We round up the key Fantasy Premier League (FPL) talking points of the day in FPL Daily, a series that services weekdays where there is no press conference round-up or Premier League match.
The big news of Wednesday from a Fantasy perspective, of course, was the confirmation of a Double Gameweek 36 for Manchester City and Wolverhampton Wanderers – and you can read all about that here.
RUDIGER AND JAMES BACK IN TRAINING
Antonio Rudiger (£6.1m) and Reece James (£6.4m) could belatedly play a part in Chelsea’s Double Gameweek 34 after the pair returned to training ahead of Thursday’s trip to Old Trafford.
The defensive duo’s fitness was discussed by Thomas Tuchel in his pre-match press conference:
“Kova will still be out, Ben Chilwell will be out, and Callum [Hudson-Odoi] will still be out.
“Toni Rudiger was in training yesterday, the same for Reece James. Hopefully, they can do the full training [today] and give us a green light. We have hopes they can be in the squad and play tomorrow. It’s the same for Andreas [Christensen]. We will need another examination because he felt sick. He will come back to the training ground today.
“Ross Barkley is sick as well and will not be in the squad.” – Thomas Tuchel
JAMES: CENTRE-HALF OR WING-BACK?
The appeal of James in FPL largely stems from his attacking output from wing-back but more recently we have seen the England international deployed at centre-half, a tactical switch that Tuchel said was partly due to a role in a back three being “less physically demanding”.
His “best” position was something Tuchel addressed today in his pre-match presser – and the Chelsea boss hinted at more run-outs at centre-back to come:
“I would love to have two of Reece James so the problem would be solved.
“It’s like maybe 55% towards wing-back, 45% towards the back three. It depends a little bit also how the opponent plays against us. Do we expect a lot of possession? How is their structure for the offensive transition? For this, it can sometimes be very helpful for us if Reece plays in the back three, to be the first guy to cover in the transition and be not involved in the attack, so we have his speed and physicality and the protection from the opponents’ counter-attacks.
“I’m leaning a bit more into that his very best position is the wing-back position when he can be more decisive, more useful, but it’s more demanding. The next step is to be a regular player over 55, 60 matches. From there we have to decide, but both positions are filled with top quality with him.” – Thomas Tuchel on Reece James
UNITED INJURY CRISIS
Chelsea may be getting bodies back for their Gameweek 34 clash with Manchester United but the Red Devils’ fitness situation has got even worse, with Harry Maguire (£5.4m) and Jadon Sancho (£8.9m) joining the pre-injured quartet on the sidelines for Thursday’s match.
Aaron Wan-Bissaka (£5.1m) is also a doubt with an unspecified issue.
“We have quite a few players missing tomorrow, and one or two still with question marks, so we will have to wait and see until tomorrow to see if, for example, Aaron Wan-Bissaka can be available.
“[Cavani] should be back in training on Friday, so the day after the Chelsea game. According to the team doctor, he will be back in training, and then we will have to see. He has been out for quite some time now, but according to our team doctor he should be back in training on Friday.
“Fred is unfortunately not yet available. He tried to train yesterday but after training, I had a long conversation with him and he just told me that he doesn’t feel fully fit, he’s not at 100%, and with a player like Fred who’s always committed to give his very best, I don’t think it makes sense with the muscular injury that he had, to play him too early, because that would mean that we take the risk of a re-injury and this is something that I don’t want to do. So he won’t be available unfortunately tomorrow.
“And apart from that, we have Harry Maguire, who is not available tomorrow, he has some issues with his knee, not a big thing, some niggle in his knee. He hasn’t been training neither yesterday or today. Paul [Pogba] obviously, Fred, Edinson, Luke Shaw and Jadon [Sancho] – Jadon is ill, he has tonsillitis since yesterday, couldn’t train today and will also be not available tomorrow.” – Ralf Rangnick
LIVERPOOL UCL REACTION
Liverpool are halfway to the UEFA Champions League final after a 2-0 win over Villarreal.
But the margin of lead is still narrow enough to necessitate a strong line-up being named in the return leg next Tuesday; any dreams of Jurgen Klopp replicating the resting of his magnificent seven in the quarter-finals against Benfica look likely to be unrealised.
From an FPL perspective, owners of Joel Matip (£5.1m) and Diogo Jota (£8.3m) were perhaps the big winners from Wednesday’s win at Anfield because their chosen assets were named among the substitutes – and so they surely stand a great chance of starting at Newcastle on Saturday. This is a recurring theme regarding Matip, who has started the last 18 Premier League matches that he has been available for but who hasn’t featured in a single FA Cup game all season, while starting only two of the Reds’ last six Champions League ties.
Mohamed Salah (£13.3m) was the only member of Liverpool’s front three who was given the full 90 minutes.
VARDY IN LEICESTER SQUAD
Jamie Vardy (£10.3m) looks set for more game-time ahead of Leicester’s back-to-back Double Gameweeks after Brendan Rodgers confirmed that the veteran striker would be in the squad to face Roma on Thursday.
The Foxes’ injury crisis is abating all over the park, giving Rodgers more options with which to rotate in between the forthcoming, two-legged Europa Conference League tie.
Boubakary Soumaré‘s (£4.8m) availability is one to note, too, as the Leicester boss has recently said that a dearth of alternative options in the middle of the park has contributed to Kieran Dewsbury-Hall’s (£4.4m) copious game-time.
“Thankfully the injury list is right down. There’s nothing new to add. Boubakary Soumaré will come back into the squad. It’s only Wilf [Ndidi] and Ryan Bertrand that are the two long-term ones. Eldin [Jakupovic] is out as well, but apart from that, we’ve virtually got everyone ready.
“[Vardy] will be in the squad. It’s the emotion of everyone. It’s important our pressing and aggression is there from the top of the field. Whoever that is, they will play an important role in that. It’s that mix of emotion in the game and the quality too.
“I’m not so sure [he could play 90 minutes].
“Clearly, he’s a top player. He has that street-wise element to his game, that cuteness in the game, and of course his experience. That’s a big plus for us.” – Brendan Rodgers
WEST HAM CENTRE-HALF LATEST
West Ham’s crisis at centre-half will be being keenly viewed by owners of Arsenal assets ahead of the two clubs’ meeting on Sunday.
Angelo Ogbonna (£4.9m), Kurt Zouma (£5.4m) and Issa Diop (£4.2m) are all currently sidelined with significant injuries, while Craig Dawson (£4.9m) is suspended for Gameweek 35.
Ahead of the Europa League semi-final against Eintracht Frankfurt, David Moyes revealed positive updates on that injured trio but admitted that they were all still some time away from a playing comeback.
“We’ve got most people who were available at the weekend available again. We’ve got some people making good recoveries but we don’t know if they’re going to be ready.
“I wouldn’t rush anybody back. We could do with some central defenders getting fit, that’s for sure, but unfortunately that’s the way it’s been.
“Ogbonna is back – when I say back, back into the building this week. I’d be amazed if he played before the end of season. Kurt is back doing some leg work and is ahead of schedule. Issa is doing quite well as well. We just feel a little bit better than we first hoped.” – David Moyes
LIVRAMENTO OUT UNTIL 2023
One of the FPL success stories of 2021/22 has ended on a sour note, as was feared after media reports yesterday.
Tino Livramento‘s (£4.3m) season is not only over but so too is his calendar year, as Southampton confirmed on Wednesday that the knee injury he sustained in Sunday’s draw against Brighton and Hove Albion was a serious one.
Saints said in a press release that “although there is no definitive timescale on his return, it is likely he will be unavailable for the remainder of 2022”.
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