Dugout Discussion

Salah and Jota start together as Klopp benches Mané against Aston Villa

Mohamed Salah (£12.5m) and Diogo Jota (£7.0m) start together for Liverpool as they host Aston Villa in Gameweek 31.

The two players contributed to the Reds’ impressive finish against Arsenal in Gameweek 30 and were both inside the top-five most-bought players for the most recent round of action.

Sadio Mané (£11.8m) is the man to make way this afternoon, dropping to the bench for the second time in four Premier League matches.

That means Jota starts on the left-hand side of Liverpool’s front-three, spearheaded by Roberto Firmino (£9.0m).

Curtis Jones (£4.4m) misses out as a precaution which means Georginio Wijnaldum (£5.3m), James Milner (£5.3m) and Fabinho (£5.4m) are the midfield trio today.

Nathaniel Phillips‘ (£4.1m) stock remains high, earning his fifth Premier League start from a possible six alongside Ozan Kabak (£5.0m).

There is also plenty of revived interest in Trent Alexander-Arnold (£7.4m) this afternoon.

Having produced 33 points across his last five matches, the Liverpool right-back was purchased by 190,000+ managers ahead of the Gameweek 31, the most new owners for any defender this week.

Meanwhile, Aston Villa are still without Jack Grealish (£7.5m) who recently suffered a setback on his return from a shin injury.

Bertrand Traoré (£5.9m) and Trézéguet (£5.2m) provide the width either side of Ollie Watkins (£6.5m) while Marvelous Nakamba (£4.3m) and Douglas Luiz (£4.8m) both feature in midfield with John McGinn (£5.5m).

Gameweek 31 Line-ups

Liverpool XI (4-3-3): Alisson; Robertson, Kabak, N Phillips, Alexander-Arnold; Wijnaldum, Milner, Fabinho; Jota, Firmino, Salah.

Aston Villa XI (4-2-3-1): Martínez; Targett, Mings, Konsa, Cash; D Luiz, Nakamba; Trézéguet, McGinn, B Traoré; Watkins.

Gameweek 31 so far…

Fantasy Premier League managers who swerved from their Leeds assets found their Gameweek 31 win at Manchester City hard to watch.

Stuart Dallas (£5.1m) was the second-most benched player for the latest round of action but bagged a brace at the Etihad Stadium.

To add insult to that decision, Patrick Bamford (£6.6m), the third-most sold Fantasy asset ahead of Gameweek 31, provided the assist for his opener.

From a Manchester City perspective, this match was all about Pep Guardiola once again.

Kevin De Bruyne (£12.0m), Rúben Dias (£6.2m) and Riyad Mahrez (£8.2m) were all unused substitutes while Ilkay Gündogan (£6.0m) and Phil Foden (£6.0m) both emerged from the bench for one-point cameos.

Ferran Torres (£6.9m) and Bernardo Silva (£7.4m) got the only attacking returns of the afternoon.

Provisional bonus points

  • 3 – Stuart Dallas
  • 2 – Bernardo Silva
  • 1 – Oleksandr Zinchenko

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1,221 Comments Post a Comment
  1. Top Lad Dakes.
    • 7 Years
    3 years, 1 month ago

    Imagine trying to be different in this game, going without a guy with 1G in 6 games (but still maintaining a plan to bring him in soon), and it all goes to crap

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

      Cheers Mo!

    2. Salah’s Sonnet
      • 12 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      The game is a lottery week in week out, 100% luck through and through 🙂

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

        Pretty much at this point

  2. Says
    • 13 Years
    3 years, 1 month ago

    Can someone explain the point of the sports bras players are wearing?

    1. Fred54
      • 9 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      They have tracking and medical sensors.

      1. Says
        • 13 Years
        3 years, 1 month ago

        ah cool, didn't know

    2. fusen
      • 12 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      they have GPS trackers in them

    3. FCSB
      • 8 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      Men’s football should have the same rights as womens!

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

      It stops their nipples from being offside.

