Wednesday 7 March 2018

Predictions For Premier League Gameweek 30

It’s that time of the week again when I attempt to predict the outcomes of the upcoming Premier League games. I did reasonably well last week with five correct outcomes and five incorrect outcomes which moved me up another place in my predictions league. Here's a look at the top five in that league with my team still nowhere in sight.

PLAYER NAMETHIS WEEKPOINTS
 1 (1) Dr_AFHMK
6
2115
 2 (2) betojohn 
ioannis papanikos
7
1835
 3 (3) immycader 
Imran Cader
4

+80
1775
 4 (4) Midotamimi
4

+95
1730
 5 (7) Rutland Gooner
2
1625






Saturday March 10

Manchester United v Liverpool 

12.30pm, Old Trafford, Manchester

United came from 2-0 down to win 3-2 at Palace on Monday night and that win kept them just ahead of Liverpool in second place. Only City have taken more points at home than United and no other team has conceded less goals at home. They have won six of their last eight games, but they have only kept one clean sheet in their last five games.

United’s defenders and keeper still offer the best value in their team for fantasy managers.

Liverpool won 2-0 at home to Newcastle last week to keep up the pressure on United in the fight for second place. Liverpool are the leading scorers away from home with only City taking more points on the road and they have taken 22 points from their last nine away games. They have only lost once in their last 20 games with four clean sheets in their last six and only City have scored more goals.

Mohamed Salah is an absolute must have for fantasy managers with Roberto Firmino, Sadio Mane and Loris Karius all in good form too.

I think this will be a very close game and a draw is the most likely outcome.

Prediction: 2-2

Everton v Brighton And Hove Albion

3pm GMT, Goodison Park, Liverpool

Everton led at Burnley last week, but they ended up losing 2-1 to continue their abysmal away record. They have taken 20 points from their last nine home games and only the top six have taken more points at home. They have only won twice in their last 11 games though with only three other teams conceding more goals.

I can’t see any Everton players to recommend to fantasy managers at the moment.

Brighton had a great 2-1 win at home to Arsenal last week and those three points moved them seven points clear of the bottom three. They have only taken three points in their last eight away games and they failed to score in six of those games with no other team scoring less goals on the road. They are unbeaten in five games though despite not managing a clean sheet in their last eight games.

Glenn Murray and Pascal Gross are both doing very well for fantasy managers at the moment and they’re available at pretty good prices too.

I think Everton’s home form should just about be enough to win them the three points in this game.

Prediction: 2-1

Huddersfield Town v Swansea City

3pm GMT, John Smith's Stadium, Huddersfield

Huddersfield lost 2-0 at Spurs last week and they’re only three points above the relegation zone. They have only won once in their last six home games with only Burnley and Newcastle scoring less goals at home. They have won two of their last three games to stay out of the bottom three, but only Stoke and West Ham have conceded more goals and they haven't kept a clean sheet in eight games.

I can’t see any Huddersfield players to recommend to fantasy managers at the moment.

Swansea won 4-1 at home to West Ham last week to move ahead of Huddersfield on goal difference. They have lost eight of their last 11 away games, but they have at least managed to score in six of their last seven away games. They have only lost twice in their last nine games and they only failed to score in one of those games.

Andre Ayew might not be a bad option for fantasy managers now that he has a place in the team since he returned to Swansea.

This is a game neither team can afford to lose and I think they will probably share the spoils.

Prediction: 2-2

Newcastle United v Southampton

3pm GMT, St. James' Park, Newcastle

Newcastle lost 2-0 at Liverpool last week and they’re now only two points above the relegation zone. Only West Brom have taken less points at home than Newcastle with no other team scoring less goals at home, but they are unbeaten in four games at home. They have only lost twice in their last nine games, but they drew five of those games.

I can’t see any Newcastle players who might make a difference for fantasy managers at the moment.

Southampton drew 0-0 at home to Stoke and that result keeps them one point above the bottom three. They are unbeaten in four away games, but they have to play six of their last nine games away from home. They have only won once in their last 16 games and they have drawn more games than any other team.

I can’t see any Southampton players to recommend to fantasy managers either.

Both teams could badly do with the three points in this game, but I think they will have to settle for one point each.

Prediction: 1-1

West Bromwich Albion v Leicester City

3pm GMT, The Hawthorns, Birmingham

West Brom lost yet again last week when they went down 1-0 at Watford and they’re now eight points from safety with nine games remaining. They have won less games and taken less points at home than any other team. They have only won once in their last 27 games and they have drawn too many games with only Southampton drawing more games.

I can’t see any West Brom players to remotely interest fantasy managers at the moment.

Leicester left it late at home to Bournemouth last week, but they managed to salvage a 1-1 draw in the seventh added minute. They have only taken one point from their last five away games and they have only kept one clean sheet in their last 10 away games. They have only won twice in their last 12 games, but Watford are the only team in the top half of the table to have conceded more goals.

