Harry Kane continues his fine form by bagging the opener in the North London derby. Mesut Ozil earns yet another assist as Arsenal salvage a late point. City are held to a goalless draw by Villa in Remi Garde’s first match in charge, whilst goals from Yannick Bolasie and Scott Dann hand Jurgen Klopp his first loss at the Liverpool helm.
City Toil on their Travels Again
Manchester City were held to a 0-0 stalemate at Villa Park, marking the third road trip in succession that they’ve failed to record a victory. On the flip side, the Sky Blues have now earned clean sheets in all but one of their away matches this campaign, underlining the merits of investing in their rearguard. With Gael Clichy back in the matchday squad and Pablo Zabaleta nearing a return, though, Vincent Kompany could represent their only sure-fire defensive starter beyond the international break. Yesterday’s match means the league leaders have conceded just once in eight outings with the Belgian on board – he’s second only to Riyad Mahrez (7.3 to 7.9) for points per appearance this season.
Wilfried Bony’s 6% ownership were left to bemoan their bad luck when the Ivorian frontman sustained a hamstring complaint and had to be replaced in the 25th minute. Considering he’s a doubt for Man City’s home clash against Liverpool in a fortnight’s time and Manuel Pellegrini is hopeful of a return for Sergio Aguero, Bony owners will be looking for a way out.
Garde Halts Villa’s Losing Streak
Remi Garde commandeered the Villans to a hard-fought draw in his first match at the helm, securing the hosts’ first shut-out since a trip to Bournemouth in Gameweek 1 – much to the ire of the 24,000 managers that shipped out Micah Richards prior to the encounter. Although their next quartet of fixtures (eve, WAT, sou, ARS) mainly looks tough for defensive returns, yesterday’s result will certainly instill plenty of confidence around Villa Park.
Garde enacted six changes from the side that lost to Spurs last time out, benching the likes of Jack Grealish, Leandro Bacuna and Joleon Lescott. In the process of grinding out a result, Villa failed to card a single attempt on target for the first time since August 2014, illuminating their paucity of goal threat. Given that they’ve posted four blanks in their previous seven outings and will be a team in flux until Garde determines his first XI, few will be prepared to jump on board for now.
Gibbs Rescues Gunners
The North London derby ended all-square at the Emirates, with Kieran Gibbs the unlikely scorer of Arsenal’s late leveller. Mesut Ozil delivered the cross for the left-back to prod home, perpetuating his sublime run of form; the German international has notched eight assists in his last six starts, boosting his tally to 10 for the season. Alexis Sanchez looked out of rhythm and registered his third consecutive blank, which might encourage some owners to explore Ozil as a cheaper (8.8 compared to 11.6) source of Gunners coverage. Indeed, in terms of consistency, there’s no question that Ozil is the more reliable – he’s produced points in eight of his 11 league outings, whereas Sanchez has delivered in only four of his 12 appearances.
Arsenal now embark on an excellent quartet of matches (wba, nor, SUN, avl) that includes three trips away from their home turf. Considering Arsene Wenger’s men tallied 11 goals in their last trio of road ties, it’s no surprise to see that Ozil has already earned almost 40,000 new owners since the weekend, more than any midfielder in the FPL game.
Kane Nets Again
Harry Kane capitalised on some slack defending from the Gunners to open the scoring and grab his fifth goal in three league starts. Allied with his strike against Anderlecht in midweek, the Walthamstow-born marksman has clearly begun to find his groove following a lethargic start to the campaign. No forward amassed more shots on target (11) than Kane over the last four Gameweeks, providing further incentive to snap up the 9.3-priced striker ahead of a decent schedule (WHU, CHE, wba, NEW).
Danny Rose showcased his proclivity for attacking returns by recording an assist for the third Gameweek on the trot. Moreover, he now ranks top among defenders for attempts (six) across the last four Gameweeks, which suggests that his first goal of the term could be on the horizon. The presence of three home matches in the next four Gameweeks bodes well for a back line that’s conceded just four goals at White Hart Lane.
Klopp Suffers First Reds Loss
Liverpool fell to a 2-1 home defeat at the hands of Crystal Palace. After going behind early on, Philippe Coutinho restored parity for the Reds three minutes before the break, while Adam Lallana grabbed his maiden assist of the season. The former now boasts three goals in two outings and fashioned more attempts (14) than any midfielder over the last four Gameweeks. Beyond a challenging trip to Manchester City next time out, Liverpool’s schedule (SWA, new, WBA, wat, LEI, sun) provides a perfect platform for the 8.2-priced Brazilian to bolster his attacking output.
At the back, though, Liverpool are sweating on the fitness of Mamadou Sakho after the defender was forced off with a knee injury towards the end of the first=half. A possible period on the sidelines could offer the 4.9-priced Dejan Lovren a way back to the starting XI and, along with Alberto Moreno (4.8), offer Fantasy managers options in the sub-5.0 bracket.
Eagles Bask in Away Comforts
A 2-1 victory at Anfield marked Palace’s tenth road win of the calendar year – only Arsenal (11) lay claim to a superior tally. With Dwight Gayle sidelined and Connor Wickham only fit enough for a cameo role, Alan Pardew surprisingly deployed Bakary Sako and Yannick Bolasie in the central forward positions. The latter broke the deadlock after 21 minutes, netting his second goal of the campaign – indeed, Bolasie has now scored two of Palace’s last five goals and with some excellent fixtures (SUN, NEW, eve, SOU, sto, bou) to follow, he’s starting to look like a viable option at just 6.1.
Scott Dann carded his second goal in nine outings to fire the visitors back into the lead at the 82-minute mark. Palace’s defence has tightened up of late – surrendering just five goals in six outings – which draws attention to their rearguard assets. Priced at 5.1, Dann now sits fifth amongst defenders in the FPL game and, given that Joel Ward (4.4) had to settle for a bench role yesterday, the centre-half looks the most likely source of points from Pardew’s improving rearguard.
