That’s that then, the Premier League show must go on.
Despite calls from some managers and players to have a circuit breaker amid spiralling Covid-19 cases amongst squads up and down the division, the current fixture schedule will remain as it is. For now.
The festive period is usually an enjoyable one for football fans and Fantasy Premier League managers alike with matches conveniently filling gaps of time between stuffing your face with cheese and wine like you’re at an important meeting or tense Scrabble sessions with an overly competitive relative. There should be plenty of football to watch this Christmas although a record-breaking 90 positive cases in the latest round of Premier League testing suggests that further postponements are likely.
Last-minute postponements are a nightmare for FPL managers, but there are a few ways in which the risk can be mitigated against as outlined in this article from last week, the biggest being wait until the very last minute to make your transfers. Over one million managers transferred in Aston Villa striker Ollie Watkins last week, only to be stung when Aston Villa’s game against Burnley was called off at the 11th hour.
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There are probably more pressing matters to attend to on 25 December than moving headless football shirts around on an app – like playing the After Eight challenge, for instance – but if you have sufficiently recovered from your food coma by Boxing Day morning, log in to your team, captain Mo Salah against Leeds and make sure your squad is in good working order for the football bonanza to come. (The deadline is 11am.)
Although only eight of i‘s 11 players ended up playing in Gameweek 18 – Aston Villa pair Emi Martinez and Ollie Watkins’ match was postponed and Phil Foden was an unused substitute for Man City – our team scored 58 points, thanks largely to the efforts of Joao Cancelo and Gabriel Martinelli, who scored 15 points apiece.
Here is i‘s team for Gameweek 18 which is of course subject to change should any more matches be called off between time of writing and Boxing Day.
Aaron Ramsdale (Arsenal)
Aaron Ramsdale has been a revelation since joining Arsenal in the summer, emerging as Jordan Pickford’s main rival for the England No 1 jersey and becoming a fan favourite at the Emirates in the process. Since making his league debut in Gameweek 4, Ramsdale has kept the joint-most number of clean sheets (eight) in the division, alongside Manchester City’s Ederson. Arsenal’s upcoming opponents Norwich have failed to score in any of their last three games at Carrow Road, raising Ramsdale’s prospects of another shutout.
Price: £5.1m Points: 77 Gameweek 19 fixture: Norwich (a)
Trent Alexander-Arnold (Liverpool)
The man is a gift from the FPL gods. Trent Alexander-Arnold is worth over a million more than any other defender in FPL currency and make no mistake, he is worth every penny. No player in the Premier League has created more chances (51); only Mo Salah has provided more than his eight assists; only Joao Cancelo has had more shots on goal among defenders. Alexander-Arnold is the second-most popular player in FPL (behind Salah) and yet it seems odd that his overall ownership is still below 50 per cent.
Price: £8.3m Points: 126 Gameweek 19 fixture: Leeds (h)
Joao Cancelo (Man City)
Finally, finally(!) with his 38th shot of the Premier League season, Joao Cancelo scored his first goal of the campaign. Newcastle fans may disagree, but it was well worth the wait. That goal had been coming and he almost nabbed a second in the second half too. An assist and clean sheet in Gameweek 18 ensured that Cancelo joined Salah and Alexander-Arnold in the exclusive 100 points club in FPL this season. And in case you are worried about Pep roulette, Cancelo has started all but one of City’s league games this season.
Price: £6.8m Points: 109 Gameweek 19 fixture: Leicester (h)
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Conor Coady (Wolves)
Watford striker Emmanuel Dennis is the most transferred in forward ahead of Gameweek 19 (at the time of writing) and while the Nigerian is an excellent option, managers appear to be sleeping on Wolves’ excellent defensive form of late. Bruno Lage’s side have only conceded twice in their last seven matches and those goals were scored by Manchester City and Liverpool, deep into stoppage time. Captain Conor Coady is nailed on to start and at £4.5m offers a cheap route into their backline.
