Premier League Gameweek 10 Defensive Stats: Most Tackles, Interceptions, Clearances, Aerial Duels Won & More

Arsenal’s remarkable rearguard went unbreached once again this weekend, as Mikel Arteta’s men extended their lead at the Premier League’s summit.

The Gunners find themselves five points clear at the top after Gameweek 10’s conclusion, having beaten Hull City 1-0 in North London on Saturday.

They are now averaging an outstanding 0.5 goals conceded per match in 2026/27 and have recorded a joint league-leading seven clean sheets to date.

Brighton are the other team to have secured seven shut-outs, one of which was on Sunday in a 2-0 triumph over Brentford at the Amex Stadium.

That result saw them climb to second in the table, following Manchester City’s surprise 3-1 loss to relegation-threatened Nottingham Forest.

Strong back lines are proving key this season, then, as Leeds United demonstrated in a narrow 1-0 victory over Tottenham Hotspur – their first win since mid-September.

And Sunderland also returned to winning ways courtesy of a dogged display, with the relegation-battlers picking up a surprise three points at home to inconsistent Chelsea (1-0).

So, as we reflect on the final round of Premier League action before another international break, here are the defensive stats you need to know about from Gameweek 10…

Premier League Most Tackles: Muñoz makes the difference against Manchester City

The honours are shared when it comes to this weekend’s top tacklers, with five players making five challenges apiece.

Of that quintet, Daniel Muñoz’s interventions certainly caught the eye, as his Forest side delivered the shock of the weekend to beat Manchester City on home soil.

Muñoz produced his commendable tally despite only featuring for 65 minutes, while Leeds United’s Ao Tanaka also matched that figure during a 77-minute stretch at Elland Road.

Trai Hume’s five tackles for Sunderland were just as crucial, with their win against Chelsea easing the growing pressure on manager Regis le Bris – even if the Black Cats remain in the drop zone.

That wasn’t the case for Tatsuhiro Sakamoto, though, as his high challenge count went unrewarded in Coventry City’s Friday night defeat to upwardly-mobile Everton.

Elsewhere, one game that certainly can’t be categorised as ‘defences on top’ was Manchester United’s helter-skelter 4-4 draw with Aston Villa!

But it still produced a strong defensive showing from Kobbie Mainoo in the centre of the park, with the 21-year-old making five tackles during the Red Devils’ late comeback.

Premier League Most Interceptions: Mac Allister the main man in Liverpool win

Talking of Sunday’s thriller at Old Trafford, Aston Villa star Victor Lindelöf was one of three players to make a league-leading five interceptions during Gameweek 10.

The Sweden international was joined at the summit by Lewis Hall (Newcastle United) and Alexis Mac Allister (Liverpool), with the latter enjoying a particularly satisfying afternoon on Sunday.

Mac Allister scored Liverpool’s opener in a comprehensive 3-1 victory over strugglers Crystal Palace, leaving the Reds in fourth place and banishing memories of last weekend’s loss to Arsenal.

Six players were just below that trio on five interceptions each, in Mamadou Sangaré (Brentford), Evanilson (Bournemouth), James Hill (Bournemouth), James Justin (Leeds United), Moisés Caicedo (Chelsea) and Leny Yoro (Manchester United).

Bournemouth deserve a special mention here, with two inclusions on that list. Marco Rose’s side have now won four league games in a row after beating Ipswich Town 2-1 on the road.

Evanilson’s impact in recent weeks has been remarkable – defensively, as we can see from his interception count – and also in attack.

The 27-year-old has now scored in five consecutive top-flight matches and has found the net seven times in his last eight games across all competitions.

Though Sangaré didn’t end up on the winning side in Brentford’s 2-0 defeat to Brighton, it is worth noting that he cut out an impressive five opposition passes despite only being on the pitch for 59 minutes in Sussex.

Premier League Most Clearances: Marvellous Muharemović helps Leeds to clean sheet

Tarik Muharemović only joined Leeds United in the summer, but the Bosnian centre-back has made a sizeable impact in his short time at the club.

The former Sassuolo man regularly features in our defensive stat leaderboards and this week is no exception, after producing a division-leading 13 clearances versus Tottenham Hotspur.

Hull City’s Nobel Mendy was similarly influential against another North London club in Arsenal, but came away from the Emirates Stadium empty-handed despite clearing the ball on 12 separate occasions.

Another Leeds player – Nico Elvedi – placed just behind on 11, embodying the Whites’ resolute defensive qualities this season under Daniel Farke.

That figure was matched by Aston Villa’s Pau Torres, too, ahead of four central-backs on nine clearances each.

Micky van de Ven (Tottenham), Jarrad Branthwaite (Everton), Gabriel Magalhães (Arsenal) and António Silva (Bournemouth) are the defenders in question, with all bar Van de Ven winning this weekend.

Premier League Most Aerial Duels Won: O'Shea’s aerial strength goes unrewarded

Dara O'Shea can count himself unfortunate to have been on the wrong end of Ipswich Town’s 2-1 loss to Bournemouth.

The 27-year-old was a colossus in the air for the Tractor Boys, winning a sky-high 12 aerial duels at Portman Road.

For context, that is three more than any other Premier League player during Gameweek 10, with Everton’s Branthwaite placing second on nine.

Two defenders familiar to Brighton supporters are next in line – Jan Paul van Hecke and Luka Vušković each registering eight aerial duels won.

Van Hecke left the Seagulls for Tottenham in the summer, of course, before Vušković moved in the opposite direction.

They placed ahead of another Ipswich player in Emersonn, as well as Bournemouth’s Hill and Liverpool’s Jérémy Jacquet – all winning seven aerial battles.

Premier League Most Defensive Third Regains: No wins for top performing trio

O'Shea’s aforementioned aerial display wasn’t the only standout aspect of the Irishman’s performance on Sunday.

He also regained possession six times in the defensive third for Gary O'Neil’s team, which was the joint-highest total across Gameweek 10.

Taylor Harwood-Bellis (Aston Villa) matched that figure, as did Chelsea goalkeeper Mike Penders – though none of the three leaders ended up on the winning side this weekend.

In fact, only one of the top eight performers for this metric actually played in a team that picked up all three points.

That was Everton’s Vitalii Mykolenko, who was tied on five defensive third regains with Mohammed Kudus (Tottenham Hotspur), Óscar Mingueza (Crystal Palace), Wesley Fofana (Chelsea) and David Affengruber (Fulham).

Affengruber did at least help Fulham to a credible 1-1 draw against Newcastle United, though, to continue his strong start to life in the Premier League since joining from Elche on deadline day.