Thursday 6 April 2017

Predictions For Premier League Gameweek 32

It's that time of the week again when I attempt to predict the outcomes of the upcoming Premier League games. I didn't do too well yet again in the midweek games with two perfect predictions, two correct outcomes and six incorrect. That means I drop to third in my predictions league and I have given up all hope of retaining my title as you can see from the table below.

BadgesThis WeekPTS
 1 (1)  Karl-Yngve Lund 4+1351990
 2 (3)  Rutland Gooner 5+1251760
 3 (2)  Michael Sheehy 6+51680
 4 (4)  Wayne Hubbard 1+1101675


Saturday April 8

Tottenham Hotspur v Watford

12.30pm BST, White Hart Lane, London

Spurs left it late on Wednesday night, but three late goals saw them win 3-1 at Swansea to stay seven points behind Chelsea in second place. They have won their last 10 home games and they're the only team unbeaten at home with the best defensive record on their own ground too. They have won their last five games and 12 of their last 15 and no other team has conceded less goals.

Dele Alli continues to impress for fantasy managers with Christian Eriksen, Heung-Min Son and the Spurs defenders all looking pretty good too.

Watford beat West Brom 2-0 on Tuesday night to move back into the top half of the table. They have only won three of their 14 away games and only five other teams have scored less goals away from home. They have won their last two games and kept clean sheets in both of them, but no other team in the top half of the table has conceded more goals.

Troy Deeney has done really well in recent weeks for fantasy managers and he's available at a good price too.

I think Spurs will continue their impressive home form by taking the three points in this game.

Prediction: 2-0

Manchester City v Hull City

3pm BST, Etihad Stadium, Manchester 

City lost 2-1 away to Chelsea in midweek and that defeat leaves them in fourth place, but looking over their shoulders at the teams just below them. They have only won half of their 14 home games and have only won once in their last four on their own patch. They haven't won in four games, but they do have some easier games coming up.

Sergio Aguero is the City player fantasy managers should be looking at right now with David Silva and Leroy Sane doing quite well too.

Hull won 4-2 at home to Boro on Wednesday night to move out of the bottom three, but they're a different team on their travels. They have only won once in 15 away games and that was their first away game of the season and they are the lowest scorers on the road as well as conceding the most away goals. They have won three of their last four games, but those wins were all at home and they haven't kept a clean sheet in seven games with only Swansea conceding more goals.

Kamil Grosicki has done quite well since joining Hull in January and could be worth considering for fantasy managers.

I can't see anything other than a City win in this game although Hull will give their all to make it difficult for them.

Prediction: 3-1

Middlesbrough v Burnley

3pm BST, Riverside Stadium, Middlesbrough

Boro lost 4-2 at fellow strugglers Hull on Wednesday night and are now seven points from safety with only eight games left to play. They haven't won in five games at home while no other team has taken less points or scored less goals at home. They have only taken five points in their last 13 games and they have won less games and scored less goals than any other team.

I can't see any Boro players to remotely interest fantasy managers right now.

Burnley got a much needed 1-0 win at home to Stoke on Tuesday night and gave themselves a seven point cushion from the relegation zone. They're the only team without an away win and they have lost 12 of their 15 away games with only Hull scoring less goals away from home. The win against Stoke was their first win in eight games and only the bottom two have scored less goals.

Burnley defenders have been very good at home for fantasy managers and they might not do too badly in this game considering Boro's lack of goals.

I think this will be a low scoring affair and a draw is probably the most likely outcome.

Prediction: 0-0

Stoke City v Liverpool

3pm BST, BET365 Arena, Stoke

Stoke lost away to Burnley on Tuesday night and slipped back into the bottom half of the table. They have only won six of their 15 home games, but have only lost one in the last six on their own patch with clean sheets in five of those games. They have lost their last three games and have failed to score in three of their last four with only four other teams scoring less goals.

I can't see any Stoke players to recommend to fantasy managers at the moment.

Liverpool let two points slip at home to Bournemouth on Wednesday night and they are left with a hard fight to maintain their top four position. They haven't won in five games away from home and they have conceded more goals away from home than the rest of the top six. They are unbeaten in five games, but haven't kept a clean sheet in six and they're the highest scorers in the league.

With Sadio Mane injured the best fantasy options in the Liverpool team could be Phillippe Coutinho, Roberto Frimino and Divock Origi.

I think Stoke will give Liverpool a rough ride, but Liverpool might just squeeze a win.

Prediction: 1-2

West Bromwich Albion v Southampton

3pm BST, The Hawthorns, Birmingham

West Brom lost 2-0 at Watford on Tuesday night, but they're still in eighth place with a seven point gap to the team below them. They have won nine of their 15 home games and have won five of the last six at home. They have only won once in their last five games and they will have to knuckle down if they want to finish strongly as they have little left to play for.

West Brom defenders had been good for fantasy managers until recently, but their current inconsistency makes it hard to pick them.

Southampton came from behind to win 3-1 at home to Palace on Wednesday night and they moved up to ninth in the table. They have lost eight of their 15 away games, but they have won two of the last three on the road and scored nine goals in those three games. They have taken 10 points from their last five games and they scored 12 goals in those games, but no other team in the top half of the table has scored less goals.

If he's fit I still think Manolo Gabbiadini is a very good fantasy choice while Nathan Redmond is doing well at the moment too.

This looks like it will be another very close game and a draw is probably the most likely outcome.

Prediction: 1-1

West Ham United v Swansea City

3pm BST, London Stadium, London

West Ham lost 3-0 at Arsenal on Wednesday night and they're now only five points above the bottom three. They have only won five of their 15 home games and have not won in four at home while conceding 11 goals in those games. They have lost their last five games and conceded 13 goals in the process with only Swansea and Hull conceding more goals so far.

