Team of the Week: Hat-trick for top scorer Guirassy, unlikely Roma hero Cristante impresses
Here's our fifth Team of the Week of the 2023/24 campaign.
Goalkeeper:
Kevin Trapp (Eintracht Frankfurt) 9.2
Granted, Trapp failed to keep a clean sheet but it was only thanks to a penalty that his teammates recklessly gave away. It could have been a lot worse for Frankfurt if it weren't for the German goalkeeper.
Frankfurt were mediocre in their offensive efforts compared to their opponents, taking eight shots in front of Bochum's 22. Seven of the hosts' efforts were on target, Trapp made as many saves to keep his side out of danger and thus making up for the disappointing performance from his forwards.
Defence:
Brooks Lennon (Atlanta United) 9.3
Another defender not shy from running into the box asking for the ball and feeding off his teammates with key passes and assists is Atlanta United's Brooks Lennon.
The right-back shone in his side's impressive 5-2 win over Inter Miami, constantly running towards the box, making sure he is unnmarked, he overlapped Edwin Mosquera with a run on the ride side of the box receiving the ball and cutting it back instantly and perfectly towards Tristan Muyumba for the equaliser.
Building up on that momentum and with a similar run in the middle of the box this time, a composed first touch, a look at the goal and a capitalising shot to score Atlanta's third before half-time.
Rodrigues (San Jose Earthquakes) 8.8
While his marking in the goal his side conceded was questionable, Rodrigues' side will be grateful for his courageous run forward to score San Jose's second goal of the game. One that ultimately gave them the edge over Real Salt Lake.
His performance in the back was commendable overall as well, managing six clearances, four interceptions and a tackle. He won all of his four attempted ground duels and 70% of his aerial efforts.
Mats Hummels (Borussia Dortmund) 8.9
It wasn't necessarily Dortmund's defensive performance that helped them win against Freiburg as they conceded two goals, but rather one special defender: Mats Hummels.
The unlikely hero led from the front putting his side on the front foot twice, opening the scoring early on and completing a comeback in the dying moments - equalling a record of finding the net in 16 consecutive Bundesliga seasons.
Jonathan Clauss (Marseille) 8.7
While his team's overall performance looked disappointing, Jonathan Clauss actually had a pretty decent game himself. By far the side's best rating was to his name.
Clauss attempted to put Marseille ahead with a brilliant curled free-kick only to hit the woodwork, nevertheless, he made sure to keep a clean sheet. Completing two clearances, and as many tackles, three interceptions, winning five out of seven attempted ground duels and making six key passes.
Midfield:
Mohamed Salah (Liverpool) 8.7
A hat-trick for the Egyptian forward, or rather one of an unusual kind. Salah created all of Liverpool's three goals against Wolves at Molineux.
He picked out Cody Gakpo in the middle of the hosts' defence, setting him up with an easy tap-in, before doing the same for Andy Robertson to complete the comeback. He finally teed up Harvey Elliot to seal the deal with their final goal.
Bryan Cristante (Roma) 9.5
One of the unexpected yet most remarkable performances of the weekend came from the Roma midfielder. Cristante started by forcing an own goal by pressing the Empoli defence to find the hosts' third goal of the night.
His next highlight came in the second half as he made himself available between the Empoli lines to then dribble his way through to right side of the box to set up Paulo Dybala for the fourth before sending a rocket of a shot to the top left corner, achieving a genuine contender for the Serie A goal of the season.
And if all that was not enough, the Italian ran to the first post in a late corner to tee up his captain Gianluca Mancini with a cheeky backheel to complete the 7-0 triumph.
Henrikh Mkhitaryan (Inter Milan) 8.9
Mkhitaryan was the leader of Inter's historical humiliation of Milan. The Nerazzurri defeated their arch rivals 5-1 on Saturday in a memorable contest for Simone Inzaghi's men as they managed their fourth win in four matches.
The Armenian began the momentum as he opened the scoring with just five minutes in and kept on being a threat in the box until he found his second as well as creating the last and fifth goal of the match, sending Davide Frattesi through on goal in injury time.
Bernardo Silva (Manchester City) 8.6
The little magician is what he is called and for good reason! The Portuguese starred in Manchester City's comeback win at the London Stadium against West Ham United with a goal and an assist.
Completing the comeback after a one-two with Julian Alvarez, sneaking in between the hosts' defence to push the ball behind Alphonse Areola. Silva then followed this effort by leading a counter attack that was concluded with him sending on Erling Haaland for the inevitable as Pep Guardiola's men confirmed the three points.
Attack:
Robert Lewandowski (Barcelona) 9.5
The Barcelona striker has either scored or created a goal in the last four matches for the Catalan side. In his last match, well, he did both.
Lewandowski started by doubling the lead at the 31st minute with a great run behind the Real Betis defence and a composed finish. He followed it with an assist after the hour mark as he dropped to the edge of the box between the lines, setting up Raphinha with enough space for the Brazilian to complete a brilliant effort from distance.
Serhou Guirassy (Stuttgart) 10
It is Stuttgart's best start to a season in 19 years and it is largely thanks to this man right here. Serhou Guirassy is currently the Bundesliga's top scorer with eight goals so far.
He has scored in every match this campaign and lately it was a hat-trick to his name on the scoresheet. The Guinea international put his side ahead twice and completed a perfect trio of goals, a right-footed chip, finding a small gap in the net with his weaker side, and finally raising the ball to his head to complete the triumph in injury time.
