Jamie Vardy’s studs preserves the sanity of Fantasy Football managers as the striker’s touch leads to a dramatic late Leicester winner. Elsewhere, Chelsea’s revival continues at pace as they breach Southampton’s cast-iron defence, while Marko Arnautovic boosts his stock with a two-goal salvo to see off a doomed Aston Villa. Here are the notes from Saturday’s matches…
Foxes Leave it Late to Pounce
Courtesy of Leonardo Ulloa’s late strike, Leicester City extended their lead at the summit to five points.
Jamie Vardy earned a fortunate assist for the goal – much to the relief of 30% of Fantasy managers who handed him the Fantasy Premier League (FPL) captain’s armband – via the merest of touches on a Marc Albrighton cross.
Vardy was relatively quiet at the King Power Stadium, while Riyad Mahrez failed to register a solitary accurate attempt. Regardless, the Foxes duo harbour the potential to deliver strong returns during a mouth-watering run through to Gameweek 31 (WBA, wat, NEW, cry).
Leicester’s defence continues to go from strength to strength having earned their fifth consecutive clean sheet at the King Power stadium.
Christian Fuchs was the main benefactor, earning the maximum bonus from the victory. This is the third occasion that the Austrian has fetched the maximum and means that he’s gained bonus point in six of his last nine league starts. With 15 bonus points all season, only three defenders – Charlie Daniels, Ashley Williams and Bacary Sagna – have earned more (17).
Tweaked Canaries Denied
Norwich rest just above the relegation berths in the wake of their sixth defeat in seven outings.
With Seb Bassong and Wes Hoolahan suffering training ground injuries, Alex Neil set up his side in a new 3-4-3 formation, recalling Ryan Bennett to a back three and Ivo Pinto at right wing-back.
Whilst Neil witnessed a defiant defensive display, the Canaries posed little threat on the attacking front, recording just one accurate attempt en route to their third blank in four fixtures. They’ve now scored just a single goal in their last five away trips and have failed to earn a clean sheet on their travels in 14 attempts.
Norwich clash with Chelsea, Swansea and Manchester City over the next three Gameweeks, with the trip to south Wales looking vital to their chances of scrambling free of the relegation spots.
Antonio Strike Proves Decisive
Michail Antonio netted his second goal in four starts as West Ham United secured a hard-fought 1-0 victory over Sunderland.
The former Nottingham Forest winger is now under increasing pressure for pitch-time from Victor Moses and Manuel Lanzini but retained his berth in a 4-2-3-1 set-up.
Antonio has now registered goals or assists in seven of his last ten league starts – a hugely impressive level of returns for a 5.3-priced asset. However, his ownership remains low (2.4%) due to the irresistible allure of Dimitri Payet and the reluctance to double up on West Ham’s midfield assets.
In addition, the Hammers now embark on three challenging encounters (TOT, eve, blank, che) including a Gameweek 30 blank which will act as a major obstacle to investment.
It should also be noted that, with Sam Byram picking up his tenth booking of the season in Saturday’s clash, he will now face a two-match ban and miss the Spurs and Everton league encounters. That could see Antonio shifted to right-back should James Tomkins and Joey O’Brien fail to return to contention.
At the back, Slaven Bilic’s side kept a second consecutive clean sheet and have now conceded just four goals in their last eight home matches in all competitions, earning five shut-outs in the process.
Lively Black Cats Draw A Blank
Sunderland remain rooted in the relegation zone following their defeat in east London. Nonetheless, the Black Cats more than held their own, mustering four more attempts (13 to nine) and one more shot on target (four to three) than their hosts.
Looking beyond their blank in Gameweek 30, Sam Allardyce’s troops enjoy a favourable quartet of fixtures (new, WBA, LEI, nor) that could provide a platform for the likes of Wahbi Khazri and Jermain Defoe to flourish as differentials.
Ivanovic Clinches Precious Chelsea Win
Chelsea emerged as 2-1 victors over Southampton at St Mary’s Stadium, marking the first time this term that they’ve posted successive league wins this season.
Cesc Fabregas and Branislav Ivanovic etched their names onto the scoreboard, with the latter claiming his second goal since the appointment of Guus Hiddink.
Pitched at 6.6, the Serbian represents an appealing selection ahead of a promising schedule (nor, STO, blank, WHU, avl, swa), although the Blues’ blank in Gameweek 30 will doubtless deter investment. It should also be noted that Hiddink’s men have kept just two clean sheets in their last seven league outings.
Diego Costa and Willian both registered assists as they continued to tick along as Chelsea’s prime attacking attractions. Costa (10.7) has now produced attacking returns (four goals, three assists) in five of his previous six starts but is two yellows away from incurring a two-match ban following his booking on the south coast.
