Diego Costa blanks and picks another away day booking, ruling him out of Chelsea’s Gameweek 14 derby with Spurs. Danny Welbeck notches Arsenal’s winner alongside Olivier Giroud in attack. Charlie Austin and Danny Ings do their bit for the budget striker’s union, while Robin van Persie recalls golden times with a strike in United’s dismantling of Hull. Here’s the notes on all Saturday’s events…
Welbeck Overcomes Tactical Tweak
Having been sold on by over 80,000 Fantasy Premier League (FPL) managers heading into the Gameweek, Danny Welbeck was, as expected, forced into a role on the left flank as the recently recovered Olivier Giroud returned as a central striker against West Brom. However, Welbeck overcome the tactical change and proved the doubters wrong by grabbing the winner with a powerful header from a Santi Cazorla cross, his first league strike since Gameweek 8. In truth, the Arsenal attack was fluid throughout with Welbeck swapping roles with Alexis Sanchez – the Chilean drifting out to the left to allow Welbeck to work in tandem with Giroud. It will be interesting to monitor Sanchez’ numbers in the coming week should that trend continue.
The switch-up by Arsene Wenger was certainly bad news for Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain. Despite a string of impressive displays, he dropped out to make way for Giroud in a move that could signal the start of rotation in the wide roles, with Theo Walcott’s belated return also on the cards in the coming weeks. Occlude-Chamberlain also picked up a knock to his knee when introduced from the bench and could be a doubt for midweek visit of Southampton.
At the back, Laurent Koscielny returned in the centre of defence to help the Gunners deliver their first clean sheet in three. With decent fixtures ahead (SOU, sto, NEW, liv, QPR) we could now see a spike in investment in their backline, though with Mathieu Debuchy scheduled to be back in action in a fortnight, Calum Chambers’ starting role will soon be in question. Nacho Monreal kept his start and shifted to left-back but picked up an injury and was replaced by Kieran Gibbs in the first half. He also suffered an injury and will go into the Saints meeting as another doubt.
Austin Stars in Six-Pointer
Charlie Austin notched a goal and an assist on his way to a commanding 10-point haul in QPR’s vital 3-2 victory over fellow strugglers Leicester. The forward has now earned returns in five of his last six appearances, with his FPL ownership growing to almost 9%; Austin’s value also increased to 6.0 overnight – his initial pre-season price. While he now faces potentially thorny trips to Swansea, Everton and Arsenal in his next five, Austin’s Gameweek 10 strike away to Chelsea provided evidence that he could emerge as a “fixture proof” asset. Elsewhere, Leroy Fer’s goal against the Foxes has also blinked him on our radars: the former Norwich man took his tally to a goal and two assists in his last six outings; he looks to be the only viable mid-price midfield option currently on offer at Loftus Road at 5.5 in the FPL. As a sidenote, Bobby Zamora missed the Foxes clash with a back problem but could well earn a recall for Tuesday’s visit to Swansea.
Ings Maintains His Own Scoring Streak
Burnley’s Danny Ings took his tally to four goals in five with a late penalty to earn the Clarets a vital draw against Aston Villa, snatching maximum bonus points in the process. With West Ham’s Diafra Sakho still sidelined, Ings is currently embroiled in a head-to-head fight with QPR’s Austin for the mantle of best budget striker. Ings boasts promising fixtures over the next two Gameweeks (NEW, qpr) to further reward his 1.2% ownership; following that, Burnley’s schedule stiffens somewhat (SOT tot LIV mcy).
Liverpool Edge Potters To Finally Find a Win
Brendan Rodgers handed Rickie Lambert a second consecutive start against Stoke and the striker rewarded that faith with the assist for Glen Johnson’s late winner. After pinching their first victory since Gameweek 8, Liverpool now have enticing fixtures against Leicester and Sunderland on the horizon and will be hoping to embark on a revival of fortunes. Intriguingly, yesterday’s victory and clean sheet coincided with the first time Rodgers had opted to bench skipper Steven Gerrard this season; Gerrard will, however, be expected to earn a recall for the midweek trip to face the Foxes.
As for Stoke, they lost both Steve Sidwell and Glenn Whelan to injury and now face a trip to Old Trafford to midweek with a depleted side. Bojan’s impressive performance at Anfield provides some room for optimism, however – the Spaniard continues to sparkle in his “number 10” role under Mark Hughes.
United Tear Into Tigers
A convincing 3-0 win for Man United over Hull came at a cost for Louis van Gaal, with Wayne Rooney (ankle) and Angel Di Maria (hamstring) both sustaining injury setbacks. Di Maria suffered his injury after just 14 minutes of the Old Trafford encounter and the United boss has confirmed that the quick turnaround in fixtures will count the Argentine out of Tuesday’s clash with Stoke.
Rooney’s prognosis seems somewhat more encouraging, with Van Gaal stating that the player himself suggested that he will be fit for the visit of the Potters. Rooney is in outstanding form for club and country and his goal in the 3-0 win was his second in consecutive league outings, signaling an upturn in his popularity as a Fantasy target: Rooney attracted over 60,000 new FPL owners ahead of the Tiger’s victory.
While Di Maria is seemingly ruled out and Rooney remaining a doubt for Tuesday evening, Van Gaal will at least have renewed confidence in Robin Van Persie. The Dutchman broke his three-match goal drought and earned an assist against the Tigers. That’s unlikely to be enough to earn Van Persie investment, however: his 12.4 FPL price tag remains a major obstacle given his erratic form to this point.
