Pure excitement has been the theme of this Premier League season. Arsenal, Manchester City and Aston Villa are locked in a three-way title race while practically the rest of the division is competing for a European place. Indeed, the table is so crowded it feels more like the Championship than the top-flight, with back-to-back wins being all it takes to propel teams from 15th to the top five.
The story of the campaign has been Liverpool's stunning fall from grace after storming to last season's title and spending £446 million ($596m) in the transfer market, and that has allowed Arsenal to pick up the baton and run with it, However, they have recently been reeled in by a City side that have found their groove and a Villa team who brushed aside their own stuttering start to put together an incredible run of results.
Sunderland have bucked the trend of promoted teams spending the whole campaign trying to avoid relegation, with Regis Le Bris' side pulling off impressive feats such as nicking points off Arsenal and Liverpool while winning away at Chelsea to give themselves a real shot at qualifying for Europe. Brentford, meanwhile, have also defied expectations that they would be condemned to the drop, thanks in no small part to a previously little-known Brazilian forward.
And so as we approach the festive fixtures and the halfway point of the season, GOAL has assembled the best combined XI from all 20 teams…
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GK: David Raya (Arsenal)
David Raya set the tone for his season with three excellent saves in the opening-day win at Manchester United, and only conceded three goals in his first 10 games.
And so while the resolute defence in front of him deserves a lot of credit for Arsenal having the best defensive record in the division, Raya has added another shield of security by expertly keeping watch and making his share of valuable saves.
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RB: Jurrien Timber (Arsenal)
Former Tottenham boss Tim Sherwood recently labelled Jurrien Timber as the best full-back in the Premier League while Gary Neville went even further, calling the Arsenal defender 'the best full-back in the world'. Gunners fans would certainly agree.
The Dutchman – who learned his trade at Ajax as a centre-back – has managed to lock down a place in Mikel Arteta's side at both left-back and right-back at various points during his two-and-a-half seasons at the club. He has now, however, settled on the latter role this season, dislodging the previously unmovable Ben White.
Timber's blend of being tidy in possession and physically intimidating has helped him transition seamlessly to moving out wide, and he has developed a whole new level of understanding with Bukayo Saka.
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CB: Gabriel Magalhaes (Arsenal)
Gabriel Magalhaes embodies Arsenal's defensive steel and threat from set-pieces more than anyone else, so there was understandable concern when he picked up an injury during the November international break. Those fears have been realised as Arsenal have conceded five goals in the five league games he has missed, having let in five in the 11 matches he did play in.
Gabriel's goals and assists have been worth six points to Arsenal already, and as the title race heats up, his return cannot come soon enough for Arteta.
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CB: Marc Guehi (Crystal Palace)
Marc Guehi was said to be furious with Crystal Palace for blocking his deadline-day move to Liverpool, but he has not acted like it, playing with even more consistency than before and managing to be even more decisive.
Palace's defence was the second-meanest behind Arsenal's until Saturday's drubbing at Leeds, and Guehi is the main reason why. He has also been a lethal weapon in the opposition's box, too, as he snatched a last-gasp winner at Fulham while assisting in the narrow victories over Burnley and Liverpool. This will be Guehi's last season at Selhurst Park, but he is not resting on his laurels, and his exceptional displays mean he will have the pick of Europe's top clubs as a free agent next summer.