Having assessed those sides with the strongest upcoming schedules on Thursday, our focus now shifts to the teams who face far tougher tasks over the next six Gameweeks. Everton’s incredibly difficult start to the campaign looks set to continue, while the 2-1 defeat at Swansea could be a sign of things to come for Manchester United, as Louis van Gaal’s side now face a testing run of fixtures.

SOUTHAMPTON

The Saints picked up their first win of the campaign against Norwich last weekend, but face a challenging run of fixtures as they look to build on that victory. Graziano Pelle (8.0), Sadio Mane (7.8) and Dusan Tadic (6.9) all shone against the Canaries, but against strong defences such as West Brom, Man United, Swansea and Liverpool over the next six Gameweeks, appear unlikely to rack up too many attacking points.

In terms of the Southampton rearguard, they’ll have to face two of the in-form attacks in the Premier League in Swansea and Leicester, while the matches against United, Chelsea and Liverpool also appear unlikely to yield many clean sheets. Ronald Koeman’s side have registered back-to-back shut-outs, but Jose Fonte’s 15% ownership in Fantasy Premier League (FPL) may well want to look elsewhere given the tough schedule, although the possibility of attacking returns make it perhaps worth sticking with the cheaper Cedric Soares (5.0).

EVERTON

Toffees boss Roberto Martinez will probably be fairly content with the five points his side have accrued so far, given their difficult start, but things certainly don’t look any rosier for Everton over the coming weeks, with the above fixtures ranked the most unfavourable according to our Season Ticker.

Although the Merseysiders have managed two clean sheets so far, both on the road, it’s hard to foresee many further shut-outs in light of the quality of their upcoming opponents. Given the hefty price tags for the well-owned Phil Jagielka (5.4) and Seamus Coleman (6.0), the pair appear unlikely to deliver great value until the fixtures turn favourably for Everton from Gameweek 11 onwards.

Romelu Lukaku (8.2) and Ross Barkley (6.7) are the two standout attacking options at Goodison Park, but after plundering the points in the opening two Gameweeks, have both failed to register any attacking returns since. While the Chelsea defence will arrive on Merseyside lacking in confidence after conceding nine times in their first four matches, goals in the other five matches are expected to be hard to come by. New signing Aaron Lennon (5.8) could provide a new dimension to the side, however, although his arrival could see Arouna Kone (5.1) come under some pressure for his place in the starting XI on the right flank.

MAN UNITED

Although United only conceded their first goals of the season in the 2-1 defeat to Swansea last weekend, the tough upcoming schedule (LIV, sot, SUN, ars, eve, MCI) does pour some doubt on the prospects of the likes of Matteo Darmian (5.7) and Luke Shaw (5.6). Both offer the prospect of attacking returns, as illustrated by the latter’s assist at Swansea, but their price tags will probably make many Fantasy managers question their worth, given the teams United will be facing over the coming period. There is also the question of who will start in goal, with David de Gea still at the club after his proposed move to Real Madrid fell through.

The United attack has been a huge disappointment this season, with Louis van Gaal’s men only managing three goals in their four matches thus far. While new addition Anthony Martial (8.0) is a huge talent, it will probably take time for the French youngster to settle in at Old Trafford, while Adnan Januzaj, who scored one of those three goals, has been sent out on-loan to Borussia Dortmund. Wayne Rooney (10.4) and Memphis Depay (8.5) attracted plenty of interest at the start of the season, but with only one favourable fixture in the next six, it’s hard to envisage either player suddenly turning around their indifferent form.

BE WARY OF…

Tottenham
Spurs are another side that have only managed to find the back of the net three times so far, and taking the upcoming schedule (sun, CPL, MCI, swa, LIV, bou) into consideration, goals may continue to be a problem for Mauricio Pochettino’s men. The Gameweek 5 clash at Sunderland does present the likes of Harry Kane (9.4) and Nacer Chadli (7.0) a good chance to register attacking points, while the matches against Crystal Palace and Bournemouth are also fairly reasonable. Match-ups against Man City, Swansea and Liverpool could see goals hard to come by, though, unless new signings Heung-Min Son (8.0) and Clinton N’Jie (7.5) can help spark Tottenham into life.

At the other end, the defence has looked reasonably solid this season, with Eric Dier (5.0) an intriguing option playing out-of-position in the double-pivot in midfield. Danny Rose (5.3) and Toby Alderweireld (5.0) look good options over the course of the season, but up against three of the most prolific attacks so far this season in the shape of Man City, Crystal Palace and Swansea, may struggle to provide defensive returns.

Arsenal
The Gunners have looked strong at the back since the shock 2-0 home defeat to West Ham in Gameweek 1, but clean sheets could be harder to come by in the upcoming period, considering the fixtures (STO, che, lei, MUN, wat, EVE) Arsene Wenger’s side face. The trips to Chelsea and Leicester in particular look tricky, but the favourable match-ups against Stoke and Watford perhaps mean the likes of Petr Cech (5.5), Hector Bellerin (5.5) and Laurent Koscielny (6.0) will earn a stay of execution for the time being.

Worryingly, Arsenal have failed to score in five of their last six Premier League home matches, which is clearly a concern for the prospects of Gunners attacking assets such as Alexis Sanchez (11.0), Santi Cazorla (8.3) and Aaron Ramsey (8.4), with Stoke, Man United and Everton all having reasonably strong defences. With some mixed fixtures and rotation concerns, both Theo Walcott (8.5) and Olivier Giroud (9.0) are probably best avoided for the time being.

Aston Villa
With Villa’s Fantasy assets favourably priced, a run of more difficult fixtures is probably easier to stomach than for the likes of Tottenham and Arsenal. The upcoming schedule (lei, WBA, liv, STO, che, SWA) does offer some decent match-ups, particularly at Villa Park, so budget options such as Micah Richards (4.6) and Rudy Gestede (6.0) could still provide decent point tallies, although with defenders Joleon Lescott (4.9) and Tiago Ilori (4.4) arriving on deadline day, Ciaran Clark’s place in the staring XI looks under real threat. Those three away matches at Leicester, Liverpool and Chelsea, however, look unlikely to yield many points at either end of the pitch.

Scott Sinclair (4.9) marked his return to the starting XI with a 14-point haul against Sunderland last weekend, but once Jack Grealish (5.4) and Adama Traore (6.0) return to fitness, the former Swansea wide man may find himself back among the substitutes.