If you owned Manchester City players then Gameweek 6 was a treat but if you captained Raheem Sterling… hope your vice-captain saved you. Sterling’s absence was blessing in disguise for my team as I had vice-captained Kevin de Bruyne. A couple of shocking results such as Manchester United losing to West Ham and Everton losing to Sheffield ruined some clean sheet opportunities. Spurs lost to Leicester while 10 men Arsenal beat Aston Villa in a 3-2 comeback. Interesting results leading to an uncertain Gameweek 7. Also, some mid-week League Cup performances should shed a light on some major clubs.
Heading to potential GW7 stars and differentials…
1. AFC Bournemouth
D. Ake (4.9), M. Wilson (6.1), F. Wilson (7.8)
Vs West Ham United (H)
Just when I thought Bournemouth are really back, they got knocked out of the League Cup by Burton. Both Harry and Callum Wilson only played a few minutes while Ake was rested. Callum Wilson found the score-sheet once again vs Southampton last week at the St. Mary’s. Wilson could be a decent swap for Marcus Rashford who is set to miss the game against Arsenal after sustaining a groin injury. West Ham too were knocked out 4-0 by Oxford after beating United “2-0 in the League Cup Finals” last week.
2. Arsenal
M. Saka (4.5), M. Pepe (9.4), F. Aubameyang (11.0)
Vs Manchester United (A)
Arsenal face Manchester United in GW7 after beating Nottingham Forrest 5-0 mid-week. The Gunners seem to be in a buoyant mood since they beat Aston Villa 3-2 with 10 men. Maitland-Niles dismissal won’t be a big issue for Unai Emery as Hector Bellerin, Kieran Tierney and Rob Holding are back. I don’t think I need to make a case for Auba as he’s already been consistent this season. United’s expensive defence hasn’t lived up to the billing so far and could be in for another test against Arsenal.
3. Aston Villa
M. Grealish (5.9), M. McGinn (5.7), F. Wesley (6.0)
Vs Burnley (H)
Villa beat Brighton 3-1 in the League Cup. They now face Burnley at Villa Park on Saturday. Sitting 18th on the table with just 4 points Dean Smith’s job doesn’t get any easier. McGinn and Wesley put Villa ahead twice vs Arsenal last week but still managed to lose to a team reduced to 10-men. Grealish played only for a few minutes vs Brighton mid-week and scored once.
4. Brighton and Hove Albion
Vs Chelsea (A)
Brighton’s last win was against in Bristol Rovers in the League Cup in August. Graham Potters men come up against a Chelsea side that won 7-1 to Grimsby town and had a majority of their players rested.
5. Burnley
M. McNeil (6.0), F. Wood (6.2), F. Barnes (6.6)
Vs Aston Villa (A)
A Chris Wood double gave the Clarets a 2-0 victory over Norwich last week. Sean Dyche’s men travel to Villa Park as this fixture could hand his strikers to grab goals. McNeil is slowly catching the eyes of several managers as the wingers hard work ethic is paying off.
6. Chelsea
M. Mount (6.6), F. Abraham (7.5)
Vs Brighton and Hove Albion (H)
Chelsea cruised to a 7-1 victory over Grimsby Town. Chelsea’s next 6 fixtures will make FPL managers want to get their hands on the blues top performing players in Mason Mount and Tammy Abraham. It might also be a good time to invest in Chelsea defenders, this season may not be the best in terms of clean sheets for goalkeepers and defenders. Hence, it could be worth a shot at owning some Chelsea defenders.
7. Crystal Palace
M. Zaha (6.8)
Vs Norwich (H)
Palace almost earned 3 points last week against Wolves only for Jota to ruin the party with a 95th minute equaliser! Palace took the lead with a Dendoncker own goal. The eagles seem to be struggling to score this season and they’ll have to put in more effort to do so.
8. Everton
M. Sigurdsson (7.6), F. Calvert-Lewin (5.8)
Vs Manchester City (H)
A shock 2-0 loss to Sheffield United and a 2-0 victory over Sheffield Wednesday (and training) for the toffees surely won’t be enough to prepare Marco’s Silva’s boys as they face a free scoring Manchester City. Calvert-Lewin scored twice in the victory over Sheffield Wednesday. He also scored in Bournemouth game which makes me think, it’s time that Marco Silva lets him start over Moise Kean.
9. Leicester City
D. Pereira (6.0), M. Maddison (7.1), F. Vardy (8.9)
Vs Newcastle United (A)
James Maddison has been Leicester’s key man so far. At this rate, it’s only a matter of a time until he makes a big money switch. Leicester like Wolves give their best against top sides while they take it down a notch vs lesser oppositions. The Newcastle game should give Vardy an opportunity to find the net… I guess…. Just a hunch. He’s got 3 goals and an assist in 6 games which is decent for a striker.
