It’s that time of the week again when I attempt to predict the outcomes of the upcoming Premier League games. I didn’t do well last week with just one perfect prediction, one correct outcome and eight incorrect outcomes which saw me drop to eighth place in my predictions league. Here’s a look at how the top five in that league stands.
Rank Player Res Cls Exa Slm Pts
1
-
TeeBee
19 61.5 51 14 145.5
2
1
Richard Landsberg
18 66 42 13 139.0
3
1
Sam
27 48 45 12 132.0
4
2
robbieg
21 61.5 33 12 127.5
5
4
IAMC0Le
17 64.5 36 10 127.5
My choice of Erling Haaland as my captain last week paid off and he was assisted by Mohamed Salah, Bukayo Saka, Ollie Watkins and Hwang Hee-Chan to score my points for the week. Unfortunately it wasn’t enough to stop my overall rank slipping every so slightly and I really need to reverse my fortunes as quickly as possible. For me to do so I have to sort my defence out which probably means adding an Arsenal defender this week.
Haaland is the obvious choice for my captain again this week against a Spurs team who look very vulnerable in defence at the moment. If I decide to take a four point hit it will probably be to bring Anthony Gordon or Bryan Mbeumo in, but I most likely won’t with midweek games coming up so quickly.
Saturday December 2
Arsenal v Wolverhampton Wanderers
3pm GMT, Emirates Stadium, London
Arsenal won 1-0 away to Brentford last week and that win was enough to move them to the top of the table as other results went their way. They’re one of four teams still unbeaten at home with only Villa scoring more goals on their own ground. No other team has conceded less goals and they only play one of the other big six teams in their next nine games.
Bukayo Saka is the best option in the Arsenal team for fantasy managers with their defenders and keeper good choices too.
Wolves lost 3-2 away to Burnley last week as they were yet again on the wrong end of some poor refereeing decisions mixed with poor VAR interpretation. They have lost their last two away games and they will do very well to get anything out of this game. They have only managed one clean sheet so far and only three other teams have conceded more goals.
Hwang Hee-Chan is the Wolves player impressing for fantasy managers at the moment while Pedro Neto was in great form before his injury and he might be back for this game.
I think Arsenal will keep their place at the top of the table by winning this game with a couple of goals to spare.
Prediction: 3-1
Brentford v Luton Town
3pm GMT, Gtech Community Stadium, London
Brentford lost 1-0 at home to Arsenal last week and they’re still in the bottom half of the table, but only on goal difference. They have lost two of their last four home games, but will be confident of winning this game. They have lost their last two games without scoring, but they don’t play any of the big six in their next seven games.
Bryan Mbuemo is the Brentford player who has really impressed for fantasy managers so far with Mathias Jensen doing pretty well too.
Luton won 2-1 at home to Palace last week and that win moved them four points clear of the relegation zone. They have lost their last two away games with only Sheffield United and Burnley scoring less goals on the road and only Bournemouth conceding more. They had only taken two points from their previous six games before beating Palace and they face the top two in their next two games after this one.
Carlton Morris is the only Luton player that fantasy managers should even consider.
I think Brentford should be good enough to win this game by at least a couple of goals.
Prediction: 2-0
Brentford v Luton Town
3pm GMT, Gtech Community Stadium, London
Brentford lost 1-0 at home to Arsenal last week and they’re still in the bottom half of the table, but only on goal difference. They have lost two of their last four home games, but will be confident of winning this game. They have lost their last two games without scoring, but they don’t play any of the big six in their next seven games.
Bryan Mbuemo is the Brentford player who has really impressed for fantasy managers so far with Mathias Jensen doing pretty well too.
Luton won 2-1 at home to Palace last week and that win moved them four points clear of the relegation zone. They have lost their last two away games with only Sheffield United and Burnley scoring less goals on the road and only Bournemouth conceding more. They had only taken two points from their previous six games before beating Palace and they face the top two in their next two games after this one.
Carlton Morris is the only Luton player that fantasy managers should even consider.
I think Brentford should be good enough to win this game by at least a couple of goals.
Prediction: 2-0
Burnley v Sheffield United
3pm GMT, Turf Moor, Burnley
Burnley lost 2-1 at home to West Ham last week thanks to two very late goals which left them rooted to the foot of the table. They’re the only team without a point at home and no other team has scored less or conceded more goals on their own patch. They have lost their last six games and they conceded 16 goals in those games with no other team scoring less goals and only Sheffield United conceding more.
Luca Koleosho and Lyle Foster have the ability to do well for fantasy managers, but it would be a risk to own any Burnley players.
United lost 3-1 at home to Bournemouth last week and they’re only one point off the foot of the table with worse goal difference than any other team. They are the only team without a win away from home and no other team has scored less or conceded more goals on their travels. They have taken four points from their last three games after losing the previous six and no other team has conceded more goals with only Burnley scoring less.
I can’t see any United players to recommend to fantasy managers at the moment.
This is a huge game for two teams in the relegation zone and the chances are Burnley will take the three points.
Prediction: 2-1
Nottingham Forest v Everton
5.30pm GMT, City Ground, Nottingham
Forest lost 3-2 at home to Brighton last week, but they’re still a lot closer to the top half of the table than they are to the bottom three. The defeat against Brighton was their first home defeat of the season and two of their next three home games are against teams below them in the table. They have only won once in their last nine games, but they drew four of them and no other team has drawn more games.
Morgan Gibbs-White and Anthony Elanga are the Forest players who might just be of interest to fantasy managers.
Everton lost 3-0 at home to United last week and they’re only off the foot of the table on goal difference thanks to their 10 point deduction. They have won three of their last four away games and they have taken a lot more points on the road than they have at home. They had taken seven points from three games before losing to United, but four of their next six games are very tough.
