A festive hangover served up slim returns for many as Eden Hazard and David Silva maintained midfield form, putting a cast of strikers in the shade. They included Charlie Austin who failed to notch at home for the first time since Gameweek 11. Here’s the notes on Sunday’s events…
Spurs and United Stutter to Stalemate
Both Tottenham and Man United went into their White Hart Lane meeting on the back of excellent form but neither were able to make a breakthrough as Hugo Lloris and David De Gea held firm between the sticks.
Christian Eriksen and Harry Kane failed to improve upon the form which saw them serve up four goals and two assists apiece in the previous seven as United registered their second away clean sheet of the campaign. Up next for Spurs is a home encounter with Chelsea on Thursday before a trio of fixtures (cpl, SUN, wba) which is sure to keep the pair on our radars.
For United, Louis van Gaal surprisingly named the same starting XI – the first time United have been unchanged since November 2012. With Angel Di Maria failing to recover from a pelvic injury, Wayne Rooney played in central midfield once again as Radamel Falcao partnered Robin van Persie up top. Rooney and Van Persie had five goals and two assists in six prior to yesterday, and with Stoke, QPR and Leicester in the next four, they also have a schedule which provides some comfort to their owners, despite the blank in north London.
Mane in the Goals Again
After fielding a 3-5-2 in the previous couple of matches, Ronald Koeman reverted to a 4-3-3 formation for the visit of Chelsea. Having grabbed a goal and assist in a central role alongside Graziano Pelle against Palace last time out, Sadio Mane was shifted to the flank as Dusan Tadic returned to the XI, with Ryan Bertrand (ineligible) and Nathaniel Clyne (ankle injury), missing out. Mane notched for the second successive Gameweek as his influence on the Saints’ attacks continues to grow, though his imminent departure for the Africa Cup of Nations will ensure we steer clear for now.
Hazard Breaks Away Duck
At the tenth time of asking, Chelsea’s wide man finally netted his first away strike of the season to earn his side a point at St Mary’s. As the festive schedule picks up pace, Hazard is showing no sign of slowing down and has served up his most consistent displays of the season in recent matches – it’s three goals, a trio of assists and eight bonus points in December alone, with just one blank in his last six.
Jose Mourinho’s decision to make three changes disappointed Cesar Azpilicueta owners after the Spaniard again dropped out of the XI to allow Filipe Luís to start at left-back. With Oscar missing out through illness, a midfield reshuffle saw Cesc Fabregas shifted into the role in “the hole” for the second away match in succession. Fabregas yet again picked up the points after teeing up Hazard for the Blues’ equaliser and has already racked up 13 assists – equalling the highest assist total from 2013/14 with 19 Gameweeks still remaining.
Another Clean Sheet for Black Cats
Sunderland bounced back from their Boxing Day home defeat at the hands of Hull to serve up a fifth clean sheet in the last eight Gameweeks. Costel Pantilimon was once again crucial to their display – the Romanian’s four saves earned him a seven-point haul and took his average to 5.2 points per appearance. The Black Cats now face Man City, Liverpool and Spurs in the next three, though, suggesting few will be keen to invest until the fixtures turn around from Gameweek 23.
Villa Toiling Up Top
A goalless draw against the Black Cats means that Paul Lambert’s side have now scored just once in the last four Gameweeks. Granted, the 49th-minute dismissal of Fabian Delph hardly helped their cause, though there’s no doubt that the 28,000+ Fantasy managers who acquired Christian Benteke last week will be a little concerned. Luckily, back-to-back matches against Palace and Leicester affords him opportuntiy to get amongst the points and justify their investment.
Mahrez the Foxes Hero
Riyad Mahrez grabbed the only goal of a vital encounter at Hull as Leicester won for the first time since Gameweek 5. Mahrez has now scored or assisted in three of his last five appearances but, unfortunately for Nigel Pearson, he’s been named in the Algeria squad for next month’s Africa Cup of Nations. The Foxes have three crucial home encounters in the next five (AVL, STO, CPL), but with Mahrez set to depart imminently, our faith in their attacking assets is likely to be limited. Leonardo Ulloa had earned returns in four of their six matches prior to yesterday afternoon but his withdrawal with a knock on 54 minutes makes him an early doubt for New Year’s Day.
Silva Streak Continues
With Yaya Toure missing out due to a groin injury, David Silva netted his fourth strike in three appearances since Manuel Pellegrini rolled out a false nine system. Drafted in by over 180,000 Fantasy Premier League (FPL) managers in just two days after his goal and assist at West Brom, Silva looks unstoppable right now and is set for further investment ahead of the New Year’s Day home clash against Sunderland. Certainly, given the nature of Saturday’s late collapse, in addition to the concerns over Toure’s groin problem, Pellegrini can ill-afford to rest the Spaniard for the Black Cats’ clash.
