Premier League TOTW Gameweek 9: Everton shining after securing another victory | OneFootball

Bryan Mbeumo may finally be getting the flowers he deserves.

The Cameroonian helped Brentford come from 2-0 down to eventually beat Ipswich Town 4-3 in a thrilling Premier League match this weekend. The return saw Mbeumo become the first ever Brentford player to be directly involved in 50 goals in the Premier League, scoring 30 with 21 assists.

Since Brentford’s first season in the Premier League in 2021-22, just 13 players have been directly involved in at least 50 goals in the competition. Seven of those have played more minutes than Mbeumo.

This season alone Mbeumo has now scored eight goals in the Premier League, with only Erling Haaland (11) managing more. Mbeumo has made our Team of the Week, where there’s a bit of an Everton theme. The Toffees have two current players in the XI for gameweek 9, as well as two former stars.

We’ve used our Squawka Score to determine the 11 picks, based on the statistical leaders for metrics relevant to their positions. And we’ve thrown an honourable mention XI for good measure.

GK: Lukasz Fabianski (West Ham)

Lukasz Fabianski was reliable between the sticks for West Ham United as they compiled further misery on Erik ten Hag at Manchester United. In fact, it was a performance that cost the Dutchman his job. Fabianski made four saves against Man United, preventing 1.0 goals. He also helped keep the ball away from his own goal, with nine long passes completed. West Ham have now beaten Man United at home in the league in three consecutive seasons.

Honourable mention: Mark Travers (74%)

RB: Ashley Young (Everton)

Ashley Young is our right-back for the second week in a row. The Englishman helped Everton secure a very dramatic point against Fulham with an intentional assist for Beto’s equaliser. While all assists count, an intentional one does help to show a player’s creativity a bit more. Alongside the assist, Young had one big chance created and 11 final third entries. He also did his bit defensively with four clearances and two possessions won in the defensive third. Everton also only faced three shots on target.

Honourable mention: Tyrick Mitchell (66%)

CB: Cristian Romero (Tottenham)

Tottenham Hotspur may have lost to Crystal Palace at the weekend, but Cristian Romero came out of the game looking good. The Argentinian centre-back won five tackles against Palace, the joint-most in a single Premier League game this weekend. He also made five clearances and one interception inside the box. It was very much about ball-winning for Romero, with four possessions won in the defensive third and six ball recoveries.

Honourable mention: Ruben Dias (66%)

CB: Trevoh Chalobah (Crystal Palace)

On the other side of the game at Selhurst Park was Trevoh Chalobah who did his part to help the Eagles keep a clean sheet. The Chelsea loanee made seven clearances and three tackles won as well as one interception remaining possession. He won all four of his aerial duels, won possession twice in the defensive third and made six ball recoveries. It was hard to get past the Crystal Palace centre-back, who also completed four long passes.

Honourable mention: Maxence Lacroix (65%)

LB: Lucas Digne (Aston Villa)

It takes a lot of doing to get a higher Score than Josko Gvardiol among left-backs, so extra kudos to Lucas Digne this week. The Frenchman created one big chance for Aston Villa against Bournemouth, but this was more of a defensive display. Digne won possession twice in the defensive third and made three interceptions retaining possession, with one tackle won. He also won two aerial duels and Aston Villa only faced two shots on target while he was on the pitch.

Honourable mention: Josko Gvardiol (69%)

CM: Idrissa Gueye (Everton)

Our second Everton representative, it was a strong display in the middle of the pitch for Idrissa Gueye. The midfielder won four tackles and two aerial duels for Everton against Fulham, part of 11 total duels won. He also made one interception retaining possession, completed two take-ons and made seven ball recoveries. With the ball at his own feet, Gueye also completed five passes into the final third.

Honourable mention: Mateo Kovacic (70%)

CM: Carlos Baleba (Brighton)

Brighton ultimately dropped two points against Wolves at the weekend, seeing a 2-0 lead slip. But Carlos Baleba can be pleased with his personal performance. The 20-year-old was great on and off the ball for Brighton, with 100% passing accuracy in to the final third and 90.91% open-play passing accuracy. He won possession five times in the middle third, made three interceptions retaining possession and won two tackles. Baleba also made nine ball recoveries, and Brighton were 1-0 up when he was taken off with 10 minutes to go.

Honourable mention: Moises Caicedo (70%)

RW: Bryan Mbeumo (Brentford)

The match-winner for Brentford, there may have been some fortune about Bryan Mbeumo’s winning goal, but it was a performance worthy of winning all three points. Mbeumo had initially put Brentford 3-2 up from the penalty shot, one of three shots on target. He also had seven penalty area entries and two touches in the opposition box, with 13 final third passes completed. Mbeumo is a key man to Brentford’s press too, with six ball recoveries and one high turnover.

Honourable mention: Mohamed Salah (71%)

No.10: Matheus Cunha (Wolves)

Wolves fought back from 2-0 down late on to draw 2-2 with Brighton, and Matheus Cunha was the man to score the late equaliser. It capped off a good performance from the Brazilian, who was playing just behind the striker. Cunha had 13 touches in the opposition box, which was the second-most across the Premier League this weekend. He also had five penalty area entries, five ball recoveries and three completed take-ons. In terms of goal three, Cunha also created one big chance, had two shots on target and completed two crosses.

Honourable mention: Ismaila Sarr (64%)

LW: Alex Iwobi (Fulham)

Alex Iwobi looked to be the match-winner against his former club Everton on Saturday. The Nigerian scored Fulham’s goal and was taken off the pitch in injury time with the Cottagers still leading. He scored with his only shot on target and completed three take-ons, with three touches in the opposition box. But he was most menacing when trying to create. Iwobi had four penalty area entries and 17 final third passes completed, alongside six ball recoveries to do his defensive duty.

Honourable mention: Pedro Neto (72%)

ST: George Hirst (Ipswich)

Ipswich scored three goals against Brentford on Saturday, and George Hirst was directly involved in two of them. He set up Sammie Szmodics for the opener with an intentional assist and then made it 2-0 to the Tractor Boys shortly after. Hirst overperformed his xG by 0.85 and had three touches in the opposition box. He was as much the link-up man as he was the goalscorer, with two layoffs completed. Hirst also won two aerial duels and had one high turnover. Ipswich will be hoping this is the start of a run for Hirst, who was making his first Premier League start.