Garth Crooks has named Fabian Schar in his Premier League team of the week, praising his ability to ‘defend and play in equal measure.’
The Swiss centre-back didn’t put a foot wrong defensively, keeping Jesse Lingard quiet on our way to a clean sheet, but also broke the deadlock in the second half with a stunning strike past Dean Henderson.
One surprise is that the BBC pundit left Bruno Guimaraes out of his opening 11 after the Brazilian put on a midfield masterclass at St James’ Park, running the show in a man of the match display that had Alan Shearer gushing on Match of the Day.
However, Crooks opted for Man City duo Kevin De Bruyne and Ilkay Gundogan instead, with Schar selected alongside Erling Haaland, Gabriel Jesus, ex-Mag Aleksandar Mitrovic and Pascal Gross – who scored a brace in Brighton’s win at Old Trafford yesterday.
Here’s what Crooks had to say after selecting Schar in his XI, followed by his team of the week in full:
His first-half tackle on Jesse Lingard in the Newcastle box was enough to suggest the Swiss defender was in no mood to give the Nottingham Forest player one inch.
Schar’s strike for Newcastle’s opening goal was struck beautifully. This footballer can defend and play in equal measure. Precisely what Lingard is doing at Forest I am not entirely sure, but a one-year deal on a free transfer? What sort of commitment is that? Does Lingard think we are all stupid?
Take the deal and split if the team goes down – is that the plan? I’m not sure who looks more ridiculous. Lingard for signing or Forest for accepting the terms.