At the back, Pellegrini – as expected – rotated the full-backs once again. Pablo Zabaleta and Aleks Kolarov came in for Bacary Sagna and Gael Clichy as City went in search of a fifth clean sheet in seven but their hopes were shattered in the second-half on as the Clarets staged an unexpected comeback.
Boyd and Barnes Stun the Etihad
George Boyd netted his third goal of the season to spark an unlikely turnaround away to the champions. In a week where the likes of Toure and Oscar missed out, Boyd reminded us of the value of having a viable cheap fifth midfielder ready to step up if and when necessary, and with some excellent fixtures to follow (new, QPR, CPL, sun, WBA), the Clarets will be full of confidence in light of the Etihad draw. Elsewhere for Sean Dyche’s side, Ashley Barnes is showing the sort of form which suggests fit-again Sam Vokes may struggle to earn a first start just yet – Barnes’ late equaliser was his third goal in four Gameweeks.
Austin Blanks as Stubborn Eagles Hold Firm
Having scored eight goals in his last four home league appearances, Charlie Austin and QPR were kept at bay by a determined Crystal Palace peformance. Austin went into the Gameweek with an army of new FPL owners, with many trusting him with the armband. Palace, with Keith Millen in temporary charge, had failed to read the script, however, and limited QPR to just 11 goal attempts, four of which fell to Austin. The R’s striker faces Swansea at Loftus Road on New Year’s Day – following that, only two of Austin’s next six league matches are at home – against Man United and Southampton.
Zaha Handed False Nine Role
Keith Millen’s first act as caretaker manager at Palace was to recall Wilfried Zaha to the starting lineup, deploying him in the central “false nine” position. While that decision may have been influenced by a knock that left Frazier Campbell limited to an appearance from the bench, it suggests that Millen will look to exploit Zaha’s abilities whilst at the reins. The Eagles have just two goals in their last six league outings and will be expected to add to their arsenal during the January window. In the meantime, it could be that Zaha offers greater security as a 5.1 midfield option. He will doubtless earn starts during Gameweeks 21-23 while Yannick Bolasie is away at the African Cup of Nations.
Cazorla Keeps Ticking Over
Having seen Alexis Sanchez fluff his lines from the spot against QPR, Santi Cazorla assumed penalty-taking duties at West Ham and duly converted from 12-yards after drawing a foul from Winston Reid. That goal was Cazorla’s fourth in five league matches, a spell that has seen him collect 40 FPL points to top the midfield form rankings. Cazorla has started every league match since Gameweek 7 although, once Theo Walcott is finally considered fit enough for action and Mesut Ozil makes his return in early January, the Spaniard will likely come under the threat of rotation, regardless of form.
Elsewhere in the Arsenal camp, Laurent Koscielny’s return from injury relegates Calum Chambers further down the pecking order. His appearances look limited to cameo roles in the FA Cup and perhaps around Champions League ties when Arsene Wenger looks to rest Mathieu Debuchy.
Cisse facing trial by video
Newcastle’s Senegalese striker took his tally to nine league goals with a smartly taken equaliser against Everton; in truth he should have been back in the dressing room at the time. Cisse’s elbow on Seamus Coleman was missed by referee Craig Pawson but, with the incident widely discussed, Cisse seems unlikely to escape an FA investigation, a violent conduct charge and a three-match ban.
Cisse will be sorely missed by Newcastle if that’s the case. His nine goals have arrived in 13 appearances, including just six starts: he’s struck five goals in his last six appearances for the Magpies. Should a charge follow, Cisse will miss matches with Burnley, Chelsea and Southampton and, by that point, he would be with the Senegal squad for the Africa Cup of Nations in Equatorial Guinea, missing at least another league fixture.
That will put the onus on Newcastle to find another striker in the January window and, in the meantime, Ayoze Perez will likely lead the attack. The young Spaniard was again impressive, notching his fifth goal of the campaign. Having been deployed wide right in a 4-2-3-1 formation, Ayoze would be set to revert to the central striker role during any possible absence for Cisse and, at just 4.7, may come onto the radar as a result.
Baines delivers from midfield
Leighton Baines was again on the losing side but did provide an assist, his first since Gameweek 9, from a midfield position. Roberto Martinez decided to bring young Luke Garbutt into the starting XI at left-back, liberating Baines to be deployed as part of an attacking midfield three in front of Gareth Barry and James McCarthy. In truth, Baines spent most of the match in central areas, allowing Garbutt to bomb forward down the flank. Even so, his involvement allowed him to get on the ball and lay on a defence-splitting pass for Kevin Mirallas’s strike late on. Despite that, it seems likely that Baines will revert to left-back once Everton are clear of injuries and the busy festive spell.
Everton have now gone nine league matches without a clean sheet and, despite the assist, Baines’ stock remains fragile. An away trip to Hull City perhaps offers a stay of execution – the Tigers are one of the few sides in a worse state than Everton and Baines’ owners may well be advised to hold for at least one more encounter before shipping out.
