Fantasy Football Fixtures Game-week 14

Fantasy Football Fixtures Game-week 14

Anybody need a hug?! Evidently that’s all it takes to turn a once ailing team into an all conquering team of superstars. We are now selling FPL hugs for a pound a go. Given how this season is going we expect to make a million! We are of course referring to Herr Klopp and his touchy-feely management style which has seen Liverpool suddenly become a viable fantasy (and perhaps real) force once again. When we all thought he was spending the International break drilling in tactics and philosophy all he was in fact doing was hugging everybody. Well it takes all sorts and it is certainly working! The FPL irony this week was that it wasn’t actually that bad for once with popular picks such as Lukaku surprising everyone by not flopping for once when faced with a good home game. Another Everton youngster fancied to do big things this week was of course Deulofeu but he was royally upstaged by the less fashionable Ross Barkley. Owners of Deulofeu can take solace in the knowledge that he was in fact outstanding on the day, but such is fantasy football he had little to show for it whereas Barkley walked away with 19 points, mainly for being Johnny on the spot a couple of times. Kane made a further case for inclusion with a brace and the likes of Vardy and Mahrez kept things ticking along nicely for the league leaders. Wait, what???!

The Tracker…
We have rated each teams fixtures on a sliding scale. Remember that this is just our opinion and you may feel differently but if nothing else it gives you a nice easy visual aid as to each teams upcoming games…

We do have a comprehensive library of other useful trackers including the all singing, all dancing interactive one from Calvin Clyne and you can find them all here – Fixture Trackers

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FAVOURABLE FIXTURES
Arsenal – Norwich (A), Sunderland (H), Aston Villa (A)
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[/three_fourth]November hasn’t been kind to Arsenal so far. A heavy defeat at the hands of Bayern Munich in the Champions League looks to have somewhat knocked the stuffing out of Arsenal, for the time being at least. The rampant German outfit knocked five past them and since then Arsenal haven’t mustered a win in the league, albeit in just two games, so no big crisis or anything like that. A 1-1 draw with bitter rivals Tottenham was followed up by last weekends shocker against West Brom. Nobody really saw that one coming but it’s not the first time, and wont be the last, that the power teams come unstuck at the Hawthorns. Looking forward, the Gunners have some beautiful fixtures ahead and will be looking to earn maximum points from their next three and build back the confidence and form from a few weeks ago as they prepare for a big showdown in Game-week seventeen with Manchester City. Any less than nine points from these next three and Mr Wenger will be furious, and rightfully so…

After a decent start to the season, Alex Neil and his Norwich players have slowly but surely began to slip further and further down the table. Residing in sixteenth place, just a few points above the drop zone, Norwich desperately need to start gaining points before it’s all too late. Unluckily for them, their schedule is awful and this weekends game with Arsenal looks to be one of those where the home side will either lose narrowly, or get bashed up pretty badly. Either way, Arsenal’s attacking threat will be way too much for poor old Norwich you would think. Norwich are one of those clubs that are prone to taking a major hammering vs top teams (Suarez’ best mates, at one stage) and even some poor ones (hi, Newcastle) and we feel like The Gooners will win this one comfortably.

Sunderland’s inconsistency continued this evening with a surprise, but much needed, 0-1 victory at Palace. They had a blip a few weeks ago and gave, erm, Newcastle, a hiding but since then it had been back to normal. Two games, two defeats and a heap of goals conceded. Which Sunderland turn up then is anybody’s guess but The Emirates Stadium isn’t the place this lot want to be but in Game-week fifteen but that’s exactly where they are headed. Arsenal haven’t lost to Sunderland since 2012 and have had some big results along the way. With no Champions League hangovers or International break BS to deal with, Arsenal, and particularly Alexis Sanchez, look poised to really go to town on this Sunderland team: A four goal margin, or more, is quite possible and we might just see the aforementioned Alexis top some Captain polls for that week.