Willian (7.1) remains the choice option, then, with four goals and nine assists to his name, although even in the mid-price, he has strong competition, with the likes of Dele Alli, Ross Barkley and Marko Arnautovic established as stronger and more explosive alternatives in the same bracket.
On the injury front, Pedro was replaced at the seven-minute mark because of a hamstring problem and is expected to miss Chelsea’s next two league fixtures (nor, STO), potentially paving the way for Oscar to return to the starting XI.
Forster Breached as Saints Slip
Shane Long netted for the second consecutive Gameweek as Southampton’s six-match unbeaten streak came to an end. The impish marksman partnered Charlie Austin – who was afforded his maiden league start for Saints – up top, with Ronald Koeman opting for a 5-3-2 set-up once again.
Long later succumbed to a hamstring injury and was substituted in the 69th minute, possibly clearing the way for Sadio Mane to stake a claim for a recall to the side.
Although Southampton surrendered two goals to a resurgent Chelsea, we should remain confident in their clean-sheet prospects ahead of an agreeable trio of match-ups (bou SUN sto). Vigil van Dijk (5.5) and Matt Targett (3.9) stand out as the key assets and doubling on the Saints’ rearguard remains a viable option.
Arnautovic Inspires Potters Victory
Marko Arnautovic justified his Scout Picks selection by registering a brace in a 2-1 home win over Aston Villa, reaffirming his value in the mid-priced bracket ahead of a home encounter against Newcastle United.
In the absence of Bojan Krkic – who only entered the fray in the 71st minute – Arnautovic stepped up to score his first of the afternoon from the penalty spot – perhaps convincing Mark Hughes to amend his spot-kick hierarchy.
Arnautovic now has nine league goals over the season and has either scored or assisted 52% of Stoke City’s goals whilst on the pitch.
Goal-Shy Watford Held
Watford edged closer towards guaranteed survival following their goalless stalemate against Bournemouth.
Although the Hornets mustered their second clean sheet in as many home ties, the appeal of their budget defenders is limited by a testing schedule (mun, LEI, blank, STO, ars) and blank in Gameweek 30.
By that same token, Odion Ighalo’s 35% ownership will be keen to reinvest their funds following his seventh blank in eight starts.
Although they missed chances on the day, the Hornets have now blanked in five of their last seven. This appears to indicate that Quique Sanchez Flores’ outfit are intent on grinding out the required points to guarantee top-flight safety rather than gamble on goals and wins.
Cherries Take A Point
Bournemouth have now tasted defeat just once in their previous eight road clashes following the Vicarage Road stalemate. With trips to Newcastle and Aston Villa on the horizon, their success away from the south coast is certainly food for thought.
The Cherries suffered an injury setback just 23 minutes into the head-to-head, with Junior Stanislas picking up a hamstring complaint. That being said, his withdrawal did allow Max Gradel to clock 68 minutes on his return from a lengthy layoff – the jet-heeled Ivorian earned three assists in two starts before damaging his knee ligaments and can now be acquired for just 5.7.
Charlie Daniels was again amongst the points in Eddie Howe’s rearguard. The left-back has proved a canny acquisition of late, supplementing his potential from the penalty spot with assists and ample bonus returns. His brace of bonus meant that he has earned extra points in four of the last six and took him to 17 for the campaign – no defender has earned more.
Baggies Cut Loose
West Bromwich Albion scored more than two goals for the first time this season as they edged past Crystal Palace 3-2 at The Hawthorns.
Craig Gardner, Craig Dawson and Saido Berahino found the back of the net, while Gardner, Stephane Sessegnon and Salomon Rondon supplied the ammunition.
Rondon (two goals and one assist in three) and Dawson (one goal and two clean sheets in five) are worth keeping tabs on for non-owners, yet the Baggies’ trio of upcoming fixtures (lei, MUN, ars) curtails their short-term prospects.
It wasn’t all good news for Tony Pulis’ troops, considering that Chris Brunt was stretchered off with what appears to be a serious knee injury.
Too Little Too Late for Struggling Eagles
Connor Wickham grabbed a brace to offer Palace the hope of an unlikely comeback from a three-goal deficit, while Damien Delaney tallied his second assist in three outings.
Yannick Bolasie wasn’t deemed fit enough to start but replaced Emmanuel Adebayor at the break, immediately pepping up the Eagles attack.
Bolasie will surely start Tuesday’s visit to Sunderland as the DR Congo international returns to the ground where he notched an 11-minute hat-trick last season. It remains to be seen what that means for Adebayor’s prospects given Wickham’s performance.
Alarm bells are certainly ringing for Alan Pardew, who has now witnessed his defence concede in eight consecutive league outings, shipping 19 goals in the process.
Scott Dann (5.9) has temporarily staved off FPL sales by virtue of back-to-back goals in Gameweeks 23 and 24 but would seem likely to suffer losses and a future price drop should Palace’s defensive form fail to improve.
