Scout Notes

Owners of Everton and Palace assets at ‘form versus fixtures’ crossroads

Everton 3-1 Crystal Palace

  • Goals: Bernard (£6.4m), Richarlison (£8.1m), Dominic Calvert-Lewin (£6.1m) | Christian Benteke (£5.7m)
  • Assists: Theo Walcott (£6.2m), Calvert-Lewin, Richarlison | Wilfried Zaha (£6.8m)
  • Bonus: Richarlison x3, Calvert-Lewin x2, Benteke, Bernard x1

Everton and Crystal Palace are heading in opposite directions on the Season Ticker, with the Toffees rock-bottom over the next four Gameweeks and Roy Hodgson’s side loitering somewhere near the top.

On current form, however, the tables are turned.

The blue half of Merseyside have lost only once (to Manchester City) since Carlo Ancelotti first took charge on Boxing Day and now sit seventh in the Premier League following Saturday’s 3-1 win over the Eagles.

Palace are plummeting south, meanwhile, and have won only one of their last 11 league games.

For a side supposedly built on a solid defence, they are in dire shape.

No other Premier League is on a barren run as long as Palace’s in terms of clean sheets, with Vicente Guaita (£5.0m) without a shut-out to his name in two months.

Given their well-documented struggle for goals at the other end of the pitch, the question has to be asked as to just what they have to offer Fantasy managers despite the upcoming favourable run of games (Newcastle and Watford at home, Brighton and Bournemouth away).

Martin Kelly (£4.3m), Palace’s most-owned Fantasy Premier League asset by some distance, had lost his place at right-back even before he picked up the calf injury that ruled him out of Gameweek 26, while the Eagles’ defence may have been further weakened on Saturday by the loss of James Tomkins (£5.0m) to injury.

Roy Hodgson said of his centre-half after full-time:

He’ll have to have a scan. He’s definitely got a hamstring problem, there’s no doubt about that, and unfortunately, they normally take weeks rather than days. I’m not expecting good news but we won’t know until the scan how bad the news is. Of course, it’s a shame to lose him.

The defenders that do remain hardly covered themselves in glory on Merseyside although Palace were in this match for long periods, despite what the scoreline suggests.

The Goodison Park faithful were getting tetchy midway through the game as the visitors got on top, with the mood not helped when Christian Benteke (£5.7m) fired the Eagles level shortly after the break.

The Belgian striker is far from clinical in front of goal and his levelling strike should have been easily stopped by Jordan Pickford (£5.3m) but Benteke built on a promising comeback game against Sheffield United with another busy display on Saturday, turning Patrick van Aanholt‘s (£5.5m) corner onto the bar on 56 minutes, forcing Pickford into an excellent point-blank save soon after, and firing wide when well-placed late on.

Benteke’s return to the first-team fold has come at the expense of Jordan Ayew‘s (£5.0m) goal threat, with the Ghanaian striker farmed out to the right flank, although it’ll be interesting to see which front three Hodgson opts for once Andros Townsend (£5.6m) is fully back up to speed.

Van Aanholt had himself struck the upright early in the game and, reflecting on the game, Hodgson said:

I thought we played well for large parts of the game. Not right at the start or the late stage. For 20/25 minutes in the first half, there was not much going on at all for either side, although they’d scored. At the end of that half, the last 20 minutes of that half, we started to play much better, pass the ball better and started to look like we might score a goal.

At half-time, I encouraged the players to do what they’d been doing maybe even a bit more for the start of the second half. When we got the equaliser, I thought it was a fair result, a fair reflection on how we played. The second goal, when we were pushing ourselves, came from a poor pass which was intercepted and all of a sudden you’ve got Richarlison, who’s obviously in very good form at the moment, making that incredible run scoring that fantastic goal.

That puts us on the back foot but we had two very good chances to equalise and the goalkeeper had to make a wonder save. The third goal was when we made a lot of changes in the hope of pulling out an equaliser right at the end and that seals the game. It was a 2-1 defeat more than a 3-1 defeat. But it’s a defeat which hurts us badly because i didn’t think that the performance necessarily merited it.

