Frisking The Fixtures – Gameweek 5 – The Strong

We now enter a phase where all 20 teams face three home matches and a trio of away encounters over the next six Gameweeks.

Premium options from Spurs and Man City have the fixtures to deliver big hauls during this period, while members of Newcastle United’s backline could continue providing excellent value.

Here’s our summary of those sides with the schedule to drive Fantasy investment, together with analysis of where the points will come and when the tide turns.

Tottenham Hotspur

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The Prospects – Goals
In a nutshell, the short-term prospects are outstanding.

Saturday’s match-up against Swansea City is hugely promising – no team have conceded more big chances (10) than the Welsh side.

West Ham United, meanwhile, have allowed the most goals (10), and Huddersfield Town’s bright start may just have stalled after a 2-0 defeat to the Hammers on Monday night.

Bournemouth have given up more close-range efforts (48) than any other team, while Liverpool have conceded eight goals in their two road trips.

With three clean sheets so far, a trip to Old Trafford will be tough, although Jose Mourinho’s men have given up six big chances.

Added to this, the Spurs attack looks to be coming to the boil, with their 3-0 win at Everton producing an impressive 15 shots.

The Prospects – Clean Sheets
Equally, Mauricio Pochettino’s side will surely prosper at the back over the next four fixtures.

Swansea rank bottom for total goal attempts and should present a great opportunity for defensive returns on Saturday evening.

West Ham and Huddersfield – who have both failed to score in two matches apiece – also appear favourable opponents for the accomplished Spurs defence.

Bournemouth, likewise, are struggling for goals, scoring just once so far, though keeping the Liverpool attack out will be a far tougher task.

Both the Reds and Man United feature among the three clubs registering the most penalty area shots so far.

The Turning Point
The next four Gameweeks are incredibly strong for Mauricio Pochettino’s side, but the schedule does stiffen from Gameweek 9 onwards – they face Liverpool, Man United and Arsenal in a four-match spell.

Verdict
After getting off the mark at Goodison Park with a brace, Harry Kane is likely to warrant the armband for the majority of the next four Gameweeks.

Christian Eriksen and Dele Alli should also be among the points. The latter will also remain fresh given that he is “excused” from Champions League duty due to his UEFA suspension.

Meanwhile, in defence, leading Fantasy Premier League scorer Ben Davies should continue to provide outstanding value.

Manchester City

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The Prospects – Goals
Only Man United (14) have scored more goals than City’s 12, while their neighbours are also the only other side to have created more big chances (16) than City’s 14.

Although Watford have kept three clean sheets, the fact that they conceded three times at home to Liverpool should offer encouragement for Pep Guardiola’s attack.

Crystal Palace are yet to keep a clean sheet, although Chelsea will present a testing match-up.

Stoke City rank seventh for total shots conceded, while no team has allowed more goal attempts than Burnley (78).

West Bromwich Albion, meanwhile, surprisingly conceded three times to Brighton & Hove Albion last time out and should also present opportunities.

The home fixtures are stronger, but City did score more goals away from home (28) than at the Etihad (24) last season, with Saturday’s 5-0 win over Liverpool perhaps not a fair reflection of home form given Sadio Mane’s dismissal.

The Prospects – Clean Sheets
Watford are decidedly improved as an attacking force under Marco Silva and could present tricky opponents on Saturday.

Palace are yet to find the net and appear the ideal match-up, but Chelsea have to be backed to score at home in Gameweek 7.

Stoke have only notched once on their travels, with Burnley perhaps trickier opposition – they have scored four goals away to Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur.

West Brom should also present a reasonable opportunity for defensive returns for a City defence that has only conceded twice and allowed just two big chances.

The Turning Point
City’s fixture list remains favourable for a prolonged period, with their most difficult matches arriving in Gameweeks 16 and 18, against Man United and Spurs respectively.

Verdict
While the fixtures are very strong, rotation is a big concern for the majority of City players given that the UEFA Champions League group stage is now underway. Despite this, their leading attacking option Gabriel Jesus remains an exceptional option up front, despite losing minutes, if not starts.

The appeal of Kyle Walker and Benjamin Mendy is lessened by the presence of Danilo, though with Vincent Kompany still nursing an injury, he could remain as part of a back three and cement the starts for both wing-backs. The skipper’s return changes matters and will also cast doubts over John Stones’ security.

West Ham United

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The Prospects – Goals
Two of the Hammers’ three home matches look very promising.

Swansea are conceding a lot of chances, while Brighton have only produced a single shutout – against the 10 men of Watford.

Spurs will offer much sterner opposition, though, having kept clean sheets in both of their away matches.

The away fixtures for Slaven Bilic’s side also show promise.

