Welcome to AM’s Players To Watch for Gameweek 34. As long-time readers of my columns will know, my advice in seasons gone by had revolved around fantasy 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.
From now on 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 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 transfer or pick up a free agent in draft.
It was a decent Gameweek 33 for this column as Jamie Vardy (captain), Eden Hazard and Youri Tielemans returned huge points. Despite disappointment from the Bournemouth contingent this was enough for a massive 87 points for my own FPL team, moving up in to the overall top 10k. Onwards and upwards!
Friday 12 April
Leicester v Newcastle
Saturday 13 April
Spurs v Huddersfield
Brighton v Bournemouth
Burnley v Cardiff
Fulham v Everton
Southampton v Wolves
Man Utd v West Ham
Sunday 14 April
Crystal Palace v Man City
Liverpool v Chelsea
Monday 15 April
Watford v Arsenal
Tuesday 16 April
Brighton v Cardiff
The first thing to note is the Friday night deadline. The second thing to note is the double gameweek for Brighton and Cardiff. And the third thing to note is that you should be focusing on Brighton (two home matches), Tottenham players at home to Huddersfield, Leicester hosting Newcastle, Man City at Crystal Palace, Everton at Fulham & Manchester United hosting West Ham. Here we go ....[[ad:athena]]
Gylfi Sigurdsson (MF - Everton @ Fulham) - Everton have finally found a run of consistent form under Marco Silva to help lift the gloom from their mid-season slump and they’ll be keen to keep it going over the final five weeks to push for that coveted “best of the rest” 7th position . Another three points seem likely as they travel to leaky Fulham, with attacking midfield maestro and dead-ball specialist Gylfi Sigurdsson my pick to get amongst the goals and fantasy points in a comfortable away win for the Toffees.
Shane Duffy (DF - Brighton v Bournemouth & Cardiff) - A no-brainer selection given the fixtures. Eddie Howe’s Bournemouth players are already on the beach while Cardiff lack firepower on the road and so it seems likely that Brighton will keep at least one clean sheet across their two matches. Enter Sir Shane of Duffy, priced at a reasonable £4.7million in FPL, to cover these potential clean sheets while offering a goal threat at the opposite end of the pitch. The powerful defender has already notched an impressive five goal and two assists for the Seagulls this season.
Jamie Vardy (FW - Leicester v Newcastle) - As noted in previous columns, Brendan Rodgers held talks with Jamie Vardy on his arrival, informing the striker that he would be the main man in his Leicester revolution, and that this could do wonders for confidence. It has worked better than surely even Rodgers expected it could, with the 32-year old smashing seven goals in his last six appearance to help the Foxes climb in to the Premier League top 8. A home match with Newcastle presents Vardy with the opportunity to continue this wonderful run of form.
Kevin De Bruyne (MF - Manchester City @ Crystal Palace) - It was a big surprise to see Pep Guardiola bench Kevin De Bruyne for the Champions League clash with Tottenham in midweek, but it does FPL managers a favour ahead the deadline. The Belgian star is certain to start the game at Crystal Palace this weekend and has shown over the past month that he is approaching his best form of the season. I make it a goal and four assists in his past 4 Premier League starts, as well as providing the match-winning assist in the FA Cup semi-final a couple of weeks ago. Eagles beware.
Glenn Murray (FW - Brighton v Bournemouth & Cardiff) - I’ve thought long and hard about the selection of Glenn Murray. While the veteran striker has reached double figures for the season yet again he has only scored three goals in his past 16 appearances and has found himself benched or subbed early in many of the Seagulls’ away matches. However, he remains the club’s best finisher, designated penalty taker, and with Brighton facing two home games against teams they should have genuine expectations of beating, you should fancy him get on the scoresheet to help move his side towards safety.
Captain Choice: Heung-Min Son (MF - Tottenham v Huddersfield) - With relegated Huddersfield visiting North London in Gameweek 34, Harry Kane was nailed as the first name on wildcard team-sheets across the globe, and prime captain material. Sadly the striker suffered yet another serious-looking ankle injury in midweek which could keep him out beyond the end of the season, and so we look to alternative Spurs attackers to take the armband. Heung-Min Son has 12 goals and seven assists this season and has scored two of the first three goals at the new stadium. Expect to see him deployed as a striker against the Terriers and help himself to another goal or two.
Honourable Mention: Romelu Lukaku (FW - Manchester United v West Ham) - Big Rom doesn’t didn’t quite make the main cut but he’s worth mentioning as an alternative striking option if you’re looking to do something a bit different. The striker has been in fine goalscoring form, faces the inconsistent Hammers and is just 4% owned.
That’s it for Gameweek 34. 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.
