It’s that time of the week again when I attempt to predict the outcomes of the upcoming Premier League games. I didn’t have the worst week last week with no perfect predictions, four correct outcomes and four incorrect outcomes which saw me drop one 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. Gooners 39 112.5 99 15 265.5
2. Sam 32 117 99 17 265
3. Murray1886 40 114 93 17 264
4. SeniorBurger 35 120 84 16 255
5. robbieg 38 123 75 18 254
I didn’t have the greatest week with my fantasy team either, but it would have been far worse if I didn’t make Bruno Fernandes my captain. The other players to do well for me were Harry Wilson and Raul Jiminez, but I ended up dropping ever so slightly in the overall standings. I’ll be looking to get back into the top 1% of players over the next few weeks as I start to use my four remaining chips.
With that in mind I intend to use my wildcard this week to set my team up for a bench boost next week when loads of players have an extra game. I’ll have to go heavy on players from City, Chelsea, Brighton and Bournemouth and hopefully that won’t hit me too hard this week. I intend using my free hit the following week when the six teams who play twice next week don’t have a game.
Friday April 10
West Ham United v Wolverhampton Wanderers
8pm BST, London Stadium, London
West Ham lost 2-0 away to Villa in their last game and that defeat meant they stayed in the relegation zone. They are unbeaten in four home games, but they drew three of them with only Wolves conceding more goals on their own ground. They have only won once in their last six games with only Burnley conceding more goals and this is a game they have to win.
If he’s fit to play Crysencio Summerville is the West Ham player to have for fantasy managers with Jarrod Bowen a good option too.
Wolves didn’t play in the last round of games, but they came back from 2-0 down to draw 2-2 away to Brentford the previous week and their inevitable relegation is only a matter of weeks away. They’re the only team without an away win, but they have drawn four of their last six games on the road and no other team has scored less away goals.
I can’t see any Wolves players who can make a difference for fantasy managers.
I think this will be a very close game with West Ham’s need for points to survive probably swinging it in their favour.
Prediction: 2-1
Saturday April 11
Arsenal v Bournemouth
12.30pm BST, Emirates Stadium, London
Arsenal didn’t play in the last round of games as they were busy losing the Carabao Cup Final to City, but they still have a nine point lead at the top of the table. They have won their last three home games and they scored seven goals in those games with no other team taking more points or conceding less goals on their own patch. They have taken 20 points from their last eight games and they scored 19 goals in those games with no other team scoring more or conceding less goals.
Gabriel Magahlaes, David Raya and Declan Rice are the best of the Arsenal players for fantasy managers.
Bournemouth twice came from behind to draw 2-2 away to United in their last game and they’re only one point off the top half of the table with an outside chance of European qualification. They are unbeaten in their last six away games, but they drew four of them with no other team drawing more games on their travels and only Burnley conceding more goals. They are unbeaten in 11 games, but they have drawn their last five with no other team drawing more games.
Bournemouth’s defenders and keeper have done well recently for fantasy managers with Marcus Tavernier and Rayan worth considering too.
I think Arsenal will get the three points they need in this game, but Bournemouth will make it difficult for them.
Prediction: 2-1
Brentford v Everton
3pm BST, Gtech Community Stadium, London
Brentford drew 0-0 away to Leeds in their last game to move within two points of sixth place. They have only taken two points from their last four home games and three of their next four games are on their own ground. They have only won once in their last six games, but they drew four of them and they still have to play three of the teams above them before the season ends.
Igor Thiago remains the best of the Brentford players for fantasy managers with Dango Ouattara a possibility too.
Everton won 3-0 at home to Chelsea last time out and they’re only behind Brentford on goal difference going into this game. They lost their last away game after being unbeaten in the previous six with only three other teams taking more points on the road. They have won three of their last four games and they scored eight goals in those games with only the top two conceding less goals.
Everton’s defenders and keeper are good options for fantasy managers along with James Garner, Iliman Ndiaye and Kiernon Dewsbury-Hall.
I think Everton will continue their push for European football next season with a narrow victory in this game.
Prediction: 1-2
Burnley v Brighton And Hove Albion
3pm BST, Turf Moor, Burnley
Burnley led 1-0 away to Fulham in their last game, but they ended up losing 3-1 and they’re now 10 points from safety with just seven games left to play. They have only taken four points from their last 11 home games with only Spurs taking less points on their own patch. They have only won once in their last 22 games with no other team conceding more goals and only three other teams scoring less.
I can’t see any Burnley players to recommend to fantasy managers with the possible exception of Zian Fleming and only because they play twice next week.
Brighton won 2-1 at home to Liverpool last time out to move back into the top half of the table and keep their chances of qualifying for European football alive. They have won their last two away games after failing to win the previous six and their last four games on their travels are all against teams below them in the table. They have won four of their last five games and they have a very good run of fixtures to finish their season.
With two games next week Brighton players such as Danny Welbeck, Bart Verbruggen, Jan Paul van Hecke, Diego Gomez and Jack Hinshelwood should be of interest to fantasy managers.
I think Brighton will keep their charge up the table going with another three points in this game.
Prediction: 1-3
Liverpool v Fulham
5.30pm BST, Anfield, Liverpool
Liverpool lost 2-1 away to Brighton in their last game to leave themselves in fifth place and in a battle for Champions League qualification for next season. They have only won twice in their last six home games and they need to take maximum points from their remaining four games on their own ground. They have only taken one point from their last three games after winning four of the previous five and six of their remaining seven games are against other teams in the top half of the table.
Dominik Szoboszlai and Virgil van Dijk are probably the best of the bunch in the Liverpool team for fantasy managers.