What a ridiculous run of games this is, you have to laugh. Having been through Norwich and Sunderland it’s then an away trip that instills no fear. None whatsoever. ‘Tis Villa. The hilariously woeful midlands club have been hanging on to their Premier League status by a thread in recent seasons but this current one might just be the one where The Villains finally drop into obscurity, Leeds style. Bottom of the form table, bottom of the actual table. That’s all we need to know. Arsenal are going to hurt this lot badly and that Chilean dude might once again top a few Captain polls for Game-week sixteen. If anyone is in any doubt about this game (if you are, slap yourself) it’s worth noting that the last four meetings have all gone The Gooners’ way, to the tune of 14-1. Much like our two previous featured games, it’s just a matter of how much Arsenal turn it on but they are as close to guaranteed to win as we dare to predict.

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Watford – Aston Villa (A), Norwich (H), Sunderland (A)
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[/three_fourth]It’s been a while since one of the promoted teams made this article. Or at least the positive part of it anyway! Watford break the mould this week though as they have a trio of superb games ahead. Currently a decent seven points above the dreaded bottom three, Quique Flores and his players have a great chance to open the gap further if they can get the wins that are being essentially handed to them. Current form doesn’t fill us with joy but when we look at their opposition in the last six or so, Watty have actually done okay for themselves. Wins over Stoke and West Ham were solid results; a draw with Bournemouth disappointed and a few defeats to United, Leicester and Arsenal came as no real surprise. Still, Watford have shown themselves to maybe be the stronger of the promoted teams and we’ll see if that is the case over the coming weeks. If they cant dispatch these teams handily enough, then who?

We start with Villa, shall we move on? Okay, okay, a little something then. Villa are useless, now can we move on? God damn it! As previously mentioned, Aston Villa have been all over the place since minute one this season. Recent weeks has seen a managerial change that brought as much laughter as it did joy. Sherwood out, Garde in. What is going on at this club?! Five defeats and a single draw, against City of all teams, makes for horrid reading and with Watford looking a relatively tight unit it’s hard to see more than one goal going in against them in this game. Ighalo and Deeney are beginning to turn the screw a bit and they should have no problem doing the business this weekend. Away win, possible trouncing.

These fixtures are beginning to look at a lot like Arsenal’s, eh? With the Villa trip behind them Watford return to home comforts in Game-week fifteen to take on fellow newly promoted side, Norwich. Not the most glamorous of fixtures, to say the least. However, it might actually be a more entertaining game than first thought as both sides do prefer to have a go. Norwich are slipping though so with aforementioned Deeney and Ighalo up top for the Hornets and decent players like Heurelho Gomes, Allan Nyom and Craig Cathcart at the back, we fancy Watford to come away with a positive result in this one, more often than not, despite having lost the last three to Norwich.

From a lot like Arsenal’s fixtures, to the exact bloody same. And that’s a good thing for us Fantasy Managers, or at least those with a hornet or two hanging about in our squads. We wrap this section up with Sunderland who are always one of the more favorable teams so be pitted against. Much like the Aston Villa game the defensive options that Watford have at their disposal plus an improving, and quite lethal at times strike-force, should, and likely will be more than enough to brush Sunderland aside and claim an easy enough three points. A few Game-weeks away yet, could there be time there for Sam to work some sort of miracle? No. Sunderland are in trouble and will be for the remainder of the season.

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Liverpool – Swansea (H), Newcastle (A), West Brom (H)
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[/three_fourth]Did someone say miracle? It’s a word that could be used to describe the events at Anfield in recent weeks. Whilst being far from title-winning material, Liverpool are improving rapidly under the guidance of Jurgen Klopp. Only a few short weeks ago, Brendan Rodgers was a sight for sore eyes in the Scouse dugout and his team were coming apart at the seams. The new players looked dodgy, the ones from last season looked even dodgier and it was hard to see light at the end of the tunnel. Now, Liverpool have a certain swagger back and recent thrashings of Chelsea and Champions elect, Manchester City, have given the club the kick up the arse that it needed badly. All is not rosy just yet, though, as in between these two great results there was the home defeat to Palace. These results will happen from time-to-time in this league though and at least Palace are a capable team. As the weeks go by though we feel like Liverpool will get stronger and stronger as German lunatic, Klopp, puts his brand on the players.