Everton weren’t great, it has to be said, but then Fantasy assets don’t have to be, so long as they are regularly racking up the points.

In Dominic Calvert-Lewin (£6.1m) and Richarlison (£8.1m), Everton possess two in-form players in attack who are thriving under Ancelotti.

Calvert-Lewin’s flick set Richarlison on his way to restore the Toffees’ lead at 2-1 before the mid-price FPL forward got on the scoresheet himself late on, tapping in when the Brazilian’s header had looped against the bar.

Their double-digit hauls could have been even greater had Calvert-Lewin converted a close-range rebound in stoppage time when Guaita had pushed Richarlison’s drive into his path.

Ancelotti said of the Brazil international after full-time:

We have to thank Richarlison because he scored a fantastic goal on the counter-attack. That was the key point and, after, our control of the game was good. It was an outstanding counter-attack, he is a fantastic player, really young and really important for us. It was an outstanding goal.

Richarlison can also play on the left but we don’t have to give him a lot of defensive work. He has to be fresh when we have the ball, he can play right and left, but without thinking too much about defensive work.

Richarlison and Calvert-Lewin are averaging a very healthy 6.83 and 5.88 points per match respectively under Ancelotti and their owners will perhaps be in a quandary, with Everton facing an off-putting run of fixtures that includes seven of the top ten in Gameweeks 27-35.

Are any of those opponents – bar Liverpool – infallible, though? The Gunners, Manchester United and Chelsea, who Everton face next, are certainly not the watertight forces of yesteryear.

The same could be said of Everton’s clean sheet prospects in Gameweeks 27 and 28, with Mikel Arteta’s side hardly racking up the goals of late and the Red Devils struggling without the talismanic Marcus Rashford (£8.9m).

The Toffees’ slightly ropey performance at the back on Saturday might convince owners of Everton defensive assets to sell, however, with only a Pickford wonder save and the woodwork coming between the Eagles and more goals at Goodison.

It’s now just one clean sheet in seven for Everton, too, despite the likes of Palace, Watford, West Ham and Newcastle (twice) providing favourable opposition in that time.

Added to this is rotation risk.

Two of Everton’s most-popular defenders among active FPL teams, Mason Holgate (£4.5m) and Djibril Sidibe (£5.3m), began this one on the bench, with both emerging as substitutes. Sidibe was in fact thrown on early enough to be eligible for clean sheet points, only for Palace and Pickford to ruin that prospect.

Ancelotti had previously made noises about rotating his centre-halves and, when asked about his latest team selection, said:

We need more of everything. More quality, more intensity, more pressure, more concentration. It’s not easy to pick the line-up but I want everyone to be involved and the players accept my decisions.

The Toffees’ head coach added that Theo Walcott (£6.2m), who crossed for Bernard (£6.4m) to volley in Everton’s superb opener, will have a scan on an apparently minor knee injury that forced the winger off after just 25 minutes on Saturday.

Everton XI (4-4-2): Pickford; Coleman, Keane, Mina, Digne; Walcott (Sidibe 26′), Schneiderlin, Sigurdsson (Holgate 86′), Bernard (Davies 65′); Richarlison, Calvert-Lewin.

Crystal Palace XI (4-5-1): Guiata; Ward (Kouyate 79′), Tomkins (Dann 61′), Cahill, van Aanholt; Ayew, McArthur, Milivojevic, McCarthy (Meyer 68′), Zaha; Benteke.

Members Analysis

1,102 Comments Post a Comment
  1. Maximus Bonimus Pointimus
    • 14 Years
    4 years, 1 month ago

    Lundstram first sub

    This would be a lovely day for him to win back his place (not literally, it's invisible not a lovely day at all)

    Come on Chrissy Wilder, do us a favour bud

    1. FOO FIGHTER
      • 4 Years
      4 years, 1 month ago

      I have Dunk as my first sub to come on for KDB bit have Henderson in goal. Hoping for a double digit haul if SHU game goes ahead 😀

    2. DaisyDaisyDaisyDaisy
      • 10 Years
      4 years, 1 month ago

      Conditions may suit him

  2. Team Cruel
    • Fantasy Football Scout Member
    • 8 Years
    4 years, 1 month ago

    This storm is a real waste. Why couldn't it have arrived during the festive games or any other GW which doesn't last 2 weeks? Now they'll just play it next weekend (or most likely the following midweek) and it will remain in the same GW. Casuals off the hook yet again

    1. It’s gonna Ben Mee
      • 10 Years
      4 years, 1 month ago

      Yup

      https://www.livefpl.net/top10k

      Kun(c) could have been an excellent opportunity to climb the OR. The amount of luck these non-owners have is very annoying.

