Dugout Discussion

Jimenez, Doherty and Adama benched as Klopp keeps rotation to a minimum

The final two matches of Gameweek 20 overlap one another, with Liverpool v Wolverhampton Wanderers kicking off at 16:30 GMT and Manchester City v Sheffield getting underway at 18:00 GMT.

Despite having threatened to utilise his peripheral squad players in his pre-match press conference, Jurgen Klopp has kept the changes to a minimum for the Reds’ final match of 2019.

Klopp’s only alteration sees Adam Lallana (£5.8m) replace Naby Keita (£5.8m) in central midfield, so there are starts for popular Fantasy assets Mohamed Salah (£12.3m), Sadio Mane (£12.3m), Roberto Firmino (£9.2m), Virgil van Dijk (£6.4m), Trent Alexander-Arnold (£7.4m) and Andrew Robertson (£7.0m).

There isn’t such positive news for owners of some of Wolves’ most-owned FPL players.

Having beaten Manchester City in a five-goal thriller less than 48 hours ago, Nuno Espirito Santo has understandably freshened up his side for this trip to Anfield.

Raul Jimenez (£7.5m), Adama Traore (£5.5m), Matt Doherty (£6.1m) and Romain Saiss (£4.4m) all drop to the bench, with Pedro Neto (£5.0m), Ruben Vinagre (£4.2m), Ryan Bennett (£4.9m) and Max Kilman (£4.0m) all drafted into the starting XI.

Diogo Jota (£6.1m) keeps his place up front, however.

Adama was the fourth-most-bought FPL asset of Gameweek 20.

Salah and Mane were both among the top five most-captained players this weekend, with the Egyptian second only to Jamie Vardy (£10.1m) for armband duties among the top 10k.

Wolves are unbeaten in their last seven away league games, although Liverpool have, of course, only dropped two points all season.

The big news at the Etihad is that the most-owned ‘defender’ in FPL, John Lundstram (£5.1m), has failed a late fitness test and misses out.

Mo Besic (£4.4m) replaces Lundstram in midfield, with Lys Mousset (£4.9m) and Callum Robinson (£5.0m) getting starts up front in place of David McGoldrick (£5.4m) and Oli McBurnie (£5.7m).

The Blades are, remarkably, still unbeaten on the road this season.

All three of Pep Guardiola’s changes are made at the back.

Teenage centre-half Eric Garcia (£4.5m) replaces Nicolas Otamendi (£5.0m), while Oleksandr Zinchenko (£5.2m) is in for Benjamin Mendy (£5.5m) at left-back.

Claudio Bravo (£4.8m) starts in goal in place of the suspended Ederson (£6.0m).

It’s the same front six that started at Molineux on Friday, meanwhile, with Sergio Aguero (£11.7m) leading the line.

Gabriel Jesus (£9.5m) is back on the bench after recovering from illness.

City have scored in every match over the last 11 Gameweeks, averaging 2.27 goals per game in that time.

Kevin De Bruyne (£10.5m) is the second-most-popular captaincy option in Gameweek 20, having been handed the armband by 764,890 FPL managers.


Liverpool XI: Alisson, Alexander-Arnold, Gomez, van Dijk, Robertson, Lallana, Henderson, Wijnaldum, Salah, Firmino, Mane.

Wolves XI: Patricio, Jonny, Kilman, Coady, Dendoncker, Bennett, Neves, Moutinho, Vinagre, Jota, Neto.

Manchester City XI: Bravo, Walker, Garcia, Fernandinho, Zinchenko, Rodrigo, Bernardo, De Bruyne, Sterling, Mahrez, Aguero.

Sheffield United XI: Henderson, Baldock, Stevens, O’Connell, Basham, Egan, Besic, Norwood, Fleck, Robinson, Mousset.

3,724 Comments Post a Comment
  1. KGFC
    • 7 Years
    4 years, 3 months ago

    Any chance / possibility that VAR can be scrapped for the second half of the season? Let's try to salvage what can be!

  2. garbage1
    • 14 Years
    4 years, 3 months ago

    What garbage.

  3. SM001
    • 8 Years
    4 years, 3 months ago

    What a joke. I'm out.

  4. Slow regard for silent thin…
    • 6 Years
    4 years, 3 months ago

    Come on wolfie!! Let's go get another!! VAR can't keep you down

    1. Yank Revolution
      • 12 Years
      4 years, 3 months ago

      Now, that's the spirit!

  5. Maddamotha
    • 7 Years
    4 years, 3 months ago

    Poor Wolves

  6. Naby K8a
    • 8 Years
    4 years, 3 months ago

    Nuno and Wolves are whiny dickheads. Rules are rules

    1. Qaiss
      • 8 Years
      4 years, 3 months ago

      Rules are rules unless they affect Liverpool. What about the handball from Van Dijk?

      1. Naby K8a
        • 8 Years
        4 years, 3 months ago

        Which was reviewed and ruled not handball. Now jog on mate

        1. Qaiss
          • 8 Years
          4 years, 3 months ago

          Jog on? It was reviewed and the wrong call was made you prat. Your club are always the victims.

    2. Corgz Dark side of the Loon
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 8 Years
      4 years, 3 months ago

      If you think VAR is a good thing for the game then you clearly are not a lover of football .....the game will become sterile and men in dark rooms will remove referees. There will be no celebration just polite applause....if that's what you want go watch lawn bowls...

      1. Am sorry to say again it�…
        • Fantasy Football Scout Member
        • 5 Years
        4 years, 3 months ago

        Calm down, not all goals need VAR checks for offsides and handballs, players celebrate anyway & VAR helps correct disastrous decisions made by referees and linesmen.

