Having ploughed through the Fantasy Premier League (FPL) Player List over the last week or so, we now turn our attentions back to a handful of fixture rotation pairings for your perusal. After looking at Leicester and Swansea, West Brom and Aston Villa and Bournemouth and Watford, we now assess what’s on offer from Tyne-Wear duo, Newcastle and Sunderland.
THE FIXTURES
With the two teams paired for geographical reasons, Sunderland and Newcastle offer a perfect home and away rotation over the course of the season.
Bearing in mind the first of the two Wildcards can be played up to the halfway point of the season, we’re only going to be focussing on the first 19 Gameweeks. During this period, there would be only one occasion – Gameweek 7, where Newcastle host Chelsea and Sunderland travel to Man United – where you would need to face one of last season’s top four.
Aside from that, you’re left with a very solid schedule, which, when playing the fixtures – as opposed to sticking with the home side – hands you 13 home and five away matches (lei, NOR, SWA, avl, whm, WAT, WHM, NOR, NEW, STO, bou, LEI, STO, LIV, WAT, AVL, EVE, wba).
In the second half of the season, there would again be just one time when you’d face one of last year’s top four – this is in Gameweek 26, when the Black Cats host Man United and Newcastle travel to Stamford Bridge.
In terms of alternative rotation options, Sunderland alternate with Southampton for 34 of the 38 rounds of fixtures, whilst the Magpies offer a rotation option with West Ham over all but four of their fixtures. The downside here is that neither Southampton or the Hammers have any regulars in the 4.5 price bracket, meaning you’d need to fork out a little extra.
DEFENCE
Sunderland
Costel Pantilimon was undoubtedly one of the success stories in FPL last season. For goalkeepers who played at least 12 Premier League matches, the Romania international topped the charts when it came to saves per match, averaging 3.8. He also averaged 4.4 points per appearance, the highest total among regular keepers last term. The new Bonus Point System (BPS) should only boost his prospects, although his success means he will set us back 5.0 for the coming campaign.
At the back, Patrick van Aanholt has also been handed a 0.5 price rise on the back of a successful campaign, during which he registered five assists (more than any team-mate) and finished fourth among all defenders for chances created, with 35, despite only making 28 appearances.
With budgets tight at the start of the season, many will ignore Van Aanholt’s claims and turn their attention to cheaper options. New boys Younes Kaboul and Sebastian Coates both come in at 4.5 along with skipper John O’Shea and Wes Brown. Whilst the injury-prone Brown may be no more than back-up, it leaves the other three vying for two spots in the heart of defence and Fantasy managers will hope the pre-season matches provide some clues to Dick Advocaat’s likely starters before the season gets underway.
On the right side of defence, the picture is equally unclear, where new signing Adam Matthews and Billy Jones are also priced at 4.5. Matthews scored two goals and bagged 12 assists in the last couple of seasons at Parkhead and offers decent attacking potential, but Jones gained favour at the end of last season under Advocaat and could hold on to his starting berth.
Newcastle
Tim Krul is likely to remain one of the key players at St James’ Park, and despite a disappointing season on Tyneside, which saw the Magpies record just eight shut-outs, the Newcastle stopper could be a popular, coming in at 4.5. Dutch compatriot Daryl Janmaat justified his 5.0 valuation by registering a goal and eight assists last season, and given the dramatic slump in form following Alan Pardew’s departure, the right-back, who will again set us back 5.0, could perhaps do even better next time around if new manager Steve McClaren can tighten up the defence.
Fabricio Coloccini has yet to feature in pre-season due to an Achilles problem and he has been linked with a move to Palace, with former boss Alan Pardew interested in his services. Providing he stays, a price of 4.5 looks kind and with Paul Dummett similarly priced, the Argentine looks the better pick; having averaged more tackles (1.9 to 1.5), interceptions (2.2 to 1.3) and blocks (0.6 to 0.4) per match last season, he should benefit more from the changes in the BPS.
At present, though, the Magpies’ defence looks a work in progress. The likes of Mike Williamson and Massadio Haidara also come in at 4.5, whilst Steven Taylor is even cheaper at 4.0, though McClaren is expected to add to his options before the transfer window closes.
Nonetheless, once we get a better idea of the likely starters from both sides, they should offer us a decent partnership at just 9.0.
