Salah and Mané both score as Liverpool defensive issues continue

Both Liverpool and Chelsea won their respective Champions League matches on Wednesday night.

As per usual, these midweek forays allowed us to analyse team selection and form ahead of the next round of Fantasy Premier League action.

We’ve got all the FPL talking points for Liverpool and Chelsea in the build-up to Gameweek 10 in this article…

Genk 1 Liverpool 4

Goals: Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain x2 (£6.2m), Sadio Mané (£11.8m), Mohamed Salah (£12.4m)

Assists: Fabinho (£5.5m), Roberto Firmino (£9.6m), Salah, Mané

Two goals from Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain (£6.2m) helped Liverpool to a routine Champions League win that could have been anything but if their hosts had not been so wasteful in attack.

The fit-again midfielder opened the scoring with a low, slightly deflected, shot from the edge of the area after he was played in by the industrious Fabinho (£5.5m).

He then doubled the advantage with a sublime first-time flick with the outside of his boot that went in off the bar.

That goal, set up by the excellent Roberto Firmino (£9.6m), effectively killed off the tie, but Liverpool’s defence had been consistently stretched by Genk’s quick counters in between Oxlade-Chamberlain’s brace.

Reds goalkeeper Alisson (£5.8m) was left horribly exposed on more than one occasion by a backline that allowed a lot of space in behind, particularly down the flanks, with full-backs Andrew Robertson (£6.9m) and James Milner (£5.3m) pushed far up the pitch for much of the match.

A late consolation for the hosts made it four games in all competitions without a clean sheet for Jurgen Klopp’s men, two of those occurring after Alisson’s return from injury. A rejuvenated Tottenham might be rather more ruthless than Genk in Gameweek 10’s clash at Anfield, especially if the defence is as patched-up as it was in Belgium.

Milner was preferred ahead of Joe Gomez (£5.2m) as cover for the ill Trent Alexander-Arnold (£7.2m), while Joel Matip‘s (£5.5m) knee injury meant a start for Dejan Lovren (£5.3m) at centre-half.

Things seemed to have taken a further turn for the worse when Robertson was replaced by Gomez midway through the second half. That would have set the alarm bells ringing for the 19.6% of Fantasy Premier League (FPL) managers who own the Scot, but Klopp’s post-match comments should ease their pain.

“Andy is OK. We got the message on Tuesday morning that Trent was ill overnight so we wanted to change as little as possible. Millie then, in the way we wanted to play, was the clear number one solution for that moment.” – Jurgen Klopp

“Joe did really well. He looked confident, looked clear, it was good.” – Jurgen Klopp

With the German also confident Matip’s injury is not a major one, the Reds’ backline could be at full-strength again for the Spurs match.

Oxlade-Chamberlain’s display caught the eye as goals from central midfield have been a rarity this season.

Adam Lallana‘s (£5.8m) equaliser at Manchester United on Sunday was just the second goal managed from the centre of the park in the league this season, with the combined output of Georginio Wijnaldum (£5.4m), Jordan Henderson (£5.4m) and Fabinho accounting for the other one.

That could lead to more starts for the ex-Arsenal man in the weeks ahead, but Fantasy interest remains rooted in the side’s attacking midfielders Sadio Mané (£11.8m) and Mohamed Salah (£12.4m).\

Both scored, and assisted each other, in Belgium, with Mané lively throughout and Salah rather more sluggish after recovering from the ankle issue that kept him out of the United match.

And while their interplay was not always up to scratch, there was enough evidence to suggest the pair could cause Tottenham’s defence plenty of issues at the weekend.

Mané is currently one of the top five for Gameweek 10 transfers in, whereas Salah is third among those being sold. That could prove to be a hasty move should the Egyptian build on his solid, if unspectacular, return last night.

If Klopp is bold, Oxlade-Chamberlain could add to the team’s threat against Spurs, marking the 0.3%-owned asset as a differential option.

But the manager was qualified in his praise for the Englishman’s performance in Belgium.

“An absolutely great moment for him, but Ox’s performance was, I would say, exactly like the performance of the team: the goals were great but all the rest could have been better.” – Jurgen Klopp

More likely is that the rested Henderson and Wijnaldum, who replaced Oxlade-Chamberlain after 73 minutes last night, will return on Sunday.

That should keep things tight in the centre of the park, but the Reds’ continuing frailty at the back means that Alexander-Arnold’s 30.3% ownership might need attacking returns for him to haul.