The Swans dazzled at the start of the season: Bambi Gomis, Andre Ayew and Gylfi Sigurdsson were running the show and by all accounts, Swansea were more than good for the results they were picking up. Looking back, it was before the Watford game in Game-week five that Gary Monk stated that his teams great start to the season would mean nothing if they couldn’t beat Watford. Well, they didn’t win and have only won once since. Not the desired effect there Gary, eh? A trip to Anfield isn’t exactly what Swansea would hope for but it’s what they get. If luck falls their way and Philippe Coutinho is ruled out then things may be a little easier, or a little less embarrassing, whatever the case may be. Either way, it’s hard to look past the home side in this one.

For many years this was an almost legendary fixture. Football fans from all over tuned in to see just what madness would ensue. Feisty affairs, goal-fests and end to end entertainment were the usual ingredients but unfortunately that edge has all but disappeared from this fixture. Liverpool have picked up three wins from the last seven meetings, drawing twice and losing twice as well. Not the best of reading there in fairness. Still, all things considered, Klopp Warrior should have no real worries about this fixture: Toon have shipped fourteen goals in their last six games and have only scored eight in that period, six of which were against Norwich on that weird afternoon where everything went their way. If Coutinho is fit and firing for this one, then the goal tally could be pretty high.

Finishing off this section we have a team that no-one really likes playing against. Some negative results were recently predicted for Tony Pulis’ men and they have come through, for the most part. Three defeats in six against Leicester, United and Palace isn’t exactly the worst considering the opposition and last weekends triumph over Arsenal will have The Baggies in good spirits for the coming weeks but with a couple of tough games before Liverpool, they might just get softened up a wee bit. If it’s not a home win in this one, then it’s just about guaranteed to be a drab, almost depressing 0-0.

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Man City – Southampton (H), Stoke (A), Swansea (H)
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[/three_fourth]Hmm, what to make of this City team. Clearly the most talented side in the league, yet are prone to crazy results that leave Fantasy Managers scratching their heads and wondering just what the hell is happening. City’s last six league games are a prefect example of this Jekyll & Hyde-like level of unpredictability. Newcastle, Bournemouth and Norwich were easily beaten by a combined 13-3: Easy-peasy. The other three, however, were far from easy as the former Champions played out awful 0-0’s with city rivals Manchester United and basement dwellers, Aston Villa. Then last weekend happened! Mental. They’ll probably have their tails up now and go on a record breaking run of destroying everyone in their path and, with the return of Sergio Aguero to the team-sheet and indeed the score-sheet, there may be trouble ahead for the Sky Blues’ opposition..

Even when City’s fixtures look a little tougher it’s very difficult to leave them out of any favorable section given their strength up front. Southampton are no push overs and haven’t been since their return to the top flight a few seasons back. Decent in all areas of the pitch, The Saints will certainly put up a fight but we expect City to come out on top, as they have done in the previous three meetings, and six times in the previous eight, showing just the one defeat. If the little Argentine disaster can keep his glass legs in one piece during UCL in midweek then Koeman and co might be in for a torrid afternoon.

What a wonderful turnaround for Stoke. The solidity disappeared and the attacking verve appeared once Mark Hughes took charge. Clean sheets were a distant memory until very recently (No coincidence that it happens with the return of beanpole defender, Ryan Shawcross) and now Stoke are looking like a very tough team to play against once more. However, they have an abysmal record against Manchester City and have mustered just three wins and six draws form twenty-two meetings, stretching back to a 1-0 win at Maine Road all the way back in 1997. Resurgent or not, Stoke have their work cut out for them in this game and we are firmly on the City bandwagon still, so they are favorites. Silva might be back around this time, too. Gulp!

Swansea make another appearance now and this is a mouth-watering fixture for City, on paper at least. As it stands, all teams need to do is take Ayew out of the game and not give away too many set-pieces where Gylfi can bend one in or produce a great cross, to completely nullify Swansea. Now, take a look at City’s team… oh dear! It has pasting written all over it unless Monky man can get something, anything sorted before this game. We gave a brief mention to Silva in the last section but this could really be the game where we see him start from the off. His return always lifts the team so it’s even harder to see Swansea pulling something off this time around. Many are looking at this as the Game-week to get Aguero or Silva back in if they haven’t done so already, and that may well be a good idea, provided the former doesn’t go boom in the meantime.