    5. St Pauli Walnuts
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 5 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      Luke Shaw has a massive rack, got to keep those bad boys in check.

  3. REDMOND IN SANDALS
    • 3 Years
    3 years, 1 month ago

    watkins assist and 3 bonus wasted

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

    People gearing up to see if Mendy, Alonso, Rudiger, Azpi and Mount start

  5. Random Name
    • 8 Years
    3 years, 1 month ago

    Nowhere

    To

    Hide

    1. Hazz
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 6 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      Lacazette owners?

    2. Says
      • 13 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      Mowhere

    3. Salah’s Sonnet
      • 12 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      Absolutely mowhere

    4. Gudjohnsen
      • 7 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      Salah brace?

      1. Salah’s Sonnet
        • 12 Years
        3 years, 1 month ago

        Just one goal so far

    5. MrZ
      • 9 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      No need

      To

      Hide

    6. Pukki Blinders
      • 4 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      Careful you might wind up some delicate people on here saying that

  6. hueycho
    • 5 Years
    3 years, 1 month ago

    Pool should get a new keeper, actually just get martinez

  7. Isca Extremadura
    • Fantasy Football Scout Member
    • 10 Years
    3 years, 1 month ago

    Absolutely spot on, fantastic 1st season in Premership,
    Exceptionally hard working since a teenager and deserves his success
    He will only get better and better...
    I first watched him as a 13 year old at the famed Exeter Academy
    Just laugh at the morons who abuse him who know FA about football !

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

      Raphina? Dallas?

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

    So Jota island Trent are trash picks after all then?

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

      and* whoops. May as well stick them on an island somewhere though, not getting any points as is

    2. TAT
      • 6 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      I'm likely to ditch TAA, even though I just got him. This team can't keep a CS.

      1. JBG
        • 6 Years
        3 years, 1 month ago

        I found it really weird that people jumped on TAA again.. Liverpool are not good defensively.

        1. TAT
          • 6 Years
          3 years, 1 month ago

          Didn't even want to bring him in really. It was purely fear of missing out…

        2. ReindeerHotdog
          • 3 Years
          3 years, 1 month ago

          The hivemind is easily influenced after just a game or two.

          Never understood how people allow others to so easily change their mind/influence them because of a single result/performance.

          Madness.

  9. Bushwhacker
    • 4 Years
    3 years, 1 month ago

    Milner booked for a tackle. New one.

    1. Guru Mediation
      • 8 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      Mental

  10. Drop Dead Tsimikas
    • 12 Years
    3 years, 1 month ago

    Urge to rage-quit rising.

    Areola losing a CS with less than a minute to go
    Stones starting, Dallas third on bench
    Jota (c)
    Watkins second on bench

  11. FPL Daniel
    • 14 Years
    3 years, 1 month ago

    Salaaaaah juhuuuuuu get in il capitanoooooi

    1. Gudjohnsen
      • 7 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      Brace?

      1. Nanoelektronicar
        • 9 Years
        3 years, 1 month ago

        That's why I hate posts like this, 20 minutes after return.

      2. Eh, just one more thing ...
        • 12 Years
        3 years, 1 month ago

        I must have missed something ... I assumed a second goal or just some late celebrations?

        1. MrZ
          • 9 Years
          3 years, 1 month ago

          Probably a slow internet connection

    2. FPL Daniel
      • 14 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      Only 1. I am late

  12. BIG BOY BRUNO
    • 7 Years
    3 years, 1 month ago

    Salah EO in top 10k?

    1. Guru Mediation
      • 8 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      106%

    2. Revival
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 11 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      106%

      1. BIG BOY BRUNO
        • 7 Years
        3 years, 1 month ago

        Blimey, not good. Shocked it’s so high, really am

  13. BIG BOY BRUNO
    • 7 Years
    3 years, 1 month ago

    Another Martinez save

  14. 272MK
    • 10 Years
    3 years, 1 month ago

    I dunno if I want to get Salah back again in the coming gws. All the time I hung on to him was because I kept reading about how good his statistics was, yet for some reason look at his past 16gw.