Liverpool: Alisson, Milner, Lovren, van Dijk, Robertson (Gomez 63), Keita, Fabinho, Oxlade-Chamberlain (Wijnaldum 73), Salah, Firmino (Origi 80), Mané.

Subs: Wijnaldum, Gomez, Adrian, Henderson, Lallana, Brewster, Origi.

Ajax 0 Chelsea 1

Goals: Michy Batshuayi (£6.6m)

Assists: Christian Pulisic (£7.1m)

Michy Batshuayi (£6.6m) came off the bench to score a late winner at Ajax on a glorious night for Chelsea.

Frank Lampard’s young side produced a European masterclass of which Jose Mourinho in his pomp would have been proud.

They defended with real resolve, keeping last season’s Champions League semi-finalists to just two shots all night, and the Londoners grew into the game as a counter-attacking force.

Tammy Abraham (£7.8m) blanked for the second match running in all competitions, but he played the lone striker role with commitment and skill and his 45% FPL ownership should have few worries that last night’s goalscorer will be replacing him for Saturday evening’s trip to Burnley.

That certainly seems to be the verdict of most Fantasy managers as Abraham is one of Gameweek 10’s most popular acquisitions.

Batshuayi won the match when he lashed home fellow substitute Christian Pulisic‘s (£7.1m) cut-back, and he really should have scored before that when he blasted over, unmarked, from just eight yards out.

But of the two subs, it was the American who made a stronger case for a starting berth at the weekend.

Pulisic has impressed from the bench for the last three matches, with Lampard now enjoying an abundance of choice among his wide men.

Callum Hudson-Odoi (£6.0m) made his third straight start in Amsterdam and the young English winger looked lively throughout. Given the Chelsea manager’s liking for blooding youngsters, it could be Willian (£7.0m) who makes way should Pulisic get the nod at Turf Moor.

Whatever attacking combination Lampard goes for at the weekend, his defensive set-up is beginning to look like the real deal.

It took the Blues seven matches to keep a clean sheet in the league, but they’ve now managed three in the last four domestic and European games.

Key to that has been the emergence of Fikayo Tomori (£4.8m), who has formed an excellent partnership with fellow budget centre-half Kurt Zouma (£4.7m).

The duo repelled nearly everything that Ajax could throw at them last night, although Chelsea had to rely on the tightest of VAR offside rulings to deny the Dutch a first-half goal and they were saved by the post when an Edson Alvarez header beat keeper Kepa Arrizabalaga (£5.5m) all ends up.

But the back four, completed by Cesar Azpilicueta (£5.9m) and Marcos Alonso (£6.2m), are turning into a formidable unit that could prosper from an attractive run of fixtures.

A Gameweek 13 trip to Manchester City aside, Chelsea’s next eight matches offer the prospect of some solid defensive returns and, arguably, only Alonso’s place looks at risk from rotation at the moment, with Emerson (£5.5m) providing Lampard with another option at left-back.

The side might not be quite as settled further up the pitch, however.

Mason Mount (£6.8m) started yet again in midfield and although he was in and out of the game against Ajax, he did force a smart save from home keeper Andre Onana in the first half.

He looks nailed-on to continue as a starter, leaving one of Willian and Hudson-Odoi potentially at risk from the strong showings of Pulisic.

The Englishman’s fine recent form – he has produced an assist for three straight Gameweeks – might save him, although Willian is not exactly shirking either as he has a goal and an assist from his last three starts.

That all adds up to the cliched ‘nice problem to have’ for Lampard and a watching brief for Fantasy managers, with Pulisic’s 3.0% ownership actually making him the most popular of the three despite his lack of game-time.

The manager was certainly not giving much away post-match.

“You have to give Christian huge credit because he looked so lively when he came on and the assist is just as important as the finish. I understand his quality, his young age and the fact it’s a big move for him. He wants to know what I want from him, what the Premier League is like and that’s not always an easy ride but we’ve stayed calm and kept looking at the big picture.” – Frank Lampard

Until that picture is resolved, managers might be wiser to look at investing in the Chelsea defence, with the centre-halves cheap and decidedly cheerful and Alonso a riskier, pricier, but potentially more dynamic option for those with the cash to splash.

Chelsea: Arrizabalaga, Azpilicueta, Tomori, Zouma, Alonso, Jorginho, Kovacic, Hudson-Odoi (James 90), Mount, Willian (Pulisic 66), Abraham (Batshuayi 71).

Subs: Caballero, Giroud, Pulisic, Batshuayi, James, Emerson Palmieri, Gilmour.