Goal.com

As four of the Premier League's top clubs prepare to clash on a vital Sunday, Goal.com debates which players would make it into a mixed best team from the respective squads

DEBATE
By Chris Myson
 
In this Premier League weekend, there are arguably two main events for us all to enjoy.

On Sunday, Manchester United host old rivals Liverpool and Arsenal are at home to champions Manchester City in two mouthwatering matches between some of the biggest clubs in England.

In a special combined XI piece ahead of the clashes, Goal.com analyses each area of all four of the squads on show on Sunday and attempts to come up with what would be the best combined team, lining up in a 4-4-2 formation.

We also choose a manager to lead our combined side from the four talented squads. Read on to find out who we have selected in our XI and why!

GOALKEEPER

Joe Hart may not have hit the heights of last season for Manchester City so far in this campaign, but he still ranks as one of Europe’s best goalkeepers and gets the nod for our team.

At Manchester United, David de Gea seems to have edged out Anders Lindegaard as first-choice, but still has a lot of work to do to stamp out inconsistencies in his game.

Wojciech Szczesny has provided a boost to Arsenal after returning from injury, although he is still to reach the peak form he showed when he first broke into the first-team.

That is a similar story with Pepe Reina at Liverpool, who is far from his previous levels and has had another frustrating season with a number of high-profile errors putting his place under threat.

DEFENCE

At right-back we opt for the defensive stability of Pablo Zabaleta, who narrowly gets the nod over Bacary Sagna, while the likes of Rafael and Glen Johnson make it a competitive choice.

In the middle we go for the powerful central defensive duo of Vincent Kompany and Nemanja Vidic.

Kompany has not been at his best for City this season but the captain is still influential in defence for the champions, while the regular absence of world-class stopper Vidic has been one of the primary reasons for the struggles of the United back line so far this season.

Rio Ferdinand, Jonny Evans, Joleon Lescott, Matija Nastasic, Daniel Agger, Martin Skrtel, Thomas Vermaelen, Per Mertesacker and Laurent Koscielny are amongst a string of top-class central defenders to miss out.

At left-back, the impressive Kieran Gibbs picks up our selection. His impressive form this season earns him a spot in the side over the more experienced options from the other three squads in Patrice Evra, Gael Clichy and Jose Enrique.

MIDFIELD

As one of the best all-round midfielders in world football, Yaya Toure powers his way into the spine of our team due to his status as a player who would be an automatic pick for any side in the world.

It would be fair to say that so far this season he has not reproduced the powerful displays for which he has become known as regularly as he has done in past campaigns but he is still easily good enough to make our combined side - any of the other three teams would take him in an instant.

Alongside him we go for Arsenal and England’s cultured star Jack Wilshere. The starlet has wasted little time getting back to his best after returning from a long-term injury absence and the future looks very bright. His style makes him an ideal partner for Toure in the middle.

That means Michael Carrick and Manchester United’s central options miss out on a pick, while Liverpool’s Steven Gerrard is arguably the highest-profile player to fail to gain a place in the middle of the park.

Out wide, we select Theo Walcott on the right. He has been used as a striker successfully in recent weeks, but will still regularly be used on the wing by Arsene Wenger and his threat of pace and goals sees him narrowly edge into the team.

On the left we go for David Silva, who will be given the freedom to roam and cut inside. He remains one of the Premier League’s best creative talents and a must-pick for our XI.

Antonio Valencia, Nani, Samir Nasri, Raheem Sterling and Lukas Podolski are amongst the players to miss out on a wing selection.

ATTACK