Week 24: IEFSA Fantasy League Preview 2017/18

My unbeaten run came to a screeching halt against @EPL_MOstradamus last gameweek. Two goals from Spurs’ Son Heung-Min (and he only played 70 minutes) did the majority of the damage. His other players also chipped in with three assists and three clean sheets. My side tried their best in accumulating a healthy-ish 119 points. That was never going to trouble the near 150 points that @EPL_MOstradamus ended up achieving.

Carry on...

The IEFSA/Fantrax fixture computer really turns the screw on my team this week with a game against second placed @FuzzyWarbles. I did manage to get one over him in our last encounter, so hopefully I can catch his squad cold again.

@FuzzyWarbles’s Team

Going forward the team is very strong. Sergio Aguero has 21 goals this season and Sadio Mane has eight. Eric Dier averages over 15 points per game; while Aaron Lennon appears to be getting a new lease of life at Burnley. He doesn’t have many slouches at the back either. Hegazi, Christensen, Hoedt and Janmaat, all average over ten points a game.

Can Lloris and Spurs bounce back from their Champions League disappointment?

In goals he has the Spurs keeper Hugo Lloris. 13 clean-sheets in 26 games is an excellent return, and he will get a chance to add to those figures in a fixture away at Bournemouth on Sunday.

What I Need To Happen

My side may not have any star names, but at the moment they seem to be getting minutes on the pitch and that’s all I need. My side are third from bottom of the table and miles behind when it comes to fantasy points scored. The 119 points I scored last weekend, even in a loss, was the highest score I’d achieved since Gameweek 11. If I can post something like that for the rest of the season, I’m sure I’d be fine. Would it be enough this weekend though?

Newcastle have a good home record. But will Gayle keep his starting place?

I swapped out Ayoze Perez for Dwight Gayle last weekend after the Newcastle United team sheet was announced. Either, both, or none could play this weekend for the Toon in a game against Southampton. Hopefully Gayle will keep his place and justify it with a goal.

Predictions

Lots of upheaval last weekend with 17 teams scoring in the triple digits. The highest number of teams doing that since Gameweek 9. Because of this my predictions were a paltry four correct from nine match-ups. Here are this week’s predictions. Don’t forget to check out @THE_IEFSA on Twitter as the league looks to be going down to the wire between @TRKingston and @FuzzyWarbles.

Good Luck Everyone

@TAMc10 over @EPL_MOstradamus

@jwl_15 over @nikarg

@RotoZdroik over @FantasyYIRMA

@TRKingston over @wrigavin

@jasonuk17 over @FPL_MNOP

@BenDinnery over @RotoWireAndrew

@jforquer11 over @TomSunderland_

@SportsByGotti over @nealjthurman

@cjradune over @DFS_Hambazaza

Week 23: IEFSA Fantasy League Preview 2017/18

No fixtures for several weeks thank to FA Cup and League Cup action. While I would usually be glad of the break in order for my side to heal up all those injuries, I would probably have been better off if games were being played! Because, barring we’ve entered some bizzaro-fantasy league, it looks like I have the most in-form side in the league with four wins in a row. I ended @jwl_15’s outside change of the league title last time out thanks to two goals from Tom Davies and Luka Milivojevic. Davies is new to the side as I picked him up before kick-off, along with Swansea Defender Mike van der Hoorn. With 18.9 points the Swansea player could well be one to hold onto for a couple of weeks. Swansea play at home to West Ham this Saturday.

Can Tom Davis continue scoring and help Everton away at Burnley?

The IEFSA/Fantrax fixture computer doesn’t dole out any easy fixtures, and Gameweek 23 is no different. This week’s opponents are @EPL_MOstradamus. A side that has an identical 9 wins and 13 loss record. @EPL_MOstradamus does have a big advantage in fantasy points scored though. He averages over 110 points per game, my side on the other hand averages a league low 103. The last time we met was before Christmas, and I managed to get the win thanks to a Joe Allen (who else!) goal and assist against West Brom. Chris will be super determined to get the three points this week as he tries to climb away from relegation, and he definitely doesn’t want to fall below my side. (There’ll be no catching me!)

