Week 18 of the 2025/26 Premier League season was pretty non-eventful as the main title contenders all secured three points.
Arsenal beat Brighton 2-1 and Manchester City beat Nottingham Forest 2-1, while it is Aston Villa that appears to be the best of the rest after their 2-1 win over Chelsea.
At the wrong end of the table, Wolves, West Ham and Burnley all failed to win, but the Hammers remain five points behind 17th-placed Nottingham Forest.
Here is our team of the week for Gameweek 18.
Goalkeeper – Martin Dubravka (Burnley)
Only five teams kept a clean sheet in Gameweek 18 and Burnley were one of them as they secured a 0-0 draw against Everton.
The Clarets were hoping for a victory to improve their chances of survival, but they also had Martin Dubravka to thank for his contribution.
The former Newcastle United goalkeeper made six saves to keep the Toffees at bay and he was the standout keeper of the weekend.
Defender – Patrick Dorgu (Manchester United)
It is not often that a defender is the matchwinner, but left-back Patrick Dorgu was just that as Manchester United beat Newcastle United 1-0 on Friday night.
Dorgu hammered home a volley, helped his side keep a clean sheet and recorded 10 defensive contributions. A good day at the office for the youngster.
Defender – Diogo Dalot (Manchester United)
Dorgu’s team-mate Diogo Dalot was not too far behind him in terms of individual contribution on Friday. He set his team-mate up for the goal and recorded 12 defensive contributions as Ruben Amorim’s team fought hard to secure all three points.
Defender – Micky van de Ven (Tottenham)
Clean sheets have been hard to come by for Tottenham this season, but centre-back Micky van de Ven put everything on the line to ensure Spurs beat Crystal Palace 1-0 at Selhurst Park.
Thomas Frank watched on as his powerful defender made 14 defensive contributions, blocking, heading and clearing any delivery into the Spurs box to ensure the Lilywhites maintained their fine away record.
Defender – Michael Keane (Everton)
Former Burnley centre-back Michael Keane returned to Turf Moor and helped Everton secure a share of the spoils.
The Clarets dominated for large parts and had it not been for Keane’s whopping 21 defensive contributions, then the hosts may have claimed all three points.
Midfielder – Kevin Schade (Brentford)
The headlines belonged to Kevin Schade this weekend as the Brentford ace scored a hat-trick in Saturday’s 4-1 win over Bournemouth.
Schade was a level above everyone else on the pitch at the Gtech Community Stadium and he doubled his goal tally for the season in one game.
Midfielder – Rayan Cherki (Manchester City)
For large parts of Saturday’s early kick-off, it looked like Manchester City had run out of ideas against Nottingham Forest.
That was before Rayan Cherki got a grip of the game and scored a goal and grabbed an assist in a man-of-the-match display.
Midfielder – Ryan Gravenberch (Liverpool)
Liverpool were made to work hard by Wolves in Saturday’s 2-1 win at Anfield and they had to show plenty of character.
Midfielder Ryan Gravenberch did just that as he scored and controlled midfield, racking up 13 defensive contributions in a fine individual display.
Midfielder – Florian Wirtz (Liverpool)
Playmaker Florian Wirtz finally opened his account for Liverpool as he scored the Reds’ second.
Gravenberch and Wirtz scored within a minute of each other and Anfield fans will now hope that the German can kick on and reach new heights after a slow start to his Reds career.
Midfielder – Martin Odegaard (Arsenal)
Arsenal captain Martin Odegaard was another midfielder who broke his duck for the season when he scored in the 2-1 win over Brighton.
Odegaard opened the scoring after converting Bukayo Saka’s cutback on the edge of the area and he was constantly looking to create chances as the Gunners secured a huge three points on home soil.
Striker – Ollie Watkins (Aston Villa)
The term super sub is not often associated with Aston Villa’s Ollie Watkins, mainly because he has been a regular starter since he joined the club.
However, a dip in form has seen the England international drop to the bench in two of Villa’s last six.
He made sure Unai Emery knew all about his goalscoring ability, though, as he stepped off the bench to score twice against Chelsea in the 2-1 win at Stamford Bridge.
