Frisking the Fixtures – Gameweek 1 – The Weak

Having analysed those sides who were afforded the most favourable schedules over the first four-to-six Gameweeks yesterday, our attention now turns to those with a tricky start to the upcoming campaign.

New Watford boss Walter Mazzarri faces a tough opening to life in the Premier League, while Liverpool will have to defy some difficult away trips to get their season off to a flier.

Watford

(sot, CHE, ARS, whm, MUN, bur)

Having ended last season with just two wins from their final 12 matches, Watford may find it tough to turn their fortunes around, with the first five Gameweeks seeing them face off against five of last season’s top seven.

The Hornets won six away matches last term, only one less than both Manchester clubs, but will do well to come away with anything from testing trips to Southampton and West Ham.

They did struggle at home against the top teams last season, and with Chelsea, Arsenal and Man United all visiting Vicarage Road, the omens don’t appear particularly bright.

They are, as already mentioned, under new management this season, so Mazzarri, who looks set to utilise his favoured 3-5-2 formation, will hope they can maintain their strong home defensive record, having conceded just 19 times on home turf in 2015/16, less than the likes of Southampton (22) and Man City (21).

Given the quality of upcoming opposition, it’s perhaps best to ignore the claims of Hornets defenders as budget options for our initial 15-man squads. Heurelho Gomes’ potential for save points should keep the stopper’s tally ticking over, though.

Forwards Troy Deeney and Odion Ighalo could struggle to justify their new price hikes against the likes of Chelsea and Man United in particular, who are expected to be much improved at the back under Antonio Conte and Jose Mourinho respectively.

Liverpool

(ars, bur, tot, LEI, che, HUL)

With just two home matches during the opening six, due to the redevelopment of the Main Stand seeing the Gameweek 2 fixture against Burnley being reversed, the Reds look to be at an immediate disadvantage.

One of those two home matches is also against champions Leicester, who were so impressive defensively during the second half of last season. The visit of Hull to Anfield in Gameweek 6 could well deliver both attacking and defensive returns, though, with the Tigers appearing in turmoil following the departure of Steve Bruce.

Liverpool did register impressive away wins at Stamford Bridge and the Etihad last season, so the trips to Arsenal, Tottenham and Chelsea may play into the hands of Jurgen Klopp’s side.

There’s no doubt those matches represent a testing start for the Reds, though, so it may perhaps be best to approach investing in Liverpool’s Fantasy assets with caution, with their ceiling not expected to be particularly high during this stretch of the season. Nonetheless, the likes of Roberto Firmino and Sadio Mane could still produce the goals, with Daniel Sturridge doubtful for the opener.

Defensively, in particular, the prospects don’t appear too promising, with weaknesses still at left-back, while new signing Joel Matip has been struggling with a foot injury – although he did return in Sunday’s 4-0 defeat to Mainz.

Sunderland

(mci, MID, sot, EVE, tot, CPL)

New Sunderland manager David Moyes faces the toughest of introductions, with a daunting visit to the Etihad up first for the Black Cats, while away trips to Southampton and Tottenham do little to brighten the immediate prospects of Sunderland’s Fantasy assets.

All three sides have particularly potent attacks, so the Black Cats’ rearguard doesn’t appear likely to garner any defensive returns on the road.

Sunderland have scored on their last three visits to the Etihad, offering some hope, but Saints and Spurs are likely to be tough to break down based on what we saw last season.

The home clashes against Crystal Palace and, in particular, Middlesbrough are pretty favourable, though, and with Everton also visiting the Stadium of Light, there are at least a couple of decent clashes in which Sunderland players should be able to shine.

Nonetheless, with so many budget options facing most favourable opening schedules, the likes of Vito Mannone and Patrick van Aanholt at the back, in addition to Wahbi Khazri and Jermain Defoe further forward, are unlikely to attract much investment as we wait to see what effect Moyes can have on a side that has battled relegation all too often over the past few years.

Also be wary of…

Hull City
It’s fair to say it’s been a tumultuous pre-season for Hull, and with three difficult home fixtures (LEI, MUN, ARS), along with the Gameweek 6 trip to Anfield, it’s hard to see much appeal in Tigers players for the opening part of the season.

Goals look set to be in short supply against strong defensive sides such as Leicester and Man United, while clean sheets could be a tall order against all four of those opponents.

Trips to Swansea and Burnley in the opening four Gameweeks may offer a glimmer of hope, but in reality the likes of Andrew Robertson, Robert Snodgrass and Abel Hernandez look to have limited potential during the opening weeks of the new season.

Swansea
Francesco Guidolin’s men do open up with two very favourable match-ups (bur, HUL), but given the uncertainty surrounding his likely starting XI due to recent movements in the transfer market and players having not featured in pre-season due to Euro 2016, the Swans may be best ignored for quite some time.

That’s because from Gameweek 3 onwards, their schedule (lei, CHE, sot, MCI, LIV, ars) stiffens up dramatically.

The likes of Gylfi Sigurdsson may struggle against some strong defences, then, while clean sheets appear likely to be at a premium over that stretch in light of Ashley Williams’ departure to Everton.

Southampton
On the one hand, Saints do face three very favourable home fixtures (WAT, SUN, SWA) over the opening six Gameweeks, with Sunderland and Swansea both poor on the road for much of last season.

Although the outlook in those matches looks bright from both a defensive and offensive standpoint, with Virgil van Dijk, Dusan Tadic, Shane Long and, potentially, Nathan Redmond, all likely to enjoy some success, trips to Man United, Arsenal and West Ham somewhat curb our initial enthusiasm.

United and Arsenal both won 12 times on home soil last season, with no teams managing more home wins, while the Hammers will be keen to make London Stadium feel like home.