Arnautovic blanks as Brighton get first clean sheet of 2018/19

Just under a fifth of Fantasy managers put their faith in Marko Arnautovic for Gameweek 8 only to be disappointed.

It was the West Ham striker’s first blank away from home since the opening day of the season, despite plenty of opportunities falling his way against Brighton.

Meanwhile, there was a first clean sheet of the campaign for the Seagulls.

We’ve got all the Fantasy talking points from their 1-0 win on Friday night in this latest Scout Notes article.

Brighton 1-0 West Ham

Goals: Glenn Murray (£6.5m)

Assists: Beram Kayal (£4.4m)

Brighton’s talismanic striker Glenn Murray (£6.5m) was the difference as the Seagulls beat West Ham on Friday night. The 35-year-old has now scored four home goals this season, with no Premier League player able to boast more at time of writing. Manchester City’s Sergio Aguero (£11.4m) is currently level with Murray, who had four shots against West Ham.

However, a switch to the Brighton man is not necessarily the best option, looking at his upcoming schedule. Three of his next four matches are away from home, where Murray has found the net just once in 2018/19. Furthermore, the only match at the Amex Stadium in that run is against a Wolves side that ranks top of the league for big chances allowed away from home.

Midfielder Beram Kayal (£4.4m) continued to benefit from the absence of Dale Stephens (£4.4m). It was his third start in a row in place of the injured Stephens, and he provided the assist for Murray’s first-half close-range tap-in. However, he is another budget option to probably avoid looking ahead. Stephens is a clear favourite in the middle of the park and is reportedly closing in on a return to the side. That said, Davy Pröpper (£4.9m) was taken off with a knock in the second half potentially leaving the door open for Kayal starts, depending on the extent of the injury.

“I have felt I probably need a run of games, but every child when he is dreaming is dreaming to play in these games.” – Beram Kayal

Manager Chris Hughton lined his Brighton side up in the usual 4-4-1-1 formation but afforded Solly March (£5.0m) are more advanced role just behind Murray, compared to his usual left-midfield berth. That spot was occupied by Iranian international Alireza Jahanbakhsh (£6.8m).

Anthony Knockaert (£5.5m) performed admirably in his latest audition for Fantasy inclusion. The appealing nature of Brighton’s upcoming fixtures means the Frenchman is now the radars of some managers. Once again, he was the chief creator for Brighton, producing three key passes in the game. With Pascal Groß (£6.7m) still sidelined, Knockaert remains on set-pieces too.

The 1-0 win over West Ham meant that Brighton finally registered their first clean sheet of the season, at the eighth time of asking. It is likely that the Seagulls benefitted from the experience of right-back Bruno (£4.4m) who made his first appearance since Gameweek 1 in the Friday night encounter. Martín Montoya (£4.5m) had been filling in for him since he was taken off injured against Watford on opening weekend. He did not feature at the Amex Stadium. Meanwhile, Bruno earned praise from his manager and an FPL bonus point for his efforts.

“It’s difficult to get the right combination at the back. I thought we needed Bruno’s composure in the end. We know what we get from them, they are as brave as each other and they throw their bodies on the line. It’s a massive win for us.” – Chris Hughton

The clean sheet was good news for Mat Ryan (£4.5m), who made four saves in the match. The addition of his two bonus points ensured he matched Murray’s match-score of nine.

Shane Duffy (£4.5m) was the only Brighton defender to earn fewer than six points for the shut-out, earning a booking for a rash challenge on Marko Arnautovic (£7.0m). The centre-back has now picked up a yellow card in each of his last two matches but has averaged 5.25 points in the last four Gameweeks.

While Murray was scoring his sixth Premier League goal against West Ham, Marko Arnautovic blanked away from home for the first time since a Gameweek 1 trip to Liverpool. 260,000+ managers signed the Austrian forward ahead of Gameweek 8 but earned just one point for their efforts.

Arnautovic had more shots on goal than any other player in the game and still could not find a breakthrough. He registered the same number of goal attempts (five) at Brighton as he had managed in the three appearances prior to Friday night. However, only one of them was on target, a fine volley struck at goal, following a well-worked Felipe Anderson (£6.8m) corner.

Arnautovic’s performance was a laborious one, with him regularly dropping deep to create opportunities. Despite registering more touches in the penalty box than any other player on the pitch, these were often with his back to goal. It was frustration at this that saw him lash out and earn a yellow card in the second half. Manager Manuel Pellegrini played down any suggestions that he was carrying a knock in his post-match comments.

“Marko Arnautovic was not injured. He was able to play without any problem.” – Manuel Pellegrini

It was clear that Arnautovic needed more creativity behind him to free him up from having to take the responsibility upon himself. Accordingly, Pellegrini ditched his 4-3-3 formation in the 59th minute when he brought Michail Antonio (£6.8m) on for Pedro Obiang (£4.4m).

This allowed him to operate a 4-2-3-1 system, with Antonio and Andriy Yarmolenko (£6.8m) out wide and Anderson tucking in behind Arnautovic and assuming his creative duties. Lucas Pérez (£6.3m) was soon introduced for Yarmolenko. The changes breathed some new life into West Ham’s play as Arnautovic was given slightly more licence to lead the line. The Hammers did finish with a higher shot count (17 to 9), but could not make that count.

Anderson remained on set-pieces for the match but disappointed with a number of his corners and free-kicks. In the second half, Robert Snodgrass (£5.4m) and Arnautovic became the candidates for direct free-kicks, with the latter blazing over a late effort.

Promising recent defensive displays against Chelsea and Manchester United appear to have been a false dawn for West Ham. They averaged half as many big chances allowed at Brighton compared to their two previous matches and were still breached. Pellegrini had insisted beating the Red Devils in Gameweek 7 was not as much of a turning point as some had suggested. It looks as if he may have been right.

“Before this game, I said it was not a turning point that we beat Man Utd, every game is difficult. We must continue working the same way as the way we played the last 45 minutes was more what we wanted.” – Manuel Pellegrini

BRIGHTON AND HOVE ALBION XI (4-4-1-1): Ryan; Bong, Dunk, Duffy, Bruno; Jahanbakhsh, Propper (Bissouma 80′), Kayal (Izquierdo 70′), Knockaert; March (Locadia 86′); Murray

WEST HAM UNITED XI (4-3-3): Fabianski; Masuaku, Diop, Balbuena, Zabaleta; Noble (Snodgrass 83′), Obiang (Antonio 59′), Rice; Anderson, Arnautovic, Yarmolenko (Pérez 68′).

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