GK: Brad Friedel (Tottenham)
There was such uproar when Tottenham manager Andre Villas-Boas said that transfer deadline day signing Hugo Lloris would not necessary be a certain starter. It seems the Portuguese was right to say that as the club's veteran goalkeeper Brad Friedel has been in sublime form since then.
Spurs were so poor defensively against QPR that only a string of excellent stops by the American during the game allowed spurs to sneak away with the 2-1 derby win.
RB: Nathaniel Clyne (Southampton)
If you have followed my colleague Kelvin Yap on Twitter then you will know he is a big fan of Southampton full-back Nathaniel Clyne. I watched the youngster against Manchester United earlier in the season and wasn't impressed but on Saturday he was superb against Aston Villa.
He made intelligent runs down the flanks and appears to be a very versatile player as his second half spell at left-back against Villa proved. He not only created chances for his team-mates but showed good composure to slot the ball past the Villa goalkeeper for his goal.
LB: Ashley Cole (Chelsea)
Still the best left-back in the world? Chelsea's Ashley Cole was the difference on Saturday as the Blues scraped past a dogged Stoke side. He doesn't score many goals which is a surprise given the coolness he displayed against Stoke when he casually flicked the ball over the advancing Asmir Begovic to seal the 1-0 victory.
CB: Laurent Koscielny (Arsenal)
Arsenal fans everywhere - including in the ESPNSTAR office - let out a huge gasp when Thomas Vermaelen was not included in Arsene Wenger's first XI for Sunday's game at Manchester City. In place of the skipper, who was suffering from a virus, came Laurent Koscielny and to his credit he performed admirably against the champions.
His goal not only earned the Gunners a deserved point but it was also the icing on the cake of a very elegant display in the Arsenal back-line.
CB: Phil Jagielka (Everton)
It was a near perfect performance from Phil Jagielka in the heart of the Everton defence in their 3-0 defeat of Swansea. The score line does suggest it was a thrashing but this was only the case because of players like Jagielka who defended as though his life depended on it for 90 minutes - and in the process stopped Swansea from scoring two goals.
RM: Aaron Ramsey (Arsenal)
The second Arsenal player to make it into our Team of the Week but there should be little complaints about it. Aaron Ramsey was for me the standout performer in an Arsenal midfield which took the game to Manchester City at times on Sunday. The Wales international had a well-rounded game full of hard work and running combined with drive and attacking intent.
LM: Steven Pienaar (Everton)
Everton completely ran riot down the left-hand flank against Swansea on Saturday on their way to a 3-0 win. Leighton Baines was his usual productive self but a lot of credit must also go to Steven Pienaar who had a hand in Everton's best attacking moves.
CM: Kevin Nolan (West Ham)
I am still kicking myself for not putting Kevin Nolan into my fantasy football team over the weekend. The West Ham midfielder had scored five times in the league against Sunderland prior to Saturday and so if anyone was going to score for the Hammers against the Black Cats it was going to be him - and so it proved.
This time round it was a sweet volley to earn the Hammers a 1-1 draw, but he could have had more goals if it had not been for Simon Mignolet in the Sunderland goal.
CM: Steven Gerrard (Liverpool)
Being a Manchester United fan, it was painful to watch Steven Gerrard rifle in the go-ahead goal in the derby game at Anfield on Sunday. However, as a lover of football it doesn't hurt me at all to include him in the Team of the Week.
Gerrard was brilliant for 10-man Liverpool against United with a display which was fused with aggression, determination and emotion. He is a living legend for Liverpool fans and for him to rise to occasion and score on such an important day for the club was fitting - albeit in a losing effort as United won 2-1. He really is a big game player though and he has now scored something like six or seven times against United.
ST: Demba Ba (Newcastle United)
Good to see Demba Ba doing his talking on the pitch through his goal scoring exploits rather than off it through his agent. A well-taken goal for the Magpies as they downed Norwich 1-0 on Sunday means he is Newcastle's main striker following the dip in form of strike partner Papiss Cisse.
ST: Rickie Lambert (Southampton)
The Southampton striker came off the bench to bag a brace to guide the newly-promoted side to their first Premier League win of the season - a 4-1 hammering of Aston Villa. That pretty much sums up the reasons why Rickie Lambert makes our first XI this week. A massively important player for Southampton's bid to stay in the Premier League.
First win in the top tier of English football for Nigel Adkins with Southampton. Had a great game against Aston villa, after going down at half time Adkins boys fought back and scored 4 goals to win 4-1 against Aston villa.
