The Suspension Tightrope – Gameweek 12

Tottenham’s Erik Lamela become the latest player to topple off the Suspension Tightrope after earning his fifth caution of the campaign during this afternoon’s north London derby at the Emirates. The in-form Argentine – whose absence could pave the way for fit-again Heung Min-Son to stake a claim for a starting berth – misses Spurs’ upcoming home match-up against West Ham United but will be available when Chelsea roll up to White Hart Lane in Gameweek 14.

With five new arrivals over the weekend’s fixtures, the Suspension Tightrope is drawing quite the crowd – there’s now an 18-strong band of wrongdoers on four bookings as we head into the international break.

Southampton’s Graziano Pelle is certainly the most pertinent of the new recruits from a Fantasy perspective. The Saints’ leading marksman currently sits at a hefty 34% ownership – having bagged four goals and as many assists in seven starts – and will be wary of committing further indiscretions ahead of a home tie against Aston Villa in Gameweek 15.

The Italian was joined by James McCarthy, Chris Brunt, Glenn Whelan and Cheick Tiote. The Newcastle enforcer has now chalked up more yellow cards (53) than any player in the Premier League since he made the switch to St James’ Park in August 2010.

In terms of new bans, West Brom defender Gareth McAuley received his marching orders for denying Anthony Martial a clear goal scoring opportunity at Old Trafford, making him the only recipient of a red card throughout the weekend. The Northern Ireland international has been handed a one-match suspension and misses out when Arsenal pay visit after the international break, returning for a trip to West Ham in Gameweek 14.

After the 2-0 defeat, Baggies boss Tony Pulis was somewhat critical of the centre-half and acknowledged McAuley’s challenge left referee Mike Dean with little alternative:

“Gareth McAuley (for the red card and penalty) should have stayed on his feet and if the kid scores the kid scores…It’s difficult for Mike. You could feel, with a couple of minutes to go, that he might look at it differently. But the letter of the law says that if he’s last man and he brings him down he has to send him off.”

Aside from McAuley, James Collins is the only other player serving out a suspension during the next round of fixtures. The Hammers’ seasoned centre-back has two fixtures remaining on his three-match ban, ruling him out of a road tie against Tottenham Hotspur and a home clash against West Brom. With Winston Reid back in the frame, however, it’s unlikely that Collins will reclaim a starting berth upon his return.

United’s Matteo Darmian is now available for the upcoming trip to Watford after he fell off last week’s Tightrope. Norwich skipper Russell Martin and Southampton’s Victor Wanyama are both back in contention after they were dismissed during last week’s matches.

As always, mainly thanks to our resident Tightrope expert Anorak, who has been keeping us up-to-date via his twitter stream.