Fantasy Premier League Tips Gameweek 37

Fantasy Premier League Tips Gameweek 37

Welcome to Fantasy Premier League Tips Gameweek 37. How has gameweek 36 been for you, then? Another green arrow to raise your hopes of an excellent finish at the end of the season, or perhaps a red one that has left you scratching your head at where it all went so wrong? Well, a few of the season’s favourites like Alli, Eriksen, Hazard, Kane, Firmino and Lukaku did indeed draw a blank (OK, more than just a few!), whilst other memorable players of 2016-17 like Defoe, Alonso and Costa rewarded managers. Even De Bruyne – who has been off the radar a good chunk of the season – surprised many by hauling in the points. Of course Josh King had to get in on the action too.

Well, it’s officially the middle of this mini double gameweek season now, with number 36 lingering on to 10th May followed by a quick turnaround to the 37 deadline 48 hours later on the evening of 12th May. Coming into the penultimate gameweek of the season, it’s hopefully going to be a belter, with a whopping 10 teams playing twice. This should, theoretically, mean we’re in for scores in the 80s, 90s or even 100 plus. Or, of course, it could end up a disappointment like GW27 when many triple captained a certain Argentinian striker. At the time of writing, it looks like he’s injured and so many have put faith in Jesus.

So, here are my recommendations for this crucial gameweek (no pressure!), with both double and single-match players all getting a shout out for inclusion in what will no doubt be a bench boost frenzy among managers.

Goalkeepers
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My first selection has to be the goalkeeper who is already on eight points in his current double gameweek, before he’s even played his second game against Southampton. That is, of course, Petr Cech. Initially a staple in many a fantasy team at the start of the season, Arsenal’s inability to keep a clean sheet for countless weeks saw many managers ship out the shot stopper, reducing his price to the current £5.3m. Well, the Gunners are now desperate to grab that all-important Champions League spot and Cech has recorded two clean sheets in his last three games.

Talking of two, this fella is, of course, playing a second double gameweek, where he will be facing Stoke and then recently relegated Sunderland. These teams are 12th and 19th in the table when it comes to the amount of shots and so there is a good chance he could get another two clean sheets in those matches. Cech will also be buoyed along by a defence in front of him that is in much better condition than recent months, meaning Arsenal could easily move up the table of clean sheets after this gameweek.

Second on my list is, surprise surprise, another double gameweek player. This one has the honour of being the most transferred-in player and candidate for player with the most puns. It is, of course, Willy Caballero. The goalkeeper is currently Man City’s number one with Bravo out and scored six points as the Sky Blues saw off Crystal Palace 5-0, already making him great value at £4.7m.

This gameweek, he will be between the sticks as Leicester City and West Brom come to town. Admittedly, the Foxes are quite the thorn in Man City’s side recently, with last season’s 3-1 victory at the Etihad (that saw Robert Huth score twice) and then a Vardy hat trick leading to a 4-2 win back in December. Times are different now though, with a Champions League spot available that they won’t want to let go of so late in the season – I’m sure the owners wouldn’t be very happy with Pep if that did happen. Willy get a good score this gameweek? I reckon so.

Third in line is Southampton’s saviour at Anfield, Fraser Forster. Boy, did this guy save the Saints’ fortunes, and many a fantasy managers too, when he saved that Milner penalty?! Indeed, he helped along many a fantasy manager who dared to go with double Southampton defence for GW36, as they hung on to get their 13th clean sheet of the season – the fourth highest in the league.

Costing £5.0m, the 29-year-old faces relegated Middlesbrough, followed by a no doubt depleted Man United squad as the Red Devils look to the Europa League to obtain that crucial Champions League spot. Even when the United team is depleted, it still certainly presents a danger, however home advantage should carry Southampton through. Oh and Middlesbrough, as if you didn’t need telling, are the worst in front of goal – 327 shots all season, almost half that of Spurs who enjoy being the best team in that department.

My final double gameweek pick is Jordan Pickford, simply because he costs just £4.2m and so can be your second playing goalkeeper if, like me, you choose this weekend for your benchboost. Their first match in 37 is Swansea, who are eager to keep Premier League status and so will be a big threat on goal, whilst the second is away at Arsenal. So, yeah, don’t expect too much, though stranger things have happened at this time of the season (I didn’t predict his nine points in their 2-0 win at Hull, for example!).

