovely right-foot pass. In fact, that is where City’s first goal came from and it continued to be a problem for the Baggies throughout the match. Fernandinho is a model professional; no flashy haircuts, and certainly no dye in his hair. He doesn’t come to work as though he’s auditioning for a modelling job on a Paris catwalk, or attract unnecessary attention to himself. In fact, the only attention he attracts is for what he does with the football, and that’s the way it should be. That is why, since his arrival at Manchester City, every manager has selected him on a regular basis. Fernandinho won the Premier League under Manuel Pellegrini and now – with 28 points from a possible 30, and 35 goals in 10 games – Pep Guardiola looks like he could be adding a second title to the Brazilian’s collection. The football City are playing under Guardiola must be making Manchester United fans weep.’
It’s always good to see the club represented in this way, and well played to Fernandinho for his recognition, but the most important thing about the weekend was of course taking the win.
Full Team:
Joe Hart (West Ham), Cesar Azpilicueta (Chelsea), Ryan Shawcross (Stoke City), Antonio Rudiger (Chelsea), Antonio Valencia (Manchester United), Fernandinho (Manchester City), Demarai Gray (Leicester City), Sead Kolasinac (Arsenal), Wilfried Zaha (Crystal Palace), Jamie Vardy (Leicester City), Eden Hazard (Chelsea).
