Game-week 26 Review – FPL Fantasy Football Premier League
Welcome to the game-week that nearly wasn’t! The big fear all week in the build up to GW26 was that the London tube strike would wipe out some or all of the fixtures in the capital but we managed to side-step that one nicely. What we didn’t see coming was the mother of all storms in the North hitting home on Wednesday night and wiping out both the Everton v Crystal Palace and Man City v Sunderland games. This of course now means the prospect of even more double game-weeks to enjoy but quite where Man City are going to fit them all in now is anybody’s guess! Of course it was too late to do anything about it from a fantasy football point of view and it sent most of us running off to check the state of our substitutes bench. As it transpired the average fantasy team managed to field just eight players so it was all a bit of pot luck this week as to how your team finally lined up. Let’s take a look at those games that did manage to escape the carnage, from a fantasy football point of view.
Cardiff 0-0 Aston Villa
Bonus Points: Marshall (3), Vlaar (3), Theophile (1), Caulker (1), Turner (1), Guzan (1)
Fantasy Focus:
Cardiff: Keeper David Marshall had an outstanding game keeping Villa at bay with 6 crucial saves, earning FPL owners 11pts. Kevin Theophile-Catherine returned to the side and helped his team keep a clean sheet. Cardiff had their chances, but were unable to score with Wilfried Zaha taken off after 60mins after a disappointing display. Fraizer Campbell and the returning Craig Noone both hit the woodwork, while Jordan Mutch limped off after 32mins.
Villa: Once again a lot better away from home as they had opportunities that fell to Andreas Weimann and Gabby Agbonlahor but they were matched by Marshall. Christian Benteke was quiet again and didn’t have many chances to score, still very inconsistent. Leandro Bacuna was very attacking and is a good 5th choice midfielder, while the return of Ron Vlaar to the defence proved crucial.
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Hull 0-1 Southampton
Goals: Fonte.
Assists: Lallana.
Bonus Points: Fonte (3), Chambers (3), Boruc (1)
Fantasy Focus:
Hull: Shane Long is looking very impressive, he came close to a headed goal but it came off the post. He did look injured at one stage but completed the 90 minutes so shouldn’t be anything to worry about. Nikica Jelavic is showing promising signs up front and is linking up well with Long. Alex Bruce returned to the team in the absence of Liam Rosenior. Paul McShane was carried off with suspected ligament damage after a collision with Steve Harper
Southampton: Another solid performance from the Saints. Defence was strong, with Calum Chambers in for Nathan Clyne. Adam Lallana continues to pull the strings in midfield, while Ricky Lambert and Jay Rodriguez were lively up front. Defender Jose Fonte took the plaudits as he scored the winning goal, his 3rd of the season after a goalmouth scramble.
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West Ham 2-0 Norwich
Goals: Collins, Diame.
Assists: Noble, Diame.
Bonus Points: Collins (3), Noble (2), Diame (2)
Fantasy Focus:
West Ham: Four clean sheets in a row, 3 wins on the spin, huge turn around for the Hammers. Great value in defence ranging from goalkeeper Adrian, to goal scorer James Collins. Also consider Guy Demel, James Tomkins and George McCartney. Mo Diame returned to the side to assist Collins’ goal and wrap up the victory for the Hammers, but this game was more about both keepers and missed chances than anything else. Before you jump on the Collins bandwagon, bear in mind this was his first league goal for two years!
Norwich: Gary Hooper and Robert Snodgrass were guilty of missing Norwich’s best chances, shooting straight at Adrian. An overall disappointing display from the Canaries, who continue to offer decent and cheap defensive value when at home, but struggle on their travels.
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West Brom 1-1 Chelsea
Goals: Anichebe, Ivanovic .
Assists: Berahino Luiz
Bonus Points: Ivanovic (3), Luiz (3), Anichebe (3)
Fantasy Focus:
West Brom: Substitute Victor Anichebe rescued a point with a late header from Saido Berahino’s cross. New signing Thievy Bifouma looks very lively up front. Ben Foster was solid in goal.
Chelsea: Branislav Ivanovic scored his second goal in three games and continues to get himself in good positions to both assist as well as score. Chelsea defence still very much solid, but the presence of David Luiz in place of the injured John Terry proved their downfall, not for the first time. Terry should return at the weekend, but Gary Cahill picked up a muscle injury towards the end and is likely to miss a few games. Eden Hazard was quiet in fantasy terms but still influential, while Willian looked livelier and Oscar continues to disappoint.
