Team Talk Fantasy Football Game-week 35

Team Talk Fantasy Football Game-week 35

Welcome to game-week 35 and the quote “After every storm, there is a rainbow. If you have eyes, you will find it. If you have wisdom, you will create it” springs to mind. Whereas we had 15 fixtures spread over six consecutive days in DGW34, GW35 brings us just the seven matches, due to the FA Cup semi-finals. That’s not to say that there isn’t important points to be won, just don’t expect the bonanza that was generally seen last week. Bench Boosts are unlikely to be used this week, though the Triple Captain maybe an option for some who still retain it, looking at the fixtures for the likes of Kane, Sturridge and of course Aguero. Speaking of Aguero, it is he and City that kick off our gameweek Saturday lunchtime as they host Stoke at the Etihad. Just three 3pm matches follow as Southampton go to relegated Villa, Bournemouth host Chelsea and Liverpool entertain Newcastle. We then move onto Sunday and two matches – firstly Sunderland welcome Arsenal to the Stadium of Light before leaders Leicester have the chance to return to winning ways as they host Swansea. Our game-week is then brought to an end on Monday evening as Spurs and Kane take on West Brom at the Lane.
With DGW34 only coming to an end on Thursday, it’s been a busy and hectic day of pressers – let’s Go Around the Grounds to see if the managers will tell us who they will rest this week, so that in our wisdom we can create that rainbow to negotiate through what could be a tricky week

Man City vs Stoke (Sat 23 Apr 12.45)
City find themselves in the tricky position of wanting to secure 3rd place but with a Champions League semi-final vs Real Madrid just a few days away. One would imagine that the outgoing Manuel Pellegrini will prioritise the semi-final to boost his cv, given that he won’t give a toss whether Pep takes on a top 4 side or not. Whatever he does, it’s only Stoke this week for City and given the way the Potters have played of late Pellegrini could play himself up front and still probably win comfortably. It would appear that Stoke are not only dreaming about their holidays but have already packed their case and ordered the cab to the airport – Spurs walked through them on Monday evening and while Kane and co played very well, it was all too easy for them. So expect the same here.

Samir Nasri is City’s only definite absentee for the weekend as Pellegrini says that Bacary Sagna, Gael Clichy and David Silva are all available for selection. Both Raheem Sterling and Vincent Kompany came through the midweek draw at Newcastle, with the manager saying that his captain “felt good after the game”. When asked about the Champions League tie vs Real Madrid, Pellegrini said, “it’s very important we’re in the Champions League but that doesn’t mean we’re not worried about the Premier League. The perfect preparation for Tuesday is to beat Stoke, score goals and keep a clean sheet”. He went on to say that he would not prioritise Europe over a top four finish, implying that he will select a side to win the game rather than worrying about resting players.

Stoke will be without Xherdan Shaqiri on Saturday after the midfielder picked up a hamstring injury in the defeat to Spurs. Defender Marc Wilson has returned to training and will look to play for the U21s to speed up his return, while Mark Hughes is hopeful that Jon Walters and Glen Johnson will see some gametime before the end of the season. Jack Butland remains out and Erik Pieters serves the second game of his suspension. Shay Given is likely to continue in goal.

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Aston Villa vs Southampton (Sat 23 Apr 15.00)
So last week Villa finally had their fate sealed and will no doubt face a tough summer working out who they can afford to keep, who they need to sell and presumably find someone to manage the team. In the interim they have four matches left to play in the top flight, with defender Joleon Lescott saying that having relegation confirmed is a weight off their shoulders – interesting. And not something that has gone down well with the fans, understandably. Southampton come to Villa Park off the back of last week’s draw at Goodison, where they were the better team and will still harbour faint thoughts of Europa League qualification. The Saints haven’t lost to Villa in five meetings, though the last two clashes at Villa Park have ended in draws.

Let’s be honest, I have given Villa a lot of stick this season, most of it justified of course, for they have been dreadful and deserve their fate. However, credit where it is due and the Villans were better vs Man Utd last week which could see caretaker manager Eric Black keeping things the same as much as possible. However Ciaran Clark and Kieran Richardson have been ruled out through injury and another who won’t be around is Gabby Agbonlahor, who was seen partying the night Villa’s relegation was confirmed and has since been suspended. Jordan Amavi remains out as does Jores Okore who hasn’t been involved since refusing to sit on the bench at Bournemouth and won’t play again this season. Not a happy camp.