ATTACKING OPTIONS
Sunderland
Given the Black Cats only scored 31 goals last season – the joint-second worst record in the Premier League – it’s fair to say their attacking options may well be ignored by many Fantasy owners.
New signing Jeremain Lens could go some way to providing some more attacking thrust at the Stadium of Light. The Dutchman racked up 34 goals and 37 assists in 96 league appearances for PSV before moving to Dynamo Kiev a couple of summers ago and he has produced ten or more assists in four of his last five seasons. Priced at 6.5 in FPL, though, he’s far pricier than the rest of his midfield team-mates and is certainly too expensive to be considered as part of an attacking rotation.
Sebastian Larsson may have only scored three goals and laid on four assists last term, but with set-piece duties in his locker, the Sweden international, available at 5.5, should provide a fairly reliable source of attacking returns. Jordi Gomez is kinder on the budget at 5.0 and is the Black Cats’ first-choice penalty taker, though he’s yet to feature this summer after being sidelined with a knee injury at the end of 2014/15. Adam Johnson (6.0) struggled to secure starts under the former Rangers boss last term and hold little appeal right now, though Emmanuele Giaccherini has already netted twice in pre-season and, at 5.5, will be hoping to nail down a regular role.
Of the forwards, Connor Wickham is the most expensive at 6.0 in FPL, although he scored just five league goals last season. The former Ipswich striker did lead all Sunderland strikers for shots from inside the box with 47, but a goal conversion rate of just 6% may put off potential suitors. Wickham is at least the most versatile of Sunderland’s strikers and with Advocaat keen to field a 4-3-3 again, he could offer an option out wide.
Jermain Defoe showed some early promise when he first arrived on Wearside, but he only managed four goals in 17 appearances. He does come in at a more budget-friendly price of 5.5 in FPL, however, and may yet be worth considering if he nails down the lone striker role. Steven Fletcher comes in at the same price, but looks less assured of regular pitch time and has a chequered injury history, while Danny Graham did start four of Sunderland’s final five matches last season. Given his lowly 4.5 price tag, Graham will be worth monitoring through pre-season for those Fantasy managers considering a cheap third “enabler” forward to help with a 3-5-2 formation.
Newcastle
Summer signing Georginio Wijnaldum could well be the pick of the Magpies midfielders given he scored 15 goals and supplied three assists for PSV Eindhoven last season. His 7.0 price tag, however, means he isn’t a viable option for an attacking rotation pairing, and few will be willing to fork out such a price given that Newcastle scored just 40 times last term.
Moussa Sissoko and Jack Colback were the only Newcastle midfielders to score over 100 points in FPL, so it’s unlikely many of the Magpies current options will feature too highly on our shopping lists. The France international scored four goals and provided three assists, and registered 28 shots from inside the box during the previous campaign, more than Stewart Downing (26), Juan Mata (22) and Gylfi Sigurdsson (22).
Former Sunderland man Colback outscored Sissoko in FPL last season, collecting 114 points to the Frenchman’s 103. A share of set-piece duties helped Colback grab seven assists, while he also chipped in with four goals. Both players are likely to be central to McClaren’s plans, and with little to choose between the pair, Colback may be the slightly better option, given he’s priced at 5.5 to Sissoko’s 6.0. The latter may be worth the extra outlay if stationed in the attacking midfield three, though.
With Remy Cabella already looking likely to miss the start of the season, and Siem de Jong’s injury record a major deterrent, Fantasy managers will be hoping young Rolando Aarons is handed a chance to impress by his new manager. Priced at just 5.0, Aarons bagged a goal and assist in four sub appearances last time out before a series of hamstring problems put paid to his season.
Despite only making 11 starts due to injuries and suspension, Papiss Cisse still managed to find the back of the net 11 times last term. The Senegal international now sets us back 6.5 but with McClaren rolling out a 4-2-3-1 for every summer friendly so far, it remains to be seen whether he’ll remain the first choice for a lone forward role, given that Aleksandar Mitrovic is on the verge of a big-money move. The versatile Ayoze Perez (5.5) had a decent first season in England, scoring seven goals, but he may have to rely on minutes out wide as McClaren looks for a proven scorer to lead the line.
