Troy Deeney's latest BBC team of the week is built around three clear arguments. James Trafford earned his place after Leeds won 1-0 at Nottingham Forest, Vitaly Janelt scored in Brentford's 3-0 win over Tottenham, and Cole Palmer was backed as a player who can make this season his own after injury problems last year.
Trafford's pressure-game case
Deeney said of Trafford: "I think at the World Cup with England he thought, 'I should be playing more' and he obviously didn't get the time and needed a move away."
That line fits the performance at Forest. Trafford's 7.2 rating in the 1-0 win backs up Deeney's point that he handled the game well, and Leeds' clean sheet was one of the more eye-catching keeper performances in the round.
Brentford and Palmer's different messages
Deeney's Brentford praise came with a bigger statement about the club's place in the conversation: "Nobody speaks about him or Brentford but they hammered Tottenham."
Brentford did beat Tottenham 3-0, and Janelt's 7.9 rating shows he was right in the middle of it. He has already scored once this season too. Deeney was just as upbeat on Palmer, saying, "Feels like he's got a point to prove, feels like he's been working hard." Palmer's groin issues last year clouded how people saw him, and Deeney is clearly backing a stronger season now.
The real point of the selection is that it is not just about one good weekend. Trafford got rewarded for handling pressure, Brentford got credit for a proper statement win, and Palmer was framed as a player with a chance to reset the story. Deeney's picks also included Marc Guéhi and Manchester City, but the three most revealing names were the ones he used to make a broader argument.
Written by Jack Mercer with AI-assisted research, cross-checked against 1 outlet. How we work →