While Hull’s performance was dismal and hardly stretched the United rearguard, Van Gaal will also be encouraged by a second clean sheet in as many matches. With Marcos Rojo returning to the defensive unit following a shoulder injury, United have now allowed just three goals in the last five, despite Van Gaal shifting formations over that run. While that’s enough to warrant our interest in defensive assets, both Paddy McNair and Tyler Blackett were dropped to the bench against Hull, leaving us limited to Rojo at 5.9 and Chris Smalling at 5.3. Like Van Persie, those price tags are likely to encourage Fantasy managers to shop elsewhere.
Swans Turn To Sigurdsson and Bony
Wilfried Bony and Gylfi Sigurdsson were once again pivotal for Swansea as they were held to a frustrating 1-1 draw with Crystal Palace. Bony now has six goals in his last seven and, with an ownership still at just 6.5%, looks to be an excellent differential ahead of the midweek home meeting with the QPR defence. Sigurdsson, meanwhile, continues to produce as Garry Monk’s chief architect. The Icelander has played a part in eight of his side’s eleven home goals this campaign and now sits third in the FPL midfield rankings. Unlike Bony, however, his ownership is already flourishing at over 47%.
Nathan Dyer was kept out of the matchday squad against Palace and would seem likely to earn a recall as Monk freshens things for QPR’s visit. Leon Britton could also come into the equation for Tuesday’s encounter with Jonjo Shelvey’s start perhaps under threat.
Jedinak Powers On
Mile Jedinak was once again on the scoresheet from the spot for the Eagles – his fifth goal of the season. The Australian is now joint second for value in the FPL midfield rankings, just behind Swansea’s Sigurdsson. Having been largely overlooked as a fifth midfielder option to this point, Jedinak has now grabbed goals in three of his last four appearances: a level of consistency that’s forcing us to re-appraise the Palace skipper.
Neil Warnock’s men have Villa, Spurs and Stoke over their next three Gameweeks – a run that should promote further investment in their attacking assets. Jedinak and Yannick Bolasie remain viable short-term options for those looking to free up funds in the midfield area – Jedinak was the most popular signing in the FPL overnight.
Cresswell Clips Magpies’ Wings
The 12.5% owned Stewart Downing was back in action for West Ham yesterday and was handed a central role by Sam Allardyce, as his side claimed a hard-fought 1-0 victory over Newcastle. Diafra Sakho, Alex Song and Enner Valencia all remained sidelined but the Hammers had the strength in depth to put an end to Newcastle’s six-match winning streak. An instinctive finish from Aaron Cresswell earned the east Londoners victory – the lef-tback now has a goal, two assists and two clean sheets in his last six. With West Brom, Sunderland and Leicester in the next four, Cresswell’s appeal is at an all-time high and, with an ownership still simmering under the 1% mark, his differential status makes him an obvious option for those shopping for a defensive asset ahead of the Christmas period.
As for Newcastle, they will make the trip to Burnley on Tuesday without both Jack Colback and Moussa Sissoko: the latter saw red for two bookings, while Colback picked up his fifth yellow of the campaign. With Tim Krul also thought to be ruled out for a number of weeks and Daryl Janmaat sustaining a hamstring problem, Alan Pardew is suddenly struggling for numbers and potentially without key men. On the plus side, Steven Taylor returned to the bench and saw action in the final quarter at West Ham, while Fabricio Coloccini may also return to contention for the Humberside trip.
Reckless Costa Topples From the Tightrope
Diego Costa’s owners suffered a double blow as the striker delivered his third blank Gameweek of the season and picked up his fifth yellow, ruling him out of Chelsea’s midweek meeting with Spurs at the Bridge. Having been booked in each of his five away league appearances, the Spaniard’s poor discipline has become a real hindrance for his owners. In truth, Costa was fortunate to avoid further punishment after a number of altercations at the Stadium of Light. The blank and Costa’s impending suspension proved enough for some to show him the exit: only Angel di Maria suffered more FPL sales overnight.
Those who captained Costa can at least take some consolation from the fact that Alexis Sanchez blanked, while Angel di Maria’s efforts against Hull were cut short. That leaves Sergio Aguero as the last of the popular armband options in the Gameweek, as he prepares to take on the Southampton defence at St Mary’s today.
Elsewhere in the Chelsea camp, Eden Hazard once again failed to deliver points on the road. In seven away trips this season, the Belgian has failed to score and has mustered just two assists. Despite this, and as a by-product of Di Maria’s sales, Hazard’s value increased to 10.2 overnight ahead of the Stamford Bridge meeting with Spurs.
Defensively, Chelsea are beginning to convince. The stalemate saw Mourinho’s back four claim a fifth clean sheet of the season and; they have shipped just four goals in their last eight league encounters.
Pantilimon Key As Black Cats Raise Their Game
Gus Poyet’s Sunderland are now unbeaten in their last four and have conceded just two goals over that period. This upturn in defensive form has coincided with Poyet’s decision to drop Vito Mannone to the bench in favour of Costel Pantilimon, with the former City keeper earning five save points and four bonus points over his last three outings. The upcoming fixtures are far from enticing (MCI, liv, WHM, new) although Saturday’s result demonstrates that they have the form and determination to produce across those games; Pantilimon, at 4.4 in the FPL, appears to be the standout option in their rearguard.
