Every gameweek brings its own set of challenges for the 20 teams in the Premier League. Teams that cope well with the challenges come out on top, while the remaining draw or lose the match. Great defences can definitely save matches and protect leads when the team is in front. However, the team needs to lead in the first place and scoring goals is the only way matches can be won.
Every team has its own poachers, magicians and creators who are assigned with the enviable yet difficult task of winning the match. The attackers that do it on a consistent basis more often than not clinch the title for their team, while being bestowed upon with personal honours and awards.
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So, starting from this gameweek, I will be power ranking the top 10 attackers in the PL. Over the course of next 25 gameweeks until May, we will find out the consistent ones, the ones who shine spectacularly in bursts, the ones who fade after first-half of the season and the second-half risers.
First, let us have a look at the players who have missed this week’s cut by the finest of margins.
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Son Heung-min
The Spurs attacker scored a fine volley and notched an assist for Harry Kane’s 2nd goal in Tottenham’s rout of Swansea. After a tough first season, Son has finally settled in North London and the results are there for all to see.
Emre Can
The Liverpool midfielder had a great outing personally at Bournemouth as he delivered a clever lofted ball for Sadio Mane’s goal in the first-half and scored a beautiful curler in the second-half. The German is slowly but surely improving his attacking contribution this season.
Now, let’s take a look at the top 10 EPL attackers for Gameweek 14.
#10 Mesut Ozil
Match performance – one goal, one assist and finding shooting boots
Mesut Ozil has finally unlocked his goalscoring ability this season after years of being a goal-shy creative midfielder. The German international opened the scoring for Arsenal with a tap-in after Alexis Sanchez beat Winston Reid and squared the ball for Ozil to apply finishing touches.
This is Ozil’s 8th goal of the season across all competitions and he has already equalled last season’s tally with more than half-season left to play.
Later in the match, Ozil picked up an assist when he laid the ball for Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain to score a splendid curler from outside the box. Ozil’s scoring ability adds an extra dimension to Arsenal’s attacking armoury making them a more potent attack this season.
#9 Christian Eriksen
Match performance – two goals
The Danish wizard had a slow start to the season but is slowly coming to life. He was on his game for Tottenham against Swansea at White Hart Lane constantly making probing passes and testing the Swans defence, the rebound of one such shot fell to Son for his superb goal. While he did not pick up any assists for his efforts, he scored a couple of goals instead.
The first goal was a case of being at the right place at the right time as Dele Alli’s blocked shot was nudged home by Eriksen. He showed good skill for his second though, as he received the pass from Moussa Sissoko inside the box which he controlled with his right foot before banishing it into the bottom corner with his left foot to complete his brace.
#8 Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain
Match performance – one goal, one assist and finding consistency
Nicknamed “The Ox”, Chamberlain is finally making progress towards being consistent for Arsenal this season. He had a pretty good game against West Ham and ended with a goal and an assist to his name.
The goal underlined the incredible ability he possesses as he received Ozil’s pass just outside the box and bent it the right amount to beat the keeper Darren Randolph resulting in a spectacular goal. Towards the end of the game, he delivered a well-weighted pass to Alexis Sanchez who scored Arsenal’s fifth and final goal of the night.
#7 Sadio Mane
Match performance – one goal, one assist and still on the losing side
Sadio Mane has been on a lean patch since the last international break and finally turned up when Liverpool visited the Vitality Stadium to play Bournemouth. After an uncharacteristic slow start to the game, Mane made a perfect run to receive Emre Can’s lofted pass and displayed his pace and strength to hold off Nathan Ake while maintaining his composure to toe-poke the ball beyond Artur Boruc to open Liverpool’s account.
He dispossessed Harry Arter with Bournemouth attacking, initiating a counter-attack that saw Divock Origi score Liverpool’s second. He notched up an assist after troubling the Cherries defence and laying it for Emre Can to score Liverpool’s third. This increases his tally to seven goals and three assists in the league this season as he justifies Jurgen Klopp’s decision to spend big money for his transfer to Liverpool in the summer.
#6 Chris Brunt
Match performance – one goal, one assist and goal-account opened
The Northern Ireland international opened both his goals and assists account in West Brom’s 3-1 win against Watford that saw them rise to the 7th position in the league, above Everton and just a point off Manchester United.