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Arsenal 0-0 Man Utd
Bonus Points: Koscielny (3), Mertesacker (2), Sagna (1), Gibbs (1)
Fantasy Focus:
Arsenal: Santi Cazorla and Mesut Ozil continually tried to find ways through the Utd defence, but a lot of effort was countered by little success. Cazorla had two late shots saved, while Ozil faded as the match went on. Olivier Giroud missed a hatful of chances, while Laurent Koscielny was unlucky to see a header cleared off the line. Keeper Wojciech Szczesny made some vital saves and impressed.
Man Utd: Much like Arsenal, much endeavour, little end result. RvP had the best chances, but couldn’t find a way past Szczesny. Wayne Rooney huffed and puffed, but like Ozil, produced little. Juan Mata, wasted out on the left again was quiet and eventually replaced by Adnan Januzaj after 75mins. Nemanja Vidic impressed at the back, Rafael was replaced at half-time by Rio Ferdinand after the Brazilian took a blow to the head following an aerial challenge with Giroud.
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Newcastle 0-4 Spurs
Goals: Adebayor (2), Paulinho, Chadli
Assists: Bentaleb (2) Adebayor (1).
Bonus Points: Adebayor (3), Bentaleb (2), Paulinho (1)
Fantasy Focus:
Newcastle: The Toon are really on a slippery slope and after the sale of Yohan Cabaye it seems that the team are very flat. Even Pardew was looking deflated on the sidelines. With their current form it is hard to find any value in terms of fantasy football. Perhaps Mathieu Dubuchy could be an option as it seems he has been very attacking of late. However the constant leakage of goals is a worry. Not even Hatem Ben Arfa could provide any spark to the cause when he came on as a sub. There were also a couple of chances for Papiss Cisse up front, but it seems that the return of leading scorer Loic Remy from suspension, can’t come soon enough.
Spurs: Spurs have been in fantastic form of late and are on the tails of the top four. Emmanuel Adebayor was sublime and in this rejuvenated form he really should be worth a consideration, especially with the blank game-weeks coming up and their lack of involvement in the FA Cup. Take note that Christian Eriksen was rested for this game and Etienne Capoue started. Another notable absentee was captain Michael Dawson, who was replaced by the returning Younes Kaboul. On paper there appear to be some good bargains to be had with Spurs, but as ever, the starting XI is impossible to predict. Nabil Bentaleb (4.5mln) started and impressed, notching two assists, while Chadli replaced Aaron Lennon late on and curled a sumptuous shot past Tim Krul. Hugo Lloris was fantastic in goal, making a number of excellent saves but this was Adebayor’s night.
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Stoke City 1-1 Swansea
Goals: Crouch, Chico
Assists: Hernandez
Bonus Points: Crouch (3), Chico (2), Hernandez (1)
Fantasy Focus:
Stoke: Not a great performance from the home side, but Peter Crouch and Peter Odemwingie again combined well for the goal. Aside from the goal, the Potters were reduced to long-range shots, with Marko Arnautovic and Jon Walters testing Michel Vorm.
Swansea: One of their better away performance but a lack of cutting edge up front is hurting them. Nathan Dyer and Pablo Hernandez were busy in midfield and were involved in most of their creativity. Wilfried Bony had a great chance late on, but his shot was cleared off the line and the Dutchman still hasn’t scored away from home in the league. Chico Flores scored his second goal in four games from a Hernandez cross, while late substitute Jonathan De Guzman had an effort saved by Asmir Begovic.
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Fulham 2-3 Liverpool
Goals: Toure (og), Richardson, Sturridge, Coutinho, Gerrard.
Assists: Richardson, Gerrard, Sturridge (2)
Bonus Points: Sturridge (3), Gerrard (2), Richardson (1)
Fantasy Focus:
Fulham: Down at the bottom they are really trying their hardest to get out of there. Kieran Richardson was lively and contributed with a goal and an assist. Lewis Holtby is looking the part and makes things tick in the midfield – either of these two really would be the ultimate differential! Holtby linked up well with Bent but they could not find the end product. We will have to see if these two can turn their performances into credible fantasy points.
Liverpool: Kolo Toure has been in good touch with an assist and goal in 3 games (pity both have been at the wrong end of the pitch!). Daniel Sturridge maintained his awesome form – since his return from injury, he has netted in every single game, that’s seven goals in six games. Luis Suarez was again quiet from an FPL viewpoint, but the striker was again unlucky as he saw a shot cannon off the post and also forced a fantastic save from Stekelenburg. The observation is clear though – when Sturridge is fit, he is deployed as the main striker and Suarez’s points are impacted, to an extent. Another constant in the midfield is Steven Gerrard, who added to an impressive performance with a brilliant assist and a penalty to nick the game late on. Philippe Coutinho finally turned his recent good performances into points with a goal, while at the back, those clean sheets are still proving hard to come by – not that surprising when you have Kolo helping out the oppo, but the impending return of Daniel Agger and Glen Johnson should help.
