Sky Sports pundits Joleon Lescott and John Hartson have selected what they believe is the best Premier League XI outside the current top 6 – and have included one Newcastle United star.
Some may have expected to see one of Martin Dubravka, Fabian Schar or Allan Saint-Maximin included, but the duo have gone with Danny Rose, with him filling their left-back slot in their best 11.
Here’s the side they’ve chosen, followed by their reasoning for each selection:
(4-4-2): Pope (Burnley) – Aarons (Norwich), Cahil (Palace), Egan (Sheff Utd), Rose (Newcastle) – Zaha (Palace), Capoue (Watford), Grealish (Villa), McNeil (Burnley) – Aubameyang (Arsenal), Ings (Southampton).
We capped it at two players per team and took a pick each. I led the defence and John the attack. Burnley have 10 clean sheets so it made sense to pick Pope.
We’ve gone with Danny Rose at left-back, but we could have easily gone with Lucas Digne [at Everton] or Charlie Taylor [at Burnley].
We also went with Cahill, who is still quality for me. Egan from Sheffield United has been doing well, too. Chris Wilder has been exceptional and would be right up there for Manager of the Year if it wasn’t for Jurgen Klopp.
I think Grealish might get in the team of the year! There is an argument for Dele Alli but we could only pick one attacking midfielder so we went for Grealish.
We went for Capoue as well. He’s been crucial in Watford’s turnaround and he’s technically excellent. The other player I really like is McNeil at Burnley. He looks to play the ball in early and thrives on crossing.
The amount of goals Ings has scored. It’s a shame for him that with the Euros now being next year he could lose out. But Ings is selfless in terms of his game, he could work in a two or on up front, and Aubameyang is a top-quality striker who could play with anyone.
Some pretty dubious picks here for me, but it’s a game of opinions and we’ve all got one!
For one, it doesn’t make much sense that Kane or Son doesn’t feature.
OK, they play for a side who are classically deemed a ‘big six’ side, but with them currently 8th and them including and Arsenal player in Aubameyang, I can only presume Lescott and Hartson have forgotten all about the England captain and South Korean star!
Richarlison? Doucoure? Alderweireld? Ake? Dubravka?
What would your best XI outside the current top 6 be?