    1 double digit score

    1. Revival
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 11 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      You will need a big sofa if you going without Salah at home to Newcastle in GW33. Everyone will surely captain a Liverpool player with Spurs and City blanks.

    2. ReindeerHotdog
      • 3 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      He's scored 18 goals from 68 shots.

      Out of the 35 players to have had 45 or more shots, only Son has a better goal conversion rate (31.17% to 26.47%).

      Biggest part of Salah's game that is letting him down this season is his assists.

      Saying that, only Kane and Fernandes have more FPL points than him. He's a not even a million more expensive than either of them.

      Considering how poor Liverpool have been of late, I'd say he's doing pretty well and remains a decent option.

  15. Esalman
    • 14 Years
    3 years, 1 month ago

    Need a hattrick from Jota to climb back inside 200k

    1. Scots Gooner
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 7 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      Same here. Was 100k 4 weeks ago.

    2. Random Name
      • 8 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      About as likely as a Martinez hat trick

  16. Flair
    • 3 Years
    3 years, 1 month ago

    Phillips with just as many key passes as TAA. Also 3.3M less 😉

    1. Hazz
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 6 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      Glad I didn't jump on Trent this week. Think I'll just get Philips as an enabler.

      1. Flair
        • 3 Years
        3 years, 1 month ago

        Always wary of jumping on to expensive assets showing flashes of brightness after they've been crap the entire season - could be a trap as they revert to form. Now Leeds (A) next... happy to have the benchable Phillips for 3.3M less.

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

    Please get sent off or mildly injured Salah

    1. Radzio
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 4 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      You seriously wish a player injury because you dont own him...?

      Simply idiotic

  18. Party time
      3 years, 1 month ago

      Clowns brought in Jota to cover Salah

      1. pingissimus
        • 5 Years
        3 years, 1 month ago

        Clever people bought Jota last week

        1. MrZ
          • 9 Years
          3 years, 1 month ago

          Not after IB. Benched too

          1. pingissimus
            • 5 Years
            3 years, 1 month ago

            🙂

            He's my lucky charm. Got him in last season about the same time for an immediate brace.

        2. Party time
            3 years, 1 month ago

            🙂

        3. MrZ
          • 9 Years
          3 years, 1 month ago

          Salah cover jota in previous weeks

          1. Party time
              3 years, 1 month ago

              😆

              Fair enough

        4. WVA
          • 7 Years
          3 years, 1 month ago

          My WC players,

          Neto 1 and injured
          TAA 2
          Jota 2
          Sterling captain 4

          Players I sold

          Watkins
          Bamford
          Salah
          Dallas

          Surely there's more to that than just being crap?

          1. diesel001
            • 7 Years
            3 years, 1 month ago

            The first three are popular picks. The Sterling pick I don't get. He has been crap and it is like trying to catch a falling knife to know when he will haul. Some people are good at catching falling knives, but if you know you aren't then the Sterling pick was never a good one.

            1. WVA
              • 7 Years
              3 years, 1 month ago

              Everyone thought the City Leeds game would be very high scoring and Sterling was the most nailed attacker to start, City have by far the best goal difference, noone would have predicted that score/result, City should have scored loads second half.

        5. g40steve
          • 6 Years
          3 years, 1 month ago

          LOL Trent

          1. Gudjohnsen
            • 7 Years
            3 years, 1 month ago

            Yellow card?

        6. Sim Simma
          • Fantasy Football Scout Member
          • 13 Years
          3 years, 1 month ago

          ⚽ Team News 📰
          CRYSTAL PALACE : Guaita, Ward, Van Aanholt, Cahill, Kouyate, Riedewald, Milivojevic, Eze, Ayew, Zaha, Benteke.
          Butland, Dann, Townsend, Mateta, Schlupp, McCarthy, Mitchell, Kelly, Rak-Sakyi.

          CHELSEA : Mendy, Rudiger, Zouma, Azpilicueta, Hudson-Odoi, Chilwell, Jorginho, Kovacic, Mount, Pulisic, Havertz.
          Subs: Kepa, Alonso, Kante, Abraham, Werner, Giroud, Ziyech, James, Emerson.