Jose Fonte and Victor Wanyama have both recovered from knocks picked up at Everton and will be available for the trip to Villa. The only player not available to Ronald Koeman is striker Charlie Austin who remains sidelined with a knee injury. Many FPL managers will of course be keen to reap the benefits of a Saints player vs Villa, but which one is best? Well, Sadio Mane has scored three goals in his last four matches and also scored the Premier League’s fastest hat-trick (2mins 56 seconds) vs Villa last season in a 6-1 drubbing. Shane Long and Graziano Pelle completed the scoring that day. Long has scored five goals in his last six Premier League matches vs Villa, while Pelle has scored or assisted seven times in his last five league matches. All look decent choices, good luck in deciding which one to go for!

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Bournemouth vs Chelsea (Sat 23 Apr 15.00)
Nothing to play for here, little to get excited about and both teams come into the game looking to stop a rut of defeats. Chelsea, having gone unbeaten for so long, under Guus Hiddink, have lost their last two, while the Cherries have lost three of their last four. A Bournemouth win would put them level with the Blues and they won’t doubt themselves for they won at the Bridge in December courtesy of a Glenn Murray goal. Chelsea were taken to the cleaners by Man City last weekend and while Bournemouth clearly don’t have the quality or experience of City, they will certainly match them in enthusiasm and team ethic and will want to give their fans something to cheer before the season is out.

Bournemouth manager Eddie Howe says he is very pleased with Callum Wilson’s return but emphasises that his minutes will continue to be built up. Adam Smith and Harry Arter are both still struggling with their injuries being managed, though they are unlikely to be risked until 100% fit, but there is better news of Junior Stanislas who came off at half time vs Liverpool but is fit and ready to start this week. Howe looked back fondly to the win at Chelsea, describing it as “turning point in our season” and he is keen for his team to complete the double over the Blues and give the fans something to cheer about. Benik Afobe and Tyrone Mings both continue to miss out.

Eden Hazard is fit and ready to return for Chelsea, but isn’t likely to play the whole 90mins. Still missing are John Terry, Kurt Zouma and Loic Remy, Asmir Begovic will play in goal as Thibaut Courtois is suspended following his sending off last weekend.

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Liverpool vs Newcastle (Sat 23 Apr 15.00)
Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool are scoring goals for fun, irrelevant of what team he puts out! Not that it helps FPL managers who are now concerned that the German will rotate until the end of the season with the Europa League his only priority. The Toon come to town this week in a fixture that has traditionally brought goals and we see no reason that things will be any different this time around – interestingly the home team has won in each of the last four meetings between the clubs. Rafa Benitez returns to his old stomping ground but his allegiances will be focused solely on keeping Newcastle up and collecting his massive bonus payment and the chances of that happening have been improved as his team collected four points out of six in DGW34 to move within two points of 17th placed Norwich.

Klopp says there are five days between the match vs Newcastle and the Europa semi-final first leg so don’t expect the rotation we saw for the Bournemouth match. Divock Origi is definitely out and says the striker’s season is over “unless we take a risk with him.” So expect a similar squad to Wednesday’s derby win with Klopp saying that Newcastle don’t look like a relegation team and his side will have to match their midweek intensity to get anything out of the game. Christian Benteke is likely to return to training next week. Talking about Daniel Sturridge, Klopp said, “Daniel is able to create his own moments and doesn’t always need an assist. We need to think about who will start.”

Fabricio Coloccini and Daryl Janmaat remain sidelined for the Toon’s trip to Anfield, but Kevin Mbabu has recovered from a knock and will come back into the squad. Benitez says he is looking forward to a return to Liverpool, but he is desperate for his team to improve their away form, which has seen them win just three of their last 30 league matches on the road.

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Sunderland vs Arsenal (Sun 24 Apr 14.05)
Two matches in five days and then a trip to Sunderland – what fun the Goonies are having. It must seem like Christmas, although of course that would mean their season is still alive. Sadly, for them, all Arsenal have to play for is trying to secure their usual 4th place trophy and they’ll come up this week against a Sunderland side who are in the middle of their annual great escape. What is not in Sunderland’s favour is the fixture history here for they have not beaten Wenger’s men in any of their last twelve meetings. Arsenal have also beaten the Black Cats 3-1 twice this season, once in the league and once in the Cup with Joel Campbell, Aaron Ramsey and Olivier Giroud all scoring in both games.