Fancy a punt on a single gameweek goalkeeper to get a good score? Perhaps have a look at Bournemouth’s Artur Boruc, who probably hasn’t been many a fantasy manager’s first pick this season, following much more successful previous campaigns. Well, Burnley make the long journey down to the south coast this weekend, who are secure now, bar a massive fluke in results. Whilst they recorded a 2-0 win the last time they were away at Selhurst Park, I’m not sure the northeners will be so good against the Polish international.

Defenders
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The reason I didn’t pick Chelsea’s Courtois in the goalkeeper section was because I was reserving a Chelsea player for the coveted first defender pick. Whilst the likes of Azpilicueta and Cahill would be a great pick, my choice has to be Marcos Alonso. Once again, the Spaniard found the back of the net in their 3-0 win over Middlesbrough, taking his tally to an impressive six all season. It’s that goal threat combined with the reinvigorated clean sheet potential he provides that has made him my star choice. Sure, a price tag of £6.8m is less than ideal for a defender, however I’m sure you wouldn’t blink an eye at that price for a midfielder or forward, especially when they score you five or more points 18 times in one season.

West Brom and Watford are the teams trying to stand in Chelsea’s way of the silverware, of which the former hadn’t scored in five consecutive matches before the 2-2 draw away at Burnley and the latter hasn’t scored at all in the last three games. So, it’s fair to say there is clean sheet potential. Twice.

Next up on the list is Gael Clichy, costing just £5.2m – excellent value for a Man City defender who will most likely get a start and isn’t John Stones (who’s injured anyway). Whilst he didn’t play against Man United and was on the field for only 49 minutes away at Middlesbrough, Clichy has played 90 minutes in every other match since gameweek 27. As mentioned on the write-up about a reliable Willy, Man City face Leicester and West Brom in gameweek 37 and so there’s a chance the player could reward managers like he did back in 27.

The next defensive coverage to consider is in the form of Southampton, as talked about with Forster. Yoshida and Stephens immediately spring to mind, thanks to their excellent price tags – £4.5m and £4.2m respectively. Yet to play their second match of gameweek 36 at the time of writing, the duo are already on a combined score of 13 points, thanks to the clean sheet against Liverpool. Facing Arsenal next, that points tally probably won’t increase much before this weekend; however I wouldn’t be surprised to see a similar success in the matches against Middlesbrough and Man United. You never know, Yoshida might even add to the goal and assist he has already picked up this season!

Next up is Spurs’ Jan Verthongen. Whilst the Belgian international has not found the back of the net or registered an assist in the Premier League all season, he does, however, have the best form of Tottenham’s defence thanks to the fact he has not been rotated recently. His price tag of £5.8m also means he is more affordable than Alderweireld and more likely to play than Davies, depending how Danny Rose’s recovery comes along.
Tottenham have the highest amount of clean sheets in the Premier League this season with 17 and their faint hopes of winning the Premier League will be reliant on getting decent results against Man United and Leicester. That leaves Verthongen and co. to guard the goal with their lives and so could provide clean sheet potential.

If you’re looking for a defender who can easily slot into your team, even though he only has a single gameweek, have a look at Everton’s Mason Holgate at a bargain basement price of £4.1m. Whilst he’s only playing once, this guy is against Watford at Goodison Park which, as mentioned before, could see the Hornets fail to find the back of the net for a fourth game in a row. If that’s the case, that’ll be Everton’s 13th clean sheet
of the season, Mason’s fifth.

Midfielders
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I try not to be predictable, but you just can’t look past Eden Hazard. Whilst he only registered three points in Chelsea’s win against Middlesbrough on Monday night, you would be brave to not have the £10.6m player in your team as the Blues travel to the Hawthorns and then welcome Watford to Stamford Bridge. Oh and the small detail of Sunderland coming to town on the last day of the season, too.

