Weekend awards: Best celebration, goal, save and more

Football writer Adrian Kajumba looks at the standout players and moments from Matchweek 16.

Best celebration - Jack Taylor

Exactly what scoring his first Premier League goal meant was there for all to see as Jack Taylor wheeled off following his match-winning header for Ipswich Town against Wolverhampton Wanderers.

He could not contain his joy as he flung his shirt into the air, raced towards Ipswich’s fans, hurdled the hoardings and joined the wild celebrations that his goal in the fourth minute of stoppage time sparked in the away stand. 

Taylor's goal and celebration v Wolves

It was a brilliant moment for Ipswich, sealing a second Premier League win since their return to the top flight, and a much happier finish after they were on the receiving end of a late AFC Bournemouth comeback in their previous outing.

It was also special on an individual level for Taylor, who has worked his way up the English pyramid from non-league football. 

The former Barnet and Peterborough United midfielder joined a select group of players who have scored in England’s top four divisions in the Premier League era. 

"I think there are 10 or 11 players who have done it and we have four of them," Ipswich manager Kieran McKenna said proudly.

Taylor followed team-mates Sam Morsy, Sam Szmodics and Conor Chaplin onto the list and McKenna added: "That sums up the story of this team and the fabulous journey this team has been on. Jack has had a lovely moment in his story today."

Best save - Emiliano Martinez

There were some hugely impressive goalkeeping contributions in Matchweek 16. 

Everton’s Jordan Pickford, Crystal Palace’s Dean Henderson and Chelsea’s Robert Sanchez all made eye-catching stops to help their sides collect points against Arsenal, Brighton & Hove Albion and Brentford respectively. 

But, despite his heroics coming in a 2-1 defeat at Nottingham Forest, it is impossible to look beyond Aston Villa’s Emiliano Martinez for the save of the weekend.

The FIFA World Cup winner’s 60th-minute, jaw-dropping reaction stop to keep out Nicolas Dominguez’s close-range header almost defied belief.

The debate it reignited about the best Premier League save ever underlined how impressive it was. And so too did the admiration Martinez received from the opposition. 

"I can't think of a better Premier League save," former top-flight midfielder Jamie Redknapp said. "He doesn't just save it, he drags it back. It's almost like a magician - sleight of hand."

Forest head coach Nuno Espirito Santo, a former goalkeeper, said: "I was upset in that moment but [it was a] big, big save. Remarkable. It’s pure instinct. Reflexes. It’s amazing. I wish I had the quality to do those ones but I didn’t."

Best goal - Amad

Manchester United have had their fair share of last-gasp derby heroes during the Premier League years.

And Amad joined the likes of Roy Keane, Michael Owen, Wayne Rooney, Paul Scholes and Robin van Persie in derby folklore with a stunning goal to win the latest instalment of this iconic fixture.

Following a darting run in behind Manchester City’s defence, Amad controlled Lisandro Martinez’s raking pass with a brilliant first touch which also took him past Ederson.

From a narrowing angle and on the run, he then managed to squeeze a shot beyond the Man City goalkeeper and his backtracking defenders Josko Gvardiol and Matheus Nunes to complete a dramatic late turnaround which topped  Forest’s fightback against Villa 24 hours earlier.

Amad's goal v Man City

Amad, who also won the 88th-minute penalty which kickstarted the comeback, was a fitting match-winner.

The standout performer of Ruben Amorim’s reign was once again Man Utd’s shining light at Man City, doing things with the intensity his new head coach demands and with no shortage of quality too.

Amad had the most shots (four), shots on target (two), touches in the opposition box (10) and completed dribbles (five) of all players in the Manchester derby, confirming how he led the way throughout as an attacking threat at the Etihad Stadium. 

How Amad ranked among all players in Man City v Man Utd

Best half - Tottenham Hotspur

"You never know what you’re going to get" with Tottenham Hotspur, Danny Murphy said when reflecting on his former club’s inconsistent season so far. 

But amid the ups and downs for Ange Postecoglou’s side, some of their highs have been spectacular. Their historic first-half display at Southampton fell into that category.

Spurs’ first goal, scored by James Maddison after just 36 seconds, was their quickest for almost seven years, since Christian Eriksen netted just 11 seconds against Man Utd in January 2018. 

It came straight from kick-off at the end of a 12-pass move and the ball was in Southampton’s net before they had their first touch of the match. 

Spurs, who were previously winless in five matches in all competitions, did not look back after that. 

They were 4-0 up after 24 minutes and 46 seconds, the earliest they have had such a lead in a Premier League fixture.

When Maddison added his second strike on the stroke of half-time, it meant Spurs had scored five first-half goals in a Premier League match for the first time.

But he was left aggrieved that he was not also credited with an assist for Son Heung-min’s 125th Premier League goal, which made it 2-0, after Maddison’s cross only reached Spurs' captain via a touch off Southampton defender Jan Bednarek.

Son's goal v Southampton

"But my intended target was Son… so now what?" Maddison asked on X, in reply to a tweet from the official Fantasy Premier League account confirming no assist points were being awarded with the goal.