As we head into the busy seasonal holiday period, there are so many potential fantasy point sup for grabs so it is not only a time to be jolly but a time to be careful who you drop and who you add to you teams.
13
Sell: Sergio Aguero – Forward, Manchester City, 13.0
Rumours are abound that the Argentine forward may actually be available to play this weekend. While many may deem this as ‘good news’, we have seen Aguero rushed back from injury before and seldom is it positive for the player or your fantasy team. There may be a point in the near future when it is necessary to bring him back into your side but for me, that time is not now.
10
Buy: David Silva – Midfielder, Manchester City, 10.0
Okay, buy may be a bit of a stretch, but Silva has continued to improve since his return and with Aguero likely to appear Silva could very quickly launch himself back into the fantasy elite. He is still owned in just 6.1% of leagues making him an excellent differential candidate. Arsenal, while quite strong in defense, have conceded in four of their last five matches.
Sell: Eden Hazard – Midfielder, Chelsea, 10.9
Before the Leicester match, he was seemingly turning things around with fifteen chances created in the four previous match weeks. Not only is Hazard now dealing with a hip injury, but is a part of a manager-less club that is definitely trending in the wrong direction. Steer clear until we know what is going on at Chelsea.
9
Buy: Romelu Lukaku – Forward, Everton, 9.2
I do not need to use in depth statistics on this one, you know what he has done and that the Leicester defense can be got at. I think this match ends up being a goal fest and while Robert Huth and Wes Morgan have the size to contend with Lukaku, they certainly do not have the pace.
Sell: Olivier Giroud – Forward, Arsenal, 9.0
While it is difficult to dispute his recent success, I am not optimistic that his form will continue. He has let many owners down in past years and, with the impending return of Alexis Sanchez, will stop receiving the majority of service at Arsenal. This week they face a Manchester City defence that will likely be bolstered by the return of captain Vincent Kompany who has played a role in all seven of City’s clean sheets.
8
Buy: Philippe Coutinho – Midfielder, Liverpool, 8.5
The Brazilian had been in phenomenal form before his injury scoring thirty-seven points in just three matches! While his fantasy output was disappointing last week, his underlying statistics were quite positive with three shots on target and two chances created in just seventy-one minutes of play. Watford do boast the league’s sixth best defence, but if anyone can unlock them it is Coutinho.
Sell: Graziano Pelle – Forward, Southampton, 8.1
While Pelle was great earlier in the season, he has now managed just one goal in his late eight matches. He has been a healthy scratch two of the last three weeks and now, assuming he does start, faces Tottenham’s third ranked defence.
7
Buy: Georginio Wijnaldum – Midfielder, Newcastle, 7.0
He is one of the most inconsistent fantasy options in the land, but on his day there are few better. It’s easy to assume that this will be one of those days as the opposition, Aston Villa, have conceded 2.2 goals over the last 6 matches.
Sell: Anthony Martial – Forward, Manchester United, 7.7
We all know that Manchester United’s forwards have struggled this season, but the numbers make it look even worse. Martial has failed to even put one shot on target in seven of his last ten matches! That is historically bad and, unfortunately, it does not look like manager Louis van Gaal is going to change their approach any time soon. It is possible he gets on the score sheet against a poor Norwich City side, but I want no part of Martial long-term.
6
Buy: Jordan Henderson – Midfielder, Liverpool, 6.5
Henderson looked to be fully fit, notching a goal and an assist in his first full match since MW1. Play will often run through him now that he is back and I have confidence that he will do something meaningful with his touches even against a sixth ranked Watford defence. The low price of 6.5 is a great buy and is a decent option for owners looking to drop Andre Ayew or Dusan Tadic.
Sit: Aleksandr Kolarov – Defender, Manchester City, 6.5
Sell is a bit much considering how impressive he has been this year so I will hit Kolarov with the ‘sit’ tag. The fact he was sat in favour of Gael Clichy is potentially the first sign of a time share of which you want no part. The absence of Kompany has obviously hurt the City defence, but even if he returns soon they have several difficult matchups on the horizon (Arsenal, Leicester City, Watford, and Everton). I will be dropping Kolarov if he does not get the start on Monday.
5
Buy: Mauro Zarate – Forward, West Ham United, 5.3
Mauro Zarate had about as phenomenal performance a forward can have without registering a shot on target. He did have an effort go off the post but he created eight chances last week … EIGHT! I think it is incredibly likely that he records a goal and/or assist this week against manager-less Swansea City.
Sell: Virgil van Dijk – Defender, Southampton, 5.6
After a very nice start to the season, Van Dijk has failed to notch more than two points in the last month. Worse than that is Southampton’s upcoming schedule which sees them face a trio of London sides (Tottenham Hotspur, Arsenal, West Ham United) who have all been performing well of late. Van Dijk is as decent a goal gamble as you will find at centre back, but I do not see many clean sheets in his immediate future.
4
Buy: Joel Ward – Defender, Crystal Palace, 4.4
Ward looked great last week en route to Palace’s first clean sheet in their last five. Fortunately the clean sheet odds look good in their next three matches, none of which are against top ten attacks. Ward loves getting forward so do not be surprised if he gets at least one assist over this period.
TEB Fantasy Football League Table after MW16 (top 25 from 257)
| # | Team | Manager | GW | TOT | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 |
1 | fifty-fifty | Ramchandra Ram | 62 | 945 |
 |
2 | Money Cabaye Success | Matt Jones | 91 | 945 |
|
3 | Cabaye-Bye-Bye | Matthew Freeman | 69 | 923 |
 |
4 | Chelsea Dagger | David Gilbert | 65 | 923 |
|
5 | SexDrugs&CarltonCole | Chris Hopkins | 83 | 919 |
|
6 | E Pluribus Anus | Rory Jackson | 56 | 911 |
|
7 | MurderOnZidanesFloor | Tom Harding | 97 | 910 |
|
8 | Fortress Selhurst | Shane Sayed | 72 | 907 |
|
9 | Enduring Eagles | Simon King | 72 | 902 |
|
10 | Tea and Busquets | Lewis Carter | 83 | 900 |
|
11 | Crystal Phallus FC | Simon Dixon | 69 | 892 |
|
12 | Oxted Eagles | Julian Chenery | 74 | 889 |
|
13 | Irish eagles | tony quinn | 66 | 888 |
|
14 | Worlddumbination | Phil Thomas | 75 | 886 |
|
15 | Reds in my Bed | Graham Matthews | 56 | 884 |
|
16 | Glen’s Eagles | Glen Samuel | 82 | 882 |
|
17 | ATL-EAGLES | Glen Haag | 85 | 879 |
|
18 | Chamakh My Bitch Up | Ryan Grant | 53 | 874 |
|
19 | npl XI | david champion | 53 | 871 |
|
20 | AkraLeuka | Luis Bernabeu | 85 | 871 |
|
20 | Mané Kurian FC | James Kearney | 68 | 871 |
|
22 | crystanbul | Edmund Brack | 70 | 871 |
|
23 | Cabaye’ my lover.. | Greg Ross | 67 | 871 |
|
24 | Evil Dinosaurs | Jack Carty | 79 | 870 |
|
25 | Best Weston | Asher Weston | 58 | 869 |
