Fantasy Football Fixtures Game-week 6

Fantasy Football Fixtures Game-week 6

We continue to persevere, we continue to make the most educated picks possible and we continue to fail to even come close to 60 points for a single week. It’s getting to the point now where we just have to laugh and assure ourselves that we know what we’re doing and that it’s just a matter of time before the better players in the league prove why they are given that credit. Precautionary resting, woodwork getting smashed, Palace defenders attempting to slice our main man in half… wonderful. Will the towel be thrown in? Nope. Will we keep going and happily wait to smash the “Four-time-Kompany-cappers” down the overall standings? Damn straight! How dare they! Lets begin to plot these nutters’ downfall now by taking a look at some teams who will help us along the way, and also those who could well keep us picking up scraps. Keep the faith, folks. An FF247 raid on the top 100k is coming, and soon.

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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

Stoke City – Leicester (H), Bournemouth (H), Aston Villa (A)
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[/three_fourth]A quick glance at the league table suggests Stoke have been poor up to this point having picked up just a pair of points from their opening five games. However, with Liverpool, Tottenham, a tricky away trip to Carrow Road, West Brom and Arsenal making up their opponents so far, it has been far from an easy start. Mark Hughes is slowly but surely changing Stoke’s ways, molding them into a more attacking outfit compared to their previous hard hitting, bustling approach. This should bode well for the Potters over their next three matches as they face a few teams who are a long ways from being the tightest in the league.

High flying Leicester are first up as they visit the Brittania Stadium for what promises to be a high octane game. On their day, both sides are fairly evenly matched from front to back, making this an interesting game for the neutral. Neither side are expected to sit back and play for a draw, meaning Xhedran Shaqiri, Mame Diouf and, possibly, Marko Arnautovic are well poised for some attacking returns. Not much can be expected at the other end of the field for Stoke as they continue to miss the towering figure of Ryan Shawcross, but all is not lost. Jack Butland has been solid thus far and although he may not get the clean sheet in this one, an abundance of save points are surely there again as Riyad Mahrez and Jamie Vardy continue to pepper the opposition with incisive attacking play.

So, Leicester at home wasn’t good enough for you to turn your head? Okay, how about following it up with another home game, against Bournemouth. On paper this should, “should”, be the most straightforward of our featured games but still not an easy afternoons work. Eddie Howe’s players have been decent so far this season and will pose a real goal threat to Stoke with Callum Wilson having netted four times already, and Glenn Murray settling into his new surroundings. However, Stoke isn’t an easy place to visit and, all things considered, it’s hard to look past the home side in this one and they may even get that elusive clean sheet.

What, you’re still not convinced? Tough crowd, this. Could we tempt you with relegation candidates, Aston Villa? Thought so! Timmy’s time-bombs have shipped seven goals in their last three games, proving that they are there for the taking with two of those goals coming against Sunderland of all teams. Recent history sides with Stoke too as they have been beaten just once in their last four games against Villa, winning the other three by a combined total of 8-3. All signs lead to Stoke for this one.

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Liverpool – Norwich (H), Aston Villa (H), Everton (A)

Seven points from five games, back-to-back batterings by West Ham and Manchester United. You’d be forgiven for skimming past this section but hear us out for a minute. Liverpool have some winnable games ahead. Very winnable games in fact. Brendan Rodgers continues to struggle to find the system and team selection that works as his players slowly lose their edge. What’s needed are a few games to get results back on track, and to get the better of a rival team for once. Well, these next three matches provide the opportunity to tick all those boxes and kick-start their season before it’s too late.

Norwich, level on points with the home side, will travel to Anfield with a degree of confidence having played some good stuff so far. A pair of 3-1 victory’s against Sunderland and Bournemouth as well as a respectable 1-1 draw with Stoke sees them a touch higher in the league than many may have expected. However, it’s not all rosy, as the home team will hope for the return of Adam Lallana and Jordan Henderson this week to compliment Phillipe Coutinho who has served his suspension and will be available for selection once again. Liverpool have more than enough to take all three points here in what is surely now a must win game if the players want to move forward under the current management. It feels strange, but we’re going for a home win this time. Gulp.

The Scousers retain home comforts in Gameweek 7 and welcome, with open arms, the visit of Aston Villa to Merseyside for a game that has actually proven to be a banana skin in recent times. Just one win the last four against Villa is pretty woeful, to be fair, but is it a fixture to look at with a degree of worry? Unlikely. All teams who aspire to finish in Europe come season end should look at this fixture as a banker three points, go out there, play their stuff and scoop those points. To be worried about Aston Villa is to have one eye on the Championship, and, lets face it, Liverpool are not one of those teams. They might make a meal of it, but a home win is strongly fancied here.

Now, here’s the opportunity to get the win over a rival that we mentioned earlier. Rounding off this section is a fixture that we all look forward to, in a way, every season. High scoring affairs, red card central, center backs scoring absolute screamers. The Merseyside derby usually has it all and we expect it to be no different this time. Roberto Martinez looked a lost soul at times last season but his players have responded this time round having lost only to Manchester City so far, with heavy victories over Southampton and Chelsea to boot. Still, form goes out the window in these games as the players involved leave everything on the field in an attempt to send their fans home with the bragging rights until the teams next face each other. It wont be an easy game but we have to go as far back as 2010 before we see the last victory for Everton vs Liverpool. Six draws and four defeats later, so it’s about time they got something. Will they? Hard to say, but assuming Liverpool get the wins we expect from their two previous games, they should be in decent form and raring to go for this one.

