| Badges | This Week | PTS | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 (1) |   Karl-Yngve Lund |   3 | +80 | 1250 | |
| 2 (2) |   Michael Sheehy |  5 | +45 | 1155 | |
| 3 (3) |  Wayne Hubbard | 1 | +60 | 1145 | |
| 4 (4) | Rutland Gooner | 3 | +75 | 1095 | |
| 5 (5) |  @ iWelloo | 2 | +50 | 825 | |
| |
Monday January 2
Middlesbrough v Leicester City
12.30pm GMT, Riverside Stadium, Middlesbrough
Boro came very close to getting a result at United on Saturfay, but two late goals saw them come away with nothing from the game. Only Swansea and Palace have lost more games at home and no other team has scored less goals on their own patch. They have lost four of their last five games and failed to score in three of them with only Hull scoring less goals so far.
Boro defenders have done reasonably well for fantasy managers and Alvaro Negredo hasn't done too badly recently either.
Leicester got a much needed 1-0 victory at home to West Ham on Saturday to give them some breathing space at the wrong end of the table. They have only taken two points in their nine away games and only Palace have conceded more away goals. The win against West Ham was only their second win in 10 games, but at least it moved them six points above the bottom three.
I can't see any Leicester players to interest fantasy managers at the moment.
Despite Leicester's awful away form I think they might just manage a precious point in this game.
Prediction: 1-1
Everton v Southampton
3pm GMT, Goodison Park, Liverpool
Everton left it late last Friday, but they just about managed to get a 2-2 draw away to Hull. They have only lost one of their nine home games, but only Chelsea and Spurs have conceded less goals at home. They have only lost one of their last four games, but Southampton are the only team in the top half of the table to have scored less goals.
Romelu Lukaku is still a possibility for fantasy managers while Kevin Mirallas has looked quite good recently too.
Southampton lost at home to West Brom on Saturday, but they're still just about in the top half of the table. They have only won two of their nine away games, but only three other teams have a better defensive record away from home. They have lost their last two games after only losing one of the previous six and only three other teams have scored less goals.
Southampton's defenders had being doing well recently, but that changed in the last two games.
Both teams could do with getting something from this game and I think they might just share the spoils.
Prediction: 1-1
Manchester City v Burnley
3pm GMT, Etihad Stadium, Manchester
City lost 1-0 at Liverpool on Saturday and that defeat saw them fall out of the top four. They have won their last two home games after failing to win any of the previous four and they need to improve their home form. They have won three and lost three of their last six games and only the top three have scored more goals.
Sergio Aguero has to be a real consideration for fantasy managers now that he's back from suspension and Kevin de Bruyne is worth considering too.
Burnley got a very impressive 4-1 win at home to Sunderland on Saturday to move nine points clear of the bottom three. They have only taken one point and scored two goals in their eight away games with no other team getting less points or scoring less goals on the road. Only four teams have lost more games than Burnley, but their home record continues to keep them in a safe mid table position.
Burnley defenders can do well for fantasy managers, but only when they're at home.
I can't see anything other than a comprehensive City win in this game.
Prediction: 4-0
Sunderland v Liverpool
3pm GMT, Stadium of Light, Sunderland
Sunderland were well beaten away to Burnley on Saturday and they're still in the relegation zone. Only Swansea and Palace have lost more home games and only three other teams have scored less goals at home, but they have won three of their last four at home. They have lost four of their last five games and only Hull have scored less goals.
Jermain Defoe is still the only Sunderland player for fantasy managers to consider with more than half of their goals.
Liverpool won 1-0 at home to City on Saturday and that victory kept them six points behind Chelsea in second place. Only City and Chelsea have won more away games and only City have scored more goals away from home. They have won their last four games and kept clean sheets in three of them and they're the top scorers in the league too.
Sadio Mane, Adam Lallana and Roberto Frimino are currently the best fantasy options in the Liverpool team and their defenders have done well recently too.
I think Liverpool will have too much in attack for Sunderland and will win by a couple of goals at least.
Prediction: 0-2
West Bromwich Albion v Hull City
3pm GMT, The Hawthorns, Birmingham
West Brom got a very good win at Southampton on Saturday to move up to eighth in the table. They have only won four of their nine home games and have conceded more goals at home than any other team in the top half of the table. They have lost three of their last five games and failed to score in those three games, but they were all against top six teams.
Matt Phillips looks like the best fantasy option in the West Brom team with Ben Foster and Garerh McAuley worth considering too while Chris Brunt is worth a look as he's listed as a defender.
Hull came very close to winning at home to Everton on Friday night, but had to settle for a draw which at least moved them off the foot of the table. Only Sunderland have lost more away games than Hull and only Palace have conceded more away goals. They have only taken three points in their last eight games and they failed to score in five of those games too with no other team scoring less goals.
Robert Snodgrass is still the only Hull player of any interest to fantasy managers.
