Rotation bites hard for Liverpool as Kenny Dalglish makes multiple changes for the visit of Fulham. Clint Dempsey drew another blank to return a mere five point double Gameweek, Tony Hibbert follows up his clean sheet against Fulham with an assist at Stoke, as the Potters keep Nikica Jelavic quiet at the Britannia:
Liverpool Rotation
Having clinched a 3-0 victory at Norwich on Saturday evening, Liverpool welcomed Fulham to Anfield in confident mood. Any chance of building momentum ahead of Saturday’s FA Cup Final against Chelsea was quashed, however, as Kenny Dalglish’s decision to make nine changes to his first XI backfired. Much to the frustration of their Fantasy owners, the likes of Luis Suarez, Steven Gerrard, Pepe Reina and Daniel Agger were all handed the night off but a 1-0 defeat, courtesy of a Martin Skrtel own goal, means the Reds have picked up a single point in their last five at Anfield. A home match in Gameweek 37, ironically against Chelsea, offers Dalglish’s side the chance of a final home win of the campaign – after last night’s debacle, the Liverpool boss will surely roll out his first-choice XI next time round, as his side’s league campaign stutters to an unimpressive close.
Clint Dempsey
So often the saviour of double Gameweeks, a pair of away fixtures proved the undoing of Dempsey this time round. The top scoring Fantasy Premier League (FPL) midfielder returned just five points over his two games and has now gone three games without a goal – equalling his worst run of the season. With a home game against Sunderland up next, though, his Fantasy owners will be confident of the points – the Black Cats have recorded just two clean sheet in 11 away games since Martin O’Neill replaced Steve Bruce in December.
Fulham Defence
The Cottagers banished the memories of last weekend’s 4-0 thrashing at Everton by returning a clean sheet an Anfield – their second in the last three away games. With Stephen Kelly recovered from a wrist injury, Aaron Hughes returned to centre-half alongside Brede Hangeland, with Philippe Senderos dropping out. Considering that Sunderland have failed to score in four of their last six on the road, Martin Jol’s side look a decent bet for another clean sheet this weekend.
Tony Hibbert
While Nikica Jelavic’s goal glut came to an end at the Britannia, the 4.8 priced right-back picked up an assist for Peter Crouch’s own goal, bringing his tally for the double Gameweek to 11 points – only Steven Pienaar (16) and Jelavic (14) provided more. Hibbert now has three assists in his last three appearances and a total of five for the season; Leighton Baines has mustered a mere two for the Toffees all term. Hibbert is now second only to Baines for points amongst the Everton back-four but, with the latter coming in at 7.8, the right-back has been far better value over the course of the campaign.
Stoke’s double Gameweek
Two home fixtures over the Gameweeks offered the chance of Fantasy returns but with Arsenal and Everton the visitors, it ended somewhat flat for Tony Pulis’ side. The Potters remained unbeaten over their pair of games but, with a couple of 1-1 draws, they have now gone nine games without returning a clean sheet. Peter Crouch and Matthew Etherington picked up the most points, with seven apiece, while Cameron Jerome climbed off the bench last night to notch his side’s equaliser. Pulis’ side have now gone six unbeaten at the Britannia – an ominous sign for Bolton, with the Trotters likely to need a win on the final day of the season to clinch survival.
