Enzo Fernandez (Chelsea) and Youri Tielemans (Aston Villa): These two are on a similar trajectory. Really impressive performance: box to box, combative and they did everything they needed to do. Tielemans has been great for Villa and now Villa are trying to work out who fits in around him. Before it was chopping and changing – was it Amadou Onana, was it John McGinn? Now it’s Tielemans and whoever. Fernandez is the same: a £100m price tag, won the World Cup. Everyone was a little bit worried, but he’s chipping in with goal after goal and performance after performance.
Kevin Schade (Brentford): Two goals against Man Utd gets you a lot of credit but everyone talks a lot about Yoane Wissa and Bryan Mbeumo – obviously because these guys are very good and very talented – but he’s chipped away. He lost a long time to injury but since he’s been back in the fold he deserves a bit of credit – because to score two against Manchester United is always special.
Julio Enciso (Ipswich): He showed real class and real quality, even with Ipswich dead and buried in the league. I’ve been in dressing rooms where people like that say they’re injured and go back to their parent club because the job is done, but he did the opposite. He took the game to Everton, was the best player on the pitch and showed he is Premier League quality, whether that be with another team in the Prem or back with Brighton. Very, very good goal. Unbelievable goal, actually – a contender for goal of the season.
Cole Palmer (Chelsea): It wasn’t his best game but everything he did had real quality and class. He’s not in it for the goal. I think it’s his movement, the way he was gliding past people and looking like he was, it was all good fun.
