| POSITION | PLAYER NAME | THIS WEEK | POINTS | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 (1) |  |  |  | Dr_AFHMK |
6
 | 2265 | |||||
| 2 (2) | |  | | betojohn ioannis papanikos |
7
| 1980 | |||||
| 3 (3) | |  |  | immycader Imran Cader |
5
| 1965 | |||||
| 4 (4) | | | | Midotamimi |
4
| 1860 | |||||
| 5 (5) | | | | Rutland Gooner |
2
| 1785 |
Saturday March 31
Crystal Palace v Liverpool
12.30pm BST, Selhurst Park, London
Palace won 2-0 away to fellow strugglers Huddersfield last week and those three points were enough to move them out of the bottom three. They haven’t won in their last three home games with only West Brom and Southampton taking less points at home and only four other teams conceding more home goals. They have only won once in their last eight games, but that was the crucial win at Huddersfield in their last game.
Wilfried Zaha is the Palace player most likely to make a difference for fantasy managers if they’re going to avoid the drop while Luka Milivojevic continues to score plenty of penalties.
Liverpool romped to a 5-0 victory at home to Watford last week and they're only two points behind second placed United, but they have played a game more. They have lost two of their last four away games, but only City have taken more points on the road and no other team has scored more away goals. They have only lost twice in their last 22 games and only City have scored more goals, but they have drawn more games than the rest of the top six.
Mohamed Salah is an absolute must have for fantasy managers with Roberto Firmino and Sadio Mane as able understudies and Loris Karius worth a shout too.
I think Liverpool should be good enough to get the better of a very close game.
Prediction: 1-2
Brighton v Leicester City
3pm BST, AMEX Stadium, Brighton
Brighton lost 2-0 at Everton in their last league game and they went out of the FA Cup since then too, but they do have six points to spare over the bottom three. They have only lost three of their 15 home games and they have scored nine goals in their last three home games which were all won. The defeat at Everton was their first defeat in six games and no other team in the bottom half of the table has conceded less goals.
Pascal Gross remains the best value for money for fantasy managers in the Brighton team.
Leicester came from behind to win 4-1 at West Brom in their last league game, but they also went out of the FA Cup since then. They are unbeaten in their last six home games, but they drew four of those games with only three other teams drawing more home games. Their lack of consistency has cost them so far, but they still hold out a slim hope of Europa League qualification with a strong finish.
Riyad Mahrez just cannot stop scoring for fantasy managers while both Jamie Vardy and Harry Maguire are pretty good options too.
I think Brighton’s home form should be good enough to see them take a very important point in this game.
Prediction: 1-1
Manchester United v Swansea City
3pm BST, Old Trafford, Manchester
United won 2-1 at home to Liverpool in their last league game to strengthen their hold on second place, but they crashed out of the Champions League since then as well as progressing to the last four of the FA Cup. Only City have taken more points at home with no other team conceding less goals on their own ground and they have won their last four home games with clean sheets in three of the last five at home. They have won seven of their last nine games and only City have conceded less goals.
With an extra game to play and some favourable fixtures too Romelu Lukaku could be a good bet for fantasy managers while the United defenders and keeper are very good options too.
Swansea played for almost the whole game with 10 men at Huddersfield in their last game and managed a creditable 0-0 draw, but they were well beaten by Spurs in the FA Cup since that game. They have only lost once in their last five away games, but only Brighton and West Brom have scored less goals away from home. They have only lost once in their last eight games, but only West Brom have scored less goals.
With Jordan Ayew suspended it’s not easy to see what Swansea players to recommend to fantasy managers, but Lukasz Fabianski has been very consistent this season.
I can’t see anything other than a United win in this game.
Prediction: 2-0
Newcastle United v Huddersfield Town
3pm BST, St. James’ Park, Newcastle
Newcastle won 3-0 at home to Southampton in their last game to move four points clear of the bottom three, but that was three weeks ago. They’re unbeaten in their last five home games and they kept clean sheets in three of those games, but no other team has scored less goals at home and only six teams have conceded less. They have only lost twice in their last 10 games, but they did draw half of those games.
Kenedy did very well for fantasy managers in Newcastle’s last game just when I had stopped recommending him and he’s certainly worth considering again.
Huddersfield lost 2-0 at home to Palace last week and missed the chance to give themselves some breathing space in the relegation battle. Only West Brom have lost more away games and they lost four of their last five away games without scoring in each of those defeats. They have only won twice in their last 13 games with only three teams conceding more goals.
Like quite a few other teams at the moment I can’t see any Huddersfield players to recommend to fantasy managers.
I think Newcastle will get another all important home victory in their battle to retain their top flight status.
Prediction: 2-0
Watford v Bournemouth
3pm BST, Vicarage Road, Watford
Watford were thrashed 5-0 at Liverpool last week, but they're still relatively safe with eight points to spare over the relegation zone. They have won their last three home games and kept clean sheets in their last two at home, but no other team has conceded more goals at home. Only Stoke and West Ham have conceded more goals, but they will probably be safe for another season if they win this game.
I can’t see any Watford players who might make a real difference for fantasy managers at the moment.
Bournemouth came from behind to win 2-1 at home to doomed West Brom last week and they moved into the top half of the table with an eight point gap to the bottom three. They have only lost once in their last five away games and only seven teams have taken more points on the road. They have only lost twice in their last 12 games and they scored in each of those games.
Junior Stanislas is the Bournemouth player most like to perform for fantasy managers at the moment.
I think this will be a very close game and I wouldn’t be surprised to see the spoils shared.
