| POSITION | PLAYER NAME | THIS WEEK | POINTS | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 (1) |  |  |  | AFCDAVE | 1045 | ||||||
| 2 (2) | | |  | GoonerLaw | 1030 | ||||||
| 3 (3) | | |  | Ali Bergkamp | 920 | ||||||
| 4 (7) | |  |  | Feel | 910 | ||||||
| 5 (3) | | |  | Invader 67 | 905 |
Thursday December 26
Tottenham Hotspur v Brighton And Hove Albion
12.30pm GMT, Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, London
Spurs lost 2-0 at home to Chelsea on Sunday to drop down to seventh place and they’re six points behind fourth place. Only the top three teams have taken more points at home with only Liverpool and City scoring more goals on their own patch. They have won four of their last six games, but the two losses in that spell were against other top four contenders which has really hurt them.
With Heung-Min Son suspended for three games Dele Alli and Lucas Moura could do well for fantasy managers.
Brighton lost 1-0 at home to Sheffield United on Saturday, but they’re still five points above the bottom three. Only four other teams have taken less points on their travels, but they have taken four points from their last two away games. They have only won once in their last seven games and they have Spurs and Chelsea to play over the festive period.
Neal Maupay has been the best of the Brighton players for fantasy managers recently with Matt Ryan and Lewis Dunk worth considering too.
I think Spurs will recover from Sunday’s defeat to take the three points in this game.
Prediction: 3-1
Aston Villa v Norwich City
3pm GMT, Villa Park, Birmingham
Villa lost 3-1 at home to Southampton on Saturday and that defeat saw them drop into the relegation zone. They have lost their last two home games and they conceded seven goals in those two defeats with only four other teams conceding more goals at home. They have lost their last four games and they conceded 11 goals in those games with only Southampton and Norwich conceding more goals.
Jack Grealish has been the Villa player to have for fantasy managers and he’s a very good option despite their recent poor run of results.
Norwich lost 2-1 at home to Wolves on Saturday and they’re now six points adrift of seventeenth place. Only Villa have taken less points away from home and no other team has scored less goals on the road. They haven’t won in five games and no other team has conceded more goals.
Todd Cantwell is still available at a very good price for fantasy managers and he’s probably the best option in their team along with Teemu Pukki.
I think this will be a close game between two of the bottom three with Villa the most likely winners.
Prediction: 2-1
Bournemouth v Arsenal
3pm GMT, Vitality Stadium, Bournemouth
Bournemouth lost 1-0 to a last minute goal at home to Burnley on Saturday and they’re only four points above the bottom three. They have lost their last three home games and they only scored one goal in those games with only Watford and Palace scoring less goals at home. They have lost six of their last seven games and only three other teams have scored less goals.
I can’t see any Bournemouth players to interest fantasy managers at the moment.
Arsenal drew 0-0 away to Everton on Saturday and they’re in their lowest league position at this stage of the season in 36 years as Mikel Arteta takes the reigns. They won their last away game at West Ham, but it was their first away win in eight games. They have only won once in their last 10 games and the clean sheet at Everton was their first one in 10 games.
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang is the only Arsenal player worth considering for fantasy managers, but he’s only scored once in his last four games.
I think this will be another very close game with Arsenal just about emerging with the three points.
Prediction: 1-2
Chelsea v Southampton
3pm GMT, Stamford Bridge, London
Chelsea won 2-0 away to Spurs on Sunday to give themselves a four point gap over the fifth placed team. They have lost two of their last three home games with only five other teams scoring less goals at home. They have lost four of their last six games, but the win at Spurs was a huge boost to their confidence and they have a good run of games coming up.
Willian showed how good he can be for fantasy managers last week while Tammy Abraham and Mason Mount still have something to offer despite their return falling off in recent weeks.
Southampton won 3-1 away to Villa on Saturday to swap places with them and climb out of the bottom three. They have taken 11 of their 18 points away from home, but their next two away fixtures are very difficult. They have won three of their last five games, but no other team has conceded more goals.
Danny Ings is in fantastic form for fantasy managers at the moment and he’s still available at a good price while James Ward-Prowse has done well recently too.
I think Chelsea will strengthen their hold on a top four place by taking the three points in this game.
Prediction: 3-1
Crystal Palace v West Ham United
3pm GMT, Selhurst Park, London
Palace lost 1-0 away to Newcastle on Saturday to drop into the bottom half of the table. They have only won once in their last five home games with only Watford scoring less goals on their own ground. They have only scored two goals and conceded two goals in their last four games and their games have seen fewer goals than any other teams.
Palace’s defenders and keeper are all worth considering for fantasy managers.
West Ham didn’t play at the weekend as Liverpool were playing in the World Club Championship, but they did win away to Southampton the previous week. They have won as many games as they have lost away from home, but only Watford and Norwich have scored less goals on their travels.
I can’t see any West Ham players to recommend to fantasy managers at the moment.
