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 poor week in midweek with no perfect predictions, three correct outcomes and seven incorrect outcomes which saw me drop to eighth 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
1. SeniorBurger 16 58.5 51 10 135.5
2. andy 13 66 45 9 133
3. Murray1886 19 55.5 45 10 129.5
4. Gooners 18 46.5 57 7 128.5
5. Derek 22 58.5 36 11 127.5
I did fairly well with my fantasy team thanks mainly to Erling Haaland doing his bit as my captain. He was ably assisted by David Raya, Marc Guehi, Piero Hincapie, Bukayo Saka and Nick Woltemade as I moved up slightly in the overall standings. I’m just inside the top 1% overall and I’m hoping to improve on that position this weekend.
With that in mind I think it could be time to part ways with Bryan Mbeumo and the question is who to replace him with the current options probably being Phil Foden or Bruno Guimaraes. I think I will bring Guimaraes in this week and Foden the week after as I like the look of Newcastle’s game this week.
Saturday December 6
Aston Villa v Arsenal
12.30pm GMT, Villa Park, Birmingham
Villa came back from 2-0 down to win 4-3 at Brighton on Wednesday night and that win moved them up to third place. They have won their last five home games with only the two teams above them taking more points on their own ground. They have won eight of their last nine games with only Arsenal and Palace conceding less goals.
Morgan Rogers is still the best option in the Villa team for fantasy managers while Ollie Watkins might just be on the radar too.
Arsenal won 2-0 at home to Brentford in midweek to maintain their five point lead at the top of the table. They have only lost one of their seven away games with no other team taking more points on the road and only Palace conceding less goals. They are unbeaten in 11 games with no other team conceding less goals and only City scoring more.
Arsenal’s defenders and keeper are very good options for fantasy managers along with Declan Rice and Bukayo Saka.
I think this will be a very close game with Arsenal winning narrowly.
Prediction: 1-2
Bournemouth v Chelsea
3pm GMT, Vitality Stadium, Bournemouth
Bournemouth lost 1-0 at home to Everton on Tuesday night as their rapid slide down the table continued and they’re now in 14th position. That defeat against Everton was their first home defeat of the season with only Arsenal conceding less goals on their own patch. They have only taken one point from their last five games and they conceded 13 goals in those games with only the bottom four conceding more goals.
Bournemouth players haven’t done much for fantasy managers in recent weeks, but Antoine Semenyo must still have something to offer.
Chelsea lost 3-1 away to Leeds on Wednesday night and that defeat saw them drop to fourth place. Only Arsenal and Spurs have taken more points away from home than Chelsea and no other team has scored more goals on their travels. They had taken 16 points from their previous seven games before losing to Leeds with only the top two scoring more goals.
Trevoh Chalobah, Pedro Neto and Enzo Fernandez are the Chelsea players to have for fantasy managers while the returning Cole Palmer could be one to watch too.
This isn’t an easy game to call, but I think it will probably end in a draw.
Prediction: 1-1
Everton v Nottingham Forest
3pm GMT, Hill Dickinson Stadium, Liverpool
Everton won 1-0 away to Bournemouth on Tuesday night and that victory moved them back into the top half of the table. They have lost two of their last three home games with only two other teams scoring less goals on their own ground. They have won three of their last four games, but only Wolves and Forest have scored less goals.
Jordan Pickford, James Tarkowski and Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall are the in form Everton players of interest to fantasy managers.
Forest won 1-0 away to Wolves on Wednesday night and they’re now three points clear of the relegation zone. They have won their last two away games after failing to win the previous five. They have won three of their last four games after failing to win the previous nine with only Wolves scoring less goals.
Morgan Gibbs-White is probably the best of the bunch in a Forest team that haven’t quite reached the heights of last season for fantasy managers.
This is another difficult game to call and I wouldn’t be surprised to see it end all square.
Prediction: 1-1
Manchester City v Sunderland
3pm GMT, Etihad Stadium, Manchester
City led 5-1 away to Fulham on Tuesday night, but they only ended up winning 5-4 to remain in second place. They have won their last six home games with no other team scoring more goals on their own patch. They have won seven of their last nine games with no other team scoring more goals, but they have conceded six goals in their last two games.
Erling Haaland remains a must have for fantasy managers while Phil Foden might just have moved into that bracket too.
Sunderland led away to Liverpool on Wednesday night, but they had to settle for a 1-1 draw to leave them in sixth place. They have only won once in their last four away games with only Palace scoring less goals on their travels, but only Palace and Arsenal conceding less. They have only won once in their last five games, but they drew three of them with no other team drawing more games.
Granit Xhaka is still the best bet in the Sunderland team for fantasy managers while their defenders and keeper are good options too.
I think Sunderland will make a game of it, but City will make home advantage pay.
Prediction: 2-1
Newcastle United v Burnley
3pm GMT, St. James’s Park, Newcastle
Newcastle twice led at home to Spurs on Tuesday night, but they ended up drawing 2-2 which meant they stayed in the bottom half of the table. They have taken 10 points from their last four home games and two of their next three games are on their own ground. They have taken seven points from their last three games after losing four of the previous six with no other team in the bottom half of the table conceding less goals.