Fulham came from behind to win 3-1 at home to Burnley last time out and they’re only five points behind Liverpool going into this game. They have taken four points from their last two away games after only taking one in the previous four with only three other teams taking less points on the road. They have taken 10 points from their last five games and their next four games are all against teams above them in the table.
Harry Wilson is in great form for fantasy managers at the moment with Raul Jiminez and Joachim Andersen possibilities too.
I think Liverpool will take the three points in this game, but Fulham will put up a good fight.
Prediction: 2-1
Sunday April 12
Crystal Palace v Newcastle United
2pm BST, Selhurst Park, London
Palace didn’t play in the last round of games, but they drew 0-0 at home to Leeds the previous week and they’re only four points off the top half of the table. They have only won once in their last 10 home games with only Bournemouth drawing more games on their own ground and only Forest scoring less goals. They have taken 10 points from their last six games after failing to win the previous nine with no other team in the bottom half of the table conceding less goals.
Ismaila Sarr is the only Palace player who might do well for fantasy managers.
Newcastle lost 2-1 at home to Sunderland in their last game and that defeat saw them drop back into the bottom half of the table. They have taken 10 points from their last six away games, but only Wolves and Sunderland have scored less goals on the road. They have lost six of their last nine games and they conceded 18 goals in those games, but they’re only four points off seventh place.
Anthony Gordon is the best bet in the Newcastle team for fantasy managers with Bruno Guimaraes a possibility too if he’s fit to play.
I think this will be a very close game with a draw being the most likely outcome.
Prediction: 1-1
Nottingham Forest v Aston Villa
2pm BST, City Ground, Nottingham
Forest won 3-0 away to Spurs last time out and that win moved them three points clear of the relegation zone. They haven’t won in their last seven home games with no other team scoring less goals on their own patch. They hadn’t won in seven games before beating Spurs with only Wolves scoring less goals.
Neco Williams, Morgan Gibbs-White and Elliot Anderson are the Forest players most likely to return points for fantasy managers.
Villa won 2-0 at home to West Ham in their last game to move within one point of third place and five points clear of fifth place. They have only taken one point from their last three away games and they conceded six goals in those games. They had lost three games in a row before beating West Ham and they have a good run of games coming up.
Morgan Rogers is the only Villa player for fantasy managers to consider at the moment.
I think this is a game which could go either way and I wouldn’t be surprised to see the spoils shared.
Prediction: 1-1
Sunderland v Tottenham Hotspur
2pm BST, Stadium of Light, Sunderland
Sunderland won 2-1 away to fierce rivals Newcastle in their last game and they’re only outside the top half of the table on goal difference. They have lost their last three home games and they only scored one goal in those games with only the top two conceding less goals on their own patch. They have taken seven points from their last four games after losing four of the previous five with only Wolves and Forest scoring less goals.
If he’s fit to play Daniel Ballard could be the best option in the Sunderland team for fantasy managers with Enzo Le Fee worth considering too.
Spurs lost 3-0 at home to Forest last time out to leave them one point and one place above the relegation zone. They have only taken three points from their last six away games and that’s a record they have to put right very soon. They have only taken five points from their last 13 games and they conceded 27 goals in those games.
I’m not sure there are Spurs players doing enough to interest fantasy managers at the moment.
I think Sunderland will pile more pressure on Spurs with a narrow victory in this game.
Prediction: 1-0
Chelsea v Manchester City
4.30pm BST, Stamford Bridge, London
Chelsea lost 3-0 away to Everton in their last game to leave them in sixth place with the chasing pack closing in quickly behind them. They haven’t won in their last three home games and their next two games on their own ground are both against teams above them in the table starting with this one. They have only won once in their last six games and they conceded 10 goals in those games.
With two games next week Joao Pedro, Cole Palmer and Pedro Neto should all be of real interest to fantasy managers.
City didn’t play in the last round of games as they were busy winning the Carabao Cup Final, but they could only draw 1-1 away to West Ham the previous week to leave them nine points behind Arsenal at the top of the table with a game in hand. They have only won two of their last six away games with only Arsenal taking more points and scoring more goals on the road. They have taken 18 points from their last eight games and they scored 15 goals in those games with only Arsenal scoring more and conceding less goals.
City play twice next week too which should make Erling Haaland and Antoine Semenyo must haves for fantasy managers while Nico O’Reilly, Marc Guehi and Matheus Nunes are good choices too.
With both teams needing a win from this game I think a draw is probably the most likely scenario.
Prediction: 2-2
Monday April 13
Manchester United v Leeds United
8pm BST, Old Trafford, Manchester
United drew 2-2 away to Bournemouth in their last game to hold on to third place and they look increasingly certain to return to the Champions League next season. They are unbeaten in their last 10 home games and they scored 20 goals in those games with only the top two taking more points and scoring more goals on their own patch. They have taken 23 points and scored 20 goals in their last 10 games with only the two teams above them scoring more goals.
Bruno Fernandes is the must have player in the United team for fantasy managers while Casemiro, Matheus Cunha and Benjamin Sesko are considerations too.
Leeds drew 0-0 at home to Brentford last time out to stay four points clear of the bottom three. They have only won once away from home, but no other team has drawn more games on their travels with only Wolves and Sunderland scoring less goals. They haven’t won in six games, but they drew four of them and they still have to play three of the teams below them before the end of the season.
Despite playing twice next week it’s difficult to recommend Leeds players to fantasy managers as both Anton Stach and Joe Rodon are injured.
I think United will strengthen their grip on third place with another three points in this game.
Prediction: 3-1
That’s it for this week.
See you next week.
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