Brunt delivered a terrific ball from a corner in the first-half for fellow Northern Irishman Jonny Evans to nod home. He followed it up with a low, driven free-kick just outside the box that found the back of the net through a deflection. Matt Phillips sealed the victory for the Hawthorns with a third goal but Brunt takes full plaudits for a superb performance in the win.
#5 Christian Benteke
Match performance – two goals and a sweet birthday present
The big Belgian celebrated his birthday in style with two goals in Crystal Palace’s 3-0 win against Southampton that slightly relieved the pressure on the Eagles manager Alan Pardew, having lost six matches in succession prior to this win.Benteke opened the scoring after capitalizing on the Saint’s goalkeeper Fraser Forster’s howler in kicking the ball. Benteke calmly passed the ball into goal and deserves credit for closing the keeper.
He completed the brace by tapping in Jason Puncheon’s ground delivery across the face of the goal, who in turn picked the ball from a James McArthur deflected shot off a corner. The goals see Benteke’s tally rise to seven for the season as he shakes off his horror season at Liverpool last year.
#4 Harry Kane
Match performance – two goals and finding form
Harry Kane continues to get back to his consistent levels of scoring after a sluggish start, as he scored a couple in Tottenham’s rout of Swansea. He scored his 4th penalty of the season after Dele Alli was brought down inside the Swans penalty box.
Kane doubled his tally in the second-half after Son made a terrific run into the box on a counter-attack and pulled the ball back to beat the defenders which was duly dispatched by a storming Harry Kane. He has scored seven goals in the league this season and can be expected to get right into the Golden Boot hunt in the coming weeks with Mauricio Pochettino’s men fighting for a top 4 spot.
#3 Diego Costa
Match performance – one goal, one assist and player involved in the highest number of goals this season
The league’s leading goalscorer showcased his consistency, ability and the newfound cooler head under Antonio Conte with a stunning performance at Etihad to beat title rivals Manchester City and open up a three-point gap at the top. He endured a particularly difficult first-half as Pep Guardiola’s City went ahead with a Gary Cahill own goal.
Post-interval, Diego Costa of this season came to the fore as he equalized for Chelsea by showing a superb first touch to bring down an exquisite long ball from Cesc Fabregas before coolly slotting home. City centre-half Nicolas Otamendi got outmuscled easily for Costa’s goal and he was the culprit again as Costa left him for dead with a deft turn at the centre-circle before putting Willian through on goal who scored to put Chelsea in front.
Costa with eleven goals and five assists in the league is the player involved in the highest number of goals this season.
#2 Ryan Fraser
Match performance – one goal, one assist and super-sub of the week
The highest impact performance of the gameweek belongs to Bournemouth’s 22 -year old Ryan Fraser who brought the Cherries back from a 2-0 deficit first and then from 3-1 later to win a thriller against Liverpool. The Reds went into half-time with a healthy 2-0 lead and Fraser was introduced into the game with 35 minutes to play.
He made an instant impact as he won the penalty off James Milner that was converted by Callum Wilson to pull one back.
After Emre Can restored the two-goal advantage, Fraser made the most of Liverpool’s inability to clear inside the box with a thumping finish coming in from the edge of the box making it 2-3 for the Cherries. He then delivered a good cross into the box after being released by Jack Wilshere on the right following a free-kick.
Bournemouth’s defender Steve Cook collected the ball and smashed it home for the equalizer. Later Nathan Ake scored the winner as the Cherries notched up a memorable win with Ryan Fraser putting on a super-sub display.
#1 Alexis Sanchez
Match performance - 3 goals, 1 assist and the match ball
Even if it took two seasons for Arsene Wenger to play Sanchez up top, credit goes to the Frenchman for finally finding Sanchez’s best position and the Gunners are reaping huge rewards. The Chilean put up one of the performances of the season that illustrated his world-class ability to the fullest.
He picked up an assist as he raced on to a loose ball in the opposition half and then passed unselfishly for Mesut Ozil to tap home the opener. Sanchez went about the second-half with a sense of drive and purpose that resulted in a stunning hat-trick under 15 minutes inspiring Arsenal to a comfortable victory and 2nd place in the PL table.
He showed outstanding control as he turned and left his first marker followed by his acceleration that got him away from another before he scored past the keeper. He scored his 2nd with a diagonal shot from the edge of the box and completed his treble after Chamberlain’s through-ball set him away from the defenders and the Chilean showed his outrageous ability with a shimmy to nullify the keeper followed by a dink towards goal.
This was Sanchez’s best performance this season and shows how crucial he is for Arsenal’s title hopes.
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