@EPL_MOstradamus’s Team

Chris’s top scorer is Heung-Min Son with seven. Next on the goal-scoring charts is Laurent Depoitre who has netted five times. To help his stuttering Forward line, where Benteke has returned a paltry two goals, Everton’s new Turkish signing Cenk Tosun was brought in for $20. Tosun has struggled for game time under Sam Allardyce in the first two months of the year and could turn out to be an expensive signing who rots deep in the bench. He is not @EPL_MOstradamus’s highest salaried player though, that honour belongs to Nathan Redmond. Like Benteke, he is another player who has failed to reproduce any sort of consistent form this season.

It's all becoming a little too easy for Man City and Danilo.

The player who bags Chris the most fantasy points per game at the moment is Manchester City Defender Danilo. The Brazilian has two goals and an assist from 15 games. @EPL_MOstradamus’s Defence is put together on a budget seeing as big signing ($39) Benjamin Mendy, also of Man City, is a long-term injury absentee. Danilo only cost $1, as did Erik Pieters and Matthew Lowton. The only cash splashed was on Charlie Daniels of Bournemouth, $13. In goals Chris has Ben Foster of West Brom. And as a bit of a trick card, he has Scott McTominay in his squad. If our match-up is pretty close, he could throw the Manchester United youngster into the OF roster slot and hope he and Benteke bring home the points needed for a win on Monday night.

What I Need To Happen

If it does go down to the wire of Monday night, I would think, going on form, McTominay would outscore Milivojevic. It would perhaps be in my best interest in getting as many players who are starting games out early, rather than waiting on the line-ups for that fixture. I wouldn’t want to be leaving a spot for Victor Lindelof for instance. Most of my team are playing away from home this weekend. And on top of that, most of my squad will be facing teams inside the top 10 in the league. Can Tom Ince score away at Spurs? Will Ayoze Perez score away at Liverpool? Nine times out of ten, the answer to these questions has to be a no.

Thankfully there are hardly any throw-ins in the modern game.

In some good news, it does seem that Serge Aurier will be returning to the Tottenham back-line again. Thankfully, Fantrax don’t track foul throws……. do they??? With Aurier against Huddersfield, van der Hoorn against West Ham, and my goalkeeper Nick Pope hosting Everton. It could be the defensive side of that game which gives me a platform in order to have a chance at victory.

Predictions

A lot of big money moves over the last few weeks as a few sides get desperate in their bids to either gain promotion or avoid relegation. @SportsByGotti sweet talked @DFS_Hambazaza into giving him Mo Salah in exchange for Jordan Ayew and some scrubs. @FuzzyWarbles beat @TRKingston in the previous gameweek, meaning both are now tied on 17 wins, with Todd claiming first place in the IEFSA Premier on fantasy points scored.

Five correct from nine last time out once again, so let’s try and at the very least beat that this time out. Here are this week’s predictions. Don’t forget to check out all the action on Twitter from @THE_IEFSA.

Good Luck Everyone

@RotoZdroik over @nikarg

@jwl_15 over @TAMc10

@TRKingston over @FantasyYIRMA

@FuzzyWarbles over @wrigavin

@jasonuk17 over @cjradune

@SportsByGotti over @jforquer11

@RotoWireAndrew over @nealjthurman

@TomSunderland_ over @FPL_MNOP

@BenDinnery over @DFS_Hambazaza

Week 18: IEFSA Fantasy League Preview

The Fantasy Footballing Gods came down hard on my team last gameweek in my loss to @nikarg, and they show no sign of letting up as we head into the Christmas fixtures and @THE_IEFSA and Fantrax’s clearly biased fixtures computer has me facing a resurgent @TomSunderland_. I would have beaten eleven other sides in Gameweek 17, but @nikarg’s third highest score of the week helped by an Ibrahimovic brace totally blew my side out of the water. That result put me down to ninth, with the only consolation being that most of the sides at the top of the table came unstuck too, resulting in only six points now separating second from fifteenth. With everyone in close proximity to one another a win over this festive season is even more vital. But to do this I’ll have to see off @TomSunderland_’s side, whose star players are slowly coming back from injury and into form.