    2. thegaffer82
      • 12 Years
      4 years, 1 month ago

      Not necessarily the case.

      What if GMP say there's not enough time to arrange Policing for next week. Also what if City or WHam refuse to give up their (part of the) winter break to train and play a match

      1. Team Cruel
        • Fantasy Football Scout Member
        • 8 Years
        4 years, 1 month ago

        Wednesday 19th is 10 days away. That's the same time you get to arrange policing if you need a replay in the fa cup. That would also mean City and West Ham have had 2.5 weeks off since their last game

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

    Cheers Claire, Kev‘s crying

  4. Syd.
    • 14 Years
    4 years, 1 month ago

    The joys of taking a winter break in the winter 😆 😆

  5. Fpl Richie
    • Fantasy Football Scout Member
    • 8 Years
    4 years, 1 month ago

    Woe is me.
    Auba to kun (c) for a hit. Nobody else in my ML's had Kun. What a complete twonk!

    1. Champions League Varane
      • 5 Years
      4 years, 1 month ago

      I did the very same!

      Auba will haul now 🙁

      1. Fpl Richie
        • Fantasy Football Scout Member
        • 8 Years
        4 years, 1 month ago

        It was a massive risk obviously. Feels really dumb.

  6. davies
    • 9 Years
    4 years, 1 month ago

    What an absolute waste of a wildcard...

    Season over.

    1. Niho992
      • 5 Years
      4 years, 1 month ago

      Me too

  7. Luton_Fan
    • 14 Years
    4 years, 1 month ago

    Game should be rescheduled for tuesday night. Would be most logical, so both teams can have their winter break albeit slightly shortened

    1. Champions League Varane
      • 5 Years
      4 years, 1 month ago

      This but I’m not sure that it is this easy..!

    2. Sun Jihai
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 12 Years
      4 years, 1 month ago

      But all the players will have booked their holidays
      So maybe if it's on Tuesday the Man City U23s play instead

    3. thegaffer82
      • 12 Years
      4 years, 1 month ago

      And the Police? Match Stewards? Security staff? TV crews & pundits? WHam fans travelling up from London? The club officials? The staff who man the bars/restaurants/VIP lounges?

      Honestly can't see it all getting sorted for Tuesday. Next weekend perhaps if WHam and City agree to give up their winter break

  8. HollywoodXI
    • 9 Years
    4 years, 1 month ago

    Kun captain this week. This was my chance to make up serious ground on ML rivals (all of whom had ignored Kun and captained Salah). Of course the game is postponed.

  9. Rash
    • 6 Years
    4 years, 1 month ago

    Kdb mahrez for me so have dunk and Hayden coming in *sigh*

  10. Fpl Richie
    • Fantasy Football Scout Member
    • 8 Years
    4 years, 1 month ago

    How long do you think it takes to decide on when this will be rearranged?

    1. thegaffer82
      • 12 Years
      4 years, 1 month ago

      This is the million dollar question!

  11. Woy_is_back
    • 6 Years
    4 years, 1 month ago

    So Lundy and Rico on for KDB and Mahrez R I fekkin P

  12. camarozz
    • Fantasy Football Scout Member
    • 9 Years
    4 years, 1 month ago

    Any idea when game will be played?? Nxt wk end maybe??

  13. Syd.
    • 14 Years
    4 years, 1 month ago

    And who says there is no luck in FPL

    1. Colonel Shoe 肝池
      • 12 Years
      4 years, 1 month ago

      people who dont understand fpl

    2. Twisted Saltergater
      • 14 Years
      4 years, 1 month ago

      Not the EO of DCL in the top 10k is less than his actual ownership. It means some very jammy DCL points off the bench.