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West Brom – Aston Villa (A), Everton (H), Crystal Palace (A)
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[/three_fourth]Has there ever been a manager like Tony Pulis? Managers up and down the country must wonder if he’s putting something in his players’ water bottles or something. Hard work, organization and discipline are the fundamentals for any team, so what makes Tony’s teams so efficient in these areas compared to others? It’s anyone’s guess, but it’s there for all to see. WBA haven’t had the smoothest of rides so far but have come out of it well. Destroyed by City (one of the few teams capable of regularly giving them a hiding) and just edged out by Chelsea, the Baggies have nailed their other games in true Pulis fashion. Three games, two draws, one victory, no goals conceded. Yep. 0. Some things never change. So while we aren’t suggesting they’ll steam roller anyone anytime soon, we are suggesting that there is perhaps a lot of value in their proven defence.

As you have probably already noticed, Villa are popping up regularly in this article, yet they have no section of their own (yet). They’re the first team for us to cover here as they host West Brom in Gameweek 6. In possibly one of the most predictable fixtures of the season, you’d be hard pushed to find anyone who fancies the home team to get anything form this game, with a single point likely to be the absolute best they can hope for. Saido Berahino returned to action last week, making a cameo appearance after cleaning up his playroom and putting all his toys back where they should be (again). This doesn’t bode well for Villa. Berahino & Rondon is a strike-force that has bags of potential and, combined with a tight defensive unit, we feel like this will be routine for Pulis and his players.

Next up for the Baggies is a home fixture against a lively looking Everton side. In the last four meetings between these two teams there has only been one victory. That was Everton, in a 2-0 win last season in this very fixture, a result that is almost unheard of at the Hawthorns. A pair of 0-0 draws at Goodison and a 1-1 make up those four games and it would seem like this is the likely route of this meeting too. However, West Brom have bought well with Rondon having already been mentioned, Jonny Evans arriving from Manchester United and also some solid midfield options in Darren Fletcher, Callum McManaman and James McClean. We expect this to be another tight affair but, with these improvements in the West Brom team, they are slightly fancied to come out on top here, or at least get a draw.

Crystal Palace are the third and final team to cover, and they aren’t half bad either. Pardew has bought pretty well and also managed to keep his key players, making Palace an enjoyable attacking team to watch. As you would expect, this attacking talent will be put to the test by the brick wall that is West Brom. Dogged defence vs Pacy attack. Solid midfield vs creative movement. It’s not glamorous, by any stretch, but it’s an intriguing game. Similar to the Everton match, it’s going to be a tight one by all accounts and in these tight games we tend to lean toward West Brom as they’re the ones used to grinding out results in games like these.

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Manchester City – West Ham (H), Tottenham (A), Newcastle (H)
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[/three_fourth]It’s just not fair, is it? Five games, five wins, no goals conceded and eleven goals scored. And all this without a firing Sergio Aguero, and a still settling pair of expensive newbies in Kevin De Bruyne and Raheem Sterling. Not to mention Nicolas Otamendi, who is awaiting his senior debut for the club. Not to mention their last minute winner against Palace being scored by a kid that’s rarely ever featured before, with his first touch of the game. Frightening. Chelsea were, and rightfully so, expected to set the benchmark again this season with City nipping at their heels but it hasn’t worked out that way as the Blue half of Manchester has erupted. Kompany looks his dominating best once again, Aleksander Kolarov is now getting the game time his sweet left boot deserves and Silva is, well, Silva. Spectacular. The Sterling-Silva-Aguero triangle wasn’t on show last time out, but did it matter? Nope. It’s ominous viewing.

City’s next victims come in the shape of West Ham United, who themselves have shown some promise so far. However, travelling to the Etihad is a different story to what they have experienced so far. The availability of David Silva, Sergio Aguero and Raheem Sterling will become clear on Tuesday evening but if even two of these, maybe even one of them make the weekend game then it’s very difficult for even the most punty of punters to overlook City in this fixture. One draw and one defeat for City in the last ten meetings between these sides says it all. There are a number of hammerings in that run too, including a 6-0 Cup victory. All City need is a firing Aguero before they begin replicating that sort of scoreline and we wouldn’t bank against him opening up in this game.

Speaking of Aguero opening up, it’s now on to what is a laughable fixture down the years as City travel to White Hart Lane to face a stuttering Spurs team. Why laughable? Well, you have to laugh, simple as that! City have a habit of tearing Spurs to shreds, as evident from a 27-9 margin over their last ten meetings which only shows one draw and a solitary win for Spurs. Outrageous. Kun Aguero has a knack in this fixture, too, with ten goals to his name vs Spurs which includes a monster four goal haul last season. Add a boat load of assists to that tally and we’re looking at one of the few occasions during the season where a Triple Captain shout in a non-double-week seems perfectly reasonable. It’s an “all-in” fixture. Can we give Spurs any hope in this fixture at all? Not really, and certainly not when their main man Harry Kane continues to blank miserably. The hosts will need him on the sort of form that brought a brace and two assists against Chelsea last season but, maybe even that wouldn’t be enough. Spurs fans, go away for the weekend or something, nothing to see here.