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Everton – Bournemouth (A), Crystal Palace (H), Norwich (A)
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[/three_fourth]Is this correct: Liverpool AND Everton in the favorable section? Indeed it is. Things are certainly on the up over on Merseyside as both teams press on. The turnaround in Everton from last season is crazy. They’ve gone from whipping boys to the ones dishing out the whoopings and there is one major factor in this: The Europa League. Or lack thereof, to be exact. So many teams have struggled with the schedule that it’s about time something was done. Yeah right, there’s way too much cash being made so it ain’t going to change. Still, The Toffees have shaken off the Europa shackles this season and ploughed on, despite having a mean schedule until very recently. Two wins and one draw in the last three, with three conceded in that time and a staggering 11 scored shows where they are just now. Barkley, Deulofeu and Lukaku are all gelling well and with the imminent return of long-term absentee, Leighton Baines, Everon’s run looks all the sweeter..

Six scored against Sunderland, one away at West Ham and four notched against Villa. This does not bode well for Bournemouth, a side with no wins and four defeats from their last six and a whopping sixteen conceded. Is there anyone, just one person, who gives the Cherries a prayer in this one? Not here at FF247 HQ anyway. Maybe Potty, but even that’s doubtful. This fixture has a number of Captain picks for us go for and anyone who went with Ross Barkley or Romelu Lukaku last weekend will have trouble switching. Flat out no hope for the home side here and they may well get hammered badly, with the previously mentioned Lukaku-Barkley-Deulofeu trio providing the firepower.

Now, here’s an interesting match-up. For all that is said about Lord Pardeux, his teams are pretty good more often than not and try to play attacking, entertaining football. A visit to Goodison to go head-to-head with Everton has all the ingredients to be a good game for the neutral to look forward to. The home side have scooped the points in three of the last six meeting, however it’s Palace who have the edge recently with two wins and one draw in the previous four. Both of those wins were by a scoreline of 3-2, indicating what we may expect from this game. As it stands, we’d lean toward Everton this time though but a score draw is not beyond the realms of possibility.

In our last featured game in the favorable section of this weeks Fixtures Article, we finish where we started. With Norwich. As previously, we’re not giving Norwich anything for this one as they begin to dwindle this season. One look at the previous between these teams suggests a deep lying Toffee love for coming up against The Canaries. A 2-1 Premier League victory for Norwich, back in 2013, is a lone positive. We have to go as far back as 1994 to find the next win. Just to put that into perspective, the goal scorers that day were Chris Sutton, Ian Culverhouse and Mark Bowen!! Yes, that’s how long ago!! This long lasting dislike for playing Everton, plus current form etc, suggests an easy afternoon for Everton at best, or a narrow but comfortable win at worst.

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BE WARY OF…
Aston Villa – Watford (H), Southampton (A), Arsenal (H)
Even ‘new manager syndrome’ seems to be lost on poor Villa. The theory is that the mere thought of having a new gaffer, a fresh start and a chance to impress will see at least a small upturn in results in the short term if nothing else. The good news was that they did hold Man City to a 0-0 draw in his first official game in charge. The bad news is that may have been their zenith as they were royally thumped by Everton this past weekend, leaving Remy to admit that there was a huge gulf between the sides. Their next three are tough but we won’t labour the point as we suspect we are pushing against an open door here…

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Bournemouth – Everton (H), Chelsea (A), Man United (H)
After four straight defeats the Cherries did show some signs of life with a decent 2-2 draw away at Swansea but a quick glance at their next three would suggest it may be a while before they see another point. To say Chelsea away is probably their best hope says it all really!

