Frisking the Fixtures – Gameweek 30 – The Weak

After analysing those teams that boast the kindest upcoming schedules yesterday, we now turn our attention to the sides who could be doomed to a downturn in points output over the next four-to-six Gameweeks.

West Bromwich Albion stand out as the only side facing a blank in Gameweek 34, while there is also concern surrounding Bournemouth and Manchester City assets over the month to come.

West Bromwich Albion

(mun, wat, SOT, LIV, (bla), LEI)

The Baggies are the only team that suffer a blank in Gameweek 34, while they have a number of tricky fixtures all the way to the end of the season.

The prospects for West Brom defenders certainly don’t look promising.

Manchester United, Southampton and Leicester City have all been in strong scoring form of late, while Liverpool have only failed to net in one of their last 17 matches.

Watford have also scored a reasonable six goals in their last three home matches, so defensive returns look set to be hard to come by over the coming period.

So while the goal threat of Gareth McAuley may earn the centre-back a stay of execution, it would be understandable if he’s now seen as being surplus to requirements, along with all others members of the Baggies’ backline.

It’s much the same story when assessing the outlook for the West Brom attack.

The Gameweek 30 trip to Old Trafford is unlikely to provide many chances for Tony Pulis’ side, while there’s no real plum fixture over the remaining match-ups.

Watford and Southampton have been conceding plenty of goals over the last few weeks, but those clashes aren’t expected to be enough for Fantasy managers to consider holding onto their Baggies attacking assets.

Bournemouth

(sot, liv, CHE, tot, MID, sun)

The Cherries only face two home fixtures in the next six, while the short-term prospects in general look bleak.

Chelsea and Spurs lead the way for clean sheets this season with 13 and 12 respectively, while a trip to Anfield may also prove somewhat tricky – the Reds have only conceded more than one goal at home on two occasions this term.

The Southampton fixture in Gameweek 30 is reasonable enough for Josh King’s 11.5% ownership in Fantasy Premier League (FPL) to hold and play the in-form attacker – indeed, he remains the most transferred in midfielder since the last deadline passed.

But outside of the value offered by King, there looks to be no appeal in the Bournemouth ranks.

While the 2-0 win over Swansea City ended a run of nine matches without a clean sheet, it’s difficult to see the Cherries registering another shut-out over the next four Gameweeks.

As already mentioned, Southampton have been lethal in front of goal recently, scoring 10 in their last four matches, while as three of the four highest scoring teams this season, Liverpool, Chelsea and Spurs will all be heavilty backed to breach the Bournemouth rearguard.

Those still clinging to a Bournemouth defender following Gameweek 28 will likely be hatching alternative plans.

In the long-term, Bournemouth’s exceptional fixtures from Gameweek 34 onwards provide some incentive to sit tight, but, with the focus on double Gameweek assets at that stage, it seems remiss to put too much stock in that spell.

Manchester City

(ars, che, HUL, sot, MUN, mid)

City also face just two home fixtures over the coming period and also take on three of their top six rivals.

It’s those matches against Arsenal, Chelsea and Man United, along with the Gameweek 33 trip to Southampton, where it’s difficult to see City maininting a recent run of clean sheets.

Pep Guardiola’s side have only conceded one goal in their last four matches, though, and the Hull City and Middlesbrough fixtures should present strong opportunities for further defensive returns.

But, with rotation a major factor, City defenders haven’t really been viable Fantasy options for the majority of this season. That certainly isn’t expected to change until perhaps the final weeks of the season, with another double Gameweek on offer.

Only Crystal Palace have conceded fewer shots from inside the box than Chelsea and United over the last four matches, so those fixtures don’t look particularly enticing for the City attack.

On the other hand, Arsenal have conceded nine goals in their last four, while the Hull City, Southampton and ‘Boro clashes all appear favourable.

Those still in possession of a City attacker following double Gameweek 27, there may be a temptation to sit still, particularly if more pressing transfers are required elsewhere.

Sergio Aguero, Raheem Sterling and Leroy Sane could all still be reasonable picks, almost as differentials, although the pricey Aguero looks to be a prime contender to be sacrificed for Zlatan Ibrahimovic ahead of United’s pair of Gameweek 34 fixtures.

Also be wary of…

Leicester City
While the in-form Foxes have two favourable home matches (STO, SUN) in the short-term, they then face four consecutive away fixtures (eve, cpl, ars, wba).

So although investment in the red-hot Jamie Vardy is understandable, he may find the going tougher against Everton and Palace, while Leicester will also have their Champions League quarter-final against Atletico Madrid to focus on.

Likewise, there is also set to be interest in Christian Fuchs, given that the left-back has produced a goal and an assist in his last three appearances, and could also bank some defensive points in the next two.

But clean sheets appear less likely in those four away matches, perhaps limiting the appeal of taking a shot-term punt on the Austrian.

Everton
It’s over the next two Gameweeks where there are concerns regarding Toffees assets, as they face difficult trips to Anfield and Old Trafford, while they also fail to offer a double Gameweek over the remainder of the season.

Ronald Koeman’s men also host Chelsea in Gameweek 35, but do face a fairly favourable run of fixtures (LEI, BUR, whm) in between.

However, given his phenomenal form, Romelu Lukaku seems unlikely to see his 46.7% ownership diminish just yet: the Belgian ranks top for transfers in ahead of the trip to Arsenal. But FPL Fantasy managers may not hold the likes of Ross Barkley in the same esteem, with the midfielder perhaps struggling to produce attacking points over the next few weeks.

Defensive returns are also expected to tail off over the next two Gameweeks, but the attacking threat on offer from Seamus Coleman and Leighton Baines will likely see owners keep faith ahead of that more obliging run of fixtures.

Chelsea
The upcoming schedule for the leaders (CPL, MCI, bou, mun, SOT, eve) looks on paper, at least, one of the toughest they’ve had to face over the course of the season.

As mentioned, Palace are keeping clean sheets and limiting the number of shots they’re facing, while both Manchester clubs and Everton are all performing well at the back.

Diego Costa’s form has shown signs of fading and could suffer further over the upcoming period. More than 18,000 have so far shown him the door ahead of Gameweek 30. However, with a lack of options up front, at least until Ibrahimovic’s return, many of Costa’s remaining 39.6% ownership seem likely to keep him locked in for now.

The Chelsea outlook from a defensive point of view is similar, with shut-outs not really expected against both Manchester clubs and at Goodison Park.

The other three fixtures could yield defensive returns, though, and with Marcos Alonso and Gary Cahill delivering attacking points, they remain pretty strong options for our five-man backlines.