StadiumPosts Logo
Stay upto date with notifications from Stadiumposts
Notifications can be managed in browser preferences

ROONEY SHOCK! SNUBS HAALAND FOR ARSENAL'S VIKTOR GYOKERES IN TOP THREE PICK

Wayne Rooney makes a shock Premier League top 3 pick, omitting Erling Haaland. He ranks Arsenal's Viktor Gyokeres 3rd, behind Bournemouth's Antoine Semenyo and Man United's Bryan Mbeumo.

Rooney SHOCK! Snubs Haaland for Arsenal's Viktor Gyokeres in Top Three Pick
Rooney Snubs Haaland

In an unexpected move, Wayne Rooney has placed Viktor Gyokeres among his top three players in the Premier League this season, overlooking Erling Haaland, who has scored 14 goals. 

Rooney, a former PFA Player of the Year in 2010, has been closely following the Premier League this season, in part due to his burgeoning career as a pundit. 

While Haaland tops the scoring charts for his team after three months of play, Rooney has selected a different Scandinavian striker as one of his favourites this season.

Gyokeres, a Swedish national who joined Arsenal this summer for £64 million, has made a remarkable start to his time at the Emirates Stadium. 

In early September, he netted two goals during his home debut against Leeds and added another in the 3-0 triumph over Nottingham Forest. 

Nevertheless, the former Sporting Lisbon player finally broke his goal drought during the 4-0 win against Atletico Madrid on October 21 after going nine matches without a goal for both club and country. 

Rooney has been impressed with the striker's overall contribution, despite his only scoring four goals in the Premier League. 

Although six players have outscored Gyokeres this season, Rooney still ranks the 27-year-old third among his top picks. 

"My third choice would be Gyokeres," Rooney shared with Amazon Prime Video Sport. 

"His work rate, commitment, hold-up play, and of course, his goal-scoring contribute significantly. Arsenal has needed a number nine for several years." 

Since finding the net in the 2-0 win over Burnley on November 1, Gyokeres has been sidelined. 

He suffered a hamstring injury before the international break, which kept him from participating in the Champions League match against Slavia Prague and the 2-2 draw against Sunderland. 

Consequently, he opted out of the World Cup qualifying matches for Sweden against Slovenia and Switzerland. 

His availability for the important Champions League clash against Bayern Munich next Wednesday or the north London derby against Tottenham at the Emirates on Sunday remains uncertain. 

In his top two selections, who did Rooney pick? 


He placed Bryan Mbeumo of Manchester United and Antoine Semenyo from Bournemouth ahead of Gyokeres in third place. 

"I believe Semenyo has been exceptional for Bournemouth," Rooney commented, recognising his consistency from the last season. 

"I would also include Bryan Mbeumo. Despite a tough start to the season for Man United, he has performed admirably. I think he has been fantastic." 

With five goals in 11 league appearances, Mbeumo has made a name for himself at Old Trafford. 

As Manchester United embarked on a five-match winning streak, Mbeumo's form has noticeably improved. 

He’s scored four goals in his last four matches, including the opener in the win against Liverpool and the most recent 2-2 draw with Tottenham. 

Semenyo, with six goals to his name, is one of the most coveted wingers in the Premier League. 

The Ghanaian international’s contract contains a clause that permits him to leave in January if a club pays £65 million. Manchester United, Liverpool, and Tottenham have all reportedly expressed interest in acquiring him.

VAR REVIEW: CHELSEA 2-2 BOURNEMOUTH, ESTêVãO PENALTY DRAMA EXPLAINED! WAS IT A FOUL OR A DIVE

Explaining the VAR: How an 11th-minute penalty check at Stamford Bridge saved a point for Chelsea against a resilient Bournemouth.

top-news
Antoine Semenyo’s clumsy challenge handed Chelsea a vital lifeline

Every week, the Video Assistant Referee stirs up drama in the Premier League. Let's break down how these calls are made and if they're actually right.

This season, we're digging into the big moments to explain the VAR process and the rules of the game.

What went down: Chelsea's Estêvão was moving into the Bournemouth box, with Antoine Semenyo on his tail. Estêvão went down after some contact with Semenyo. The ref, Barrott, waved off Chelsea's penalty shouts, saying there wasn't a foul. He thought both players made contact naturally as they were running, and Estêvão basically tripped himself.

VAR said, "After looking at it, VAR Pawson suggested Barrott take another look at the monitor for a possible penalty because Semenyo might have tripped Estêvão."

VAR's take: Pawson had to figure out if the contact was just part of the play, like the ref thought, or if Semenyo fouled Estêvão. It was clear Estêvão tripped, but the question was how the contact started.

At first glance, it would be hard for Pawson to disagree with the ref because the main TV angle wasn't clear. But after checking out the sideline and behind views, Pawson saw that Semenyo stepped into Estêvão's path, making enough contact with his leg to cause him to trip.

Pawson told Barrott to check the monitor for a possible penalty. Barrott watched the replays, agreed, and gave Chelsea the penalty.

The call: It was a reasonable VAR call based on today's standards. But it's a borderline case.

Barrott seemed unsure of the monitor and needed some convincing from different angles.

A lot of the time, this kind of contact is just from players running normally, and someone goes down. To give a penalty, there really needs to be a clear foul by the defender. You could say that happened here, but it's a pretty low standard for VAR to get involved.

Chelsea 2-2 AFC Bournemouth

Referee: Sam Barrott

VAR: Craig Pawson

What: VAR check for a foul in the box

When: 11th minute

BREAKING: UNAI EMERY REVEALS THE REAL REASON BEHIND HIS COLD ARTETA HANDSHAKE SNUB NOW

Unai Emery explains why he skipped the post-match handshake as Arsenal’s 4-1 win ends Aston Villa’s 11-game streak at the Emirates.

top-news
Emery snubs Arteta's handshake

Unai Emery said he didn't shake Mikel Arteta's hand right after Aston Villa lost at the Emirates Stadium since the Arsenal manager kept him waiting.

This loss stopped Villa's winning streak at 11 games, their first in almost two months.

Villa held their own in the first half, but Arsenal scored early in the second when Gabriel got to the ball before Emi Martinez on a corner.

Martin Zubimendi quickly made it 2-0, and Leandro Trossard scored a third goal a little after an hour had passed.

Soon after entering the pitch, Gabriel Jesus scored, making it 4-0. Ollie Watkins was able to respond by tapping in a goal late in the game after Donyell Malen's nice play.

After the game, Emery waited to shake Arteta's hand, but he went to the locker room since Arteta was still celebrating with his team.

It’s easy to see. I like to do things fast,” Emery said when asked about why he didn’t shake Arteta’s hand.

“I shake hands, then I go to the dressing room with my players and coaches. I was waiting.

“Arteta was busy with his coaches, so I went inside. It’s not a big deal for me.”

About the match, Emery commented, “We played great in the first half, and things were going our way. We had corners and defended well. We didn’t let them get a corner in the first half.

“We felt good, but we let in the first goal in the second half. Onana getting hurt didn’t help since he’s important for set pieces and in the midfield.

“We didn’t quit, and we kept playing hard. We scored one goal and almost scored more. Arsenal is the best team in the league and should win the title.

“I’m not sure which day it is since we’ve played Arsenal twice already, and we still have to play Nottingham. But I’m happy with our goals and how we're trying to attain them.

Premier League Standings

WhatsApp Read More News