10. Liverpool
D. Alexander-Arnold (7.2), M. Salah (12.5), M. Mane (11.6), F. Firmino (9.6)
Vs Sheffield United (A)
Liverpool secured a comfortable victory over MK Dons in the League Cup with Klopp resting several key players. You have to keep in mind next week’s Champions League tie against Red Bull Salzburg too. Liverpool’s key players will be fresh for their juicy fixture against Sheffield and let’s hope that they play the whole 90 minutes.
11. Manchester City
M. Sterling (12.1), M. de Bruyne (9.9), M. B. Silva (7.9), F. Aguero (12.1)
Vs Everton (A)
Picking Manchester City players is always difficult. Sometimes I want to pick a whole lot of midfielders. The depth that they have is truly amazing. Well, the Citizens beat Preston 3-0 with Sterling and Jesus getting on the score sheet. Aguero didn’t feature in another mid-week game which is good news for FPL managers.
12. Manchester United
M. James (6.0), F. Greenwood (4.4)
Vs Arsenal (H)
For a team that have spent so much in the transfer market, the way they play/perform is absolutely dreadful. They struggled against West Ham, struggled once again vs Rochdale and now face Arsenal in a tense fixture. United will miss out on Martial, Rashford and Pogba. Mason Greenwood seems likely to start but United’s lack of creativity in the middle and the front… I’d say they were lucky if they could grab 3 points against the Gunners, other than that, the odds are in Arsenals favour.
13. Newcastle United
D. Schar (5.0), F. Joelinton (5.9)
Vs Leicester City (A)
Another team who struggle to score… Steve Bruce will be happy to have Andy Carrol back (hehe). Jonjo Shelvey’s out for two weeks due to a grade 2 hamstring.
14. Norwich City
F. Pukki (7.2)
Vs Crystal Palace (A)
Norwich play another away fixture for the second week running. I know that their away form is terrible but my gut tells me this fixture could be a good one. A struggling Crystal Palace vs Norwich who’re only poor away from home. Palace may have kept 2 clean sheets this season but they are not defensively solid. I believe Pukki can exploit that backline. #PukkiPastures
15. Sheffield United
Vs Liverpool (H)
No positives from the blades. The team lost to SUNDERLAND!
They’re capable of clinching a clean sheet from Klopp’s man though.
16. Southampton
M. Redmond (6.3)
Vs Tottenham Hotspurs (A)
Southampton romped past Portsmouth in a 4-0 victory in the League Cup. The Saints play Spurs away. What I genuinely excited about is that Nathan Redmond will be fit enough to start. He managed to grab a goal vs Portsmouth.
17. Tottenham Hotspurs
D. Aurier (5.0), M. Son (9.7), F. Kane (11.0)
Vs Southampton (H)
Mauricio Pochettino seems to be having a tough time as Spurs have not won in their last three games in all competitions. Despite the clubs poor performances, Harry Kane and Heung-min Son are in great form. Kane was rested for the game against Colchester which they lost on penalties. I’m not sure how many minutes spurs star boys could feature for as they face Bayern Munich in the Champions League next week. Serge Aurier almost scored again last week if not for VAR, so naturally he’ll attract managers.
18. Watford
M. Pereyra (5.8)
Vs Wolverhampton Wanderers (A)
The hornets were smoked by Manchester City in an 8-0 loss. They did bounce back after that loss though to Swansea in a 2-1 victory. Danny Welbeck and Roberto Pereyra found the net. Wolves aren’t exactly in great form either, so this could be a good chance to exploit Nuno Santos’s men.
19. West Ham United
F. Haller (7.4)
Vs Bournemouth (A)
West Ham dealt Manchester United a blow in a 2-0 victory but somehow managed to lose 4-0 to Oxford United. Bournemouth have conceded at least 1 goal this season in each PL game this season. Haller came off the bench in the loss to Oxford. Haller has made a good impact for the Hammers forefront and has Manuel Pellegrini’s full test.
20. Wolverhampton Wanderers
D. Doherty (6.0), F. Jimenez (7.2), F. Jota (6.2)
Vs Watford (H)
Wolves just scrapped past Reading by beating them on penalties. Jimenez and Jota were rested for the entire game which is a positive sign for managers that own them. Wolves will start with their standard 3-4-3 with Doherty at full back and Jota and Jimenez as forwards. I’m getting some 18/19 vibes here. Wolves really need to step up, I feel like the added Europa League fixtures is taking a toll on some players.