  7. Liberate HK - antichinazi
    • 5 Years
    4 years, 3 months ago

    First time love VAR so much

  8. Rust Cohle
    • Fantasy Football Scout Member
    • 6 Years
    4 years, 3 months ago

    The state of refereeing in EPL is astonishingly bad.

  9. Orion
    • 13 Years
    4 years, 3 months ago

    This VAR thing is becoming a serious problem

    1. Yank Revolution
      • 12 Years
      4 years, 3 months ago

      Or is it a problem SOLVER?

  10. Jindaljain
    • 9 Years
    4 years, 3 months ago

    I have captained VAR this week

  11. Albrightondknight
    • Fantasy Football Scout Member
    • 8 Years
    4 years, 3 months ago

    Liverpool fan and that is a disgraceful decision. 2 the same yesterday these guys just don’t know the rules and are ruining the game.

  12. aborg
    • 6 Years
    4 years, 3 months ago

    Damn lucky Trent owners....that Wolves goal should have stood !

  13. Stef rocks
    • 6 Years
    4 years, 3 months ago

    Ahahahahahsha LiVARpool - what a joke

    1. Bushwhacker
      • 4 Years
      4 years, 3 months ago

      Both were right even if I disagree with the second one even as a Liverpool fan.

  14. Rainer
    • 7 Years
    4 years, 3 months ago

    Millimeter offsides & encroachments needed a new ruling!

    Offside by the law but that isn’t football.

    1. Duke Silver ☑
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 9 Years
      4 years, 3 months ago

      Go back to clear daylight between players. We'll be inundated with 0-0s soon.

    2. Baps hunter
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 6 Years
      4 years, 3 months ago

      Yes, something like goal line technology and only shoes to count imo. Or better ideas?

  15. Bushwhacker
    • 4 Years
    4 years, 3 months ago

    VAR wins. Then VAR loses.

  16. TRIPOS TOPPER
    • 6 Years
    4 years, 3 months ago

    can see a lot of rage delete teams after this game

  17. have you seen cyan
    • 4 Years
    4 years, 3 months ago

    so goal chalked off by a boot you cant even see? Makes sense like, is it a labrador making these decisions?

    1. Bushwhacker
      • 4 Years
      4 years, 3 months ago

      Boot and his arm was well over ... but this is not the game we love.

  18. Forza
    • Fantasy Football Scout Member
    • 9 Years
    4 years, 3 months ago

    If it's too close to call from dodgy angles and with dodgy framerates, the original decision should stand. It's as simple as that.

  19. Hazz
    • Fantasy Football Scout Member
    • 6 Years
    4 years, 3 months ago

    Wolves should be winning 1-0.

    1. TorresMagic™
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • Has Moderation Rights
      • 14 Years
      4 years, 3 months ago

      Mane goal was fair.

    2. Albrightondknight
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 8 Years
      4 years, 3 months ago

      No the first decision was correct it should be 1-1

  20. King Carlos
    • 9 Years
    4 years, 3 months ago

    Lets sing! F#ck VAR! OOOOH, F#CK VAR! This has become a total travesty! This is not football any longer

  21. Saïss Doesn't Mat…
    • 7 Years
    4 years, 3 months ago

    TAA owner but these VAR decisions are atrocious

  22. Hotdogs for Tea
    • 8 Years
    4 years, 3 months ago

    that is a joke, no way his big toe was ahead of the defenders knee, impossible to tell

  23. Jindaljain
    • 9 Years
    4 years, 3 months ago

    VAR= LIVERPOOL

    1. tutankamun
      • 14 Years
      4 years, 3 months ago

      LIVARPOOL

    2. Sim Simma
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 13 Years
      4 years, 3 months ago

      VAR = LIVER damage after being driven to drink due to the stupid decisi

  24. dark91
    • 8 Years
    4 years, 3 months ago

    Ok let's be realistic here. The Lallana ball was by his shoulder so should stand. But that Wolves goal was 100% legit too!!

    1. gooberman
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 12 Years
      4 years, 3 months ago

      It wasn't. Quite clear that his foot was ahead of the defender.

    2. HonestBlatter
      • 13 Years
      4 years, 3 months ago

      Give me the screenshot from drawing board

    3. Hotdogs for Tea
      • 8 Years
      4 years, 3 months ago

      VVD hand ball earlier ?

  25. gooberman
    • Fantasy Football Scout Member
    • 12 Years
    4 years, 3 months ago

    For once this season, VAR has given me something back. Have Mane (C) and double Liverpool defence.

    1. Liberate HK - antichinazi
      • 5 Years
      4 years, 3 months ago

      same

  26. Herman Toothrot
    • Fantasy Football Scout Member
    • 11 Years
    4 years, 3 months ago

    VAR won't bother contesting Traores second half brace.

    1. Top Lad Dakes.
      • 7 Years
      4 years, 3 months ago

      Jiménez’s*

  27. Collie01
    • Fantasy Football Scout Member
    • 6 Years
    4 years, 3 months ago

    That's crazy. I mean where is the common sense, that is surely not offside. VAR in these ridiculously tight calls is not suitable.

  28. Sailboats
    • 8 Years
    4 years, 3 months ago

    Wow seriously?? How is that offside? Im a TAA owner, but that goal should have stood. What a disgrace VAR is

    1. Dr Dream
      • 11 Years
      4 years, 3 months ago

      What does being a TAA owner have to do with it?

  29. Dr Dream
    • 11 Years
    4 years, 3 months ago

    Book mark it.

    VAR won’t last when fans vote with their feet...and they will.

  30. Railwayman
    • 11 Years
    4 years, 3 months ago

    Adidas sign on his boot was caught offside...

    1. how now brown cow
      • 9 Years
      4 years, 3 months ago

      Was a stray bootlace