Two more of Saturday’s matches to recap now, with Leeds United and West Ham United both grabbing valuable wins in their battles to beat the drop.
While Fulham’s defeat was a rare off-day in the context of their recent good form, Tottenham Hotspur‘s latest miserable afternoon reportedly leaves Thomas Frank dangling by a thread.
- READ MORE: FPL Gameweek 22: Saturday’s goals, assists, bonus + ‘DefCon’ points
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- READ MORE: FPL notes: Why Saka was benched + Gabriel outscoring Haaland
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£3.9M GOALKEEPER STARTS – AND KEEPS CLEAN SHEET
Attention, budget goalkeeper fans! There was a £3.9m ‘keeper between the posts at Elland Road, with Karl Darlow handed a recall. Lucas Perri (£4.5m), who had been under fire in the weeks leading up to the Fulham match, dropped to the bench.
Darlow had a mostly comfortable game, with his only save being a routine one from Sasa Lukic (£4.9m). Fulham mustered just 0.36 xG, indeed.
Farke explained his decision after full-time.
“Lucas had a difficult season after coming late, two injuries, but part of the truth is also that the level of performance was not, in the last weeks, what we were hoping for.
“Karl was for us excellent in the run-in last season, was excellent also during the time this season when Lucas was suffering injuries. We got the feeling today was the time to give Lucas a little time to breathe, to get him a little out of the spotlight, so he can concentrate on training and go back to his best and earn it, but also to give Karl the chance.” – Daniel Farke
It’s maybe worth giving it till the end of the transfer window before committing to Darlow in FPL, just in case Leeds recruit another ‘keeper. Darlow himself has his critics, and didn’t exactly convince in his previous stint in the side.
Even on Saturday, there was one nerve-jangling moment when Darlow came hurtling out of goal. Emile Smith Rowe (£5.6m) was unable to redirect the ball into an empty net.
Above: Leeds’ two goalkeepers have both underwhelmed on the xGP front this season
STACH + BIJOL INJURY UPDATES
There were two other enforced changes to the Leeds line-up, with the modestly owned budget midfielder Anton Stach (£4.9m) and cheapo defender Jaka Bijol (£3.9m) both ruled out late on.
Stach, who averaged 5.2 points per match in the previous 10 Gameweeks, could be back next weekend, however.
“Anton has an adductor strain, we hope to have him back for Everton. Jaka has a hamstring strain, which may be a bit longer.” – Daniel Farke, via the Yorkshire Evening Post
Bijol is now estimated to be out for 3-5 weeks.
Leeds’ two form players of recent weeks, Brenden Aaronson (£5.4m) and Dominic Calvert-Lewin (£6.0m), couldn’t add to their goals/assists counts. The two had combined for 15 attacking returns in the last 10 Gameweeks.
At least they had chances, though. Aaronson wasted a massive one-on-one opportunity in the first half before teeing up Calvert-Lewin for a shot that the Elland Road faithful thought had hit the back of the net; it had only rippled the side-netting.
HOPE FOR KING OWNERS?
It was a fairly low-key game, in truth, with the game heading for a goalless draw before substitute Lukas Nmecha (£5.0m) bagged a late winner.
It ended Fulham’s six-match unbeaten run in the Premier League, and we’ll chalk this one up to a rare off-day. Marco Silva said after full-time that the Cottagers “were not at our level”.
While he wasn’t great, and didn’t look as comfortable as a ’10’, Harry Wilson (£5.9m) either shot or set up five of Fulham’s eight chances. Get him back on the right flank next weekend – Ryan Sessegnon (£5.4m) was tasked with that role here – and with the AFCON trio back, there’ll be hope that normal service can resume.
Is there a glimmer of hope for Joshua King’s (£4.4m) remaining owners, too? Injuries to Lukic and Smith Rowe are ones to listen out for later in the week. The returning Alex Iwobi (£6.3m) could take up one of the more central roles, of course.
Silva: “Lukic (injury) looks more serious right now. Difficult to walk. We will assess ESR. It is what it is. Was not a good performance at all.” #FFC
— Jack Kelly (@jackellyffc) January 17, 2026
ANOTHER SPURS SHOCKER
Two of the teams that FPL managers are least interested in met in north London on Saturday, with West Ham United being the least awful of the two.
As we mentioned in the intro, rumours are swirling about the future of Thomas Frank. Whoever is in charge, it’s a horrible run of matches from Gameweek 24 onwards. Things could get much worse before they get better:
Frank didn’t help himself on Saturday. Mathys Tel (£6.2m) was the one decent-ish performer in an average-to-awful front four but was hooked on the hour, the decision greeted with fury by both player and fans.
Conor Gallagher (£5.5m) was handed a debut; he offered plenty of willing and energy if not much else. Encouragingly, though, and despite being stationed in the double pivot, no one registered more penalty-box touches:
‘Old’ Pedro Porro (£5.2m) returned, too – he whipped in a remarkable 25 crosses, more than 12 Premier League teams managed in Gameweek 22. That helped him to a season-best six chances created, one of which was met by a thumping Cristian Romero (£5.0m) headed goal.
Really, though, the straw-clutching positives are outweighed by the many negatives. Who amongst us is considering a Spurs player for the Gameweek 23 trip to Burnley, even those (ie Gameweek 24 Wildcarders) who could indulge in a one-week punt?
The injuries pile up, meanwhile. Ben Davies (£4.3m) was stretchered off, Joao Palhinha (£5.5m) missed out and Xavi Simons (£6.5m) was spotted limping through the mixed zone after full-time. Frank’s presser on Monday should bring us some more updates on those.
TATY + SUMMERVILLE LIVELY
Crysensio Summerville (£5.5m) backed up a fine individual performance in the FA Cup with his first Premier League goal of the season on Saturday.
While it was fortunate enough to take a deflection on the way in, it was one of a game-high five shots that the electric Summerville had. He’d registered the same number against QPR last weekend.
He looks to be prospering with new strikers Taty (£5.5m) and Pablo (£5.5m) around him, both of whom started together in north London. Bustling, grafting link-up men rather than prolific goalscorers, their presence may help free up a bit of room for Summerville cutting in off the left.
While he’s not got a free-scoring reputation, Taty does pick up some promising positions. Nodding over a set-piece from close range, he also went close with two instinctive, over-the-shoulder efforts. One to monitor in the budget forward pool.
Can the new forward duo kickstart Jarrod Bowen‘s (£7.6m) season? He’s looked a bit off the boil in recent weeks and only had one attempt here, opting to tee up Pablo in one botched move rather than shoot himself. A sign of low confidence, perhaps, but history suggests the reliable talisman won’t take long to bounce back.
Bowen at least banked DefCon points yet again!
Substitute Callum Wilson (£5.8m) bagged the winner; time will tell if he stays at West Ham beyond January. The same goes for Lucas Paqueta (£5.9m), absent again on Saturday.