Bruno Guimaraes is looking very good for fantasy managers at the moment while Nick Woltemade and Dan Burn are worth having too.
Burnley lost 1-0 at home to Palace on Wednesday night to remain one place off the foot of the table and they’re now four points from safety. They have lost six of their seven away games with no other team conceding more goals on the road. They have lost their last five games and they conceded 11 goals in those games with only Wolves conceding more goals.
Josh Cullen and Jaidon Anthony are the Burnley players who can do a job for fantasy managers at a good price.
I can’t see anything other than a Newcastle victory in this game.
Prediction: 3-0
Tottenham Hotspur v Brentford
3pm GMT, Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, London
Spurs twice came from behind to draw 2-2 away to Newcastle on Tuesday night which saw them drop to 11th place. They have only won once in their eight home games with only Wolves taking less points on their own patch and only two other teams scoring less goals. They haven’t won in five games and they conceded 11 goals in those games with no other team in the bottom half of the table scoring more goals.
Mohammed Kudus is the Spurs player most likely to do well for fantasy managers at the moment.
Brentford lost 2-0 away to Arsenal on Wednesday night and that defeat saw them drop into the bottom half of the table. They have lost six of their seven away games with only two other teams scoring less goals on their travels. There is a stark contrast between their home and away results and no other team has drawn less games.
Igor Thiago is the Brentford player who can make a real difference for fantasy managers at the moment.
It’s not easy to know which way this game will go, but the chances are Spurs will take the three points.
Prediction: 2-1
Leeds United v Liverpool
5.30pm GMT, Elland Road, Leeds
Leeds won 3-1 at home to Chelsea on Wednesday night and those three points moved them out of the relegation zone. They have taken 11 of their 14 points at home and they have won two of their last three games on their own ground. They had lost four games in a row before beating Chelsea and they conceded 11 goals in those games with only the three teams below them conceding more goals.
I’m still not sure there are any Leeds players doing enough to interest fantasy managers at the moment.
Liverpool came from behind to draw 1-1 at home to Sunderland in midweek and they’re now 11 points off the top of the table. They won their last away game after losing the previous four with only three other teams scoring more goals on the road. They have lost six of their last nine games with no other team in the top half of the table conceding more goals.
Cody Gakpo still looks like the best bet in the Liverpool team for fantasy managers despite only playing for 45 minutes against Sunderland.
I think Liverpool will just about manage to get the better of a close game.
Prediction: 1-2
Sunday December 7
Brighton And Hove Albion v West Ham United
2pm GMT, AMEX Stadium, Brighton
Brighton led 2-0 at home to Villa on Wednesday night, but they ended up losing 4-3 and they dropped to seventh place. They were unbeaten at home before Villa beat them with only the top two scoring more goals on their own patch. They had taken 10 points from their previous four games before losing to Villa with only three other teams scoring more goals.
Yankuba Minteh and Danny Welbeck are the Brighton players to own for fantasy managers at the moment.
West Ham scored a late goal to get a 1-1 draw away to United on Thursday night, but it wasn’t enough to stop them dropping into the bottom three. They haven’t won in their last five away games, but they drew three of them and no other team has drawn more games on their travels. They haven’t won in three games after winning the previous two with only Wolves conceding more goals.
Jarrod Bowen is the only West Ham player for fantasy managers to even consider at the moment.
I think Brighton will bounce back from their defeat against Villa to take all the points in this game.
Prediction: 2-1
Fulham v Crystal Palace
4.30pm GMT, Craven Cottage, London
Fulham were 5-1 down at home to City on Tuesday night, but they only lost 5-4 in the end and they’re still in 15th place. They have lost two of their last four home games, but those defeats were against the top two and they had a very good defensive record at home before City put five goals past them. They had won three of their previous four games before losing to City and they have a good run of games coming up.
Harry Wilson and Joachim Andersen are the Fulham players who could do well for fantasy managers at a good price.
Palace won 1-0 away to Burnley on Wednesday night and that win moved them up to fifth in the table. They have won their last two away games with only two other teams taking more points on the road and no other team conceding less goals. They have taken 10 points from their last five games with only Arsenal conceding less goals.
The Palace defenders are all very good choices for fantasy managers along with Jean-Philippe Mateta and Dean Henderson.
I think this is a game which could go either way and the chances are the points will be shared.
Prediction: 1-1
Monday December 8
Wolverhampton Wanderers v Manchester United
8pm GMT, Molineux Stadium, Wolverhampton
Wolves lost 1-0 at home to Forest on Wednesday night to remain rooted to the foot of the table. They’re the only team without a home win with only Burnley scoring less goals on their own ground and no other team conceding more. They’re the only team without a win with no other scoring less or conceding more goals.
I can’t see any Wolves players to recommend to fantasy managers at the moment.
United conceded a late goal to draw 1-1 at home to West Ham on Thursday night, but they’re still only two points off the top four. They have taken eight points from their last four away games and they have some good upcoming fixtures on their travels. They have only lost once in their last eight games, but no other team in the top half of the table has conceded more goals.
Bruno Fernandes and Bryan Mbeumo are the United players to have for fantasy managers.
I think United will put Wolves one game closer to relegation with a narrow victory in this game.
Prediction: 1-2
That’s it for this week.
See you next week.
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