Premier League Team of the Week - Haaland, Jota, Alexander-Arnold

Manchester City have cut the gap to the Gunners down to four points courtesy of their 3-1 triumph over Leicester City, while Manchester United have risen to third thanks to a 2-0 success at Nottingham Forest.

Newcastle United produced possibly their worst showing of the season in a 3-0 loss to Aston Villa, while Tottenham Hotspur's Champions League hopes suffered another damaging blow in a dramatic 3-2 beating at the hands of Bournemouth.

Brighton & Hove Albion did their European aspirations a massive favour by seeing off Chelsea 2-1, but Brentford's recent nosedive continued in a 2-0 defeat to Wolverhampton Wanderers.

Finally, Fulham returned to winning ways with a 3-1 victory over Everton, Crystal Palace's purple patch under Roy Hodgson continued with a 2-0 win at Southampton, and Liverpool humiliated Leeds United in their own backyard with a 6-1 thrashing.

Here, Sports Mole picks its Premier League Team of the Week for the latest round of fixtures.

DEFENCE

Keylor Navas and Bernd Leno were both honourable mentions for this week's selection, but Chelsea could and probably should have lost by more against Brighton, had it not been for Kepa Arrizabalaga. There was little that the Spaniard could do about Julio Enciso's incredible winner, but he produced nine saves at Stamford Bridge - all of which ultimately counted for nought - to keep his side in with a fighting chance.

Enjoying the creative freedom of a midfield role at Elland Road, Trent Alexander-Arnold was once again pulling the strings for Liverpool in the thrashing of Leeds, setting up two of his side's six goals and registering a 91% pass accuracy in one of his finest displays of the season.

Speaking of defenders who have transitioned into midfield roles, John Stones also showed what he is capable of in the final third against Leicester - breaking the deadlock with a cushioned half-volley from the edge of the box - and he completed 98% of his passes in another assured performance.

While Alexander-Arnold and Stones forced their way into the team thanks to their attacking contributions, Tosin Adarabioyo was nothing short of a monster for Fulham defensively at Everton. The 6ft 5in defender contested eight aerial duels and won all eight of them, totalling nine clearances and four interceptions as he seeks to return to the first XI on a regular basis.

MIDFIELD

Man United's well-documented defensive injury crisis forced Diogo Dalot into a left-back role for the visit to Forest, but the Portugal international was a standout performer nonetheless, taking his goal like a seasoned striker while winning both of his ground duels and creating two chances in a brilliant all-around performance.

One of many Palace players thriving under the tutelage of Hodgson, Eberechi Eze will be giving Southampton fans nightmares for weeks after netting a brace on the South Coast, firstly volleying home on the rebound from Jordan Ayew's saved attempt before giving Moussa Djenepo the slip en route to a stunning solo second. Furthermore, the 24-year-old succeeded with four of his five dribble attempts and won four tackles to dominate the St Mary's soil.

It seems harsh not to include any Brighton players given their remarkable Stamford Bridge exploits - Moises Caicedo was on the fringes of this XI - but Jacob Ramsey's performance against Newcastle simply cannot be ignored; the 21-year-old drilled home the opening goal with aplomb and proceeded to turn provider for Ollie Watkins as the Lions' revolution under Unai Emery continued.

Out on the left flank, nothing was going right for Diogo Jota inside the first 25 minutes at Elland Road, but the Portuguese attacker soon taught the Whites a footballing lesson. After setting up Mohamed Salah's first-half strike, Jota opened his account for the Premier League season with a 21-minute brace, giving Jurgen Klopp even more food for thought up front.

ATTACK

With England boss Gareth Southgate casting a watchful eye over proceedings at Villa Park, Ollie Watkins had all the motivation he needed to deliver, and boy did he deliver. After heading down for Ramsey to fire home the opening goal, Watkins smartly turned away from Dan Burn to finish before calmly slotting home his second of the afternoon as Villa's assault on the European places continues.

Only one month on from a painful 3-2 loss to Arsenal in North London, Bournemouth took a leaf out of the Gunners' book with near-identical success at Tottenham, who felt the full force of Dominic Solanke. The 25-year-old capitalised on Spurs' mistakes to set up Matias Vina and score the Cherries' second, before picking out Dango Ouattara for a last-gasp winner in a major boost to Bournemouth's chances of avoiding the drop.

Lastly, equalling and breaking records is bread and butter for Erling Braut Haaland, whose penalty and delightful dink against Leicester saw him reach 32 top-flight goals for the season - the joint-most in a 38-game Premier League campaign alongside Salah - and surpassing Andy Cole and Alan Shearer's overall records of 34 is the next box to tick off for the indomitable Norwegian.

SPORTS MOLE'S PREMIER LEAGUE TEAM OF THE WEEK

Sports Mole's Premier League Team of the Week (3-4-3): Kepa; Trent, Stones, Adarabioyo; Dalot, Eze, Ramsey, Jota; Watkins, Haaland, Solanke