Price: £4.5m Points: 71 Gameweek 19 fixture: Watford (h)
Konstantinos Tsimikas (Liverpool)
Konstantinos Tsimikas is now officially the cheapest player in FPL after his price tag dipped to £3.7m in midweek. Ordinarily, the Greece international plays the role of understudy to Andy Robertson, but with the Scotland captain unavailable for Liverpool’s next two league fixtures after his red card at Spurs, Tsimikas should slot in at left-back over the festive period. Tsimikas showed what he is capable of in FPL way back in Gameweek 2 when he racked up 11 points thanks to an assist and clean sheet against Burnley.
Price: £3.7m Points: 30 Gameweek 19 fixture: Leeds (h)
Mo Salah (Liverpool)
*Commentator voice* you fear for Leeds. Marcelo Bielsa can’t have had many more challenging weeks in management than the one just gone, after Leeds were pummelled 7-0 by Manchester City and rather charitably, 4-1 by Arsenal. Leeds allowed 52 shots on their goal across those two matches, at a rate of one every 3.4 minutes. Mo Salah blanked for the first time in 16 Premier League matches on Sunday but don’t expect that drought to last long. Triple captaining him may not be the worst idea…
Price: £13.1m Points: 170 Gameweek 19 fixture: Leeds (h)
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Price: £10.3m Points: 88 Gameweek 19 fixture: Crystal Palace (h)
Gabriel Martinelli (Arsenal)
Gabriel Martinelli was a differential pick in i‘s selections last week but he is unlikely to remain low-owned for much longer based on his form and price tag. The 20-year-old Brazilian took both of his goals against Leeds extremely well and has only failed to provide an attacking return once in his previous six matches. Over the past six gameweeks, Martinelli ranks top among Arsenal players for expected goals (2.65) and is second only to Martin Odegaard for chances created (19-13).
Price: £5.3m Points: 52 Gameweek 19 fixture: Norwich (a)
Marcus Rashford (Man Utd)
Manchester United could be in for a field day at St James’ Park if Newcastle are as generous towards them as they have been to… well, everyone else so far this season. Newcastle have conceded four more goals (21 in total) at home than any other side in the division, at a rate of three per game. Cristiano Ronaldo is the obvious United attacker to target, but Marcus Rashford could be a great differential. Rashford has four goals and three assists in seven league games against the Magpies and is playing up front in Ralf Rangnick’s 4-2-2-2 system.
Price: £9.4m Points: 28 Gameweek 19 fixture: Newcastle (a)
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Pep Guardiola laid down the law last weekend by dropping Phil Foden and Jack Grealish to the bench at the weekend after the pair decided to frequent a nightclub following the 7-0 win over Leeds. Riyad Mahrez took his chance to impress in their absences, scoring his 50th Manchester City goal and providing an assist in Sunday’s win at Newcastle. Over the past two gameweeks, Mahrez has scored 25 points, six more than any other City player in that period.
Price: £8.6m Points: 58 Gameweek 19 fixture: Leicester (h)
Michail Antonio (West Ham)
Michail Antonio’s barren run cannot go on for much longer… can it? West Ham’s main man has gone eight matches without a goal and only provided a solitary assist during that run, much to the dismay of his FPL managers. Nevertheless, his stats are still pretty good: Antonio ranks second among forwards for shots (44) and third for expected goals (6.05) across the campaign. Southampton, meanwhile, have gone six games without a clean sheet, conceding 14 times during that run.
Price: £7.8m Points: 75 Gameweek 19 fixture: Southampton (h)
How i‘s Gameweek 18 picks performed
- Emi Martinez (Aston Villa) – N/A
- Joao Cancelo (Man City) – 18
- Trent Alexander-Arnold (Liverpool) – 7
- Gabriel Magalhaes (Arsenal) – 2
- Reece James (Chelsea) – 6
- Mason Mount (Chelsea) – 3
- Phil Foden (Man City) – 0
- Mo Salah (Liverpool) – 2
- Gabriel Martinelli (Arsenal) – 15
- Ollie Watkins (Aston Villa) – N/A
- Alexandre Lacazette (Arsenal) – 5
from Fantasy Football – inews.co.uk https://ift.tt/32otxx6
via IFTTT
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