Six changes in latest Premier League Form XI with senseless Son among those dropped

There are sweeping changes to the Premier League Form XI following the weekend’s matches, with Leicester dominance of the side over for the time being following their defeat at Manchester City.

Foxes threesome Ricardo Pereira, Ben Chilwell and James Maddison all drop out of the latest team, with the full-backs in particular given the runaround at the weekend. Meanwhile Harry Kane’s place in the XI was short-lived, while teammate Heung-Min Son is unsurprisingly nowhere to be seen this week following his non-sensical red card offence against Chelsea.

We run through all of this new entrants ahead of the Boxing Day fixture list.

Goalkeeper: Martin Dubravka (Newcastle) - 7.29 weighted rating

The first of six changes this week comes in goal, where Newcastle’s Martin Dubravka regains his spot between the posts from the week previous. Vicente Guaita had displaced the Slovakian but when the two came head-to-head at the weekend it was the Magpies’ keeper who had the crucial say. Dubravka earned a fifth clean sheet of the season as Newcastle secured all three points late on, with their shot stopper producing four saves to help earn said victory.

Right-back: Djibril Sidibe (Everton) - 7.38 weighted rating

Taking the place of the aforementioned Pereira, Sidibe has had to bide his time for a place in the Everton team but the fact that he has dislodged captain Seamus Coleman from the right-back berth highlights the Frenchman’s recent progress. The defender has registered three assists in his last five starts and helped the Toffees keep Arsenal at bay at the weekend. It’s a run of form he’ll be hoping to continue under new head coach Carlo Ancelotti.

Left-back: Dan Burn (Brighton) - 7.10 weighted rating

Entering the team more down to predecessor for the left-back spot Ben Chilwell’s bad day at the office rather than a great one of his own, Burn still deserves great credit for the role he has played in a new look Brighton side. Many were surprised when the giant defender lined up in Graham Potter’s first back three of the season and even more so when the 27-year-old was later utilised at left wing-back. Nevertheless, Burn has adapted extremely well to his new position and even completed three dribbles in the narrow defeat to Sheffield United at the weekend.

Central midfield: Willian (Chelsea) - 7.63 weighted rating

Frank Lampard’s decision to field Willian in a central position rather than wide on the right against Tottenham was certainly vindicated as the Brazilian proved to be the match-winner in a much needed victory for the Blues. The 31-year-old scored with both of his efforts on goal, created five chances and completed 91.1 per cent of his chances in a man of the match display (9.20 rating).

Left-wing: Sadio Mane (Liverpool) - 7.97 weighted rating

Back in the form XI by default having not played in the league at the weekend as the league leaders secured Club World Cup glory, Mane is the beneficiary of Heung-Min Son’s moment of madness against Chelsea.

Striker: Danny Ings (Southampton) - 7.65 weighted rating

Making up for the fact that his five-game scoring streak came to an end in midweek against West Ham, Ings scored twice in what was a huge victory for Saints at relegation rivals Aston Villa. If Ralph Hasenhuttl’s side do beat the drop the importance of this purple patch Ings is enjoying cannot be overstated. With seven goals in his last seven league games, only ‘Form XI’ strike partner Jamie Vardy has found the net more times in the Premier League than the 27-year-old (11) this season.

Qualifying Rules

The 'Form XI' is calculated using only ratings from each players last six league appearances. Ratings are weighted chronologically, with the latest performance being most important and so on. To qualify players must have featured in two of the last three matches available and started six of the last eight.