A depleted weekend of Premier League football has now come to a close, with Manchester City just about managing to steer six points clear at the top after a fortunate 1-0 win at Everton.
The Citizens opened up the gap amid Liverpool and Chelsea's exploits in the EFL Cup final, but Manchester United's Champions League hopes took another blow with a goalless draw at home to Watford.
West Ham United took advantage with a slender 1-0 win over fellow top-four rivals Wolverhampton Wanderers, while Tottenham Hotspur's 4-0 thrashing of Leeds United cost Marcelo Bielsa his job.
There were heart-warming scenes at the Brentford Community Stadium as Christian Eriksen returned in the Bees' 2-0 defeat to Newcastle United, while Burnley managed to hold on for a point against Crystal Palace.
Elsewhere, Southampton ran out comfortable 2-0 winners over Norwich City, and Aston Villa did not let a delayed kickoff affect them as they eased to a 2-0 win at Brighton & Hove Albion.
Here, Sports Mole selects its Team of the Week for the latest round of Premier League fixtures.
DEFENCE
© Reuters
It was a painful sight for Everton fans to witness their team's hard work undone by a huge slice of misfortune, but take nothing away from Jordan Pickford's performance in between the sticks, as the England number one kept Man City at bay with seven saves, including a brilliant double stop from Kevin De Bruyne and Bernardo Silva.
Matt Doherty's Tottenham Hotspur career has been a largely forgettable affair so far, but the right-back was one of the stars of the show at Elland Road, opening his Spurs account with a fine finish before claiming an assist and making two interceptions for his best performance in a Tottenham shirt yet.
On the opposite side of the rearguard, Matt Targett demonstrated exactly why Newcastle are reportedly keen to land him on a permanent deal, with the Aston Villa loanee making five key passes, four clearances and winning all three of his ground duels in a fine display against Brentford.
West Ham United's Kurt Zouma has been making headlines for his disgraceful actions off the field in recent weeks, but there can be no denying that the Frenchman stepped up when it mattered against Wolves, making a whopping 11 clearances, four blocks, three interceptions and two tackles during a vital win.
Finally, Everton's Michael Keane dominated the post-match talk at Goodison Park with his costly mistake, but at the other end of the pitch, Aymeric Laporte incredibly posted a 100% pass accuracy and made three tackles to ensure a narrow win for the champions.
MIDFIELD
© Reuters
If Crystal Palace already had one highly-rated talent in Eberechi Eze on the books, hopes could not be higher for Michael Olise, who produced some terrific work out wide to set up Jeffrey Schlupp against Burnley while completing all three of his dribble attempts and winning eight of his 11 ground duels in another promising outing.
A goal for Southampton lynchpin Oriol Romeu is certainly a collector's item, but the Spaniard finished with the aplomb of a seasoned centre-forward with his peach of a half-volley against Norwich, while he also won five of his six ground duels in an assured performance.
Romeu has been at the heart of Southampton's revival, which has been helped in no small part by captain James Ward-Prowse, who put in another professional performance against Norwich with one big chance created, three key passes and a 92% passing accuracy at St Mary's.
ATTACK
© Reuters
Spurs fans need not have worried upon hearing that Lucas Moura was unavailable for the Leeds clash, with Dejan Kulusevski seemingly making that spot his own with a fine effort to put his side 2-0 up at Elland Road, and the Swedish starlet also posted a 91% pass accuracy and saw four of his five dribble attempts come off.
It would have been easy to select an entire Spurs frontline given that Son Heung-min became a part of history against Leeds, but there can be no overlooking Ryan Fraser's contribution for Newcastle, with the Scotsman setting up Joelinton and posting a whopping seven key passes in the Brentford victory.
Last but certainly not least, Tottenham talisman Harry Kane produced the complete centre-forward's performance in the Leeds romping, claiming one goal and one assist against the Whites to make it 37 combinations between himself and Son, with the two Spurs men breaking the Premier League record for the most prolific partnership.
SPORTS MOLE'S PREMIER LEAGUE TEAM OF THE WEEK
Sports Mole's Premier League Team of the Week (4-3-3): Pickford; Doherty, Zouma, Laporte, Targett; Olise, Romeu, Ward-Prowse; Kulusevski, Kane, Fraser
