We round up the key Fantasy Premier League (FPL) talking points from Newcastle United v Arsenal in our Scout Notes summary.
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ARSENAL DROP POINTS
An own goal from Ben White (£4.6m) and a Bruno Guimaraes (£5.0m) strike helped Newcastle defeat Arsenal 2-0 on Monday, which means the Gunners’ top-four hopes are out of their hands.
Tottenham Hotspur stay in fourth spot with a two-point lead over their north London rivals, and due to their vastly superior goal difference, only need a point at Norwich City in Gameweek 38 to book their Champions League spot.
Newcastle’s win, meanwhile, also confirms Chelsea’s place in next season’s Champions League.
In a fully deserved win, Eddie Howe’s troops were by far the better team from the off and still have a chance of finishing as high as ninth in the Premier League.
However, having earned 35 points from 18 league games in 2022, you suspect they will be finishing much higher than that next season.
Above: Premier League annual table 2022, via Transfermarkt
WILSON DANGEROUS AS WOOD ABSENCE EXPLAINED
Callum Wilson (£7.1m) was named in the starting XI to face Arsenal on Monday after returning as a substitute in last week’s heavy defeat at Manchester City.
The former Bournemouth striker was afforded his opportunity after Chris Wood (£6.3m) was ruled out of the game with a hip injury, but Howe confirmed the New Zealand international should be available for Sunday’s trip to former club Burnley.
“Delighted, delighted for him [Wilson]. He’s a key player for us, it’s a different dimension to our frontline. We hope he gets through the game in a really good physical way – but we are delighted he leads the team.
It was a slight hip injury for Chris [Wood] tonight. [It is] nothing major and we hope he will be back for our next match.” – Eddie Howe
As for Wilson, it was an excellent all-round display by the 30-year-old, as he gave Newcastle a totally different dynamic in the final-third with his pace and ability to make dangerous runs in-behind.
And while it’s unlikely he will be afforded much Fantasy attention so late in the season, he is perhaps one to keep in mind for Gameweek 1 of 2022/23, given his rate of returns since moving to St James’ Park.
“It was an unbelievable atmosphere. Early on in the season everyone wrote us off and we were relegated by Christmas time. But we’ve dug deep and proved everybody wrong. I’ve noticed a difference [coming back into the team]. I’m getting a lot more chances and we’re keeping the ball better. I watched Arsenal the other night and I knew their centre-backs had injury problems. As a striker I was licking my lips. I’ve worked so hard [to get back to fitness]. When you’re out injured you want to come back and make a difference.” – Callum Wilson
Equally impressive was Bruno Guimaraes, who has now been directly involved in five goals in his last six Premier League appearances.
TOMIYASU/SCHAR LATEST
Takehiro Tomiyasu’s (£4.5m) evening was cut short after he went down feeling his hamstring in the closing stages of the first-half.
The Japanese international was unable to continue, with Cedric Soares (£4.2m) replacing him at right-back.
“We don’t know we have to assess him, but he felt a muscular issue and we test him.” – Mikel Arteta on Takehiro Tomiyasu
For the hosts, they were forced into a concussion sub when Fabian Schar (£4.2m) had to be replaced after an arm to the head, which resulted in a caution for Eddie Nketiah (£5.7m).
“He wanted to stay on but it was the right decision I think” – Eddie Howe on Fabian Schar
Newcastle United XI: Dubravka, Krafth, Schar (Lascelles 49), Burn, Targett, Guimaraes, Longstaff, Joelinton, Almiron (Murphy 76), Saint-Maximin (Fraser 77), Wilson (Gayle 90+4)
Arsenal XI: Ramsdale, Tomiyasu (Cedric 39), White, Gabriel (Pepe 73), Tavares (Lacazette 62), Elneny, Xhaka, Saka, Odegaard, Smith Rowe (Martinelli 53), Nketiah
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