I've never seen Santa and Zlatan in the same room together. Just saying...

@TomSunderland_’s Team

Philippe Coutinho might still be side-lined for Liverpool, but Tom did welcome back Southampton’s Jay Rodriguez recently with two goals away at Bournemouth. This should sort out his Forward position as his other two players eligible for that slot, Martial and Stuani, have only managed to start seven games each this season. In Midfield he could also welcome back another player from injury this week in the shape of Leicester City’s Danny Drinkwater, and when the midfielder plays he averages nearly 17 points a game. The remaining Midfield spots will more than likely be taken up by a combination of Spurs and Saints players; two teams who face each other in the Wednesday night kickoff. Sissoko of Tottenham, with Ward-Prowse and Hojbjerg of Southampton making up a formidable trio if Tom needs his team to get back in the tie come Wednesday evening.

@TomSunderland_ will be wearing his Southampton Christmas jumper this week

He may not even need them though, as he has three of the most in form Defenders in the game making up his backline. Marcos Alonso averages 18 points per game and has been collecting clean sheets for fun at Chelsea recently. While, both Seamus Coleman and Patrick van Aanholt have been racking up to points thanks to their goal scoring exploits, despite playing in two teams struggling to find form. In goals he will rely on Leicester stopper Kasper Schmeichel. The Dane has only two clean sheets in nine starts, but does welcome an out of sorts Everton side at three o’clock on Boxing Day.

What I Need To Happen

That old adage that goals win games means I’ll be hoping that Tottenham can find a way to stop Rodriguez from finding the back of the net again this week. With potentially three Saints players in Tom’s side, a nice boring, but with lots of yellow cards, nil all draw, would do very nicely. Speaking of goals, if my players could find some in the fixture between Leicester and Everton, that would be great. At the back, hopefully the ball ends up at Leighton Baines’ side of the pitch rather than Coleman’s. If Kevin Mirallas could find a way to place the ball in the net that would be great; yet if he could find a way into the Everton starting eleven first that would be a bonus.

I do have a dilemma up front as Pedro did not start last time out for Chelsea, while Arnautovic is still out through suspension. Should I bring back in Fabio Borini, what with Sunderland making a daunting trip to Old Trafford? And if I do, that surely spells the end for Claudio Yacob. But can I afford the jettison the West Brom man when I’m unsure of the chances of a starting spot for Lingard, Mkhitaryan, Mirallas, Wilshere, etc? Regardless of who starts, it looks like I will have to fall back on Joe Allen to dig my side out of whatever hole they have dug for themselves. The Stoke City midfielder heads back to Liverpool on Tuesday with a point or two to prove, and will hopefully pick up about forty fantasy points in the process.

Predictions

Five correct and four dead wrong predictions last Gameweek. Getting more right than wrong is a positive I guess, and I’ll aim to end the year on a high with a clean sweep of correct predictions. Here goes! Remember to follow @THE_IEFSA on Twitter to keep track of the ups and down of each match-up.

Good Luck Everyone, Plus, Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.

@EPL_MOstradamus over @nikarg

@TRKingston over @nealjthurman

@FuzzyWarbles over @jasonuk17

@jwl_15 over @jforquer11

@RotoWireAndrew over @BenDinnery

@RotoZdroik over @SmokeyLoogy

@wrigavin over @DFS_hambazaza

@SportsByGotti over @FantasyYIRMA

@cjradune over @TAMc10

Week 6: IEFSA Fantasy League Preview

Last weekend’s matchup was a real rollercoaster. It had ups and downs and twists and turns right up to, and beyond, the final whistle. I knew the odds were stacked against me when I was up against last year’s table topper @RotoZdroik, and going into Sunday’s games I was down on points and only had two (Stoke City) players to play compared to Adam’s five. But Joe Allen covered every blade of grass while getting near 30 points and Marko Arnautovic banged in a late goal to get me with my nose in front.  A bit of adjusting of the score tally by Fantrax, and a premature awarding of the tie to @RotoZdroik by @THE_IEFSA on Twitter, and I had picked up my third win of the season, to move into 8^th place in the standings.

