It’s that time of the week again when I attempt to predict the outcomes of the upcoming Premier League games. I had a very bad week last week with one perfect prediction, one correct outcome and eight incorrect outcomes, but thankfully others didn’t do too well either and I only dropped to second place in my predictions league. Here’s a look at how the top five in that league stands.
Pos Player Res Cls Exa Slm Pts
- Always a Gooner 5 22.5 27 3 57.5
- JamrockRover 9 21 18 5 53
- Cole 10 16.5 21 4 51.5
- SeniorBurger 8 21 18 4 51
- Gunnerdapper 11 15 21 3 50
I had a very good week with my fantasy team as my decision to use my triple captain chip on Erling Haaland paid handsome dividends. He was supported by Gabriel Magahlaes, Marcos Senesi, Antoine Semenyo and Igor Thiago as I climbed to just outside the top 1% overall. I was outside the top 50% only three weeks ago, but I got the best out of the chips I used.
I have three free transfers to use this week if I want to and I am severely tempted to sell Mohamed Salah. My only problem is who to bring in instead, but it’s difficult to justify Salah’s price given his current points return. I might just let the transfers ride for a mini wildcard after the next international break.
Friday October 3
Bournemouth v Fulham
8pm BST, Vitality Stadium, Bournemouth
Bournemouth drew 2-2 away to Leeds last week, but that draw saw them drop to sixth place. They have taken seven points from their three home games and no other has conceded less goals on their own ground. They are unbeaten in five games and they have a good run of games coming up.
Antoine Semenyo and Marcos Senesi are the Bournemouth players to have for fantasy managers with Evanilson worth considering too.
Fulham led early on, but they ended up losing 3-1 away to Villa last week and they dropped into the bottom half of the table on goal difference as a result. They have only taken one point from their three away games with only four other teams conceding less goals on the road. They had won two games in a row before losing to Villa, but this is the first of three difficult games in a row.
I’m not sure there are any Fulham players who can make a real difference for fantasy managers, but Alex Iwobi and Joachim Andersen are capable of doing so.
I think Bournemouth’s impressive run will continue with another three points in this game.
Prediction: 2-0
Saturday October 4
Leeds United v Tottenham Hotspur
12.30pm BST, Elland Road, Leeds
Leeds drew 2-2 at home to high flying Bournemouth last week and that point means they’re only outside the top half of the table on goal difference. They are still unbeaten at home, but they drew two of their three games on their own patch with only West Ham scoring less goals at home. They have had a good start to life back in the top flight and they have a good run of games coming up.
Anton Stach and Joe Rodon are both doing well for fantasy managers at a good price while Dominic Calvert-Lewin is worth a look too.
Spurs scored very late to draw 1-1 at home to bottom club Wolves last week and that point left them in fourth place. They have taken seven points from their three away games with no other team taking more points on their travels and only Chelsea scoring more goals. They have only won once in their last four games, but only three other teams have scored more goals and only two other teams have conceded less.
Mohamed Kudus and Richarlison are looking good for fantasy managers along with the Spurs defenders and keeper.
I think Leeds will make things difficult for Spurs and I wouldn’t be surprised if the points were shared.
Prediction: 1-1
Arsenal v West Ham United
3pm BST, Emirates Stadium, London
Arsenal scored two late goals to win 2-1 away to Newcastle last week and that win moved them within two points of Liverpool at the top of the table. They have taken seven points from their three home games with no other team scoring more or conceding less goals on their own ground. Only Liverpool have taken more points with only City scoring more goals and no other team conceding less.
Arsenal’s defenders and keeper are very good choices for fantasy managers with Bukayo Saka, Declan Rice and Viktor Gyokeres worth considering too.
West Ham drew 1-1 away to Everton last week, but they’re still only one point off the foot of the table. All four of their points have come away from home, but this will be a tougher game on the road than any of their others so far. They have only won once in their first six games, but they have a good run of games coming up and no other team has conceded more goals.
Jarrod Bowen and El Hadji Malick Diouf are the West Ham players to have for fantasy managers.
I think Arsenal will make home advantage pay to win this game with a couple of goals to spare.
Prediction: 3-1
Manchester United v Sunderland
3pm BST, Old Trafford, Manchester
United lost 3-1 away to Brentford last week and that defeat saw them drop to 14th place in the table. They have won their last two home games and they scored five goals in those wins. They have lost two of their last three games with only the bottom three conceding more goals.
Bruno Fernandes remains the best choice in the United team for fantasy managers despite missing two penalties already this season.
Sunderland won 1-0 away to Forest last week and that win moved them up to fifth place. They have taken four points from their two away games, but only Newcastle have scored less goals on their travels. They’re unbeaten in four games with only Arsenal and Palace conceding less goals.
Omar Alderete, Granit Xhaka and Wilson Isidor can all do very well for fantasy managers at a very good price.
I think Sunderland will make things very difficult for United and I wouldn’t be surprised to see this game end in a draw.
Prediction: 1-1
Chelsea v Liverpool
5.30pm BST, Stamford Bridge, London
Chelsea led at home to Brighton last week, but they ended up losing 3-1 after having a man sent off for the second game in a row. They have only won once in their three home games, but they kept clean sheets in two of those games. They have lost their last two games and they need to get something from this game to try to keep pace with the early leaders.