Thankyou for reading the Game-week 26 Review, this article was written by Migs & Cookie
If Liverpool beat Arsenal in the cup, they wont play in GW29.
If Chelsea beat City in the cup, Spurs wont play in GW29.
This was supposed to be a reply to Erlanger…
Thanks Kop. So I guess I should definitely wait until the weekend. If both games go through, do you think the moves worth the -4?
Shite. That means Arsenal must win. 😉
Yeah, I’d definitely wait.
United just don’t look like they’ll score many goals at the moment so the hit is probably just about worth it, although I reckon JRod is great value for money.
RvP should have bagged atleast 2 goals yesterday. I don’t feel any chemistry between RvP and Rooney, last night might’ve been the exception. The game against Fulham they didn’t even look at eachother.
Aah yes. RvP looking nothing like the RvP from last season or even the RvP playing for Arsenal.
Hmmm. On the blank gameweeks. I think I’ll be keeping my transfers. Noticed Sunderland also don’t play in GW29. Need to make a list I guess. >.<
Make that GW28, like City and United. You’re just telling me Pool might not play in GW29, I have SSS so that would really screw me over.
Yeah I like JRod but when it comes to Rooney, he seems to be the one being sacrificed for the greater good of the team and the goals utd do manage to score don’t seem to come through him. I just don’t want to have a strike force of Suarez sturridge and Ade and the possibility of all three being out gw29.
@Raziel just wait until the FA cup games are played and we will provide a list for you.
we are in for a potentially catastrophy in gw28,29 !
Afternoon lads and ladettes. Can someone do their best to explain to me the upcoming complications in the GW28, 29, 30 and 31 fixtures? I realise we don’t knoww it all yet and there’s a lot of ‘ifs’ involved with the FA Cup but any information would be much appreciated.
Yes, this would be very helpful james. Maybe we could start making a list of teams that we know will definitely play and then go from there. Who has matches in GW 29 regardless of FA Cup results?
Afternoon all, as Kop has said above, the situation becomes more clearer once the 5th round ties have been played this weekend (unless there are replays of course!) Therefore the situation will be made very clear in the Fixtures article which will be published early next week.
Until then the only fixtures which are, at this moment, definitely on are:
WBA vs Man Utd & Norwich vs Stoke.
Until then, here is a draw for the 5th round of the FA Cup, which shows who is left in:
http://www.thefa.com/thefacup/fixtures
Thank you Cookie! I’ll be looking forward to that fixtures article, planning for these coming weeks is going to be crucial.
Red, you may be looking forward to the article – I’m just waiting for the text from Init on Sunday night, “mate, I have a meeting all day tomorrow, any chance you can write Fixtures for me?”….phone will be turned off Sunday !!!
@Blue he is still on the M6, he just texted me and asked me to tell you he doesn’t expect to get home until Tuesday. Fixtures please!!
I’m sorry, this user is not available right now. Please consult Init or Kop in his absence – alternatively, please email me at writethedarnarticleyourself@fixturechaos.com
Thanks.
Hi James and Red.
Probably the best thing to do is to hold our transfers until after the cup games and then it will become much clearer.
But here is a heads up
Fixtures for GW29
—————————
West Brom v Man Utd *****
Arsenal v Swansea
Cardiff City v Fulham
Crystal Palace v Southampton
Man City v Aston Villa
Norwich v Stoke City *****
West Ham v Hull City
Chelsea v Tottenham
Newcastle v Everton
Liverpool v Sunderland
Possible Outcomes
—————————-
Sunderland beat Southampton = Crystal Palace v Southampton goes ahead
Southampton beat Sunderland = Liverpool v Sunderland will only go ahead if Arsenal beat Liverpool
Cardiff beat Wigan = Cardiff v Fulham cancelled
Wigan beat Cardiff = Cardiff v Fulham goes ahead
Man City beat Chelsea = Chelsea v Spurs goes ahead
Chelsea beat Man City = Man City v Villa goes ahead
Everton beat Swansea = Arsenal v Swansea only goes ahead if Liverpool beat Arsenal
Swansea beat Everton = Newcastle v Everton goes ahead
Arsenal beat Liverpool = Liverpool v Sunderland will only go ahead if Southampton beat Sunderland
Liverpool beat Arsenal = Arsenal v Swansea will only go ahead if Everton beat Swansea
Brighton beat Hull = West Ham v Hull goes ahead
Hull beat Brighton = West Ham v Hull cancelled.
