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Sports Mole's Premier League Team of the Week

Sports Mole picks out a Premier League Team of the Week following the 34th round of matches.

Leaders Liverpool took a giant stride towards winning their first league title for 24 years thanks to a 3-2 victory over rivals Manchester City at Anfield.

However, Chelsea maintained a firm grip on their coattails with a 1-0 win away at Swansea City, which in turn kept the Welsh side entrenched in relegation trouble.

Elsewhere, Everton moved into fourth following a 1-0 win away at struggling Sunderland, while Fulham and Cardiff City did their survival chances the world of good by recording 1-0 successes over Norwich City and Southampton respectively.

With all that mind, Sports Mole has picked out the 11 players that made the biggest impression on us in a 4-4-2 formation, as well as the best goal and biggest numpty.

David Stockdale (Fulham)
In what was a must-win encounter for Fulham, goalkeeper Stockdale ensured that they kept a clean sheet against Norwich with a string of saves.

Erik Pieters (Stoke City)
The Dutch full-back has had a consistent season at Stoke and in recent weeks he has shown the attacking side of his game. His goal against Newcastle United proved to be the winner.
Sylvain Distin (Everton)
Like a fine wine, Distin appears to be getting better with age. Now 36, the Frenchman was at his defensive best as Everton recorded a clean sheet away at Sunderland.
Juan Cala (Cardiff City)
As well as being a part of a Cardiff rearguard that kept a vital clean sheet at Southampton, Cala scored the only goal of the game. What's more, it was a strike that you would expect from a centre-forward, not a defender.
Joel Ward (Crystal Palace)
One player that has really thrived since Tony Pulis took charge of Palace is Ward. The right-back put in another good performance against Aston Villa.

David Silva (Manchester City)
If any Man City player didn't deserve to end up on the losing team against Liverpool, it was Silva. The Spaniard was lively throughout and backed up his display by scoring one and forcing an own goal.
Nemanja Matic (Chelsea)
The Serbian has proved to be extremely good business by Jose Mourinho. Matic's defensive performance allowed his attacking teammates to flourish, while he also set up the winning goal.
Philippe Coutinho (Liverpool)
Not only did the Brazilian score the winning and what could prove to be vital goal, he was a real thorn in City's side with a creative showing at Anfield.
Raheem Sterling (Liverpool)
He may on be 19, but Roy Hodgson will surely be taking Sterling to the World Cup after another impressive display. He opened the scoring, before using his pace to cause numerous problems.

Hugo Rodallega (Fulham)
The Colombian international has hardly been prolific since joining Fulham, but he scored a crucial goal in a positive performance against Norwich.
Demba Ba (Chelsea)
Mourinho has not been shy to criticise his strikers this season, but after his heroics in the Champions League during the week, Ba silenced his manager with a goal at Swansea.

Numpty of the week

Vincent Kompany: You can count on one hand the mistakes that Man City skipper Kompany has made this season, but he made a massive error against Liverpool. With the score locked at 2-2 and his team in the ascendancy, Kompany scuffed a clearance to Coutinho, who powered a shot beyond the reach of Joe Hart. It proved to be the winning goal, which has left City with an uphill task if they are to win the title.

Goal of the week

Juan Cala (Southampton vs. Cardiff City): The Spanish defender scored in a defeat at Everton recently, but this time his effort proved to be a winning one for the Bluebirds. Having beat one defender, the centre-back then curled a shot from 20 yards out into the corner of the Southampton net.

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Liverpool's Philippe Coutinho celebrates after scoring his team's third goal against Manchester City during the Premier League match on April 13, 2014
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Today's games header
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Liverpool1210112481631
2Manchester CityMan City127232217523
3Chelsea126422314922
4Arsenal126422112922
5Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton126422116522
6Tottenham HotspurSpurs1261527131419
7Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest125431513219
8Aston Villa125431919019
9Fulham125341717018
10Newcastle UnitedNewcastle125341313018
11Brentford125252222017
12Manchester UnitedMan Utd124441313016
13Bournemouth124351617-115
14West Ham UnitedWest Ham124351519-415
15Everton122551017-711
16Leicester CityLeicester122461523-810
17Wolverhampton WanderersWolves122372028-89
18Ipswich TownIpswich121651323-109
19Crystal Palace121561017-78
20Southampton121110924-154


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