West Ham players aren't exactly setting the fantasy world alight at the moment and it's not easy to see any to choose for fantasy managers.

Swansea looked like they would take all three points at home to Spurs on Wednesday night, but they conceded three very late goals and the defeat dropped them into the bottom three. They have lost 11 of their 15 away games and have lost their last four away from home with only Hull conceding more goals on their travels. They have only taken one point in their last four games with only Sunderland losing more games and no other team conceding more goals.

Gylfi Sigurdsson hasn't delivered for fantasy managers in his last three games so surely he must be due to deliver in this game.

This is a real relegation six pointer and Swansea need the three points even more than West Ham, but I think they will have to settle for a draw.

Prediction: 2-2

Bournemouth v Chelsea

5.30p.m. BST, Vitality Stadium, Bournemouth 

Bournemouth led at Anfield early on and then scored a late goal to get a very good point and keep themselves seven points above the bottom three. They have only lost five of their 15 home games and have won their last two at home, but only four other teams have conceded more goals at home. They are unbeaten in five games with only six teams scoring more goals and only three conceding less so far.

Josh King continues to impress for fantasy managers and he's still available at a very good price.

Chelsea got a hugely important 2-1 win at home to City on Wednesday night to keep their seven point lead at the top of the table with eight games to go. They have only lost two of their 15 away games and no other team has conceded less goals away from home. They have won four of their last five games, but they haven't kept a clean sheet in eight games with only Liverpool scoring more goals and only Spurs conceding less.

Eden Hazard has been in excellent form for fantasy managers recently with Diego Costa not doing too badly either.

I don't think Chelsea will go the way of so many other "big" teams at Bournemouth and they should win by a couple of goals.

Prediction: 1-3

Sunday April 9

Sunderland v Manchester United

1.30pm BST, Stadium of Light, Sunderland 

Sunderland lost 2-0 at Leicester on Tuesday night and they're now 10 points adrift of safety with only eight games to go. They haven't won in six games at home and haven't scored in their last four on their own patch while no other team has taken less points at home. They have only taken six points from their last 13 games and have failed to score in eight of their last nine with only Boro scoring less goals so far.

I can't see any Sunderland players to remotely interest fantasy managers at the moment although Jordan Pickford hasn't done too badly considering their position.

United got a very late point at home to Everton on Tuesday night, but they really need three points and they yet again dropped back to sixth place. They have only lost two of their 13 away games with five wins in their last six on the road and no other team has conceded less goals away from home. They are unbeaten in 20 games, but they have drawn half of those games and they're by far the lowest scorers in the top seven.

Zlatan Ibrahimovic is the United player to have for fantasy managers with their defenders worth considering too.

I think United should have more than enough to take the three points in this game despite their penchant for draws.

Prediction: 0-2

Everton v Leicester City

4pm BST, Goodison Park, Liverpool

Everton looked to have sealed a great win at United on Tuesday night, but they were undone by a last minute penalty and had to settle for a draw. They have only lost one of their 15 home games and have won their last six at home while scoring 22 goals in those games with only Spurs conceding less goals at home. They have taken 28 points from their last 14 games, but they're going to find it difficult to break into the top six.

Romelu Lukaku has been very good for fantasy managers at home in particular and the Everton defenders haven't done too badly either.

Leicester won 2-0 at home to Sunderland on Tuesday night and they have now moved eight points clear of the relegation zone. They have only won once in their 14 away games, but that was their last away game at West Ham and only four other teams have scored less goals away from home. They have won their last five games and scored 13 goals in the process since Claudio Ranieri got the bullet.

Jamie Vardy seems to be the Leicester player to have for fantasy managers at the moment.

This is a hard game to call, but I think Everton can take the three points with Leicester possibly conscious of a midweek game against Atletico Madrid in the Champions League.

Prediction: 2-1

Monday April 10

Crystal Palace v Arsenal 

8pm BST, Selhurst Park, London

Palace led at Southampton on Wednesday night, but they ended up losing 3-1 and they're still only three points above the drop zone despite their recent good run. They have lost nine of their 14 home games, but they have won their last two at home and kept clean sheets in both games. They had won four games in a row before losing to Southampton and they have kept four clean sheets in their last seven games.

Wilfried Zaha looks to be the best of the Palace players for fantasy managers at the moment with Christian Benteke finally finding some form too. 

Arsenal got a much needed 3-0 win at home to West Ham on Wednesday night to keep pace with the teams chasing a top four finish. They have only won six of their 14 away games and have lost their last three away from home, but only City have scored more goals on their travels. They have lost four of their last seven games, but only Liverpool and Chelsea have scored more goals and Arsenal passed the 100 goal mark for the season against West Ham.

Despite not doing much in his last two games Alexis Sanchez is still the Arsenal player to have for fantasy managers while Theo Walcott and Mesut Ozil have done well in recent weeks too.

This is a game both teams really need to win and I think Arsenal might just get the better of a close affair.

Prediction: 1-2

That's it for this week.

See you next week.

2 comments:

  1. Nobody expected CP to beat Chelsea. Spurs have won 5/6 games in arrow. This sort of
    run cant go on unless on its in Spain/Germany where RM/Barcelona/BM are dominant.
    Not the epl where a lowly team can upset the top team.
    I expect Watford to draw/beat Spurs. Its about time they have a blip.
    Same for the foxes. After winning 6 games ina row,time for a loss/draw.
    As for MU ,sooner or later someone has got to beat them why not Arsenal later on.
    As for Arsenal,if they play ball keeping and pass 4ver,dont be surprised CP will win.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It could be up to Arsenal to put an end to the Spurs run when they meet in a few weeks.

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