      1. Twisted Saltergater
        • 14 Years
        4 years, 1 month ago

        *Note

    3. Pumpkinhead - I'm ITK …
      • 14 Years
      4 years, 1 month ago

      People who are having lucky season mainly

  14. Hitmonlee
    • Fantasy Football Scout Member
    • 5 Years
    4 years, 1 month ago

    Does this mean that City will be postponed to another game week? Or playing this game week later on?

    1. Luton_Fan
      • 14 Years
      4 years, 1 month ago

      Both are a possibility but personally think it will be in another gw

      1. Hitmonlee
        • Fantasy Football Scout Member
        • 5 Years
        4 years, 1 month ago

        Hopefully as I’ve Doucoure as first sub and Salah vice. So no Biggy! Lol

    2. FOO FIGHTER
      • 4 Years
      4 years, 1 month ago

      It is time to plan for triple City in perhaps a triple GW?

      Feel sorry for those who took hits to get City assets in...

  15. Bury94
    • Fantasy Football Scout Member
    • 6 Years
    4 years, 1 month ago

    Rico off the bench, with double Sheff Utd defence. Gonna be watching this game hoping for the most boring game of football in history

    1. el polako
      • 6 Years
      4 years, 1 month ago

      Thats was Everton - Arsenal.

  16. DaisyDaisyDaisyDaisy
    • 10 Years
    4 years, 1 month ago

    Going to be very unlucky for some people today. While there is always going to be luck in the game I think there should be some way of people getting a set amount of say 3 points if you don’t get bench cover for a player in this event.

    1. el polako
      • 6 Years
      4 years, 1 month ago

      I TC'd Sane last year and Mane this year.
      Want to talk about luck ?

    2. thegaffer82
      • 12 Years
      4 years, 1 month ago

      That would be farcical to just give 3 points.

      I remember the GW when about 6 matches were called off at short notice several seasons ago. I ended up with about 4 players playing that week.

      Just got top accept it's part and parcel of the game and move on

      1. DaisyDaisyDaisyDaisy
        • 10 Years
        4 years, 1 month ago

        So you would prefer zero to 3 or whatever the number thought reasonable

  17. diesel001
    • 7 Years
    4 years, 1 month ago

    Per the PL Handbook

    https://www.premierleague.com/publications

    L.14 Upon a League Match being postponed or abandoned in accordance with Rules L.12.1, L.12.2, L.12.3, or L.12.4 the Home Club shall forthwith inform the Board, and the Board will thereupon exercise its power under Rule L.1.2 and fix a date and kick-off time of the re-arranged League Match.

    L.1. The Board shall:
    L.1.1. determine the dates and kick-off times of all League Matches as soon as practicable prior to the commencement of each Season; and
    L.1.2. have the power at any time thereafter to change the date and kick-off time of a League Match, and before exercising such power the Board will consult with and take into account any representations made by the Clubs participating in the League Match in question and any other Club or Clubs which may be affected thereby.

  18. TyroneGAA
    • 6 Years
    4 years, 1 month ago

    Can everyone just start posting comments like ‘aguero goal’ or ‘pen to city’ and I’ll look at the comments feed and pretend everything is ok and I don’t have 3 city players not playing this game week.. thanks x

    1. bitm2007
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 9 Years
      4 years, 1 month ago

      pen to city, scored by Aguero

    2. DF
      • 10 Years
      4 years, 1 month ago

      The last thing you want as an aguero owner is someone shouting city pen. You'll have kittens twice

  19. Niho992
    • 5 Years
    4 years, 1 month ago

    City will have break anyway in Premier league. Liverpool is 22 points ahead of them

  20. Tsparkes10
    • 5 Years
    4 years, 1 month ago

    https://twitter.com/AlanBiggs1/status/1226462002266009600?s=19

    Can't decide whether I want to fly or run to the match today

  21. lindeg
    • 5 Years
    4 years, 1 month ago

    why wouldnt they just postpone the game to next weekend?

    1. Luton_Fan
      • 14 Years
      4 years, 1 month ago

      Both teams wouldnt have a winter break.

