Manolo Gabbiadini emerges from the bench to all but secure Southampton’s top-flight safety in a vital win at the Liberty Stadium.
Having played a single minute in the four matches prior to Double Gameweek 37, it’s fair to say that the Italian striker was far from our radars heading into last Friday’s deadline.
As expected, Gabbiadini failed to feature in the first of their two fixtures, away to Everton on Saturday evening.
But with a visit from Man City seeing out the season on Sunday, manager Mark Hughes went on the offensive midway through the second-half last night by bringing on the Italian and Shane Long.
Just four minutes after his introduction, Gabbiadini secured the points for the visitors, bundling the ball home from close-range after Charlie Austin’s effort was blocked on the line.
Owned by just 1.3%, Gabbiadini’s effort made little impact on the Fantasy Premier League (FPL) standings.
That followed the narrative from the first match of their Double, when Nathan Redmond – held by 1.8% – picked the perfect time to score his first goal of the season.
Heading into the Gameweek, Dusan Tadic was the focal point for Southampton investment on the back of three goals in three appearances.
But the Serbian international – the fourth most bought midfielder (107,000+) for Gameweek 37 – returned just two sets of three points over the pair of fixtures.
Instead, it was the Southampton backline who were the main winners, benefitting those who opted for the Bench Boost chip in the penultimate round of fixtures.
After providing the assist for Redmond last weekend, Cedric Soares led the way with a total of 11 points. Meanwhile, Alex McCarthy and Wesley Hoedt delivered ten points apiece along with winger Redmond.
Although Hughes’ men now need a monumental turnaround on Sunday to fall through the trap door, few holding Southampton’s key assets will consider fielding them against the champions on Sunday.
Swans on the verge
Up against Bournemouth and the Saints over Double Gameweek 37, Swansea looked to have the platform to scramble to safety.
As a result, Jordan Ayew was the third most bought forward ahead of last Friday – over 145,000 new owners brought in the Ghana international on the back of five goals in 14 starts under Carlos Carvalhal.
Ayew, and his team-mates, were a huge letdown for FPL managers.
Back-to-back 1-0 losses mean that Carvalhal’s side has failed to score or keep a clean sheet in each of their last four matches. Indeed, over the previous eight, they have two goals and a single shutout.
Fabianski, yet again, was their most reliable performer.
The Pole made four and seven saves respectively in his pair of fixtures to tally seven points and move to 148 points for the season – just two behind third-placed Nick Pope in the FPL goalkeeper standings.
Unlike Southampton, Swansea now have a very favourable Gameweek 38 match – a home clash with relegated Stoke – to attempt to dig themselves out of the drop zone.
Now three points behind the St Mary’s men and worse off for goal difference, they now need Saints to lose – and lose badly – on Sunday and hope they can notch a big win over the Potters. Failing that, they are relying on Huddersfield Town failing to win another point.
The Terriers need just a draw from their next two matches – away to Chelsea this evening and at home to Arsenal on Sunday – to avoid relegation.
Given they were the first side to stop Man City from scoring at home last weekend, David Wagner may well continue with his 5-3-1-1 formation to get them over the finishing line.
Certainly, a draw at Stamford Bridge tonight would be ideal for those who have already loaded up on Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang for the season finale.
The Gunners’ frontman is the number one player for transfers in this week on the back of 16 points against Burnley on Sunday. Should Huddersfield secure their safety beforehand, they can afford to play with the handbrake off in what will be Arsene Wenger’s last match in charge of the visitors.
The repercussions of last night’s result now means that West Brom are finally relegated, making their upcoming trip to Crystal Palace a dead-rubber.
Investment in Eagles’ duo Patrick van Aanholt and Wilfried Zaha is already on the rise – the pair are the most bought defender and midfielder respectively ahead of Sunday’s deadline.
6 years, 2 days agoGABBI GABBI HEY!