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Every week this new series will take a look at the predicted starting line-ups for clubs in the English Premier League. Knowing which players are expected to play each weekend is a crucial element for every active Fantasy Football manager. The starting XIs for the EPL clubs is increasingly hard to predict, due to congested fixture calendars and the quality of squad depths as a result of the vast amounts of money the EPL clubs generate.
For the moment, we will consider the lineups of the top-10 teams in the Premier League as it stands by the start of the upcoming gameweek, divided over two articles (this part 2 covers the teams in positions 6 to 10, part 1 covers the lineups for positions 1 to 5). We might analyse the lineups of all teams at a later stage, based on the interest shown in this series. As far as gameweek 13 goes, we will take a look at confirmed starting lineups for the top-10 teams in gameweek 12, compare those to our predictions for that gameweek, and then predict their lineups for gameweek 13.
For much of the injury news mentioned in these pieces, we consult, among other club-specific sources, the excellent Twitter account and website of Ben Dinnery (@BenDinnery). Lineups are written down from left to right, as seen from the goalkeeper’s perspective (so in defence, for example, from left-back to right-back).
Factors potentially affecting lineups per team in the build-up to GW13
| Arsenal | International break |
| Manchester United | International break |
| Wolverhampton Wolves | International break |
| Bournemouth | International break |
| Burnley | International break |
The Premier League at the start of gameweek 13 (positions 6 to 10)
| 6 | Arsenal | 17 pts |
| 7 | Manchester United | 16 pts |
| 8 | Wolverhampton Wolves | 16 pts |
| 9 | Bournemouth | 16 pts |
| 10 | Burnley | 15 pts |
Lineups for gameweek 12: Predicted vs. confirmed
ARSENAL (away vs. Leicester City, 2-0)
| PREDICTED GAMEWEEK 12 | CONFIRMED GAMEWEEK 12 | ||
| Form. | 4 – 2 – 3 – 1 | 5 – 2 – 3 | |
| FOR | Lacazette | Aubameyang, Lacazette | |
| MID | Aubameyang, Özil, Pepe | Özil | |
| DEF MID | Torreira, Guendouzi | Torreira, Guendouzi | |
| DEF | Tierney, David Luiz, Sokratis, Bellerin | Kolasinac, D. Luiz, Chambers, Holding, Bellerin | |
| GK | Leno | Leno | |
| Subs | /// | (2nd half) Pepe > Holding, Willock > Torreira | |
| Goals | /// | /// |
MANCHESTER UNITED (home vs. Brighton, 3-1)
| PREDICTED GAMEWEEK 12 | CONFIRMED GAMEWEEK 12 | ||
| Form. | /// | 4 – 2 – 3 – 1 | |
| FOR | /// | Martial | |
| MID | /// | Rashford, A. Pereira, D. James | |
| DEF MID | /// | Fred, McTominay | |
| DEF | /// | B. Williams, Maguire, Lindelof, Wan-Bissaka | |
| GK | /// | De Gea | |
| Subs | /// | (2nd half) Lingard > A. Pereira, Greenwoord > Rashford, Rojo > Williams | |
| Goals | /// | A. Pereira (Martial), Pröpper (OG), Rashford (Martial) |
WOLVES (home vs. Aston Villa, 2-1)
| PREDICTED GAMEWEEK 12 | CONFIRMED GAMEWEEK 12 | ||
| Form. | /// | 5 – 2 – 3 | |
| FOR | /// | D. Jota, Jimenez, Traoré | |
| MID | /// | Moutinho, R. Neves | |
| DEF | /// | Jonny, Saiss, Coady, Dendoncker, Doherty | |
| GK | /// | Patricio | |
| Subs | /// | (2nd half) P. Neto > D. Jota, Bennett > R. Neves, Cutrone > Jimenez | |
| Goals | /// | R. Neves > Moutinho, Jimenez > Traoré |
BOURNEMOUTH (away vs. Newcastle, 2-1)
| PREDICTED GAMEWEEK 12 | CONFIRMED GAMEWEEK 12 | ||
| Form. | /// | 4 – 4 – 2 | |
| FOR | /// | King, Wilson | |
| MID | /// | Fraser, Billing, L. Cook, H. Wilson | |
| DEF | /// | Rico, Ake, S. Cook, A. Smith | |
| GK | /// | Ramsdale | |
| Subs | /// | (2nd half) Francis > H. Wilson, Solanke > Rico, Danjuma > Smith | |
| Goals | /// | H. Wilson (Fraser) |
Burnley (home vs. West Ham, 3-0)
| PREDICTED GAMEWEEK 12 | CONFIRMED GAMEWEEK 12 | ||
| Form. | /// | 4 – 4 – 2 | |
| FOR | /// | A. Barnes, Wood | |
| MID | /// | McNeil, Westwood, Cork, Hendrick | |
| DEF | /// | Taylor, Mee, Tarkowski, Bardsley | |
| GK | /// | Pope | |
| Subs | /// | (2nd half) Rodriguez > A. Barnes, Brady > Wood | |
| Goals | /// | A. Barnes (Tarkowski), Wood, Roberto (OG) |
Predicted lineups for gameweek 13
