As the Premier League gameweek 32 came to an end, Manchester United and Wolverhampton Wanderers were the biggest winners as both Leicester City and Chelsea dropped points in the race for Champions League qualification.
While newly-crowned champions, Liverpool were thrashed 4-0 by second-placed Manchester City, the relegation fight remains tight as ever, with Norwich City looking likely to be the first team whose top-flight status can be snatched away in the coming weeks.
Premier League gameweek 32 results:
Aston Villa 0 – 1 Wolverhampton Wanderers
Watford 1 – 3 Southampton
Crystal Palace 0 – 1 Burnley
Brighton and Hove Albion 0 – 3 Manchester United
Arsenal 4 – 0 Norwich
Bournemouth 1 – 4 Newcastle
Everton 2 – 1 Leicester City
West Ham United 3 – 2 Chelsea
Sheffield United 3 – 1 Tottenham Hotspur
Manchester City 4 – 0 Liverpool
Without further ado, let’s take a look at our Premier League Team of the Week for gameweek 32. The formation usedis 4-2-4.
Goalkeeper: Nick Pope (Burnley)
Nick Pope has been one of the standout goalkeepers in the Premier League for the second season running now. The England international has been consistent and one of the main reasons behind Burnley occupying the 10th spot on the table. Pope made the highest number of saves (4) and the third-highest recoveries (7) in the 1-0 win over Crystal Palace. He has kept 13 clean sheets in the league this season and leads the race for the Golden Glove.
Right-back: Aaron Wan-Bissaka (Manchester United)
The full-back, who was signed by Manchester United from Crystal Palace last summer, has improved tremendously as the season progressed. In a must-win game against Brighton and Hove Albion, Aaron Wan-Bissaka put in a flawless performance. The England international provided the assist for Manchester United’s first goal, helped keep a clean sheet and made the highest number of tackles for his side (3) as the Red Devils cruised to a 3-0 victory.
Centre-back: Harry Maguire (Manchester United)
Harry Maguire might come under criticism for his lack of pace or occasional mistakes, but the Manchester United captain has been performing well consistently throughout the season. Against Brighton, he completed the highest number of passes in the game (85) and also managed the highest number of blocks (1) as Manchester United comfortably won 3-0 to remain firmly in the hunt for Champions League football next season.
Centre-back: Ben Mee (Burnley)
The Burnley captain is one of the most underrated defenders in the Premier League. Ben Mee’s centre-back partnership with James Tarkowski has been immense to the success of the Clarets for the last few seasons, and it was on display once again against Crystal Palace. Besides helping his side keep a clean sheet, Mee scored his first goal of the campaign in the 1-0 win over the Eagles.
Left-back: Jonny Castro (Wolverhampton Wanderers)
The Spaniard, who can play as a left-back or a left wing-back, is a very reliable player for Champions League-chasing Wolves. Jonny Castro provided a cheeky assist for the only goal of the match against Aston Villa, besides helping his side keep a clean sheet.
Central midfielder: Kevin De Bruyne (Manchester City)
The Manchester City captain simply destroyed the new champions, Liverpool in a 4-0 rout at the Etihad. Kevin De Bruyne had a scintillating game as he opened up the scoring before setting up Phil Foden with a brilliant assist for the Citizens’ third goal. The Belgian has managed 11 goals and 17 assists in 30 Premier League outings this season.
Attacking midfielder: Bruno Fernandes (Manchester United)
No player has lifted the morale of Manchester United like Bruno Fernandes has, after a certain Eric Cantona. This might seem like an overstatement but the Portuguese maestro has turned an average looking Manchester United side going nowhere to a team who are competing to achieve Champions League qualification and fight for the Europa League and the FA cup.
Bruno put in another show against Brighton as he scored a brace and ran the most in the game at the time of his substitution. Apart from the attacking returns, the former Sporting midfielder also made three tackles with a 100% success rate. In his eight appearances in the Premier League so far, he has scored five goals and provided three assists already.
Right-wing: Allan Saint-Maximin (Newcastle United)
The French winger has settled in the Premier League nicely and will definitely be a player to watch out for next season. Allan Saint-Maximin, who joined Newcastle United from Nice last summer, has often been criticised for his selfish game and inability to impact at crucial junctures.
However, the Frenchman, who has been a different player since the Premier League restarted, was in devastating form against Bournemouth as he provided a hat-trick of assists in a 4-1 win.
Left-wing: Willian (Chelsea)
One of the most important players of Chelsea in recent years, Willian’s time at Stamford Bridge will soon come to an end as he will leave as a free agent at the end of the season. It seems the Brazilian winger wants to leave on a high as he tormented West Ham United with a brace, which included a brilliant free-kick. However, Willian’s efforts were in vain as the Blues succumbed to a 3-2 loss.
Striker: Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (Arsenal)
The Arsenal captain finally broke his duck after the restart with a brace in the 4-0 thumping of Norwich City, who look set to return to the Championship next season. The two strikes helped Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang to become the fastest Arsenal player to score 50 goals in the Premier League. The Gabon international is tied with Leicester City’s Jamie Vardy in the race for the Golden Boot, with the duo netting 19 times each.
Striker: Michail Antonio (West Ham United)
Michael Antonio put in a performance against Chelsea which will be remembered by the West Ham United fans for years to come as he single-handedly won the Hammers the London derby. The Englishman was a constant menace to Chelsea centre-backs as he tormented Antonio Rudiger and Andreas Christensen with his physicality and pace. The former Nottingham Forest man scored once and provided a brilliant last-minute assist for Andriy Yarmolenko’s match-winning goal.
Here’s how our Premier League Team of the Week for gameweek 32 would line up.
