Frisking the Fixtures – Gameweek 22 – The Weak

After seeking out the teams who face the softest upcoming schedules, our focus now switches to those who are best avoided over the next four-to-six Gameweeks.

Bottom three clubs Hull City, Sunderland and Swansea City look set to remain wastelands for Fantasy talent over the next month, while there’s also some concern over Liverpool assets as they prepare for a crucial test of their title credentials.

Liverpool

(SWA, CHE, hul, TOT, lei, ARS)

Although the Reds play four of their next six at Anfield, they do face three of the current top four over those matches.

Spurs have conceded just two goals in their last four encounters, while Arsenal have only shipped three over the same period.

Chelsea, meanwhile, have allowed fewer shots from inside the box (15) than any other team over the last four Gameweeks.

Goals could be hard to come by in those clashes, then, so while the fixtures against Swansea City and Hull City are hugely favourable, the ceiling for Liverpool’s attackers is surely lowered by their schedule.

Roberto Firmino and the returning Philippe Coutinho could certainly struggle to keep pace with the likes of Spurs duo Christian Eriksen and Dele Alli.

Chelsea, Spurs and Arsenal all feature among the four clubs scoring the most goals over the last four Gameweeks, so clean sheets appear unlikely in those matches.

The other three fixtures on the current slate are much kinder, although Swansea and Hull City do somewhat surprisingly rank in the top 10 over the last four Gameweeks for shots inside the box.

Those who own Dejan Lovren or Simon Mignolet may be happy to hold in the short-term at least, given the value on offer, but investment in Reds defenders doesn’t appear wise at this point.

Sunderland

(wba, TOT, cpl, SOT, eve, MCI)

Jermain Defoe has been the key target from the Black Cats this season, but the forward may need to produce more on the road, with Sunderland facing some testing home fixtures.

Spurs boast one of the league’s strongest defences, while Southampton and Man City should also provide some resistance.

The away match-ups are reasonably friendly, given that West Bromwich Albion have failed to keep a clean sheet in their last nine matches, while Palace have only managed one shut-out this season.

Everton have been impressive at Goodison Park of late, though, keeping clean sheets against Southampton and Man City this month.

Since Jordan Pickford’s injury, Sunderland’s defensive assets have been ignored by the vast majority of Fantasy Premier League (FPL) bosses, and that should continue to be the case through the upcoming spell.

Only the matches against Palace and Southampton look to offer any real hope of defensive returns over the next six.

Despite his attacking potential, then, there look to be far better mid-price options for us to consider than Patrick van Aanholt.

Hull City

(che, mun, LIV, ars, BUR, lei)

The Tigers face an evil run of fixtures over the next four Gameweeks, facing four of the current top six.

Having mustered just one clean sheet all season, against Swansea City in Gameweek 2, it goes without saying that Hull defenders remain off the menue, with only the Burnley match-up offering any real respite over the next six.

Goals are also expected to be in short supply in the next four Gameweeks, so Robert Snodgrass’ 12.1% ownership in FPL may consider making alternative plans.

The Scotland international is always capable of ticking over with the odd goal or assist, though, due to his set-piece duties, and remains well priced at 5.8 in FPL.

With concerns over his fitness for the trip to Stamford Bridge, though, plus speculation surrounding his future on Humberside, many may look to the likes of Matt Phillips or Junior Stanislas as similarly priced alternatives.

Swansea City

(liv, SOT, mci, LEI, che, BUR)

The outlook for basement dwellers Swansea also remains pretty gloomy, with the Welsh outfit taking on three of the current top six over the next five Gameweeks, with all of those matches away from home.

Given that the Swans have conceded more goals (49) than any other team this season, it’s fair to suggest they won’t manage any defensive points in those matches, although the home fixtures are slightly more promising.

But with popular budget option Jordi Amat currently out of favour under new head coach Paul Clement, there are not likely to be any Fantasy managers who own a starting Swansea defender over the coming spell.

Liverpool and Chelsea rank among the three sides allowing the fewest number of shots from inside the box over the last four Gameweeks, so chances look set to be at a premium in those matches.

The schedule does improve dramatically from Gameweek 27 onwards, but Gylfi Sigurdsson’s 5.6% ownership will do well to hold until that point given that he’s returned just one assist in his last six Gameweek starts.

Also be wary of…

Leicester City
Considering that the champions only play three of their next eight matches at home, and have yet to win away from the King Power Stadium this season, the immediate prospects appear very dim.

Two of the home matches are also against Manchester United and Liverpool, so it’s difficult to be too positive regarding their prospects at either end of the pitch.

Leicester players haven’t really figured strongly this season in any case, and that doesn’t look set to change over the coming weeks due to both form and fixtures.

Burnley
The Clarets are the only other team who have yet to win on the road, and given that Sean Dyche’s men face six of the next eight away from home, there’s every reason to be concerned over their output.

One of the two home fixtures is also against leaders Chelsea, while they have to travel to both Arsenal and Liverpool.

There are some decent away fixtures against Watford, Swansea, Hull and Sunderland, but Tom Heaton’s owners will likely be relying upon points from saves in the majority of the next eight Gameweeks.

No team have scored fewer goals (three) than Burnley in away matches, ensuring that their midfield and forwards remain off the radar.

West Ham United
It’s the Hammers attack we’re most concerned about over the next six Gameweeks, with Slaven Bilic’s men facing a number of tricky fixtures (mid, MCI, sot, WBA, wat, CHE).

Middlesbrough and even Watford are known for keeping things tight at the back at home, while the Chelsea and, to a lesser extent, City match-ups will also be difficult.

There’s some level of concern for owners of Michail Antonio and Andy Carroll, then, with Saturday’s trip to the Riverside Stadium likely to prove pivotal in deciding whether to stick or twist.

West Ham have kept clean sheets in three of their last four at the London Stadium, but defensive returns look set to be hard to come by over the upcoming period, both at home and on the road.

Chelsea
Matches away to Liverpool and at home to Arsenal, along with a trip to Turf Moor, have us slightly wary over the prospects of Chelsea assets.

Those fixtures may not yield clean sheets, then, although plum home ties against Hull and Swansea do balance things up somewhat, while as seen in Gameweek 21, Marcos Alonso can also deliver devastating attacking points to justify his 6.6 price tag.

Those three unfavourable fixtures also look tricky from an attacking perspective, so once Sunday’s clash against Hull is out of the way, we may need to reassess the importance of owning a Chelsea attacker.

Eden Hazard looks vulnerable, with a prohibitive 10.4 valuation and recent lack of output causing concern – he’s mustered just a single goal and two assists in his last six matches.