Welcome to the AM’s Players To Watch for Gameweek 29. As long-time readers of my columns will know, my advice in seasons gone by had revolved around games that would allow you to make unlimited transfers each gameweek, selecting an entirely new 11 players if you so wished. Unfortunately Yahoo Fantasy Premier League is a glorious but distant memory, while Togga, sadly, was not able to return for this campaign which put an end to the Perfect XI column I’d been penning for the past two years.
This season I’ll be a bit more general in my advice. Whether you’re playing Official FPL, FPL or Fantrax Draft, Fantrax Salary Cap, Sky Sports, The Sun, The Telegraph or any number of other the fantasy games available to fans each season, I’ll be offering my top five picks for the week ahead, mixing “must-haves” with hunch picks and players flying under the radar. Hopefully this will offer something for everyone, whether you’re considering captain options, looking to make a transfers or pick up a free agent in draft.
I’ve been away for the past month and so I’d like to thank the awesome Chuck Booth for covering this column in my absence. The break has certainly done some good as my FPL team has moved from around the 120k mark in mid-January up in to the top 35k as we slide in to March. With all chips remaining the dream remains for a late dash in to the top 10k. Whatever you target is over final two months to the season, I’m here to help! And so, on to Gameweek 29.
Saturday 02 March
Spurs v Arsenal
Bournemouth v Man City
Brighton v Huddersfield
Burnley v Crystal Palace
Man Utd v Southampton
Wolves v Cardiff
West Ham v Newcastle
Sunday 03 March
Watford v Leicester
Fulham v Chelsea
Everton v Liverpool
This weekend we’re treated to both a North London and a Merseyside derby, but I’ll be avoiding those fuxtures for fantasy purposes. Instead our focus should be on Manchester United players at home to Southampton, Wolves hosting Cardiff and Manchester City away at Bournemouth. Chelsea attackers away at leaky Fulham will certainly be worth a look and I’m tipping Brighton to grab a much needed win over Huddersfield as they look to climb out of trouble. With that in mind, here are the players ....
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Raheem Sterling (MF - Manchester City @ Bournemouth) - Raheem Sterling has been in scintilating form throughout the season and was due a well-earned rest in midweek, but ended up playing 40 minutes from the bench as City struggled for a cutting edge against West Ham. Given the disappointing performances of Riyad Mahrez and Leroy Sané there is no doubt that Sterling will be restored to the starting line for the trip to Bournemouth and the England star’s pace and tidy finishing should ensure another bumped points haul.
Gonzalo Higuaín (FW - Chelsea @ Fulham) - It’s going to take Gonzalo Higuaín time to adjust to the rigours of the Premier League but he has proved he’s prepared to work hard for his team and two goals in his first four games is far from a disaster. The Argentine will have a terrific opportunity to boost those statistics as Chelsea visit a Fulham side with the worst defensive record in English football, 10 points off safety and surely destined for a return to the Championship next season.
Luke Shaw (DF - Manchester United v Southampton) - There have been many bright spots for Manchester United since OGS took the Old Trafford reigns and the performances of Luke Shaw have been one of the brightest. The left-back has five clean sheets, an assist and three FPL bonus points since the switch of leadership, which makes him a great value play at just a shade over £5million. Another clean sheet and potential attacking returns beckon as Southampton make the trip up to Manchester on Saturday.
Glenn Murray (FW - Brighton v Huddersfield) - Brighton have not won a Premier League game in 2019. Brighton are hovering just two points above the relegation zone. Brighton need three points desperately - and they will not get a better chance than at home to Huddersfield this weekend. Enter Glenn Murray, the Seagull’s top scorer with 10 goals and on penalty duty against the Premier League’s bottom placed side. Chris Hughton needs the veteran to step up this weekend, and Murray has rarely let him down.
Paul Pogba (MF - Manchester United v Southampton) - This was not a difficult decision when you consider Manchester United’s home form has been excellent, Southampton’s away form has been poor, and Paul Pogba has notched eight goals and provided seven assists in his past 11 games. In fact, the Frenchman is prime captain material for Gameweek 29 and is very close to taking the armband for my own FPL team this weekend.
Captain Choice: Raúl Jiménez (FW- Wolves v Cardiff) - Wolves will be extremely disappointed to have taken just one point from their past three fixtures at home to Newcastle and away to Bournemouth & Huddersfield, but they remain the best footballing side outside of the “Top Six” and can bounce back against Cardiff this weekend. As such I’m leaning towards handing the captaincy to talisman Raúl Jiménez, who has scored seven of his 10 Premier League goals in front of the Molineux faithful.
That’s it for Gameweek 29. Check out the Rotoworld Features page to access a host of fantastic content to get you ready for the new season. If you have any questions about a specific player or your own fantasy team then feel free to post them in the comments below or hit me on Twitter (@nikarg) and I will get back to you.
Thanks for reading - good luck to all managers this weekend.