Big Sam will have a full strength squad for the weekend after midfielders Jeremain Lens and Jack Rodwell both returned to training this week. The manager is delighted to have all options open to him and hailed the importance of a strong bench after both Duncan Watmore and Seb Larsson were used as second half substitutes to good effect at Norwich. Fabio Borini came away from Carrow Road with an ice-pack on his shin but has been declared fit.

Following Thursday’s stroll around the Emirates vs West Brom, Wenger may look to make a couple of changes to his line up for the game vs Sunderland, which should be a lot more competitive. What happens with the Gabriel/Mertsacker conundrum, only Wenger knows. It would be no surprise to see Danny Welbeck starting in place of the ineffective Olivier Giroud, while Francis Coquelin could come back into the starting XI after being benched vs the Baggies. Having played a couple of games for the U21s the long lost Jack Wishere could appear off the bench. Santi Cazorla has resumed full training but is not ready to play as yet, while Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain remains sidelined.

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Leicester vs Swansea (Sun 24 Apr 16.15)
Well, things may just be getting interesting. A 2-2 draw at home to West Ham would not normally be referred to as a stumble, but has last weekend’s result opened the door for Spurs? After five clean sheets in a row, suddenly the backline looked vulnerable. Squeaky bum time maybe? Well, time will tell. The good news for Leicester is that Swansea are the visitors – the Swans were Tooned 3-0 last weekend so it looks like they may have taken their foot off the pedal. The Foxes will be without Jamie Vardy of course after the striker was sent off vs the Hammers – Claudio Ranieri will be hoping Vardy’s absence isn’t too destabilising for his team who have benefitted from very few injuries or suspensions this season. Leicester have won their last five meetings with the Swans at home, while they also won 3-0 at the Liberty in December, courtesy of a Riyad Mahrez hat-trick. See – who needs Vardy?!

Ranieri gave nothing away as to his plans without the suspended Vardy – “We have to change something. Without Vardy we’ll make another strategy, but we’ll see on Sunday. Leo Ulloa deserves to play but there is a team and I think about what is best for the team. “ Hmmm, so maybe Ulloa isn’t the “shoe-in” that some were speculating. Or maybe Claudio is playing with us – he was in jovial mood and finally admitted IT: “We are going for the title. Believe”! Love him. Nathan Dyer is ineligible for the game as he cannot play vs his parent club.

The Swans have a fully fit squad for their trip to the leaders after Jack Cork declared himself fit after he sustained a minor facial injury at Newcastle. Manager Francesco Guidolin is calling for his players to end the season well and play without fear and bounce back from last week’s dreadful display at Newcastle.

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Spurs vs West Brom (Mon 25 Apr 20.00)
Spurs are on the charge and maybe, just maybe, the title hasn’t yet been decided. Their dismantling of Stoke on Monday evening was very impressive – they were solid at the back, creative going forward and clinical up front and are playing with the fluidity that Leicester were in the first half of the season. With just four matches left they will feel they must win them all and West Brom at the Lane shouldn’t be too much of an effort for them. Surprisingly, Spurs have failed to beat the Baggies in their last three meetings at the Lane, but this is a different Spurs as we know, while West Brom will try and keep it tight for as long as possible they are likely to get overrun sooner or later by the league’s form team, who will want to keep their momentum and put more pressure on Leicester.

Spurs have a fully fit bar Nabil Bentaleb for the visit of West Brom on Monday evening. Clinton N’Jie is now 100% fit and fighting for a place on the bench. Manager Mauricio Pochettino is unlikely to make any changes from the team that saw off Stoke last week, with Erik Lamela seemingly preferred to Nacer Chadli. With eight goals in his last six matches, Harry Kane will be eager to extend his lead at the top of the Premier League scoring charts.

The Baggies face their second trip to North London in four days with Pulis hopeful they will be more competitive vs Spurs than they were at Arsenal. Pulis described his team’s performance at Arsenal as “a bit leggy” and could make a couple of changes. Jonas Olsson replaced James Chester at half time on Thursday and could force a start, Salomon Rondon may be recalled up front, while Craig Gardner could also return. Chris Brunt and James Morrison remain out, while Alex Pritchard is a doubt with a hip injury.

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Suspension Report for Game-week 35

Those players suspended this week are:

Thibaut Courtois (Chelsea)
Jamie Vardy (Leicester)
Erik Pieters (Stoke)

Please note that a player will not now be suspended for receiving 10 yellow cards – the next limit is 15 yellow cards which is valid until the end of the season.

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Thanks for reading Team Talk Fantasy Football Game-week 35. This article was written by Cookie

Follow @SteveCook9

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