Riyad Mahrez continues to be the Leicester player most likely to make a difference for fantasy managers.

I think West Brom woe’s will continue in this game with Leicester inflicting yet another defeat upon them.

Prediction: 1-2

West Ham United v Burnley 

3pm GMT, London Stadium, London

West Ham lost 4-1 at Swansea last week and they have dropped back to three points above the bottom three. They have only lost one of their last eight home games after starting the season with three defeats in their first five home games. They have only won once in their last six games and they conceded 13 goals in those six games with no other team conceding more goals.

Marco Arnautovic is the West Ham player who might just manage to make a difference for fantasy managers.

Burnley finally managed a win last week and they’re now only five points behind sixth place. Only the top five have taken more away points than Burnley and only City have conceded less away goals, but they haven’t won in their last seven away games. The win last week was their first win in 12 games and they failed to score in six of those games.

Despite managing a win last week I still can’t see any Burnley players to recommend to fantasy managers.

I think a score draw is the most likely outcome in this game.

Prediction: 1-1

Chelsea v Crystal Palace

5.30pm GMT, Stamford Bridge, London

Chelsea lost 1-0 at City last week and that result leaves them five points outside the top four. They have taken 25 points from their last 10 home games with clean sheets in seven of those games. They have lost four of their last five games and they failed to score in three of their last six.

Despite their recent problems Chelsea’s defenders and keeper still look like good fantasy options while Eden Hazard and Willian are worth considering too.

Palace looked like taking all three points at home to United on Monday night, but they ended up with nothing and they dropped back into the relegation zone too. They have only lost two of their last eight away games, but only Brighton and West Brom have scored less goals on the road. They have only taken two points in their last six games and they failed to keep a clean sheet in any of those games.

I can’t see any Palace players to recommend to fantasy managers at the moment.

I don’t think we will see too many goals in this game, but Chelsea should get any that are scored to take the three points.

Prediction: 1-0

Sunday March 11

Arsenal v Watford 

1.30pm GMT, Emirates Stadium, London

Arsenal lost 2-1 at Brighton last week and their chances of finishing in the top four are over for this season. Only the top four have taken more points at home and only City have scored more goals at home, but they failed to score in their last home game for the first time this season. They have lost five of their last seven games and they haven’t kept a clean sheet in 11 games.

Despite their awful form at the moment I still think Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang might not be a bad buy for fantasy managers.

Watford won 1-0 at home to Stoke last week and they now have nine points to spare over the bottom three. They have only taken one point and scored two goals in their last seven away games. They have won three of their last four games though and two more wins in their last nine games should see them safe for another season.

Watford’s defenders have done well for fantasy managers in recent weeks and so has Troy Deeney.

I think Arsenal will get a much needed boost by taking all three points in this game.

Prediction: 2-0

Bournemouth v Tottenham Hotspur

4pm GMT, Vitality Stadium, Bournemouth

Bournemouth looked like they had taken three precious points at Leicester last week, but they were pegged back late on and that leaves them six points above the relegation zone. They are unbeaten in five home games and they scored 11 goals in those games. They have only lost once in their last 10 games, but they have only kept one clean sheet in their last 16 games.

None of the Bournemouth players are producing enough on a consistent basis to interest fantasy managers.

Spurs won comfortably at home to Huddersfield last week and they now have five points to spare over fifth placed Chelsea. They’re unbeaten in five away games with clean sheets in three of those games with only City and Burnley conceding less goals on the road. They have taken 27 points from their last 11 games and they kept clean sheets in seven of those games.

Harry Kane is still a virtual must have for fantasy managers while Dele Alli, Christian Eriksen, Heung-Min Son and all of the Spurs defenders are very good options too.

I think Bournemouth will give Spurs a tough game, but the visitors will emerge with all three points.

Prediction: 1-2

Monday March 12

Stoke City v Manchester City

8pm GMT, bet365 Stadium, Stoke

Stoke got a good scoreless draw at Southampton last week, but it wasn’t enough to move them out of the bottom three. They have only lost once in their last five home games, but they need as many points as possible at home with their away form so poor. They have only won once in their last 10 games and they failed to score in five of those games with no other team conceding more goals.

Xherdan Shaqiri is the only Stoke player for fantasy managers to consider, but maybe not in this game.

City won 1-0 at home to Chelsea last week and they only need four more wins to claim the title. They have only won once in their last four away games, but they did win the previous 10 and the have conceded less goals than any other team on the road. They have won 25 of their 29 games and they have scored more and conceded less goals than any other team.

There are so many City players to choose from for fantasy managers with Bernardo Silva, David Silva and Leroy Sane probably the form ones, but Sergio Aguero, Kevin de Bruyne, Raheem Sterling (if he’s fit to play) and all of their defenders are very good choices too.

I can’t see anything other than a City win in this game.

Prediction: 0-2

That's it for this week.

See you next week.

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