With the 2017/18 Premier League almost a third of the way through, former West Ham United striker Dean Ashton reflects on the 110 matches so far and gives his standout teams, players and moments.
Who will be champions?
Chelsea are the team who can catch Manchester City. They’ve had another stuttering start but I still look at their squad and think they’re going to be hard to beat throughout the season. Eden Hazard seems to be getting back to full fitness and he can destroy teams on his own.
Top four?
Man City. Chelsea. Manchester United. Tottenham Hotspur.
Surprise package?
Watford and Marco Silva. The way they’re playing; they could’ve beaten Chelsea 5-2!
Best match?
I loved Huddersfield Town beating Man Utd 2-1. For a team like Huddersfield it’s a fairytale. The atmosphere there was great.
Best goal?
Charlie Daniels v Man City. I love it when it hits the crossbar and then the netting. When you’re playing the big teams and you score a goal like that, it’s special. It was getting quicker as it went in and looked like it was going to rip the net off. Not many have beaten Ederson but I don’t think he even saw it!
Daniels talks through his goal
.@chazdaniels13's rocket won him the Carling Goal of the Month Award for August, but what does he make of the comparisons with @Oficial_RC3? pic.twitter.com/vDjYyY3LVM
— Carling (@carling) September 12, 2017
Best manager?
It’s got to be Sean Dyche. He has hardly anything to spend, loses two of his best players in Andre Gray and Michael Keane, and yet, if anything, they look stronger.
Best signing?
Mohamed Salah. He looks a totally different player from his time at Chelsea. I’ve been surprised by how quick, how direct he is, and he’s a better finisher than I thought. He’s really added to that Liverpool side.
Best player?
Kevin De Bruyne is walking on water at the moment. I watch him play and think, "Why couldn’t I have played with him?" He can pick out a pass, whip in a cross, all different types of deliveries. You just have to make the run and you know he’s going to deliver it, wherever he is, and that’s very rare.
Best young player?
Tammy Abraham. It’s very rare for a player as young as him, having not played a lot of top-flight football, to have such massive expectation because he's from Chelsea and done well for the England youth sides.
He’s got everything you need to do well in the PL: effort, determination, workrate. I wish I had that at that age. It took me a while to learn you’ve got to do that every single game. But he just does it; it’s his nature. When you add his qualities, you’ve got a great player.