I think this will be a close game with the spoils more than likely shared.
Prediction: 1-1
Everton v Burnley
3pm GMT, Goodison Park, Liverpool
Everton drew 0-0 at home to Arsenal on Saturday, but they’re still only four points above the bottom three. They have only lost once in their last five home games, but only five other teams have scored less goals at home. They were unbeaten in their three games when Duncan Ferguson was in temporary charge and they only play one of the big six in their next eight games.
I’m not sure which Everton players to recommend to fantasy managers at the moment, but Richarlison and Lucas Digne might be possibilities considering their fixtures and their new manager.
Burnley won 1-0 away to Bournemouth on Saturday to move into the top half of the table. Only six other teams have taken more points at home despite Burnley losing four of their nine home games. They won their last two games without conceding a goal, but they have a very tough run of games on the horizon.
Nick Pope and Chris Wood are the Burnley players who could do well for fantasy managers, but they have some very tough games to negotiate.
I think this will be another close game with Everton getting their new regime off to a good start by taking the three points.
Prediction: 1-0
Sheffield United v Watford
3pm GMT, Bramall Lane, Sheffield
United won 1-0 away to Brighton on Saturday to move up to fifth in the table. They have lost as many games as they have won at home, but only three other teams have conceded less goals at home. They have won their last three games and they only conceded one goal in those games, but four of their next six games will really test their resolve.
All of United’s defenders and keeper have done very well for fantasy managers and every manager should have at least one of them in their squad.
Watford won 2-0 at home to United on Sunday, but they’re still at the foot of the table even if it is only on goal difference. Only Villa have taken less points away from home and no other team has scored less or conceded more goals on their travels. The win against United was their first win in six games and only their second win of the season and no other team has scored less goals.
I still can’t see any Watford players to recommend to fantasy managers.
I think United will continue their impressive form by winning this game.
Prediction: 2-0
Manchester United v Newcastle United
5.30pm GMT, Old Trafford, Manchester
United lost 2-0 away to Watford on Sunday to drop back to eighth place and they’re seven points off the top four. They have only lost once in their nine home games, but no other team has drawn more home games and only three teams have conceded less goals at home. They have only won two of their last six games and they haven’t kept a clean sheet in 13 games.
Marcus Rashford, Daniel James and Anthony Martial are all worth considering for fantasy managers, but not if they play like they did on Sunday.
Newcastle won 1-0 at home to Palace on Saturday to move into the top half of the table and they’re level on points with United. They have lost six of their nine away games and only three other teams have conceded more away goals with only two other teams scoring less goals on the road. They have won three of their last four games, but they’re the lowest scorers in the top half of the league.
Martin Dubravka has done well for fantasy managers in recent weeks while Jonjo Shelvey has had a decent run of returns recently too.
I think United should be too good at home for Newcastle and should win by a couple of goals.
Prediction: 2-0
Leicester City v Liverpool
8pm GMT, King Power Stadium, Leicester
Leicester lost 3-1 away to City on Saturday after leading early on and they’re still 10 points behind Liverpool at the top of the table, but they’ve played a game more than them. They’re one of only two teams unbeaten at home and no other team has conceded less goals on their own patch. They haven’t won in two games after winning their previous eight games and it could be three games without a win after this game.
Jamie Vardy is still a must have for fantasy managers with James Maddison plus all their defenders and keeper very good choices too.
Liverpool didn’t play last week as they were busy winning the World Club Championship, but they kept their 10 point lead at the top of the table as Leicester lost to City. They’re one of only two teams unbeaten away from home and no other team has conceded less goals on their travels. They’re almost halfway to an unbeaten season and only City have scored more goals while no other team has conceded less.
Sadio Mane and Mohamed Salah are still the stand out Liverpool players for fantasy managers while all of their defenders are pretty good options too.
The chances are something has to give in this game and I think it will be Leicester’s unbeaten home record.
Prediction: 1-2
Friday December 27
Wolverhampton Wanderers v Manchester City
7.45pm GMT, Molineux Stadium, Wolverhampton
Wolves came from behind to win 2-1 away to Norwich last week and they moved back up to sixth place. They have only lost two of their nine home games, but they have actually taken more points away from home than they have at home. They have only lost once in their last 13 games and they haven’t failed to score in their last 17 games.
Raul Jiminez and Matt Doherty are still the best of the Wolves players for fantasy managers while both Joao Moutinho and Adama Traore are good options too.
City came from behind to win 3-1 at home to Leicester last week and they’re now only one point behind Leicester in third place. Only Liverpool have taken more points and no other team has scored more goals away from home. They have won seven of their last 10 games and they’re the leading scorers, but it hasn’t been enough to keep pace with Liverpool.
Kevin de Bruyne remains the best of the City players for fantasy managers while fit again Sergio Aguero has a lot to offer too.
I think City will at least keep pace with Liverpool by narrowly taking the three points in this game.
Prediction: 1-2
That’s it for this week.
See you next week.
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