Matchweek 30 produced a number of eye-raising results including Aston Villa dumping out leaders Chelsea, Arsenal beating rivals Spurs, and first time wins for new managers Felix Magath (Fulham over Newcastle) and Pepe Mel (West Bromwich Albion over Swansea City).
Producing those results required new heroes to emerge. Here is the Premier League Team of the Week:
Goalkeeper – David Marshall: The 29-year-old Scot was everywhere on Saturday, thwarting 19 attempts by Everton including brilliant efforts by Kevin Mirallas and Romelu Lukaku that looked destined for goal. The only way past the Cardiff keeper proved to be via a Gerard Deulofeu deflection and a fortuitous slice shot by Seamus Coleman.
Defender – Leandro Bacuna: The 22-year-old Dutchman was the lynchpin on the left side of Villa’s defense on Saturday, making five key tackles to stuff Chelsea’s offense while also pouring forward to manage two shots on goal.
Defender – John Heitinga: The Dutch defender is enjoying a nice spell to his career since leaving Everton and taking up a center-back place at Fulham. In Saturday’s win over Newcastle, Heitinga had two key blocks in the box to deny the Magpies efforts on goal while also producing a stunning shot that hit the underside of the bar only for HawkEye to rule out.
Defender – Seamus Coleman: Coleman’s incredible stamina was on display yet again on Saturday, covering the center-backs when needed while also pressing high up the pitch and taking on the opposition with speed and skill. His persistence paid off when he struck the 93rd minute winner, his sixth of the season, to hand Everton a 2-1 win over Cardiff.
Midfielder – Youssouf Mulumbu: He doesn’t score many goals but the one he notched Saturday was vital for West Brom’s chances of staying in the Premier League.
Midfielder – Steven Gerrard: Captain Fantastic did it again Sunday, converting two penalties to help condemn Manchester United to a 3-0 home loss at the hands of their rivals.
Midfielder – Fabian Delph: The Englishman continued his string of fine Premier League performances Saturday when his tireless engine drove him into Chelsea’s box late where he produced one of the finest finishes of the season – a left footed Cryuff shot from 10 yards out that went side-netting.
Midfielder – David Silva: The City midfielder has not had his best season but on Saturday he showed us he’s still capable of producing massive moments, and none was bigger than his left-footed curler that put 10-man City up 1-0 on Hull.
Forward – Peter Odemwingie: The controversial Stoke forward notched a brace on Saturday to help the Potters beat West Ham 3-1. His first came via a goal-line deflection on Peter Crouch’s side volley while the second was a roof-shattering blast to ensure Stoke all three points.
Forward – Jay Rodriguez: The 24-year-old forward continued his impressive season by notching his 12th goal of the season in Southampton’s 4-2 pounding of Norwich City. Will Roy Hodgson take notice?
Forward – Luis Suarez: What more is there to say about Luis Suarez? The man is simply sensational and on Sunday he capped Liverpool’s domination of Manchester United with a well-taken 84th minute strike, his 25th of the season.