ARSENAL (home vs. Southampton)
| Form. | 5 – 3 – 2 |
| FOR | Aubameyang, Lacazette |
| MID | Özil |
| DEF MID | Torreira, Guendouzi |
| DEF | Tierney, David Luiz, Sokratis, Chambers, Bellerin |
| GK | Leno |
| Ruled out | Ceballos |
| Doubtful | Kolasinac, Holding |
| Notes | With Kolasinac an injury doubt, Tierney could slot in right from the start. At the centre, Sokratis could replace the slightly injured Holding, while Bellerin is expected to continue at right-back. Torreira and Guendouzi should form the double pivot in the middle. We believe that Emery will be doubting between Özil and Pepe for a spot in the starting eleven. With the German, Auba and Laca should play up front with him in their backs. With the Ivory Coast international, Auba could drop down a bit and play in Lacazette’s back together with Pepe. If Emery decides to start with four defenders, Chambers will probably have to give up his spot to accomodate fitting in both Özil and Pepe, in which case they would play with Auba supporting Lacazette. |
MANCHESTER UNITED (away vs. Sheffield United)
| Form. | 4 – 2 – 3 – 1 |
| FOR | Martial |
| MID | Rashford, Andreas Pereira, James |
| DEF MID | Matic, Fred |
| DEF | Young, Maguire, Lindelof, Wan-Bissaka |
| GK | De Gea |
| Ruled out | McTominay, Pogba, Bailly, Rojo |
| Doubtful | Matic, Shaw, Tuanzebe, Dalot |
| Notes | United have to deal with a full infirmary at the moment, though we could see the returns of Young (from suspension) and Matic (from injury) in the places of Williams and the injured McTominay, respectively. After seemingly having found a working approach at United (5 wins from the last 6 games) and the return of Martial, we don’t expect Solskjaer to make too many more changes to his starting eleven in comparison to GW12. |
WOLVES (away vs. Bournemouth)
| Form. | 5 – 2 – 3 |
| FOR | Jota, Jimenez, Traoré |
| MID | Moutinho, Neves |
| DEF | Jonny, Saiss, Coady, Dendoncker, Doherty |
| GK | Patricio |
| Ruled out | Boly |
| Doubtful | Traoré, Gibbs-White |
| Notes | Manager Espirito Santo stated that a few players need assessing in the build-up to GW13. Jimenez played for Mexico late on Wednesday, but the in-form striker is expected to start. We expect Jota and Traoré to join him up front, but the good display by Cutrone for Italy U21 over the international break could see him replace Traoré, should the latter not be fit. In the engine room, we see Moutinho and Neves keep their spots. Bennett is back from injury and could replace either Saiss or Dendoncker in defense (the latter might move into midfield in that case, replacing Neves, but that doesn’t seem likely at the moment). For the upcoming game though, we expect Santo to stick to the same five defenders he started in GW12. |
BOURNEMOUTH (home vs. Wolves)
| Form. | 4 – 4 – 2 |
| FOR | Solanke, C.Wilson |
| MID | Fraser, Billing, L. Cook, H. Wilson |
| DEF | Rico, Aké, S. Cook, A. Smith |
| GK | Ramsdale |
| Ruled out | King, Brooks, Daniels, Stanislas |
| Doubtful | Fraser, Kelly, Surman |
| Notes | Josh King is injured and likely to be replaced by Solanke up front. The rest of the team is expected to remain intact in comparison to GW12. Fraser got a minor injury while playing for Scotland and if he doesn’t make it for the game on Saturday, the free spot could be taken up by Danjuma Groeneveld or even Ibe. Lerma is a candidate for a spot on the central midfield as well, but we expect Howe to stick to Billing and Lewis Cook. |
BURNLEY (away vs. Watford)
| Form. | 4 – 2 – 2 |
| FOR | Barnes, Wood |
| MID | McNeil, Westwood, Cork, Hendrick |
| DEF | C. Taylor, Tarkowski, Mee, Bardsley |
| GK | Pope |
| Ruled out | Gudmundsson |
| Doubtful | Drinkwater, Vydra |
| Notes | In GW12, manager Dyche surprised some by replacing full-backs Pieters and Lowton with Taylor and Bardsley. Burnley went on to beat West Ham 3-0, so it’s very possible that Dyche will go for this set-up again. Rodriguez has been pushing for a starting spot up front, but we expect Barnes and Wood to start. The rest of the starting eleven should be the same as the team that started against the Hammers just before the international break. |