Gameweek 6 Preview of Fantasy Premier League, courtesy of Bet365.
No doubt about the big game of the week, with Chelsea welcoming Arsenal to Stamford Bridge at lunchtime on Saturday. The defending champions have suffered an awful start to this campaign, and just 5 matches in have already suffered as many defeats as they did in the whole of last season. They’ve amassed just 4 points from these five matches, which could just give Arsène Wenger hope of securing his first ever Premier League victory over José Mourinho. There’s a lot of misfiring players in this Chelsea team and Fantasy League managers are losing faith, with 15 of the squad having dropped in value since the start of the season. It’s difficult to recommend anyone from the Chelsea line up at the moment, and Pedro’s injury means that one of the players who has actually performed well for them is out of the game. In goal though, Courtois’ long term injury means that Asmir Begović could be a shrewd purchase at just £5.0m. Surely the defensive woes can’t carry on like this for long with Mourinho in charge! Arsenal have kept 3 clean sheets in a row in the Premier League, and Gabriel Paulista has impressed in the absence of Per Mertesacker. He could keep his place ahead of the giant German, and at just £4.9m could be an excellent addition to your squad.
With none of the big teams in action at 3pm there could be a real chance for some of the Fantasy Football bargain buys to shine. Bournemouth have only scored once in their opening two home games in the Premier League, but will fancy their chances of grabbing a few more on Saturday as Sunderland are the visitors to Dean Court. The Black Cats are yet to keep a clean sheet this season, so Callum Wilson could be the perfect option for goals, and perhaps a consideration for captain. He’s the highest-scoring forward in the Fantasy Football game at present with 30 points for the season, and at just £5.9m is very affordable.
Meanwhile, Leicester City take their unbeaten record to the Britannia Stadium, where they’ll face a Stoke side who have had a tricky start to the season. Just 2 points from 5 matches is the return so far for Mark Hughes’ men, and despite Leicester’s excellent form anything less than 3 points will be seen as another setback for them. Despite not yet keeping a clean sheet Jack Butland has been in inspired form in goal, with 27 saves to his name so far. He’ll no doubt be worked by an attacking Leicester team, so is likely to pick up some points for saves and with Stoke favourites to win the match a clean sheet isn’t out of the question either. He could be a good purchase at £4.5m. For the visitors you can’t look any further than Riyad Mahrez, who started the season at £5.5m but has now rocketed to £6.3m. It’s easy to see why too, with Mahrez currently the highest points scorer in the league after bagging 4 goals, 2 assists and 12 bonus points so far for a total of 47. He’s almost halfway to his total points tally from the whole of last season and we’re only 5 games in!
Later, Man City will be looking to put midweek Champions League misery behind them and maintain their 100% start to the league season as they host West Ham. Sergio Agüero (£13.2m) made a substitute appearance on Tuesday evening, so the injury suffered at Palace last week is not as serious as first thought. He’s expected to be back leading the line for the late kick-off on Saturday and hoping to get back amongst the goals. He’ll be at the forefront of Fantasy Managers’ minds for captain, despite scoring just 1 goal so far this season. At the other end of the pitch, City are yet to concede a Premier League goal this season, and Aleksandar Kolarov has racked up 46 points so far. Another clean sheet could well be achieved at the weekend, making him very good value at £5.9m.
On Sunday both Tottenham and Liverpool have winnable home fixtures on paper, but with teams often struggling after playing Europa League games on Thursday nights it may be best to avoid captaining any of their players. Having said that, both Palace and Norwich have failed to keep any clean sheets so far this season, so Liverpool and Spurs attackers could be good purchases. Christian Benteke (£8.5m) will be buoyed by his stunning goal at Old Trafford last week and will be looking to add to his tally against Norwich, while Harry Kane (£9.4m) will be keen to break his duck for the season having gone 5 games without a goal for Spurs so far.
Saturday
Chelsea v Arsenal
(12:45pm BT Sport 1)
Aston Villa v West Brom
Bournemouth v Sunderland
Newcastle v Watford
Stoke v Leicester
Swansea v Everton
Man City v West Ham
(5.30pm Sky Sports 1)
Sunday
Tottenham v Crystal Palace
(1.30pm Sky Sports 1)
Southampton v Man Utd
(4.00pm Sky Sports 1)
Liverpool v Norwich