Following yesterday’s look at the teams facing the most favourable upcoming schedules, we now turn our focus to the sides who look to have the most testing fixtures over the next four-to-six Gameweeks. Managerless Villa don’t have their problems to seek, whilst West Brom and Norwich will take little encouragement from their respective fixture lists over the next month or so.
WEST BROM
The Baggies have chalked up a joint-league high six clean sheets so far but are set to come up against five of the top seven teams for total goal attempts over the last four Gameweeks. With a trip to Old Trafford also on the agenda, shut-outs could be few and far between for the likes of Boaz Myhill (4.8) and Craig Dawson (5.1), though as seen in the past, Tony Pulis’ teams are capable of keeping out any opponent and owners of West Brom defenders will still be somewhat reluctant to part company.
The next six fixtures aren’t quite as tricky from an attacking point of view, with Leicester having conceded the highest numbers of shots from inside the box (46) over the last four Gameweeks, while West Ham have only kept one clean sheet in their five home matches thus far. Those two aside, though, there’s little reason for optimism against United, Arsenal, Tottenham and Liverpool’s backlines, with Saido Berahino (6.2) and Salomon Rondon (6.7) owners looking for a way out.
ASTON VILLA
Without a win since Gameweek 1, and with Tim Sherwood shown the door following the 2-1 defeat to Swansea, the upcoming fixture list does little to inspire any signs of a revival at Villa Park. The Villans have failed to keep a clean sheet since that opening day victory at Bournemouth, and with Tottenham and Man City up next, teams that have scored 11 and 12 goals respectively in their last four matches, that dismal record looks set to continue. With Southampton and Arsenal also among the most talented attacking sides in the league, expectations for the likes of Brad Guzan and Micah Richards (both 4.5) are pretty low then. Richards owners are awaiting an announcement from the FA after he was charged with an improper conduct charge for an incident during last week’s clash with Swansea. Any possible suspension may persuade some it’s time to move on.
Scoring goals has also been a problem for Villa, and with Tottenham and Arsenal conceding less than a goal a game in their last six, those two match-ups look particularly difficult. With Vincent Kompany back, City look less likely to concede, while Watford’s defensive record, barring that 3-0 defeat to the Gunners in Gameweek 9, is also very respectable. Only Scott Sinclair (4.8) and Rudy Gestede (5.8) have even slightly caught the imagination of Fantasy bosses this season among the Villa attack, and they certainly look a team to ignore for the time being.
NORWICH
The Canaries are still searching for their first clean sheet of the campaign, and with match-ups against the current top two, along with a trip to Stamford Bridge on the horizon, shut-outs look likely to remain in short supply. Swansea and Everton also represent pretty tough opposition, although Watford have failed to score in four of their five home matches. The likes of John Ruddy (4.5) and Russell Martin (4.7) will continue to rely on save points and attacking returns respectively to keep ticking over then.
The major plus point for Norwich has been their ability to score goals, having found the back of the net 14 times so far, more than the likes of Crystal Palace (12) and Liverpool (nine). A visit to the Etihad looks a tough assignment this weekend, though, while Arsenal and Watford are both among the best defences so far this term. The fixtures against Swansea, Chelsea and Everton could represent decent opportunities to score, though those Fantasy managers holding the likes od Wes Hoolahan (5.1) and Nathan Redmond (5.6) will surely be looking for alternatives.
BE WARY OF…
Bournemouth
Little is going right for the south coast club in recent weeks, and with only one favourable match-up over the next six Gameweeks, it’s hard to be positive over the prospects of any of their Fantasy assets. The Cherries have scored in each of their last eight matches, so while Matt Ritchie and Glenn Murray (both 5.6) may provide the occasional goal or assist over the coming period, they appear unlikely to keep up with similarly priced players.
Eddie Howe’s side have only kept one clean sheet all season, and with the Newcastle clash in Gameweek 12 looking the only favourable fixture, owning a member of the Cherries backline is unlikely to pay dividends at the moment.
Liverpool
With two draws so far for Jurgen Klopp, the new regime has started in a somewhat unconvincing manner. This isn’t likely to improve drastically in the short-term at least, with the Reds facing difficult trips to Chelsea and City in the next three, sandwiching a tricky home encounter against Crystal Palace. The following three fixtures (SWA, new, WBA) are more favourable, so perhaps the attacking potential of Alberto Moreno (4.7), allied to the more resolute rearguard we’ve seen under the German so far, means he is worth monitoring.
The likes of Philippe Coutinho (8.1) is maybe best avoided, though James Milner (6.7) is perhaps one to monitor, with a goal and three assists in the last four. Up top, injury concerns over Daniel Sturridge (10.4) and Christian Benteke (8.2) should deter any would-be investors.
Stoke
With only two home fixtures in the next six – against Chelsea and City –concerns over Potters Fantasy assets look valid. Jack Butland rose to 4.6 in FPL last week, but with only the trips to Newcastle and Sunderland out of the four away matches (new, sot, sun, whm) looking reasonable match-ups, clean sheets for Mark Hughes’ men could be in short supply.
At the other end of the pitch, finding the back of the net has been an issue, and while only the clash against City looks tricky, the lack of favourable match-ups at the Britannia is a worry for the likes of Bojan (5.3), who was transferred in by over 24,000 FPL bosses before Gameweek 10 on the back of his winning goal at Swansea. If the Spaniard fails to recover from a toe problem in time for the weekend, his new owners may be set for a quick u-turn.
Swansea
The Welsh side have only managed two clean sheets so far, and with matches against three of the most prolific teams so far this season (ARS, LEI, mci), shut-outs could remain in short supply. Even the more favourable fixtures are against Norwich and Bournemouth, clubs that found the net in the vast majority of their matches. There certainly look to be better mid-price options than the likes of Lukasz Fabianski and Kyle Naughton (both 5.0) for the upcoming period, then.
Both those newly promoted sides have been shipping a lot of goals, though, suggesting the outlook for Swans attackers isn’t quite so bleak. Leicester have also been far from secure at the back this season, so those who own Andre Ayew (7.1) may be happy to keep hold of the Ghanaian for the time being. The difficult clashes against Arsenal, City and Liverpool do limit his potential to keep pace with the likes of Georginio Wijnaldum and Ross Barkley in the mid-price bracket.