      1. lindeg
        • 5 Years
        4 years, 1 month ago

        alright fair point, but when are we looking at then?

      2. lindeg
        • 5 Years
        4 years, 1 month ago

        i somehow have doucoures 9 pointer coming on, so not really bothered

  22. Fpl Richie
    • Fantasy Football Scout Member
    • 8 Years
    4 years, 1 month ago

    I'd feel a whole lot better if Sheffield game was off. Those holding double SU def could really hit big this week against city owners

  23. Whats the Huth
    • 8 Years
    4 years, 1 month ago

    Fernandez and Rico comes in for me

    1. 1zverGGadeM
      • 6 Years
      4 years, 1 month ago

      Moutinho and Rico

  24. goriuanx
    • 13 Years
    4 years, 1 month ago

    The total disregard for fan safety is surprising.

    FPL is just a game guys, as is football.

    1. Forza
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 9 Years
      4 years, 1 month ago

      Reported for being a casual.

      1. Pumpkinhead - I'm ITK …
        • 14 Years
        4 years, 1 month ago

        Maybe he's a non Aguero owner

    2. It’s gonna Ben Mee
      • 10 Years
      4 years, 1 month ago

      Turns out you can think it was the correct decision to postpone the game AND be very annoyed by the game being postponed at the same time.

    3. Woy_is_back
      • 6 Years
      4 years, 1 month ago

      Come on, westerners have become so soft and scared of everything. Its quite sad tbh

    4. Pumpkinhead - I'm ITK …
      • 14 Years
      4 years, 1 month ago

      Not according to Bill Shankley.

    5. The 12th Man
      • 10 Years
      4 years, 1 month ago

      Yep. Safety first.
      Anyway we have another DGW fixture now.

  25. g40steve
    • 6 Years
    4 years, 1 month ago

    So no Mahrez or KDB C for me, luckily took VC off Mahrez & placed on Salah.

    So Maddison & Salah C for me.

    Any triple City owners?

    1. TyroneGAA
      • 6 Years
      4 years, 1 month ago

      Mendy kdb aguero cap

      Luckily I saved a load of money for a great bench .. not

  26. Halftime
    • Fantasy Football Scout Member
    • 12 Years
    4 years, 1 month ago

    Incredible good luck, I played Richarlison and benched Calvert Lewin since I thought Palace wouldn't consider much. With Aguero out he is back in!

    1. el polako
      • 6 Years
      4 years, 1 month ago

      Benched DCL at home against Palace ?
      I would keep it to myself.

      1. Halftime
        • Fantasy Football Scout Member
        • 12 Years
        4 years, 1 month ago

        It was either him or Martial, yeah bad decision in hindsight.

    2. lindeg
      • 5 Years
      4 years, 1 month ago

      dcl bench at home *facepalm*, did you keep pope for the last 3 games aswell?

  27. RAFA THE GAFFA
    • 7 Years
    4 years, 1 month ago

    Rico Soy Greenwood for Mahrez De Bruyne and Aguero! Wow!!

    1. tisza
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 9 Years
      4 years, 1 month ago

      Defender, mid, forward for 2 mids and a forward 🙂

      1. RAFA THE GAFFA
        • 7 Years
        4 years, 1 month ago

        I don’t know what this means? Haha

  28. FOO FIGHTER
    • 4 Years
    4 years, 1 month ago

    My advice, hold of on hits or FT's until this GW has ended 😉

    Having your WC intact right now is gold...

    1. The 12th Man
      • 10 Years
      4 years, 1 month ago

      My WC was blown away in the wind.

      1. FOO FIGHTER
        • 4 Years
        4 years, 1 month ago

        Mine too lol.

  29. Niho992
    • 5 Years
    4 years, 1 month ago

    Where tf is Ben Crelin when you need him

    1. badgerboy
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 8 Years
      4 years, 1 month ago

      Ready and waiting to take advantage of the chaos.

    2. The 12th Man
      • 10 Years
      4 years, 1 month ago

      Probably out walking the Northumberland coastline.

  30. Colonel Shoe 肝池
    • 12 Years
    4 years, 1 month ago

    really hope city plays next w/e