          1. Hazz
            • Fantasy Football Scout Member
            • 6 Years
            3 years, 1 month ago

            The Tier 3 ITKs knew about Alonso then.

          2. FPL Daniel
            • 14 Years
            3 years, 1 month ago

            Mitchell is back

          3. Random Name
            • 8 Years
            3 years, 1 month ago

            Palace have had the same lineup for 10 years I swear

          4. FPL Daniel
            • 14 Years
            3 years, 1 month ago

            Come oooon Mount

          5. diesel001
            • 7 Years
            3 years, 1 month ago

            No Alonso.

          6. fusen
            • 12 Years
            3 years, 1 month ago

            James and Alonso on the bench biting some wildcarders

        7. WVA
          • 7 Years
          3 years, 1 month ago

          TAA immediately gone back to being awful the moment I bring him in

          1. DycheDycheBaby
            • 8 Years
            3 years, 1 month ago

            Same. What a lovely miskick he just did!

            1. WVA
              • 7 Years
              3 years, 1 month ago

              Don't think he's managed to get a cross past the first man

              1. DycheDycheBaby
                • 8 Years
                3 years, 1 month ago

                Yeah he is useless isn't he..
                Oh wait...he just scored. Yassssssss

        8. Danstoke82
          • 9 Years
          3 years, 1 month ago

          Already questioning my logic on bringing in Trent on a WC.

          1. WVA
            • 7 Years
            3 years, 1 month ago

            He was playing really well and looking great, sod's law and I brought him in so....

          2. DycheDycheBaby
            • 8 Years
            3 years, 1 month ago

            I really was too... until the 91st minute.

        9. Says
          • 13 Years
          3 years, 1 month ago

          TAA playing a lot of sloppy passes today

        10. La Roja
          • 12 Years
          3 years, 1 month ago

          Alonso benched

        11. Pat Bonner
          • Fantasy Football Scout Member
          • 12 Years
          3 years, 1 month ago

          Robbo looking far better than TAA again

          1. Free Hat
            • 5 Years
            3 years, 1 month ago

            Very much so.

        12. Rainer
          • 7 Years
          3 years, 1 month ago

          Alonso essential!

          1. JBG
            • 6 Years
            3 years, 1 month ago

            Mega essential.

        13. Firminooooo
          • Fantasy Football Scout Member
          • 8 Years
          3 years, 1 month ago

          Hahaha. Of course my WC ended up a disaster. Sold Dallas and brought in Jota and TAA....Sterling(C). My last hope of a top 10k finish out the window.

          1. Firminooooo
            • Fantasy Football Scout Member
            • 8 Years
            3 years, 1 month ago

            And Alonso benched........arrrgh

          2. WVA
            • 7 Years
            3 years, 1 month ago

            Same, season over unfortunately. Sold Bamford Watkins Salah Dallas and so far I've had Neto TAA Jota and Sterling cap fails

        14. EmreCan Hustle
          • 11 Years
          3 years, 1 month ago

          Alonso completes WC failure.

        15. Maximus Bonimus Pointimus
          • 14 Years
          3 years, 1 month ago

          Villa get some seriously dodgy decisions don’t they?

          In recent times the Sheffield United ghost goal to keep them up last season (still hands down one of if not THE the worst officiating error to be seen in professional sport in terms of the immediate ramifications/relegation avoidance etc) both the denied penalty plus Ings’ non-offside to allow them beat Southampton, and now the Jota “offside”...

          Very weird run

          1. diesel001
            • 7 Years
            3 years, 1 month ago

            I expect their luck will run out next season. Similar to how poorly Leicester did after they won the title. Villa have had a season of good luck to about now (if you count their run at the back end of last season). The break after the season will hopefully disrupt their rhythm.

          2. pingissimus
            • 5 Years
            3 years, 1 month ago

            Pay back for the goal Leeds gifted them thanks to Bielsa