Prediction: 2-2
West Bromwich Albion v Burnley
3pm BST, The Hawthorns, Birmingham
West Brom led at Bournemouth last week, but they ended up losing and it's surely only a matter of time before their relegation is confirmed. They have won less games and taken less points at home than any other team and they have only won once in their last 14 home games. They have only won once in their last 29 games and no other team has scored less goals.
I can’t see any West Brom players to recommend to fantasy managers at the moment.
Burnley won 3-0 at West Ham in their last game to keep themselves within touching distance of Arsenal in sixth place, but like so many other teams they haven’t played in three weeks since then. Only the top five have taken more points away from home with only City conceding less goals on the road. They have won their last two games after a run of 11 games without a win and they’re the lowest scorers in the top half of the league.
Burnley’s defenders and keeper look like they could be good choices again for fantasy managers while both Ashley Barnes and Chris Wood haven’t done too badly recently either.
I think Burnley will continue to chase sixth place with a narrow win in this game.
Prediction: 0-1
West Ham United v Southampton
3pm BST, London Stadium, London
West Ham lost 3-0 at home to Burnley in their last game amid some nasty scenes at the London Stadium and they’re now only one place above the relegation zone. The defeat against Burnley was their first home defeat in five games and they need to get the fans behind them with five of their last eight games at home. They have lost their last three games and they conceded 11 goals in the process with only Stoke conceding more goals.
Marco Arnautovic is the West Ham player who might return points for fantasy managers if they can overcome the negative atmosphere at their own ground.
Southampton lost 3-0 at Newcastle in their last league game to slip back into the relegation zone, but they did progress to the semi finals of the FA Cup since then. They have only lost once in their last five away games, but they did draw three of those games and only the bottom two have won less away games. They have only won once in their last 17 games with only one clean sheet in their last 21 games, but they will be hoping the arrival of new manager Mark Hughes can save their Premier League status.
I can’t see any Southampton players who might make a difference for fantasy managers at the moment.
This is a huge match for two teams at the wrong end of the table who both badly need a win, but I think a draw is probably the most likely outcome.
Prediction: 1-1
Everton v Manchester City
5.30pm BST, Goodison Park, Liverpool
Everton won 2-1 at Stoke in their last game and they still hold out hopes of finishing as high as seventh this season. They have won seven of their last 10 home games with only the top six taking more points at home. They have two tough games in a row, but their last five fixtures will give them a chance of a strong finish and keep their hopes of that seventh placed finish alive.
Cenk Tosun has been in very good form for fantasy managers recently, but this might not be the ideal game to choose him.
City won 2-0 away to Stoke in their last game to move to within two wins of sealing the Premier League title. They won their last two away games without conceding a goal, but they didn’t win any of the previous three and they have won 12 of their 15 away games with only Liverpool scoring more away goals. They have won 26 of their 30 league games and they’re the top scorers with a host of Premier League records likely to be set by them over their last eight games.
There are so many City players to choose from for fantasy managers with David Silva, Raheem Sterling and Kevin de Bruyne probably the best of them at the moment, but they’re closely followed by Leroy Sane, Sergio Aguero and all of their defenders and goalkeeper.
I think City will move within one win of the title with a fairly comfortable win in this game.
Prediction: 0-2
Sunday April 1
Arsenal v Stoke City
1.30pm BST, Emirates Stadium, London
Arsenal won 3-0 at home to Watford in their last league game to stay sixth in the table and they made it to the last eight of the Europa League since that game. They have won three of their last four home games and they scored 12 goals in those games with only City scoring more goals at home. They have lost five of their last eight games and have conceded a lot more goals than the rest of the top six.
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Henrikh Mkhitaryan have done very well for fantasy managers since joining Arsenal with Aaron Ramsey a good bet if he’s fit too.
Stoke lost 2-1 at home to Everton last week and their chances of staying up are getting less with each game as they have three of the top six to play in their last seven games. They have only won once in their 15 away games and haven’t won in the last 10 on the road with only West Ham conceding more away goals. They haven’t won in seven games and they failed to score in six of their last 11 games with no other team conceding more goals.
Xherdan Shaqiri is still doing well for fantasy managers, but I can’t see any other Stoke players of interest.
I think Arsenal will continue their recent revival with a win by at least two goals in this game.
Prediction: 3-1
Chelsea v Tottenham Hotspur
4pm BST, Stamford Bridge, London
Chelsea just about won 2-1 at home to Palace in their last game to stay five points behind the top four and they won their FA Cup quarter final against Leicester a week later too. They have won nine of their last 11 home games and they kept clean sheets in seven of those games with only the top four conceding less goals at home. They have lost four of their last six games and they only kept one clean sheet in those games, but three points in this game would move them within two points of the top four.
Eden Hazard is still the most likely Chelsea player to perform for fantasy managers with Willian and their defenders and keeper worth considering too.
Spurs came from behind to win 4-1 at Bournemouth in their last league game to keep within touch of second place and they beat Swansea in the quarter finals of the FA Cup a week later. They’re unbeaten in six away games with only City taking more points on their travels and only Liverpool and City scoring more goals. They’re unbeaten in 12 games with nine wins in those games and a win in this game would make them huge favourites to finish in the top four.
With Harry Kane injured it looks like Heung-Min Son could be the Spurs player to have for fantasy managers while Christian Eriksen, Dele Alli, their defenders and keeper are all very good performers too.
This is a game which could have a big influence on who finishes in the top four and I wouldn’t be surprised to see it end with the spoils shared.
Prediction: 1-1
That’s it for this week.
See you next week.
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