We reveal the stand-out performers across the Midlands this weekend – including four Nottingham Forest players, and stars from West Brom, Wolverhampton Wanderers and Stoke City.
Midlands sides in the Premier League and Championship experienced a mixed bag of results over the weekend.
Reigning champions Leicester City fell to a 3-0 defeat against Chelsea, Aston Villa’s struggles continued, and an in-form Birmingham City side were out-fought and ultimately beaten by fellow Midlands side Nottingham Forest.
Indeed, Nottingham Forest joined Stoke City and Wolverhampton Wanderers as the three most impressive Midlands clubs over the weekend.
Philippe Montanier’s under-fire side produced an accomplished performance against Gary Rowett’s Birmingham City on Friday night, as goals from Eric Lichaj, Apostolos Vellios and Hildeberto Pereira sealed a 3-1 victory. Stoke City secured their first league victory of the campaign, 2-0 against Sunderland, thanks to a brace from Joe Allen. Walter Zenga‘s Wolverhampton Wanderers performed admirably throughout their 1-1 draw against Midlands rivals Aston Villa on Saturday evening
Our team of the week consists of four Nottingham Forest players, a trio from both Wolves and Stoke and a goalkeeper fresh from an inspired performance at the weekend.
West Bromwich Albion’s Ben Foster makes yet another save against Spurs
GK: Ben Foster (West Bromwich Albion) – The West Bromwich Albion stopper made a string of superb saves throughout his side’s 1-1 draw against Tottenham Hotspur, particularly in the first half. Man-of-the match Foster certainly did not warrant being on the losing side, despite constantly being on the receiving end of a dominant Spurs attack.
RB: Eric Lichaj (Nottingham Forest) – The former Aston-Villa full-back capped his impressive showing with a fantastically taken goal on 33 minutes to give Nottingham Forest the lead in their victory over Birmingham City. Lichaj was a useful outlet for Forest throughout Friday night’s game.
CB: Damien Perquis (Nottingham Forest) – Strong and resilient in the air, Damien Perquis will be pleased to have kept in-form Birmingham City at bay for large parts of the game, particularly considering Forest’s recent poor defensive record. Ably assisted by defensive partner Matt Mills
Wolves’ Danny Batth (L) in action with Aston Villa’s Jack Grealish
CB: Danny Batth (Wolverhampton Wanderers) – Wolves captain Danny Batth made a number of crucial interceptions – both on the floor and in the air – and led the team by example at Villa Park. Managed to keep Aston Villa’s front line at bay throughout the 1-1 draw, where the home side scored from a penalty and only managed four shots on goal during the match.
LB: Bruno Martins Indi (Stoke City) – The left sided centre-back is growing into the Premier League after his season long loan move from FC Porto. The Dutch international is also starting to develop an encouraging partnership with Ryan Shawcross for Mark Hughes’ side. Martins Indi was a large contributor to Stoke City’s clean sheet as they defeated Sunderland 2-0 at the weekend.
CM: Henri Lansbury (Nottingham Forest) – Lansbury was outstanding for Forest during their much needed victory over Birmingham City. The former Arsenal man looked a constant menace from set-pieces and linked midfield and attack effectively. Lansbury was influential after having a goal disallowed in the early stages of the game.
Stoke City’s Joe Allen scores again
CM: Joe Allen (Stoke City) – The Welsh midfielder continued his fantastic goal-scoring streak with a brace in Stoke City’s 2-0 victory over Sunderland. This brings Allen’s goal tally this season to five in four games – astonishing, considering that the former Liverpool man had only scored five in his previous three years for club and country.
AM: Helder Costa (Wolverhampton Wanderers) – Costa’s performance against Aston Villa was outstanding and great to watch. The man on loan from Benfica was the scorer of Wolves equalising goal from the penalty spot, but contributed much more than that for Walter Zenga’s side. Costa’s pace and intelligence with the ball was too much for Villa’s defence – signified by James Chester fortunately avoiding a second yellow for bringing down Costa after yet another pacey run.
AM: Marko Arnautovic (Stoke City) – Stoke’s creative force, Arnautovic, appeared driven to single-handedly salvage his side’s poor start to the Premier League season. Unlucky not to score past Sunderland’s impressive young goalkeeper Jordan Pickford.
Nottingham Forest’s Hildeberto Pereira celebrates scoring Forest’s third goal alongside fellow ‘team-of-the-weeker’, Henri Lansbury (L)
AM: Hildeberto Pereira (Nottingham Forest) –Pereira started on the bench for Forest’s game with Birmingham City, but made a significant impact as a second half substitute. Pereira scored a brilliant goal to make the game 3-1 and demonstrated his usual high energy output for Montanier’s team.
FW: Jon Dadi Bodvarsson (Wolverhampton Wanderers) – One of Wolves’ top summer signings, alongside Costa, Bodvarsson has been a vital part of Zenga’s set-up so far this season – so much so, that Wolves are just not the same without him. Unlucky not to score against Aston Villa, as he was brought down twice by Micah Richards when looking likely to convert.
Receive exclusive football transfer news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
