Tag: Maarten Stekelenburg

Five-a-side TOTW: October 18th 2016

by sddsimmons, posted in Five-a-side TOTW

Picking an eleven is hard; picking just five is even harder.

A more defensive approach taken this week, yet there is still an awful lot of flare, pace and goals in our 5TOTW!

Goalkeeper – Maarten Stekelenburg

It is unlikely we will see a finer goalkeeping performance in the Premier League this season. Steklenburg really was absolutely sensational. He saved two penalties and made numerous other saves to keep his team in the match. How they escaped The Etihad with a point still remains a mystery. The Dutchman has recently regained his international place and based on this performance is likely to hold on to it for a considerable time.

The Stopper– Winston Reid

Reid was a key component in West Ham claiming only their second win of the season, and their first away from home. The Hammers have struggled since leaving Upton Park in the summer, with their stuttering form leaving them languishing in the lower reaches of the table. Reid, however, is a class act. When he plays well the West Ham defence looks immeasurably better.

The Ball Winner – N’Golo Kanté

In my opinion this guy is the best central midfielder in the league. He was faultless as Chelsea romped over his old employers and reigning champions, Leicester City, 3-0 at Stamford Bridge. Kanté covers so much ground that you could be forgiven for thinking that there were two of him on the pitch. Probably should have scored, but his overall display still showed why he is such a talent.

The Runner – Junior Stanislas

This was a tough shout. We wanted to include Dele Alli purely for his delightful finish against West Brom. But how can you ignore players from a team that won 6-1? Bournemouth bulldozed a desperately poor Hull City side out the way at Dean Court. At times it looked as if some of the Hull players had given up. Nevertheless, Bournemouth were superb, and Stanislas was the pick of the bunch. Two goals and an assist ensured Bournemouth claimed their biggest ever Premier League victory. A well deserved inclusion in our TOTW.

The Finisher – Charlie Austin

Charlie Austin will score you goals. There is absolutely no doubt about that. The ex-QPR forward has got 7 in 9 in all competitions this season. He initially struggled after joining Southampton midway through last season. However, after his electric start to the season he has finally managed to cement his place in the team. Southampton are unbeaten in four Premier League games, with Austin scoring in three of those. If his goal-scoring form continues he could well find his way into the England fold.

Five-a-side TOTW: August 16th 2016

by MikeFranchetti, posted in Five-a-side TOTW

Picking an eleven is hard; picking just five is even harder.

The Premier League is back and we pick our 5-a-side team from the opening weekend.

Goalkeeper – Maarten Stekelenburg

Everton’s Stekelenburg has struggled for a full season’s football since leaving Roma – and may yet find himself ousted at Goodison Park – but a string of good saves in the closing moments of a 1-1 draw with Tottenham makes him the most acclaimed goalie of the opening fixtures. At 6”6 Stekelenburg would look strange marshalling a five-a-side goal but proved his reflexes were up to scratch when stopping compatriot Vincent Janssen from turning in a late winner.

Anchorman – Etienne Capoue

Yeah, I didn’t see this one coming either. Watford let Southampton rescue a point on Saturday afternoon but saw their undefeated streak in opening league fixtures continue. Capoue scored their only goal – a good finish too – but provided much more to the game both with and without the ball. On paper, Watford’s first team should be nowhere near relegation and Capoue could play an integral part this campaign.

Playmaker – Philippe Coutinho

Our first ever selection contains a player who may, in fact, be better suited to five-a-side than he is the full pitch format. That being said, he wouldn’t have the opportunity to curl exquisite free kicks into the top corner as he did for Liverpool’s crucial first goal in their 3-4 victory over Arsenal. He’s a natural at weaving round the pitch and shimmies past challenges for fun. On Sunday he was instrumental between the lines and made things happen with a variety of flicks and chips.

The Runner – Anthony Martial

Wideman, wing forward, striker – wherever Jose Mourinho utilizes Martial this year he’s guaranteed to run the legs off the opposing fullback. He bagged two assists against Bournemouth and was a constant menace despite not getting on the scoresheet. Linking up well with a resurgent Juan Mata and inevitable goalscorer Zlatan Ibrahimović, Martial will be hard to drop next match despite the talent on the Old Trafford bench. I think I even caught him smiling at one point.

The Finisher – Sadio Mane

Despite a familiar wobble inside the final twenty minutes, Liverpool’s fluid front five had a lot of fun. Mane grew into the game and soon began to cause real problems wherever he popped up. He became a valuable option for Coutinho and company and marked his debut with a wonderful solo goal, cutting inside Nacho Monreal and ripping the ball into the top corner.  He then took the potentially risky move of jumping on Jurgen Klopp’s back – luckily the reds were three goals up at the time at the German was in a fine mood.