If Spurs on paper is easy then one look at the third game in the sequence and… oh dear. Newcastle of all teams are next dealt the task of travelling to Manchester in an attempt to get something, which is as unlikely as it comes. The home sides record against Spurs is excellent, and it’s matched again when looking at the previous with Newcastle. It’s usually a complete wash and there are multiple hammerings on record also. Steve McClaren hasn’t had the desired affect on the Toon as they look shaky and predictable thus far. Sheesh, not much else to say on this one. City are essentially guaranteed to win, with the possibility of an utter mauling.

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BE WARY OF

Everton – Swansea (A), West Brom (A), Liverpool (H)
Everton again? But they keep winning? That they may but the Toffees look set to be a permanent fixture in this section, and it’s tough to argue against it. Form is very good, to be fair to them, but there really isn’t a lot to be aiming at, fixtures wise. Swansea dipped a bit last time out but we expect them to give Everton a tough afternoon. The West Brom game we have covered above, which leaves the Mersyside derby, also covered above. Skipping ahead a wee bit, it doesn’t get any easier. Manchester United and Arsenal follow the Liverpool game to complete a nightmare run of fixtures. You can just see where this one is going though – they’ll continue to be fantasy gold throughout this horrible run, with nobody picking any of their players because of it, and then once they get ‘favourable’ fixtures they’ll go off the rails!

Aston Villa – West Brom (H), Liverpool (A), Stoke (H)
Here they are finally! Predictably, it’s now onto Villa and their horrid schedule. The difficulty of the West Brom, Liverpool and Stoke games is there for all to see, especially when considering that Villa have succumbed to three defeats and a single draw, that being against Sunderland, since their opening day win over Bournemouth, a game that they were actually fancied to struggle in, mind. It’s hard to see where the points are coming from and these three games are just the start of a long, painful run.

Southampton – Manchester United (H), Swansea (H), Chelsea (A)
With the first five games now done with, Southampton have done relatively okay. Three draws, one win and one defeat isn’t the worst but when considering the opposition, and who’s next, it might not be that decent after all. United look to be rock solid this year, especially now that De Gea has “decided” to stay on so this could be a routine win for United. Next it’s Swansea in what looks an evenly matched game, but it might not work out like that. Swansea have all the tools to take advantage of the problems Southampton have. Chelsea complete the trio of harsh games. Hard to see any points in that one either.

Arsenal – Chelsea (A), Leicester (A), Manchester United (H)
The Gunners are slowly getting up to speed, but they would want to speed things up a little as their next three each provide a challenge. Champions Chelsea start off what could prove a pivotal run of games for Arsenal. The Blues are all over the place so far but expect this one to be a tough, tight game nonetheless. Free flowing Leicester then play hosts in what promises to be a great match, with attacking intent the order of the day. We finish then with a home game at least. Shame it’s against United. LVG will try and stifle the life out of Arsenal and we wouldn’t be surprised if he pulled it off.

One week only picks!
Whilst many managers plan their transfers with the next few weeks ahead in mind we are also conscious that some simply play each game-week as it comes. This may be for a variety of reasons such as having a rotating forward or simply because they need the best pick in order to facilitate another important move. A such we have decided to take a quick look at the upcoming GW5 in isolation and give you our top 3 picks for this week only…

Pick 1 Bournemouth – home vs Sunderland
If looking for a one-week-wonder type pick then look no further than any team playing Sunderland, especially at home. This weeks prize recipients of an easy three points and potential goals galore are Bournemouth. Cover at either end of the field has good potential vs a Sunderland team who are rooted to the foot of the table and look destined to stay there. Two draws, three defeats and eleven conceded. Enough said.

Pick 2 Liverpool home vs Norwich
Liverpool aren’t offering up many fantasy options just now but that Benteke wonder strike may just remind a few people what the big man is capable of given the service. The return of Coutinho will aid that of course and along with an absolute need for a win of some / any sort could be the catalyst this weekend.

Pick 3 Man City home vs West Ham
As we’ve said above already they are a juggernaut that looks like it will keep rolling regardless of injuries or fixtures and so any home game in particular right now should be considered a platform for fantasy points.

Fixture Fun
The Champions League returns this week (at least the competition itself does, the fantasy game may be another matter!). Either way we will see Man City and Man United feature on Tuesday and Chelsea and Arsenal likewise on Wednesday.

The Booby Prize aka The Europa ‘wrecks your season’ League also makes an unwelcome return for it’s participants on Thursday as Liverpool and Tottenham will flog their stars to no good use ahead of this weekends Premier League games.

As ever be sure to check out any injuries ahead of the weekend once these games have been completed.

Thanks for reading Fantasy Football Fixtures Game-week 6 – Fantasy Premier League 2015-16. This article was written by NIN

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