After checking out the sides with strong schedules, over the next six Gameweeks yesterday, we now turn our attentions to those with trickier upcoming schedules. Sunderland may struggle to maintain the form that has harvested back-to-back victories, while Bournemouth and Swansea also have cause for concern.
SUNDERLAND
With away matches at Arsenal, Chelsea and Man City in the next four, adding to the two clean sheets registered over the last couple of Gameweeks could prove difficult for the Black Cats. Watford have also scored nine goals in their last five road trips, while Liverpool have registered the most shots from inside the box (44) over the previous four Gameweeks. Only the home clash against Aston Villa looks favourable, then, so now may not be the best time to invest in the likes of Costel Pantilimon (4.8) and Patrick van Aanholt (4.6), although the latter does have some upside due to his attacking threat should Big Sam continue to persist with wing-backs.
Arsenal, Chelsea and Man City all feature among the five teams who have allowed the least number of shots from inside the box over the last four Gameweeks, so goals could be hard to come by. Liverpool have only conceded twice in three away matches under Jurgen Klopp, leaving only the Watford and Aston Villa fixture as the only favourable match-ups. None of the Sunderland attackers have an ownership of more than 2% in Fantasy Premier League (FPL) though, and that appears likely to remain the case for now.
BOURNEMOUTH
The Cherries only face two home fixtures in the next six, and having kept just one clean sheet so far this season, it’s hard to see where their next shut-out is going to come from. Away trips to Chelsea, Arsenal and Leicester all look very tough, while West Brom have only failed to score in two of their seven home matches. Crystal Palace’s counter-attacking threat could be particularly dangerous, given Eddie Howe’s men like to dominate possession, particularly at home, while although Man United have struggled for goals this season, they will still be expected to score against the team that has the joint-worst defensive record this season (30 goals conceded). The attacking threat of full-backs Simon Francis and Charlie Daniels (both 4.5) may not be enough to keep them in the thoughts of Fantasy managers, then.
From an attacking point of view, scoring at Old Trafford and the Emirates looks a tough task, although the Gunners are a weaker proposition without the injured Francis Coquelin. Chelsea also look as if they are beginning to turn the corner with consecutive clean sheets in the league, while the other three fixtures on the upcoming slate (wba, CPL, lei) aren’t favourable either. The bargain price tags of Dan Gosling (4.4), Junior Stanislas (4.2) and Josh King (4.6) mean they are ideal candidates for the fifth midfield slot, but it’s hard to expect too much from those three, given the upcoming fixtures.
SWANSEA
The Swans have failed to score in their last two away matches, and with three difficult away assignments (mci, cpl, mun) on the horizon, it’s hard to see that dismal record significantly improving. Leicester have tightened up at the back of late, only letting in four goals in as many matches, and while both West Ham and West Brom are ranked among the top six sides for shots conceded from inside the box over the last four Gameweeks, they aren’t overly favourable match-ups, particularly with the Baggies having kept four clean sheets on their travels this season. Andre Ayew (7.1) looks slightly expensive to carry through this testing stretch in the schedule, then, while no other Swans attacker looks worthy of consideration at this point.
Garry Monk’s men produced a much better defensive display at Anfield, with Liverpool managing just two shots on target. In Leicester and Man City, though, they’ll come up against the two highest scoring teams so far this season, with defensive returns appearing very unlikely. Without a clean sheet away from the Liberty Stadium, keeping out Crystal Palace and Man United on the road could also be beyond the Welsh side, with only the home clashes against West Ham and West Brom possibly looking fruitful. With the regular starters at the back setting us back 4.9 in FPL, Fantasy bosses are unlikely to look to the Swans when freshening up their five-man backlines.
BE WARY OF…
Norwich
With Alex Neil currently placing a greater emphasis on defence, the prospects for Norwich attackers already appear pretty gloomy. Difficult trips to Old Trafford and White Hart Lane don’t help matters, then, while only the home clash against Aston Villa in Gameweek 19 can be classed as favourable from the next six fixtures (wat, EVE, mun, tot, AVL, SOT), with Villa having conceded seven goals in their last two matches. Neil is also rotating his forwards, so the Canaries definitely look best left alone when it comes to trying to find budget options among midfielders and forwards.
As already touched upon, Norwich have been a stronger defensive unit of late, but up against some in-form strikers such as Odion Ighalo, Romelu Lukaku and Harry Kane in the next four Gameweeks, adding to the sole clean sheet they’ve managed so far this season appears unlikely. Once more, it’s only that Villa clash that may be beneficial for those holding onto a member of the Canaries rearguard.
Leicester
The Foxes have been enjoying an unbelievable campaign thus far, but their next six matches (swa, CHE, eve, liv, MCI, BOU) offer up just one favourable clash, at home to Bournemouth in Gameweek 20. Given their outstanding goal scoring record, goals look possible in all of their matches, but there’d be no real surprise if we see some regression in the output from Riyad Mahrez (6.8) and Jamie Vardy (7.5). The Liverpool and City matches appear the toughest, with Chelsea also looking a tricky match-up based on their rejuvenation over the past week.
Of Leicester’s next six matches, only the encounters against Swansea and Bournemouth look strong shouts for defensive returns, despite the recent upturn in performances at the back. Everton and Liverpool are both in good scoring form, while keeping City out at the Etihad is one of the toughest tasks in the Premier League.
Stoke
The Potters have to face both Manchester clubs at the Britannia over the next six Gameweeks, while their other home fixture in the coming period sees them entertain Crystal Palace. Keeping United out is maybe a possibility, given Stoke have kept five clean sheets in their last seven matches, but defensive returns against City and Palace are unlikely. Their three away matches (whm, eve, wba) are mixed, so the chances of Jack Butland (4.8) maintaining his current form look fairly slim.
Mark Hughes’ side haven’t thrown up any genuine contenders for our front eight positions all season long, and with only the West Ham clash looking reasonable in the next six, the likes of Marko Arnautovic (6.0) and Bojan (5.1) look set to remain on the periphery of Fantasy managers’ thoughts.
West Ham
With Dimitri Payet and Diafra Sakho injured, the attacking potential of West Ham looks severely diminished. With testing match-ups against Man United and Liverpool in the next six, and only the trip to Aston Villa standing out as a favourable fixture in their other four matches (STO, swa, avl, SOT), it’s largely only the price tag of Manuel Lanzini (5.4) that is keeping the Argentine in our thoughts. Interest in any other West Ham attacking assets is set to be limited.
Slaven Bilic’s men have failed to register a clean sheet since Gameweek 5, so it’s hard to be too confident about them keeping out Southampton and Liverpool at Upton Park, while a shut-out at Old Trafford on Saturday appears unlikely. The other three fixtures are reasonable, though, so those currently holding onto a West Ham defender may choose to hold for the time being.
