Frisking the Fixtures – Gameweek 10 – The Weak

After assessing those sides with favourable fixtures over the next six Gameweeks, we now focus on the teams braced for tougher times ahead.

London clubs West Ham United, Tottenham Hotspur and Chelsea all face some testing encounters, with the Hammers, in particular, set to embark on a very tricky run of matches.

West Ham

(eve, STO, tot, mun, ARS, liv)

The Hammers upcoming schedule is deemed the most unfavourable according to our Season Ticker over the next six Gameweeks, with Slaven Bilic’s men facing four torrid matches on the road.

Clean sheets look set to be in short supply, with Liverpool the joint-highest scorers over the last four Gameweeks with nine, while they also rank second over the same period for shots inside the box.

Arsenal, meanwhile, sit joint-third for big chances created over the last four matches with 10, while Manchester United have scored in each of their four home fixtures so far.

Everton have tailed off in front of goal of late, featuring in the bottom half for goals scored and big chances created, but that still represents a tricky match-up, while Stoke City seemed to have turned the corner in recent weeks, scoring six goals in their last four matches.

Despite accruing back-to-back shut-outs, then, there looks to be little appeal in owning a West Ham defender through this tough part of their schedule.

Liverpool, Man United and Tottenham all feature in the bottom six for shots conceded over the last four Gameweeks, so chances may be at a premium in those fixtures.

Additionally, Arsenal have kept clean sheets in three of their last four, while Stoke have registered back-to-back shut-outs.

Only Sunday’s trip to Goodison Park looks a decent match-up then, so despite his good form, Dimitri Payet appears unlikely to deliver great value. Michail Antonio – the most transferred out midfielder in Gameweek 10 – was fielded up front in last night’s EFL Cup win over Chelsea, though, and a more advanced role at Goodison this weekend may slow down the exodus if he can end a four-match dry spell.

Tottenham Hotspur

(LEI, ars, WHM, che, SWA, mun)

Spurs face three testing away matches over the coming period, while only the Swansea City encounter stands out as being truly favourable among the home fixtures.

Chelsea and Man United rank third and fifth respectively for shots inside the box over the last four Gameweeks, while Arsenal have scored 11 goals in five league matches at the Emirates.

Leicester City and West Ham do occupy two of the bottom three spots for shots on target over the last four Gameweeks, though, while Swansea have only scored four goals in as many matches.

Defensive returns appear unlikely on Tottenham’s travels, then, but a distinct possibility at White Hart Lane.

With Spurs’ starters at the back also offer solid attacking threats, they’re probably worth holding onto, but the likes of Kyle Walker may struggle to provide value over the next few weeks if those attacking returns fail to materialise.

It’s the same story at the other end of the pitch, with Chelsea having kept three successive clean sheets, while Arsenal have managed shut-outs in two of their last three at home.

The Manchester United defence appears slightly more vulnerable given their defeats at Watford and Chelsea, but they will still provide a tough encounter at Old Trafford.

On the other hand, Leicester and Swansea are joint-top for big chances conceded over the last four Gameweeks with 11, while West Ham have let in nine goals in four away matches so far.

But with so many midfielders at other clubs in form and boasting far more favourable fixtures, the likes of Son Heung-min and Dele Alli may struggle to justify places in our 15-man squads over the coming spell.

Chelsea

(sot, EVE, mid, TOT, mci, WBA)

The Blues look to have four testing fixtures in the next six, with the matches against Tottenham and Man City, in particular, unlikely to provide many rewards for Chelsea assets.

From an attacking point of view, Antonio Conte’s men face two teams, Southampton and Spurs, that have conceded just two goals apiece over the last four Gameweeks, while City have only let in more than one goal once this season.

The other three fixtures (EVE, mid, WBA) are slightly more favourable, although all three teams have shown at different stages of the season they can be fairly resolute at the back.

Those currently owning Diego Costa (who remains just one booking short of a single-match ban) or the resurgent Eden Hazard, may well be content to hold for the time being. The Belgian has netted in each of his last four for club and country prior to last night’s loss to West Ham.

As already mentioned, Chelsea have upped their resilience of late but with Southampton, Tottenham and City in the top seven for total goal attempts over the last four Gameweeks, it may be difficult to maintain that run.

Everton and West Brom are regularly scoring just one goal per match at the moment, though, while ‘Boro have failed to score in their last two, so Blues defender may be able to accrue the odd clean sheet.

But given the price tags of Chelsea starters at the back, it’s unlikely they’ll be on the shopping lists of many Fantasy managers through this tricky run of ties.

Also be wary of…

Middlesbrough
‘Boro are another team who face four unfavourable fixtures (mci, CHE, lei, sot) over the coming period, which diminishes the appeal of their budget options at both ends of the pitch.

Those holding onto a ‘Boro defender may be happy to keep them for Saturday’s home clash against Bournemouth, but after that, they appear surplus to requirements, given that the chances of clean sheet points appear very slim.

Leicester City and Southampton are also pretty strong defensively at home, while Chelsea are in good form at the back, and City have yet to concede more than once in a match at the Etihad this season.

‘Boro attackers haven’t been popular options since the drop-off in Alvaro Negredo’s form, and that looks set to continue over the coming weeks.

Everton
Ronald Koeman’s men have a mixed run of fixtures on the horizon, with three pretty favourable matches (WHM, SWA, wat) offset by three testing clashes (che, sot, MUN).

On balance, given United’s recent struggles, it would be hard to dispense with the services of the in-form Romelu Lukaku at this point, but it may be more difficult for the Belgian to maintain his recent run of providing attacking points in five of the last six.

It’s at the back where the outlook may be slightly more clear cut, with Swansea and West Ham surprisingly faring pretty well in some of the key attacking categories, while Watford have scored in all four of their matches at Vicarage Road.

With clean sheets seemingly a tall order in the other three fixtures on the current slate, Toffees defenders may see their recent struggles continue into November and beyond.

Man United
In the short-term, matches at home to Burnley and West Ham, along with the Gameweek 11 trip to Swansea, should mean that those holding onto United assets will probably keep faith for the time being.

But the Red Devils also face three difficult fixtures (ARS, eve, TOT) over the coming period, so should the likes of Zlatan Ibrahimovic fail to deliver against the Clarets, the decision to move the Swede on should become far easier. Last night’s booking against City takes him onto four yellow and, like Costa, he’s now on the brink of a one-match ban.

Likewise, a failure to keep a clean sheet on Saturday will probably sway many Fantasy Premier League (FPL) bosses to ditch United defenders, with returns appearing very unlikely against the two north London sides, while United’s record at Everton and Swansea is also a cause for concern. With Chris Smalling missing out through injury last night and Eric Bailly sidelined for two months, Antonio Valencia owners may be forced into a re-think.

Crystal Palace
It’s at home where the Eagles may struggle over the next month or so, with Liverpool, City and Southampton visiting Selhurst Park over the coming period.

Clean sheets certainly appear unlikely in those three matches, while given that Alan Pardew’s side are still waiting for their first shut-out of the campaign, the three away trips (bur, swa, hul) could also prove to be tricky affairs.

We should continue to ignore Palace defenders, then, while at the other end of the pitch, Christian Benteke looks to be the only player who may be able to keep ticking over through the mixed schedule.

Even his upside looks limited, bearing in mind that Burnley are also a strong defensive side at Turf Moor, so the Belgian’s 8.3% ownership in FPL may consider their options over the next few weeks.