Between gameweeks 30 and 36, Hazard scored 47 points. Indeed, looking back over the season, the Belgian wonderkid has scored five or more points in 19 of the 33 matches he’s played in, with nine gameweeks seeing him score 10 or more. He’s ninth in the goalscorer table having found the back of the net 15 times and it wouldn’t be a shock to see him leapfrog Jermaine Defoe and the injured Zlatan up the table in the next two matches. £10.6m might seem like a fair chunk of your budget but, like Hazard’s colleague Alonso, it’s a worthy investment and even captain material.

Next up on my list of recommendations is Alexis Sanchez. Sure, the £11.6m player didn’t get much in the way of points in the home game against Man United – and yes, OK, he only got two points in each game when he played Leicester and Spurs. That, however, shouldn’t put you off the Chilean. Besides which, at the time of writing, he hadn’t yet played Southampton and so his performance in that game could well convince you he’s the player to include in your team, so my work may already be done.

Failing that, this guy’s explosiveness this season speaks volumes. Gameweeks three, five, six, 10, 13, 14, 21 and 25 have all seen him score ten points or more with those lucky enough to captain him in the away match at West Ham particularly looking back fondly on his hat trick that night. Playing Stoke away – who aren’t a stranger to letting in four goals against the big teams – followed by Sunderland at home – who have had 60 goals put past them in 35 matches – means you should have faith in the Chilean who is fourth on the goalscorer charts and has the fifth highest amount of assists in the league. If you’re looking for a cheaper alternative for coverage in Arsenal’s midfield, Mesut Ozil could also do you proud.

Talking of assists, Kevin de Bruyne is currently king of them with 15 over the season. He’s also the most in-form midfielder with 8.5. After a great start to the season, the player has had a mixture of fortunes, scoring a dozen or more points only three times since – the most recent time was via his goal and two assists as he ran the show in the win against Crystal Palace. Man City have among the best of the double gameweek fixtures, playing Leicester and West Brom at the Etihad. The Foxes are a lowly 14th whilst West Brom are a horrendous 19th when it comes to the table of clean sheets and so there’s a good chance of a goal or two scored in either match, if he keeps up the form.

Whilst the Belgian midfielder has not been the dependable player in recent times, Jesus rising from injury brought the £10.4m midfielder out in the last game and there’s no reason why he can’t be among the points for a second consecutive gameweek, even if it’s without Aguero. Especially when you also look at Man City’s record against West Brom in the last 10 games – 10 wins with 28 goals put past the Baggies.

Just like my top two midfield suggestions, it’s embarrassingly the case that Dele Alli and Christian Eriksen also blanked in their last fixture, thanks to their 1-0 loss away at West Ham. Playing Man United and Leicester in their double gameweek, Spurs can be buoyed by the fact the last time they played the Red Devils at White Hart Lane they won 3-0, even if their most recent five Premier League games against last season’s champions is less impressive (two wins, two draws and one loss). So, following the recent loss and Chelsea now looking like they’ll be winning the league – short of a catastrophic loss in form and fortune – Spurs’ players may be forgiven for feeling a bit dejected and deflated.

Well, I personally think the quality and the form over the season of the midfield duo – along with Harry Kane, of course – will see them past their disappointment and get a good amount of points. I remember last season a lot of players (including me) made the mistake of transferring out Spurs players in favour of double gameweek players and were promptly proved wrong, big time. Alli still has 17 goals to his name over the season, while Eriksen currently has the joint second-best form with 6.5.

My final double gameweek midfielder I think you should consider is Pedro. The Chelsea player has been sold in droves since gameweek 31, seeing his price drop to the £6.8m cost it is now (the same price as his colleague Alonso, funnily enough). Well, he showed he’s not to be underestimated with the 10 points scored in the 3-0 win at Everton and I don’t think you should shy away from him in his games against West Brom and Watford with the lack of clean sheets (six and seven respectively). If you can’t afford Hazard, get this fella in your team instead.

My single gameweek player pick will probably come as no surprise. I am, of course, talking about the bargain basement wonder that is Joshua King. Having scored five or more points in 14 of his 35 gameweeks – of which there have only been four gameweeks of his last 15 that have seen him score less than that – it’s fair to say this guy has rewarded fantasy managers who saw his potential and got him in his early days of great form. At £6.2m, the player is up a massive £0.7m since the start of the season thanks to all the people who have snapped him up. Looking to this Saturday, Burnley are the unfortunate team who have to deal with the King.