Vitalii Mykolenko is the Everton player who has impressed recently for fantasy managers.
I don’t think there will be too much between these two teams, but Forest will probably make home advantage pay.
Prediction: 2-1
Newcastle United v Manchester United
8pm GMT, St.James’ Park. Newcastle
Newcastle won 4-1 at home to Chelsea last week, but they still have five points to make up on the top four. They have won six of their seven home games with only Villa scoring more goals on their own ground. They have taken 20 points from their last nine games and they scored 24 goals in those games with only City scoring more.
Anthony Gordon is the Newcastle player to have at the moment for fantasy managers while Alexander Isak is worth considering while he can’t be rotated.
United won 3-0 away to Everton last week to stay in sixth place one place above Newcastle going into this game. They have won their last four away games and they only conceded one goal in those games. They have won five of their last six games and they haven’t conceded a goal in their last three, but no other team in the top half of the table has scored less goals.
Bruno Fernandes remains the best choice in the United team for fantasy managers, but their defenders and keeper have done very well recently too.
I think Newcastle will be too strong at home and should win by at least a couple of goals.
Prediction: 3-1
Sunday December 3
Bournemouth v Aston Villa
2pm GMT, Vitality Stadium, Bournemouth
Bournemouth won 3-1 away to Sheffield United last week and that win moved them seven points clear of the relegation zone. They have won their last two home games after failing to win the previous five and only the bottom three have scored less goals on their own patch. They have won three of their last four games after losing the previous four, but only two other teams have conceded more goals.
Dominic Solanke is the Bournemouth player most likely to make a difference for fantasy managers.
Villa won 2-1 away to Spurs last week and that win moved them above Spurs into the top four. They have taken seven points from their last four away games, but only four other teams have conceded more goals on their travels. They have taken 22 points from their last nine games with only City scoring more goals.
There are quite a few Villa players for fantasy managers to choose with Ollie Watkins, Moussa Diaby and Douglas Luiz probably the best bets.
I think Bournemouth will make a game of it, but Villa will get the win.
Prediction: 1-2
Chelsea v Brighton And Hove Albion
2pm GMT, Stamford Bridge, London
Chelsea lost 4-1 away to Newcastle last week, but they managed to stay in the top half of the table as the teams directly below them lost too. They have only won once in their seven home games, but they have some good home fixtures coming up. They have only won once in their last five games, but they play teams below them in six of their next eight games.
Raheem Sterling and Cole Palmer are the only two Chelsea players who might even interest fantasy managers.
Brighton won 3-2 away to Forest last week and that win kept them in eighth place. They won their last away game after failing to win the previous three and only two other teams have scored more goals on the road. The win against Forest was their first win in seven games, but they drew four of them and no other team has drawn more games.
With so many injuries at the moment it’s not easy to choose Brighton players for fantasy managers, but Evan Ferguson and Joao Pedro are possibilities.
I think this is a game which could go either way and a draw is probably the most likely outcome.
Prediction: 2-2
Liverpool v Fulham
2pm GMT, Anfield, Liverpool
Liverpool drew 1-1 away to City last week and that draw meant they dropped to third place, but they’re only two points off the top of the table. They’re one of two teams still with a 100% record at home and no other team has conceded less goals on their own ground. They’re unbeaten in six games, but they drew three of them and no other team has drawn more games.
Mohamed Salah is an absolute must have for fantasy managers with Darwin Nunez, Trent Alexander-Arnold and maybe even Caoimhin Kelleher worth a shot too.
Fulham controversially won 3-2 at home to Wolves last week and that win moved them within a point of the top half of the table. They haven’t won in their last six away games, but they drew three of them while only two other teams have scored less goals on their travels. They had only taken one point from their previous four games before beating Wolves with only three other teams scoring less goals.
I’m not sure there are any Fulham players who can make an impact for fantasy managers at the moment.
I can’t see anything other than a comfortable Liverpool victory in this game.
Prediction: 3-0
West Ham United v Crystal Palace
2pm GMT, London Stadium, London
West Ham scored two very late goals to win 2-1 away to Burnley last week and that win strengthened their position in the top half of the table. They have taken seven points from their last four home games and they have a pretty good run of home games coming up. They have won their last two games after losing the previous three and only three other teams have conceded more goals.
If he’s fit to play Jarrod Bowen is the West Ham player to have for fantasy managers with James Ward-Prowse a good option too.
Palace lost 2-1 away to Luton last week, but they’re still only one point off the top half of the table. They have taken 10 points from their seven away games, but only five other teams have scored less goals on the road. They have lost four of their last five games and only three other teams have scored less goals.
With Michael Olise back from injury he could be the Palace player to watch for fantasy managers.
I think West Ham should be good enough at home to take all the points in this game.
Prediction: 2-1
Manchester City v Tottenham Hotspur
4.30pm GMT, Etihad Stadium, Manchester
City drew 1-1 at home to Liverpool last week and that defeat saw them lose their place at the top of the table, but they’re only one point behind Arsenal. That draw against Liverpool was the first time they dropped points at home this season and only Liverpool have conceded less goals on their own ground. They have only won three of their last seven games and no other team has scored more goals.
Erling Haaland is an absolute must have for fantasy managers while Bernardo Silva, Phil Foden and Jeremy Doku are good choices too.
Spurs lost 2-1 at home to Villa last week and that defeat saw them drop out of the top four. No other team has taken more points away from home with only City scoring more goals on their travels. They have lost their last three games and they conceded eight goals in those games which could make their task in this game very difficult.
Son Heung-Min is the Spurs player most likely to return points for fantasy managers at the moment.
I can’t see anything other than a comprehensive City victory in this game.
Prediction: 4-1
That’s it for this week.
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