West Brom have shipped four goals in their last two encounters, while Burnley and Palace have both lost at home. The Clarets are devoid of Tom Heaton’s significant influence in goal, while the Eagles defence is in transition following the arrival of Mamadou Sakho and new manager Roy Hodgson.

The Prospects – Clean Sheets
It’s much the same story looking at the prospects for the West Ham defence.

Brighton have failed to score in both of their away trips, while Swansea are currently offering very little attacking threat.

Spurs will be expected to notch at the London Stadium, though they did go down to a 1-0 defeat in the corresponding fixture last term.

The away matches look very promising – West Brom have only netted twice at home, while both Burnley and Palace have struggled for a cutting edge in front of their own fans this season.

The Turning Point
Between Gameweeks 11 and 17, the Hammers face a pretty brutal run, including fixtures against Liverpool, Everton, City, Chelsea and Arsenal.

Verdict
Aaron Cresswell’s stock will rise rapidly if he continues to be used as a wing-back, with set-piece duties also boosting his prospects in addition to possible defensive returns.

Further forward, the return of Andy Carroll looks to have lessened the appeal of Chicharito, with Michail Antonio the prominent midfield option and the current go-to candidate to cover the Hammers’ attack.

Newcastle United

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The Prospects – Goals
Scoring just four goals so far, we perhaps shouldn’t expect too much from the Newcastle attack, although they rank in the top ten for both shots and penalty area efforts.

Stoke and Liverpool will be testing match-ups, but each club have yet to register a clean sheet on their travels.

Palace should provide easier opponents, although they could be a different proposition under Hodgson come Gameweek 9.

In the away fixtures, the prospects appear relatively buoyant – Brighton have yet to keep a clean sheet at home, while Southampton have conceded four goals in their last two home matches.

The clash at Turf Moor could prove to be the trickiest of the three road trips.

The Prospects – Clean Sheets
It’s in defence where the outlook looks particularly positive.

The Magpies have registered back-to-back clean sheets, and home meetings with Stoke and Palace should provide further strong opportunities for shutouts.

There also looks little to fear in the away matches – Brighton have only managed to score in one match, while Southampton have blanked at home to both Swansea and Watford.

Burnley have also found the going tough at home – netting just once against West Brom and Palace.

The Turning Point
Rafa Benitez’s side avoid a sustained tough run of fixtures until the second half of the season. Clashes against Everton, Arsenal and City between Gameweeks 17 and 20 present the biggest obstacles before Christmas.

Verdict
It looks wise to find value in the Newcastle defence, with goalkeeper Rob Elliot providing the obvious route.

Centre-backs Ciaran Clark and Jamaal Lascelles offer a set-piece threat, with the delivery of Matt Ritchie making the midfielder a viable mid-price option. Joselu may yet emerge as a budget option as a third striker, although the jury remains out on the Magpies’ goal threat.

Also consider…

Southampton
Saints’ schedule has been strong from the outset, but faith is on the wane as they’ve failed to score in three of their four matches.

There is no convincing Southampton attacker, while with the short-term fixtures (cpl MUN stk) somewhat trickier, the appeal of Cedric Soares and Ryan Bertrand has slipped considerably.

The pair could re-emerge as leading options from Gameweek 8, though, when the schedule (NEW WBA bha BUR) improves once again.

Arsenal
It’s the Gunners’ next three home fixtures (WBA BHA SWA) that have piqued our interest.

The 3-0 victory over Bournemouth bodes well for those matches, with Sead Kolasinac now firmly on our radars should he remain at left wing-back.

In attack, Alexandre Lacazette is a viable option, having scored in both his appearances at the Emirates, although we’re yet to discover what effect the return of Alexis Sanchez will have on the Frenchman’s position and output.

The three away matches (che wat eve) are a potential deterrent to investment, however.

Leicester City
The Foxes face both Merseyside clubs at home over the next six Gameweeks, so it’s their away matches (hud bou swa) that may prove to be more profitable.

Even Liverpool and Everton have had their problems defensively, though, so Jamie Vardy is certainly a viable alternative to Roberto Firmino as a mid-priced third forward option.

With some reasonable match-ups from a defensive perspective, Harry Maguire looks set to become more of a factor due to his added set-piece threat.

Brighton & Hove Albion
Given that Arsenal and Everton are the toughest teams the Seagulls face over the next eight Gameweeks, Brighton assets should provide solid value for the time being.

The rest of the upcoming slate (bou NEW whu SOT swa STK) promises a solid platform for Chris Hughton’s side to build on the 3-1 win over West Brom.

The set-piece threat of Lewis Dunk makes him the favoured defensive option, while Pascal Gross’ 18-point explosion last weekend has seen him rival Anthony Knockaert as our favoured route to attacking returns.