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Leicester – Man United (H), Swansea (A), Chelsea (H)
Wait, what???! Yep. We are strict task masters here and as such we hereby lay down a challenge to Leicester to prove us wrong on this one! The reality is that they are in this section merely to warn you of their impending run of games as other than maybe Swansea in GW15 they are pretty tough. On paper. The way they are going they might make light of them but just be aware that they face Man United, Chelsea, Everton, Liverpool and Man City in five of their next six. It’s not often you find a team at the top of league with the most goals scored but also with one of the worst defensive records in the league but that’s what they have somehow achieved. You have to delve into the bottom six to find a team that has conceded more. Keep their attackers by all means, sell their defenders for sure, probably buy neither for a bit.

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Newcastle – Crystal Palace (A), Liverpool (H), Spurs (A)
Having started the season woefully Newcastle have lumbered into inconsistency, which given where they where may be seen as a slight improvement but you have to feel, even at this stage, that the only thing keeping them up this season may be if there are three worse teams than them. Currently there are, just. They won’t be getting much this side of GW17 though, you’d have to feel, looking at their next three. Hell will freeze over before spurned old boss Pardew gives them a carrot and then they run into two form teams in the shape of Liverpool and Spurs.

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Norwich – Arsenal (H), Watford (A), Everton (H)
Having lost a massive ‘six pointer’ to fellow relegation battlers Chelsea, Norwich will be getting a touch nervous now and their fixture list this side of Christmas makes for dreadful reading. As well as the above they also have trips to Man United and Spurs before Villa visit in GW19 to maybe bring them some hope.

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Swansea – Liverpool (A), Leicester (H), Man City (A)
We saw a good few managers cling onto Andre Ayew for one final fling last weekend and they’ll be mighty glad they did as he repaid the faith with a goal and an assist for 13 valuable fantasy points. Then again, it was Bournemouth at home. The same managers may have a dilemma coming up though as their upcoming fixtures are somewhat more challenging. Liverpool and Man City away may be enough to justify shipping him out. Leaky Leicester at home may entice a few to stick with the 4th highest fantasy points scoring midfielder in the game. Tough decisions await. Either way we certainly wouldn’t be buying any Swans with this list of games ahead.

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One Week Wonders
Let’s chase goals! This is our weekly ‘punt’ where we attempt to pinpoint any games or teams where we feel there may be a high chance of goals and therefore fantasy points on offer…

1) Bournemouth v Everton
Everton have been dispatching ‘weaker’ teams with relative ease as of late and Bournemouth may just be their latest victims. The Toffees haven’t been prolific away from Goodison but we find them in fine form and we’d expect them to be able to see off Bournemouth in this one with a few goals to show for it.

2) Spurs v Chelsea
With 13 goals in their last 4 league games Spurs are finally starting to find both the net and their form once more. Last seasons 5-3 is still fresh in the memory and the way both teams are playing we wouldn’t bet against something similar here. Well ok, maybe not 5-3 but there should be goals on offer. Chelsea have conceded more goals away than any team above them in the league. And they’re pretty low down to begin with.

3) Liverpool v Swansea
Form comes into this one as well. Liverpool are clearly clicking under Care Bear Klopp and striker or no striker they are finding the way to goal. Expectation will be ramped up ahead of a home game with Swansea who have lost 3 of their last 4 away games.

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Fixture Fun
Champions League and Europa League both rear their ugly heads again this week to give fantasy managers everywhere nightmares of unforeseen injuries.

Tuesday sees Chelsea travel to Maccabi Tel Aviv whilst Arsenal host Dinamo Zagreb. Both teams still need a win to have any hope of qualifying.

Wednesday sees Man City go to Juventus and Man United host PSV. City are through but a result would be preferable in terms of winning the group while Utd top a tight group and will therefore be seeking a win regardless.

Thursday sees Spurs go to FK Karabakh aka Qarabag FK. Pass. Liverpool host Bordeaux. No idea if either need to win, they probably care less themselves.

GW14 DEADLINE
Just a heads up that the deadline is at 2pm this Saturday UK time.

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Thanks for reading Fantasy Football Fixtures Game-week 14 – Fantasy Premier League 2015-16. This article was written by Inittowinit and NIN

Follow @AdamalcockFF247