Enzo Fernandez, Moises Caicedo, Joao Pedro and Trevoh Chalobah (when he’s back from suspension) are all very good options for fantasy managers.
Liverpool conceded a very late goal to lose 2-1 away to Palace last week as the last 100% record of the season ended and their lead at the top of the table was cut to two points. They won their first two away games before losing to Palace, but they have some difficult games on the road coming up. Despite losing last week they remained at the top of the table with only City scoring more goals.
Mohamed Salah, Virgil van Dijk and Cody Gakpo are all looking good for fantasy managers at the moment with a few more names to add to that list surely as the season progresses.
I think Liverpool will have enough firepower to win this game narrowly.
Prediction: 1-2
Sunday October 5
Aston Villa v Burnley
2pm BST, Villa Park, Birmingham
Villa got their first win of the season when they came from behind to win 3-1 at home to Fulham last week. They have taken four of their six points at home, but only West Ham have scored less goals on their own patch. They moved out of the bottom three with that victory last week and they need to get something from this game with some very tough games coming up, but no other team has scored less goals.
Ollie Watkins eventually got off the mark for fantasy managers last week and he could do well in this game.
Burnley lost 5-1 away to City last week and that defeat saw them drop into the relegation zone. They’re one of two teams without a point away from home and no other team has conceded more goals on their travels. They have only taken one point from their last four games and they conceded 10 goals in those games with only West Ham conceding more goals.
Jaidon Anthony is the Burnley player making a difference for fantasy managers at the moment.
I think Villa will make it two wins in a row with a few goals to spare in this game.
Prediction: 3-0
Everton v Crystal Palace
2pm BST, Hill Dickinson Stadium, Liverpool
Everton drew 1-1 at home to West Ham last week and that point was enough to keep them in the top half of the table on goal difference. They’re still unbeaten at home, but they have drawn two of their three games and no other team has conceded less goals on their own ground. They have only lost once in their last five games, but they have two very tough games after this one.
Iliman Ndiaye, Jack Grealish, James Garner and the Everton defenders and keeper are all worth considering for fantasy managers.
Palace scored very late to win 2-1 at home to Liverpool last week and that result moved them up to third place. They’re one of three teams still unbeaten away from home with only Newcastle conceding less goals on the road. They’re the only team still unbeaten with no other team drawing more games or conceding less goals.
Ismaila Sarr and all of the Palace defenders and keeper are looking very good for fantasy managers at the moment.
I think Palace might just be good enough to win a very tight game.
Prediction: 1-2
Newcastle United v Nottingham Forest
2pm BST, St. James’s Park, Newcastle
Newcastle conceded two late goals to lose 2-1 at home to Arsenal last week to leave them two points above the bottom three. They have lost two of their three home games, but they were against the top two teams. Their only win so far was against bottom club Wolves and no other team has scored less goals, but they have kept four clean sheets in their six games.
Newcastle’s defenders and keeper are worth watching for fantasy managers with Nick Woltemade a possibility too.
Forest lost 1-0 at home to Sunderland last week to leave them one point and one place above the relegation zone. They have drawn two of their three away games, but only four other teams have scored less goals on their travels. They have only taken two points from their last five games with only three other teams scoring less goals.
None of the Forest players are setting the world alight for fantasy managers at the moment, but Chris Wood and Morgan Gibbs-White both have the potential to do so.
I think Newcastle should be strong enough at home to take all the points in this game.
Prediction: 2-0
Wolverhampton Wanderers v Brighton And Hove Albion
2pm BST, Molineux Stadium, Wolverhampton
Wolves conceded very late to draw 1-1 away to Spurs last week which leaves them firmly rooted to the foot of the table. They’re one of two teams without a point at home and no other team has conceded more goals on their own ground. That point last week was their first point of the season with no other team scoring less goals and only West Ham conceding more.
I can’t see any Wolves players to recommend to fantasy managers at the moment.
Brighton came from behind to win 3-1 away to 10 man Chelsea last week and that win moved them into the top half of the table on goal difference. They had lost their previous two away games, but they will be very hopeful of making it consecutive wins on the road in this game. They only play one of the big six in their next nine games which should give them a very good opportunity to climb the table.
Yankuba Minteh and Kaoru Mitoma (if he’s fit to play) are the Brighton players to have for fantasy managers.
I think Brighton will make it two away wins in a row, but only by a tight margin.
Prediction: 1-2
Brentford v Manchester City
4.30pm BST, Gtech Community Stadium, London
Brentford won 3-1 at home to United last week, but a home game against City won’t be so easy. They have won two of their three home games and only three other teams have scored more goals on their own patch. Brentford have a very tough run of fixtures coming up and only three other teams have conceded more goals.
I mentioned last week that Igor Thiago might be a good bet for fantasy managers and he proved me right.
City won 5-1 at home to Burnley last week to make it 10 points from their first six games. They have taken four points from their three away games with only Chelsea and Spurs scoring more goals on their travels. They have taken seven points from their last three games after losing the previous two with no other team scoring more goals.
Erling Haaland is an absolute must have for fantasy managers at the moment with Tijjani Reijnders, Phil Foden and Jeremy Doku good options too.
I think City will have too much strength in attack for a dodgy Brentford defence and should win by a couple of goals.
Prediction: 1-3
That’s it for this week.
See you next week.
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