I think West Brom will continue to climb the table by taking the three points in this game.
Prediction: 3-0
West Ham United v Manchester United
5.15pm GMT, Old Trafford, Manchester
West Ham lost away to Leicester on Saturday to put an end to their recent good run of results. They have only lost three of their nine home games, but no other team has scored less goals at home. They had won three games in a row before losing to Leicester, but they will do well to get anything from this game.
Dimitri Payet, Michail Antonio and Winston Reid are all doing pretty well for fantasy managers.
United left it very late on Saturday, but got a very important 2-1 win at home to Boro to continue their pursuit of the five teams above them. They have only lost two of their nine away games, but they haven't scored too many goals away from home. They're unbeaten in 10 games and have won the last five, but they're not scoring as many goals as the teams above them.
Zlatan Ibrahimovic is the United player to have for fantasy managers while Paul Pogba has done well recently too.
I think West Ham will give United a tough test, but United will just about get a narrow victory.
Prediction: 1-2
Tuesday January 3
Bournemouth v Arsenal
7.45pm GMT, Vitality Stadium, Bournemouth
Bournemouth got a very good 3-0 win away to Swansea on Saturday to move into the top half of the table. They have won five of their nine home games and proved to be a difficult opponent for any team at home in particular. They have won three and lost three of their last six games since they lost away to Arsenal and they have the worst defensive record in the top half of table.
Bournemouth defenders are well worth considering for fantasy managers as they continue to add attacking points to the occasional clean sheet.
Arsenal won 2-0 at home to Palace on Sunday to move above City into third place. They have won five of their nine away games with only City scoring more away goals and only Chelsea conceding less on their travels. They have won their last two games without conceding a goal after losing the previous two and only the top two have scored more goals with only Chelsea and Spurs conceding less.
Alexis Sanchez is still the must have Arsenal player for fantasy managers with Hector Bellerin doing well too while Mesut Ozil and Theo Walcott are possibilities if they're fit to play.
I think this will be a very close game and Arsenal will just about edge it.
Prediction: 1-2
Crystal Palace v Swansea City
8pm GMT, Selhurst Park, London
Palace lost 2-0 at Arsenal on Sunday and they're still only two points above the relegation zone. They have lost six of their nine home games and have taken less points at home than any other team. They have only taken six points from their last 13 games and only the bottom two have conceded more goals.
Palace players haven't done too well for fantasy managers recently, but maybe the likes of Wilfried Zaha and Christian Benteke might do well in this game.
Swansea lost at home to Bournemouth on Saturday and there doesn't seem to be too much they can do at the moment to stop their slide towards relegation. They have lost seven of their nine away games and only Palace have conceded more goals away from home. They have lost their last four games and conceded 13 goals in the process and they have conceded more goals than any other team so far.
Gylfi Sigurdsson has been the Swansea player to have for fantasy managers, but like the rest of their team he hasn't done much in the last few games.
I think Palace will get the better of what looks like a relegation six pointer and give themselves some breathing space.
Prediction: 2-1
Stoke City v Watford
8pm GMT, Bet365 Arena, Stoke
Stoke put up a good fight at Chelsea on Saturday, but ended up losing 4-2. They have only won three of their nine home games and only three other teams have scored less goals at home. They haven't won in their last five games and they have conceded 10 goals in their last three.
Stoke players haven't done too well recently for fantasy managers, but Joe Allen is still worth considering and things could improve for their defenders.
Watford were well beaten at home to Spurs on Sunday and they're slowly moving down the table. They have only won two of their nine away games and have lost their last four on the road and conceded 12 goals in the process. They have only taken one point from their last four games and only the bottom four have conceded more goals.
I can't see any Watford players to interest fantasy managers at the moment.
I think Stoke will put a poor run of results behind them by taking the three points in this game.
Prediction: 3-1
Wednesday January 4
Tottenham Hotspur v Chelsea
8pm GMT, White Hart Lane, London
Spurs won easily away to Watford on Sunday to move above City into fourth place. They're one of two teams still unbeaten at home and have conceded less goals at home than any other team. They have won their last four games and scored 13 goals in the process with only Chelsea conceding less goals.
Harry Kane, Dele Alli and Christian Eriksen are all very good fantasy choices at the moment with the Spurs defenders worth considering too.
Chelsea got the better of Stoke in a high scoring game on Saturday to keep their six point lead at the top of the table. They have won seven of their nine away games and have conceded less goals on the road than any other team. They have won their last 13 games in a row and kept clean sheets in 10 of them with only Liverpool scoring more goals and no other team conceding less.
Diego Costa and Eden Hazard are doing really well for fantasy managers as are the Chelsea defenders while Cesc Fabregas has impressed when he gets a game.
Chelsea need to win to equal the record of 14 Premier League wins in a row, but I think Spurs will put an end to their run of wins by taking a point off them.
Prediction: 2-2
That's it for this week.
See you next week.
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