With the Premier League nearing the halfway point, Sky Sports pundits Gary Neville and Jamie Carragher have picked their teams of the season so far.
As well as analysing the Merseyside derby, the two former England teammates cast their eye over the Premier League season as a whole thus far, as Chelsea currently threaten to run away with it.
As such, Anonio Conte’s men are featured heavily in both lineups, with six making it on to Neville’s team and five on Carragher’s.
.@Carra23 & @GNev2 have picked their Teams of the Season so far. Which is better? #MNF pic.twitter.com/GQOIsolMVm
— Sky Sports MNF ⚽️ (@SkySportsMNF) December 19, 2016
Seven of the eleven in both are the same, with César Azpilicueta, David Luiz, Virgil van Dijk, N’Golo Kanté, Eden Hazard, Adam Lallana and Diego Costa named in each team.
Neville said of his selection:
“My team is dominated by Chelsea with three out of the back five. In midfield I have gone for Fernandinho alongside Kante because he has been excellent in central midfield for Manchester City.
“It was Lallana, Mane or De Bruyne on the right. I couldn’t decide between those three, but I went for Lallana because I felt he shaded it.
“Hazard is a no-brainer and I went for Ibrahimovic and Costa up front.”
Carragher, meanwhile, differed from his colleague in the positions of goalkeeper, left-back, and one each of the midfield and forward line.
He explained:
“I’ve gone with maybe a surprise selection in goal with Jordan Pickford at Sunderland. The reason I’ve gone for him is, besides Jermain Defoe, he is maybe Sunderland’s most important player and I can’t really say that about another keeper in the league.
“The rest was fairly straightforward. I don’t think the defending has been great, so there’s no surprise I’ve got two Chelsea players there. I think Azpilicueta is the best defender in the league and if there was any full-back in the league I’d want in my team it would be Azpilicueta. You know what you are getting week in and week out.
“David Luiz has been outstanding and deserves to be there and I think Van Dijk is the next big-money signing from Southampton.”
Interestingly, both analysts saw fit to include David Luiz in their lineups. The £32m signing from Paris Saint-Germain was seen by many as a panic buy after Conte missed out on his primary targets, but Luiz has been giving some fine (and surprising) performances in his second spell at Stamford Bridge.
Read More About: adam lallana, Alexis Sanchez, cesar azpilicueta, Chelsea, danny rose, david luiz, diego costa, eden hazard, fernandinho, gary neville, jamie carragher, jordan pickford, N'Golo Kante, Ryan Bertrand, sky sports, thibaut courtois, zlatan ibrahimovic