Joe Allen was pretty much the only Stoke player trying against Palace

This week sees my side face off against @DFS_Hambazaza. There are a number of positives for Hesh though, because while his side currently prop up the league, his team has never actually scored the lowest points total in any week; plus he has a total of eight goals in his squad compared to my side’s meagre four. Also, @DFS_Hambazaza would have won last week if he had swapped in George Friend for the benched Phil Bardsley, that mistake is hardly going to be repeated. So what I’m saying is, yes, the fixture computer is doing everything in its power to screw me over again this week.

@DFS_Hambazaza’s Team

I’ve already mentioned two of his defenders. The remaining pair are Charlie Daniels of Bournemouth and Fernandez Federico of Swansea. Friend might be his highest points scorer at the back, but four into three doesn’t go and you have to weigh up how busy a defender will likely be in order to score points in this league. Will Friend have enough on his plate against a Kane-less Spurs? All his defenders will kick off at three on Saturday, so if only three are starters anyway, his choice will be made. In goals he has Southampton’s Fraser Forster, fresh off his best performance so far this season. He does have Ryan Bertrand on Injured Reserve though, if he wanted to do a bit of juggling and go with two Saints players.

In the Midfield and Forward positions nearly every player has scored for him so far. Those to miss out have been Deulofeu of Everton, who has only started two games; and Sam Clucas at Hull, who plays mainly in front of the back four. Getting most of his goals has been his other Hull player, Robert Snodgrass. Three goals so far this season means he is a certain starter, but he does have a tricky tie away to Liverpool on Saturday. Looking elsewhere for goals then, he will have James McClean heading to Stoke, who can barely keep from letting in four goals a game never mind just one.  Andre Gray of Burnley will look to score his second league goal against Watford on Monday night. @DFS_Hambazaza might just keep that one up his sleeve in the OF position if things aren’t going his way on Saturday.

What I Need To Happen

I have the Burnley Goalkeeper and a Defender in Michael Keane playing in that game on Monday night. If I’m still in the matchup by then I’ll be happy. Of course Hesh could have played all his players by then and be out of sight. I’ll need to pick up some points in the early games. A strong performance from my Stoke players would be a good start. I also have a couple of Everton players traveling to Bournemouth, and if they were to score a goal or two against Charlie Daniels, I might get a little edge in the tie come 4:45.

One of these players is due a goal......

A trio of Arsenal players round off my team. Two of them host Chelsea in the Saturday evening game. Santi Cazorla and Hector Bellerin. While the third will be playing for Bournemouth, and is due a goal (or an assist) any day now. My bench pretty much picks itself, as Pedro can’t get into the Chelsea side, while Mkhitaryan and Lingard can’t dislodge Wayne Rooney from the Man Utd team, so another week in the wilderness beckons.

Predictions

Five correct and four wrong last week for the predictions. Lots of really close games again, but there was also a few blowouts. @SmokeyLoogy got 165.5 points, but @nealjthurman topped that by getting over 190. I predicted both of those sides would lose of course! To follow all the action please seek out all these guys on Twitter, and @THE_IEFSA will also keep you up to date with all the scores. To hear about how the system is trying to keep my side down, you can also follow me @GarryIrwin

Good Luck Everyone

@TAMc10 over @BenDinnery

@EPL_MOstradamus over @SmokeyLoogy

@RotoZdroik over @SportsByGotti

@wrigavin over @TRKingston

@RotoWireAndrew over @TomSunderland_

@FantasyYIRMA over @jasonuk17

@cjradune over @jwl_15

@FuzzyWarbles over @nealjthurman

@nikarg over @jforquer11