Forwards
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He may not have the best of the double gameweek fixtures – and his team are very unlikely to win the Premier League this year – but my standout choice for number one forward is still Harry Kane. Sitting third when it comes to the amount of points scored by a forward with 176, even though he didn’t appear in eight games, just shows his class and potential to reward managers. He might not be cheap at £11.7m, but selling Aguero for him will most likely still leave you with £1m left over, for a start!

As previously mentioned, Man United are most likely focussing on the Europa League in their quest to be a Champions League team next season and so a weaker defence could be just the ticket to see the 23-year-old get among the points, having scored twice and got two assists in the time since he returned from his latest injury. You can’t help but think what this season could have been for both him and the team if he had somehow managed to stay fit.
Next up is Diego Costa, costing £10.4m and owned by an impressive 33.8 per cent of managers. It seems that every other match has been a success for him in recent times, with 30 points accrued over gameweeks 32, 34 and 36 combined. So, with that logic, he won’t do anything this double gameweek, but will in 38, right? Well, hopefully not. He scored the last time he played both the Baggies and Hornets and so don’t be surprised to see him do the same this Friday and Monday, too. After all, the Spaniard has scored five or more points in 22 of the 33 games he’s played in this season and, well, he’s not third on the top goalscorer list for nothing! If he doesn’t do anything this gameweek, well, sorry and hold out for when Sunderland come to town the last game of the season.

Jesus. No, not an exclamation, that’s who is next. No, not the son of God, the Man City forward. Gameweeks 22 to 25, he scored 26 points – he then came back in 34, didn’t score anything and then registered a combined 11 points in his last two games. That’s four goals in total, you know. What can we ascertain from that? Well, he may not have got much in the way of game time, but the times he has played have resulted in very respectable scores. Mix that with the fact Aguero is still a big doubt for this double gameweek and you have yourself an explosive £8.9m striker playing against Leicester and West Brom. After this, the Sky Blues travel to Watford which could also be a good points earner for the 20-year-old Brazilian.

Those who decided to chat… err… something and sell Jamie Vardy in recent weeks well and truly got banged as his excellent form has continued. Exploding into form in gameweek 26, with two goals against Liverpool, he has scored five goals and recorded five assists since. Yep, gameweek 26 to 35 has seen him score 78 points.
Man City and Spurs are the teams Leicester face, which could be lucrative for the striker, even with Tottenham’s excellent defence. As mentioned, Leicester have managed some good results against Man City in recent years and, if any of their players will manage to find the back of the net, chances are it’ll be another Vardy party. Leicester are at home to Bournemouth on the last day of the season as well, so another good game could be on the cards from the Foxes’ perspective, as they try to grab eighth spot in the table at the end of what has been quite a turbulent season.

Back in my wildcard excitement of gameweek 36, I went for five decent midfielders and one pants – I mean cheap – forward. Why am I telling you this? Well, the cheap forward I went for was Victor Anichebe. (Sorry, Init!) Again, why am I telling you this, when he’s scored a rubbish nine points in total in his last five games? Well, at just £4.3m, he has a double gameweek.

First up is Swansea, who have conceded the joint highest amount of goals with relegation rivals Hull at 69 in 35 games, while the second of the two games is Arsenal. Victor will most likely play both and so will get you at least four points towards your bench boost total. Maybe, like against Hull and Bournemouth, he’ll go and score like, let’s face it, a forward should. You never know. His cheap price can release those crucial funds to bolster up the rest of your team, anyway.

Now you’re hopefully calming down from the shock of Anichebe appearing in a tips article, I’ll sign off with my final player selection, not only of this gameweek but also the season. That selection is Swansea’s Fernando Llorente. Now back to full fitness, it pretty much all depends on him and Sigurdsson to keep the Welsh team in the Premier League. Between them, they’ve scored 22 goals of the Swans’ 41 this season. Llorente himself has scored twice in the 359 minutes of play since he came back from injury – and facing Sunderland and West Brom in gameweeks 37 and 38 respectively could see one or two more to relegate Hull.

Thanks for reading Fantasy Premier League Tips Gameweek 37. This article was written by Nick Sturdy

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