The Digest – Gameweek 33

Harry Kane’s ruthless quest for goals, Jose Mourinho’s worrying inclination to surprise and an approaching set of fixtures that may just provide our sternest test of the season.

Here’s our three-point conclusion to Gameweek 33.

The Player

Harry Kane is now an almost irresistible force.

In a season that has seen Sergio Aguero fade to become a source of frustration, Tottenham’s top scorer is surely destined to claim the status as the primary heavy-hitting striker for seasons to come.

Romelu Lukaku still leads in the scoring charts and his tussle with Kane promises to be a fascinating struggle for the remainder of the campaign – one that could still play a major role in our remaining Gameweek tallies.

Make no mistake, Kane is motivated to retain the gong he claimed with 25 goals last term. Still targeting 30 this time around, the Spurs talisman demonstrated in the 4-0 win over Bournemouth that he can combine a selfish goal-hungry streak with the ability to play in team-mates and contribute assists.

In a Spurs side fully motivated to win each of their remaining matches, and with the weaponry and confidence to achieve that ambition, Kane’s potency cannot be questioned.

He is surely destined to be locked into our squads until the final kick. The only real question hangs over the captaincy and whether, in any given Gameweek, there is a player who can contest with Spurs and their prolific spearhead.

The Team

Spurs may well be untouchable at present, but without Manchester United’s intervention in the title race Chelsea would arguably be home and dry already.

Jose Mourinho’s side took everyone by surprise in Sunday’s win over the Blues – not least Antonio Conte.

And yet we should have known to back the United manager to go to great lengths against Conte and his league leaders.

There is clearly no love lost between the two managers, with Mourinho taking great pleasure in achieving victory having seen his side dismantled 4-0 at Stamford Bridge earlier in the season.

A new gameplan involving the omission of Zlatan Ibrahimovic in favour of the mobility of Marcus Rashford and Jesse Lingard proved decisive.

For us Fantasy managers, it introduces a new and unwelcome variable to the approaching Double Gameweek puzzle.

Ibrahimovic was for so long an assured acquisition and captain for Gameweek 34. Now he presents us with a degree of concern, given United’s relentless schedule and Rashford’s convincing audition for the striker’s role.

Thursday’s Europa League tie with Anderlecht is now the vital cog in United’s end of season plan – and our own scheming.

If the European adventure continues, the chances of Ibrahimovic providing us with three successive Gameweek starts against Burnley, Man City and Swansea City prior to a UEFA semi-final will surely be radically reduced.

The Talking Point

The Ibrahimovic dilemma remains central to our considerations for the Double Gameweek 34 – a set of fixtures that present us with one of the biggest challenges of 2016/17.

We are well aware of the impact that Double Gameweeks can have on our seasons but, as raised in last night’s intense ScoutCast, there are many who look on this forthcoming scenario as a daunting prospect.

The United striker is unquestionably a stand-out option, but perhaps only if he can be acquired without the loss of points or significant assets elsewhere.

Absorbing points hits in order to obtain a key asset in a Double Gameweek is often acceptable, but only if the player(s) brought in offer some assurances that they will reward us.

When we’re removing the likes of Gylfi Sigurdsson and Alexis Sanchez – pivotal figures with home fixtures and high goal involvement for their respective sides – in order to manufacture the arrival of Ibrahimovic, the hit becomes less palatable.

The likes of Wilfried Zaha, Andros Townsend and Christian Benteke – for all their flair and convincing statistics – are unpredictable and undeniably frustrating assets.

Equally, Middlesbrough, now plunged into desperate times, can no longer offer us security at the back and remain a struggling force in attacking terms.

Couple that with United and their punishing schedule and a manager who, only on Sunday, demonstrated his ability to shock, and Gameweek 34 presents a heady mix of uncertainty.