Troy Deeney’s Team of the Week: Doku, Van de Ven, Gyokeres, Mainoo, Gallagher
Kobbie Mainoo (Manchester United): When you look at the back end of the season compared to the start of the season it has been night and day. It just shows what a bit of love and care can do to somebody. I’m not willing to say Mainoo is the man yet – I think we have to see more of a body of work – but I would say the win against Liverpool was the best performance I’ve seen him have in a United shirt. Dominated the game, made some big tackles, passing forward, breaking up the play but also coming with the goal. The most complete performance from him, I thought he was excellent.
Dominik Szoboszlai (Liverpool): Goal and assist for him at Old Trafford. Liverpool have been terrible all season but he comes out with his head high as one of the best around. His stock has grown in a poor season for them. He keeps coming up with big performances.
Conor Gallagher (Tottenham): I was going to put James Garner in there, but Gallagher gets it for me because the game was even more important for Spurs. Big goal. He has had a tough time there but with Roberto de Zerbi and the philosophy of pressing and running hard, I think that makes Gallagher an unbelievable buy for Spurs. He will not only be good this year but for the coming years.
Mathys Tel (Tottenham): I thought Tel was arguably the most overrated player that Spurs bought, but since the turn of the year he has had a light switch in head that says ‘hold on, I was at Bayern Munich and now I could be playing in the Championship’. He stepped up. He has played big minutes in terms of carrying the ball forward, being an outlet and now is adding assists to it. That cross for Richarlison was a striker’s dream.
Jeremy Doku (Manchester City): He wasn’t going to be in it until the last kick of the game. Two unbelievable strikes in the same match and one with either foot. He’s the most frustrating player to watch because you think ‘you are faster than everyone else – kick and run’, but he likes his tricks. When he puts his two goals in the corner, he has kept Manchester City’s season alive because it was dead. I still think Arsenal will win it, but he has made it interesting.
