After looking at the sides with the kindest upcoming schedules over the next four-to-six Gameweeks, we now turn our attention to the teams who look destinted for a challenging start to 2017.
There looks to be no light at the end of the tunnel for both Swansea City and Hull City, while Chelsea’s stiffening schedule should test Antonio Conte’s side at both ends of the pitch.
Swansea City
(BOU, cpl, ARS, liv, SOT, mci)
The Swans have lurched into another crisis, with the 4-1 defeat to West Ham United bringing an end to Bob Bradley’s brief reign in charge.
While in the short-term, matches against Bournemouth, and to a lesser extent Crystal Palace, mean Gylfi Sigurdsson may earn a stay of execution in many Fantasy Premier League (FPL) squads, the Iceland international looks set to attract plenty of sales in the near future.
Goals look set to be hard to come by against Liverpool, given that the Reds have allowed fewer shots from inside the box (12) than any other side over the last four matches, while Manchester City have kept clean sheets in two of their last three.
Arsenal and Southampton also represent testing opposition, so Swans’ attackers look to hold very little appeal after the Bournemouth match.
The outlook is even gloomier at the other end of the pitch, given that Palace were able to breach the Swansea defence four times last month, leaving perhaps only the Bournemouth match as a realistic chance of a clean sheet in the next six.
Even that appears unlikely in the current predicament, while Arsenal, Liverpool and City all have to be fancied to run riot against a Swans backline that has conceded more goals (41) than any other side.
Jordi Amat, who is current owned by 13% of FPL managers, also lost his place in the starting XI on Boxing Day, but his price tag means many may be happy to keep him on the bench until the opportunity arises to move him on.
Chelsea
(STO, tot, lei, HUL, liv, ARS)
It’s been plain sailing for Antonio Conte’s side over the past few months, but trips to White Hart Lane and Anfield, along with a home clash against Arsenal, mean we should perhaps be a little wary of our Chelsea assets over the coming spell.
Spurs and Liverpool have conceded just two and three goals respectively over the past four matches, so Chelsea’s profits in attack face a decline.
Arsenal should be boosted by the return to fitness of Shkodran Mustafi by the time the two teams meet in Gameweek 24, making that another difficult fixture, although the home encounters against Stoke City and Hull City are hugely favourable.
Owning one of Eden Hazard or Diego Costa should continue to pay dividends, then, but loading up on the Blues attack may not pay off over the coming weeks.
Doubling up has also been a viable option in defence of late, but Spurs and Liverpool are the two highest scoring teams over the last four matches with 10 goals apiece, while Arsenal have netted in every away match since the goalless draw against Leicester City in Gameweek 2.
Once the Stoke tie is out of the way, then, there may only be the need to own one Chelsea defender, with Marcos Alonso remaining the star attraction due to his attacking threat from left wing-back.
Hull City
(EVE, wba, BOU, che, mun, LIV)
The Tigers face three very difficult away trips and also host both Merseyside clubs over the next six Gameweeks.
Hull defenders look to have very little realistic chance of mustering any defensive returns, then, with only the Bournemouth clash in Gameweek 21 offering a glimmer of hope in that regard.
Everton do sit in the bottom half for total goal attempts over the last four matches, with 39, but given that they’ve created seven big chances over the same period, it’s likely they’ll be able to find the back of the net in Friday’s Gameweek 19 opener.
Tigers defenders should remain an afterthought for Fantasy managers, then.
Robert Snodgrass has been a viable option for parts of this season, but the midfielder looks to offer little appeal over the coming stretch.
Goals appear unlikely against both Chelsea and Liverpool in particular, with the Blues having kept four consecutive cleans sheets, while the Reds, as already mentioned, are limiting teams to very few goal attempts.
Manchester United are also shining in that regard of late, while Everton and West Brom appear unlikely to concede more than once against Mike Phelan’s men.
Bournemouth have conceded nine goals in their last four matches, but that one decent match-up doesn’t look enough to warrant keeping faith in Snodgrass, who is currently sitting in 5.2% of FPL squads.
Also be wary of…
Liverpool
Jurgen Klopp’s men face three of the current top six (MCI, mun, CHE) over the coming period, denting the appeal of Reds players, although they also face the current bottom three (sun, SWA, hul) over the next six Gameweeks.
Those three plum fixtures should ensure the need for at least one Reds midfielder in our 15-man squads, but choosing the right one will be crucial given that the next six fixtures don’t appear to warrant big investment.
The Liverpool rearguard continues to impress in a lot of defensive statistics, but with clean sheet points only appearing likely in three matches, there should be stronger alternatives for the upcoming period.
Dejan Lovren does offer solid value at 5.0 in FPL, though, given his added goal threat, having already scored twice this season.
Burnley
Once Saturday’s plum home tie with Sunderland has passed, the fixture list (mci, SOT, ars, LEI, wat) isn’t too promising for the Clarets.
Trips to the Etihad and the Emirates may see Sean Dyche’s side leak a few goals, and although they are strong defensively at home, clashes against Southampton and Leicester look far from straightforward.
Tom Heaton should continue to offer excellent value due to his save points alone, but the upside of all Burnley defenders appears somewhat limited over the coming period.
City, Southampton and Arsenal all boast fairly strong defences, so Clarets attackers, as has been the case for the majority of the season, appear unlikely to break onto the radar.
West Ham United
The Hammers face a mixed upcoming schedule, with three difficult encounters (MUN, MCI, sot) combined with three kinder match-ups (lei, CPL, mid).
Given that Slaven Bilic’s side only mustered two goals in home matches against Burnley and Hull City, it’s difficult to see them scoring many against United and City, while Middlesbrough are also hard to break down at the Riverside.
The likes of Dimitri Payet, Michail Antonio and Andy Carroll don’t appear likely to muster many double-digit hauls, then, with perhaps stronger options available in their respective price brackets.
Defensive returns could be on the cards against Palace, Saints and ‘Boro, but unless you currently own a West Ham defender, now doesn’t look the time to invest given those two home fixtures against the Manchester clubs.
