Two of Sunday’s matches are assessed as we look back on the key Fantasy Premier League (FPL) talking points from the weekend.
It’s Sheffield United v Chelsea and Manchester United v Liverpool that we’re focusing on here.
- READ MORE: FPL Gameweek 32: Sunday’s goals, assists, bonus points + stats
- READ MORE: FPL notes: Ait-Nouri and Bowen injury latest + why Toney was benched
POCH ON GUSTO + PALMER’S FITNESS
Malo Gusto (£4.3m) was not included in Chelsea’s matchday squad to face Sheffield United on Sunday, much to the annoyance of his 10.6% ownership.
The French full-back had started and played 74 minutes v Manchester United on Thursday, but with only a few days to recover, Mauricio Pochettino opted to rest him.
“Malo has to rest. He was ill before playing two games, so he has to rest.” – Mauricio Pochettino on Malo Gusto
Cole Palmer (£6.1m) was also protected, when Pochettino chose to take him off on 74 minutes at Bramall Lane, shortly after Chelsea had gone 2-1 up.
When asked if he was injured, the Argentine said:
“No, no, no. I think he was tired. My feeling was he was tired. 2-1 for us, Carney [Chukwuemeka] is another no 10 who can play there and do the job. Yes, I think we are happy with him. We need to protect him. He got a knock against Manchester United and was a little bit more tired than normal, but we wanted to protect him after scoring the second goal. Trying to avoid a problem for the future.” – Mauricio Pochettino on Cole Palmer
PALMER CENTRAL
It was a quiet game by Palmer’s usual high standards on Sunday.
He did get the assist for Noni Madueke (£5.3m), but his 0.13 expected goal involvement (xGI) figure was his lowest since January’s trip to Anfield.
Anything to worry about? Almost certainly not, but it coincided with a tactical tweak that saw Palmer deployed centrally at Bramall Lane, in-behind Nicolas Jackson (£6.8m).
Despite Sheffield United crowding him out, he didn’t really drift to the right flank either, a surprise given how effective he has been in that position throughout the campaign.
Above: Cole Palmer’s touch heatmap v Sheffield United in Gameweek 32
CHELSEA DISAPPOINT/BLADES BETTER
Chelsea have failed to beat Sheffield United (20th), Burnley (19th) and Brentford (16th) in the last five Gameweeks, a problem Pochettino must solve with Everton (15th) up next.
The Blues had full control of this match on Sunday, but they allowed the Blades back into it and conceded a really poor goal.
From that point onwards, Chris Wilder’s troops played very well, with Gus Hamer (£4.9m) – who has now supplied either a goal or assist in four straight matches but is on nine yellow cards – and Oli McBurnie (£5.4m) on the scoresheet.
So, the long wait for Chelsea’s sixth clean sheet of the season goes on, after conceding twice at Bramall Lane.
“For different reasons, we struggle to compete in these types of games. Maybe because this group still is not mature enough to compete in every single game every three days. These games are tougher in your preparation because maybe you say Sheffield or Burnley is in the relegation zone, but we need to think a little bit. I don’t say that we are disrespectful, but we need to think how we can be different.
“It is a new team with profiles in the squad that we are learning the combinations sometimes, that is why the process to build a team always takes time. It’s not a magic thing. When we talk about projects, we are talking about three or five years. Now, even if we are taking good results in the Premier League, or we are in the semi-final of the FA Cup, because we were not in a good position from the beginning. That is affecting [our ability] to be calm and to perform in a different way.
“It is a normal process that has happened. We need to accept, working and trying to fix this type of problem. Always when the end of the season arrives, we need to analyse the squad and what we are missing and try to add people with the capacity to provide what we are seeing today, to improve in the next seasons.” – Mauricio Pochettino
UNITED’S DEFENSIVE DEFICIENCIES
Once again, Manchester United allowed the opposition far too many sights on goal on Sunday, with Liverpool into double figures for shots just past the half-hour mark.
They ended with 28 in total, the same amount Chelsea managed at Stamford Bridge on Thursday.
In fact, this was the fifth straight match United have conceded 20+ shots, a staggering statistic.
A back four of Diogo Dalot (£5.2m), Willy Kambwala (£3.9m) – making just his second league start for the Red Devils – Harry Maguire (£4.2m) and Aaron Wan-Bissaka (£4.4m) hardly inspired confidence before kick-off.
However, the ease in which Liverpool carved them open, especially in the first half, is a concern and bodes well for Dominic Solanke (£7.3m) owners ahead of Gameweek 33.
Overall, United rank 19th for shots faced and 17th for expected goals conceded (xGC) over the season, something not many would have envisioned at the start of the campaign.
In attack, they weren’t great either, failing to muster a single effort on goal in the first half, but they did at least rally after the break, with Bruno Fernandes (£8.2m) and Kobbie Mainoo (£4.4m) on the scoresheet.
The Portuguese has now produced five attacking returns and collected 40 points in his last six outings.
RASHFORD INJURED
Marcus Rashford (£8.4m) was substituted through injury around an hour into Sunday’s draw with Liverpool.
The England international pulled up and immediately signalled to the bench that he needed to come off, with Antony (£6.8m) replacing him shortly afterwards.
The specific details are as yet unknown, but Erik ten Hag did say “I don’t think it will be long term.”
United travel to Bournemouth in Gameweek 33, before facing Coventry City for a place in the FA Cup final a week later.
Meanwhile, Scott McTominay (£4.5m) was missing from the matchday squad having picked up an injury.
EIGHT POINTS FOR SALAH
Mohamed Salah (£13.4m) was wasteful in front of goal at Old Trafford on Sunday, but converted from the spot late on to notch eight points for his owners.
The Egyptian was certainly dangerous, racking up six shots in total, but many of those efforts were tame.
Luis Diaz (£7.6m) had opened the scoring midway through the first half, tapping in Darwin Nunez‘s (£7.7m) flick-on from a corner, but in truth, Liverpool should have been out of sight by half-time.
Instead, they were made to rue those missed chances and left with a point, leaving them level with leaders Arsenal on 71.
“[I am] happy with a lot of parts of the game. Being 1-0 up at Old Trafford and having a 15-0 shooting stat is incredible. It says to me immediately again there is probably something around the finishing, it was either exceptional goalkeeping – which was the case for one situation for Dom Szoboszlai, [which] was an incredible save – but besides that we should and could have been calmer and clearer in moments.” – Jurgen Klopp
As for Diaz, he is a name that stands out for Liverpool’s Double Gameweek 34.
The Colombian has delivered nine attacking returns in his last 10 matches. He has also upped his goal threat and creativity in that period, registering 44 shots (more than any other FPL player except Rodrigo Muniz) and supplying 23 key passes.