Hope this helps
Thank you Horse, that is exactly what I was looking for. So many things to consider, but this is very, very helpful.
@James, not easy but ok let me try as I understand it.
Definite blank GW for City, United, Sunderland & West Brom on the 28th and for now that is the only worry you have that GW, unless weather shows up again. Both United and City have decided to play a DGW in 31. I have not heard when Sunderland and West Brom will play theirs.
The more complicated problem is GW 29. For now only >
West Brom vs United
Norwich vs Stoke
Are definite games the rest can still be moved.
These games could still take place in GW 29, but TV rights and Champions League could cause a problem, so not sure they can be moved to midweek. FA Cup will determine if some of these games will be possibly moved or played on their regular scheduled day.
NOTE: I am somewhat unsure how the Champions League effects the rescheduling for these games not because the teams are participating, but because of an agreement they have about playing games within a certain time frame of European games.
Cardiff City Vs Fulham
Crystal Palace Vs Southampton
West Ham Vs Hull
Newcastle Vs Everton
Liverpool Vs Sunderland
The ones in most jeopardy are the ones involving the teams participating in Champions league/Europa League, because is a definite no go for midweek, as they will have a game.
Arsenal Vs Swansea
Chelsea Vs Tottenham
Manchester City Vs Aston Villa
Spurs play Europa and that is the reason CFC are brought into this fray, City and Arsenal have Champions League midweek.
I hope this helps and above all, I hope my understanding of it is correct.
“Definite blank GW for City, United, Sunderland & West Brom on the 28th”
Sorry boys meant GW28 not the 28th.
Isn’t there a chance that City v Sunderland can be played in the GW 28 midweek? Both teams have blank midweeks then (they also have blank midweeks in GW 27).
Tekno, I believe there are international friendlies planned for that midweek….just to add to the fun and games.
@tekno, Blue there is.
I see, so if City beats Chelsea we’re basically guaranteed 3 City DGWs then. Next season I’m gonna keep my wildcard for situations like these.
As I understand it yes. I hope Kun is back because picking from the rest of the strikers is not easy..
Mito, I think we have read the situation the same mate!
Not doing a tap with fpl till after the FA Cup!
This is great, thanks Mito. Navigating these upcoming weeks is going to require careful planning. But the good news is that we should be able to make up some ground and outscore many of the casual FPL players who aren’t on top of the fixture changes.
Are you calling me casual. 😉
Yes, but in a cool 80’s UK casuals kind of way Mito.
http://finalfashion.ca/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/casuals.jpg
@red, where you get that picture of the FF247 staff?
Thank you all – Cookie, Horse and Mito – very much. Great info!
Thanks Cookie and Migs!! Nice right up fellas. The new format is great, love the fantasy focus!
Afternoon Red. It would appear that there are only 2 guaranteed fixtures in gw29…Norwich v Stoke. WBA v Man Utd
Games that may remain in gw29 are if the fa deem it fit are
Cardiff v Fulham
Palace v Southampton
WHU v Hull
NUFC v EFC
Liverpool v Sunderland
But as I said not guaranteed
Games that are most likely to go from gw29 due to Europe are
Arsenal v Swansea
Chelsea v Spurs
Man City v Villa
If City beat Chelsea in the FA cup then Chelsea v Spurs will go ahead, but this will give City a double blank game week
Wildcard anyone
Nice one, thanks Bash. These next few weeks are going to make or break my season and the outcome of my mini league. Gotta get my transfers spot on.
Afternoon all!
Great write up Migs and Cookie! Very helpfull!
B-Bash, my friend…12th in the world. How exactly does that feel mate ?
Afternoon Cookie! Must admit its quite surreal! Its proper tight though! Ade came to my rescue!
As I’ve said before, would so love to keep it going!
Cant believe I missed out that I’m chuffed too!
Your not that behind though mate!
Be interesting next few weeks now!
Mate, we’re all very much cheering you on (I was going to say behind you, but that’s obvious!). You may need to get used to same proper fame coming your way, everyone will want a bit of you soon mate.
This ten day break is a killer for us, for you it must be a complete nightmare, contemplating your next moves etc…..fingers crossed Ade keeps doing it for you BB.
Yes, congratulations Bash!! You signed off last night right before the rankings updated. 12th in the entire world out of 3.1 million players mate, congratulations!! Absolutely amazing run, keep it going!
Thanks Red! Really appreciate all the support!
For those of you who didn’t get a chance to see Kolo play #wreckingball here it is, funnier than the own goal.
https://vine.co/v/M7K0TphVYd3
Haha, that’s great. It’s not just own goals he smashes in- he smashes officials too.