There was such uproar when Tottenham manager Andre Villas-Boas said that transfer deadline day signing Hugo Lloris would not necessary be a certain starter. It seems the Portuguese was right to say that as the club's veteran goalkeeper Brad Friedel has been in sublime form since then.
Spurs were so poor defensively against QPR that only a string of excellent stops by the American during the game allowed spurs to sneak away with the 2-1 derby win.
RB: Nathaniel Clyne (Southampton)
If you have followed my colleague Kelvin Yap on Twitter then you will know he is a big fan of Southampton full-back Nathaniel Clyne. I watched the youngster against Manchester United earlier in the season and wasn't impressed but on Saturday he was superb against Aston Villa.
He made intelligent runs down the flanks and appears to be a very versatile player as his second half spell at left-back against Villa proved. He not only created chances for his team-mates but showed good composure to slot the ball past the Villa goalkeeper for his goal.
LB: Ashley Cole (Chelsea)
Still the best left-back in the world? Chelsea's Ashley Cole was the difference on Saturday as the Blues scraped past a dogged Stoke side. He doesn't score many goals which is a surprise given the coolness he displayed against Stoke when he casually flicked the ball over the advancing Asmir Begovic to seal the 1-0 victory.
CB: Laurent Koscielny (Arsenal)
Arsenal fans everywhere - including in the ESPNSTAR office - let out a huge gasp when Thomas Vermaelen was not included in Arsene Wenger's first XI for Sunday's game at Manchester City. In place of the skipper, who was suffering from a virus, came Laurent Koscielny and to his credit he performed admirably against the champions.
His goal not only earned the Gunners a deserved point but it was also the icing on the cake of a very elegant display in the Arsenal back-line.
CB: Phil Jagielka (Everton)
It was a near perfect performance from Phil Jagielka in the heart of the Everton defence in their 3-0 defeat of Swansea. The score line does suggest it was a thrashing but this was only the case because of players like Jagielka who defended as though his life depended on it for 90 minutes - and in the process stopped Swansea from scoring two goals.
The second Arsenal player to make it into our Team of the Week but there should be little complaints about it. Aaron Ramsey was for me the standout performer in an Arsenal midfield which took the game to Manchester City at times on Sunday. The Wales international had a well-rounded game full of hard work and running combined with drive and attacking intent.
LM: Steven Pienaar (Everton)
Everton completely ran riot down the left-hand flank against Swansea on Saturday on their way to a 3-0 win. Leighton Baines was his usual productive self but a lot of credit must also go to Steven Pienaar who had a hand in Everton's best attacking moves.
CM: Kevin Nolan (West Ham)
I am still kicking myself for not putting Kevin Nolan into my fantasy football team over the weekend. The West Ham midfielder had scored five times in the league against Sunderland prior to Saturday and so if anyone was going to score for the Hammers against the Black Cats it was going to be him - and so it proved.
This time round it was a sweet volley to earn the Hammers a 1-1 draw, but he could have had more goals if it had not been for Simon Mignolet in the Sunderland goal.
CM: Steven Gerrard (Liverpool)
Being a Manchester United fan, it was painful to watch Steven Gerrard rifle in the go-ahead goal in the derby game at Anfield on Sunday. However, as a lover of football it doesn't hurt me at all to include him in the Team of the Week.
Gerrard was brilliant for 10-man Liverpool against United with a display which was fused with aggression, determination and emotion. He is a living legend for Liverpool fans and for him to rise to occasion and score on such an important day for the club was fitting - albeit in a losing effort as United won 2-1. He really is a big game player though and he has now scored something like six or seven times against United.
ST: Demba Ba (Newcastle United)
Good to see Demba Ba doing his talking on the pitch through his goal scoring exploits rather than off it through his agent. A well-taken goal for the Magpies as they downed Norwich 1-0 on Sunday means he is Newcastle's main striker following the dip in form of strike partner Papiss Cisse.
ST: Rickie Lambert (Southampton)
The Southampton striker came off the bench to bag a brace to guide the newly-promoted side to their first Premier League win of the season - a 4-1 hammering of Aston Villa. That pretty much sums up the reasons why Rickie Lambert makes our first XI this week. A massively important player for Southampton's bid to stay in the Premier League.
Manager:
Nigel Adkins (Southampton)
First win in the top tier of English football for Nigel Adkins with Southampton. Had a great game against Aston villa, after going down at half time Adkins boys fought back and scored 4 goals to win 4-1 against Aston villa.
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