Gameweek 29 Preview of Fantasy Premier League, courtesy of Bet365.
It seems that nobody wants to win the Premier League this season, with all four of the leading clubs slipping up during the midweek round of fixtures. Leicester fans will have felt a range of emotions over the past couple of days, with the despair of 2 dropped points at home to West Brom on Tuesday quickly replaced by relief that all three of their closest challengers lost on Wednesday. They’ll be feeling giddy at the prospect of moving further clear at the top this weekend, with at least one of Tottenham or Arsenal certain to drop points as they face each other in Saturday lunchtime’s clash. This North London Derby has added pressure with both teams in the running for the league title, and it could be a spicy affair. Arsenal have a good record against their neighbours, having lost just 1 of the last 7 meetings, but with 1 win from their last 5 away games it’s tough to see them getting a win here. They’ve conceded 6 goals in their last 3 league games, so Tottenham’s main attacking threat Harry Kane (£10.0m) is worth consideration for your strikeforce.
Guus Hiddink has revitalised Chelsea to the extent that a win on Saturday could push them well into contention for at least a Europa League spot next season. Considering they were in 16th position when he took over in December it’s a remarkable achievement to get them into the top half and on a run of 12 Premier League games without defeat. Saturday’s visitors Stoke City have a terrible record at Stamford Bridge too, having lost all of their last 9 games there, by an aggregate score of 21-2. Diego Costa (£10.8m) is the obvious attacking threat, with his goal against Norwich on Tuesday taking his tally to 8 goals and 4 assists in his last 10 league appearances.
Man City were dismal in their 3-0 defeat to Liverpool last night, but have an immediate chance to make amends with a home game against the league’s bottom club. City have been top home scorers in the league for the past 2 seasons and are well on course to make that three in a row, with their current tally for this campaign standing at 35 goals from 14 home matches. Aston Villa are 1/250 with bet365 to be relegated this season and will be praying that they’re not on the wrong end of a cricket score on Saturday. Sergio Agüero (£13.4m) will be a popular captain choice, and using your triple captain chip on him this week could pay dividends. At the other end of the field, Pablo Zabaleta (£5.7m) has missed a large chunk of this season through injury but has played the last three league games and should be in line for another start at the weekend. Villa are by far the league’s lowest scorers this year so clean sheet points are a distinct possibility, and Zabaleta’s attacking threat is not to be underestimated – he has 10 assists and 2 goals in the league from the past 2 seasons.
In the late kick-off Leicester will be keen to avoid dropping any more points after their midweek draw against West Brom. Next up is Watford at Vicarage Road, and the hosts have won just 2 of their last 11 in the league. With N’Golo Kanté out injured Andy King (£4.1m) proved an able deputy on Tuesday, grabbing a goal and an assist, and he could provide a boost to your midfield at a cheap price.
The final game of the weekend sees West Brom take on Manchester United, two sides whose form has picked up a little in recent weeks. United have won 4 in a row in all competitions, whilst the Baggies have lost just 1 of their last 5. Both sides have just one clean sheet each from their last 4 games, so both teams could well find the net in this one. Saido Berahino (£5.8m) is back in favour for West Brom, and has scored in both of the matches in which he’s completed 90 minutes at the Hawthorns this season. For United, Anthony Martial (£7.6m) scored in his last away fixture at Sunderland and also got the assist last night against Watford, so there’s every chance that he’ll also be picking up points on Sunday afternoon.