If you owned Manchester City players then Gameweek 6 was a treat but if you captained Raheem Sterling… hope your vice-captain saved you. Sterling’s absence was blessing in disguise for my team as I had vice-captained Kevin de Bruyne. A couple of shocking results such as Manchester United losing to West Ham and Everton losing to Sheffield ruined some clean sheet opportunities. Spurs lost to Leicester while 10 men Arsenal beat Aston Villa in a 3-2 comeback. Interesting results leading to an uncertain Gameweek 7. Also, some mid-week League Cup performances should shed a light on some major clubs.
Heading to potential GW7 stars and differentials…
1. AFC Bournemouth
D. Ake (4.9), M. Wilson (6.1), F. Wilson (7.8)
Vs West Ham United (H)
Just when I thought Bournemouth are really back, they got knocked out of the League Cup by Burton. Both Harry and Callum Wilson only played a few minutes while Ake was rested. Callum Wilson found the score-sheet once again vs Southampton last week at the St. Mary’s. Wilson could be a decent swap for Marcus Rashford who is set to miss the game against Arsenal after sustaining a groin injury. West Ham too were knocked out 4-0 by Oxford after beating United “2-0 in the League Cup Finals” last week.
2. Arsenal
M. Saka (4.5), M. Pepe (9.4), F. Aubameyang (11.0)
Vs Manchester United (A)
Arsenal face Manchester United in GW7 after beating Nottingham Forrest 5-0 mid-week. The Gunners seem to be in a buoyant mood since they beat Aston Villa 3-2 with 10 men. Maitland-Niles dismissal won’t be a big issue for Unai Emery as Hector Bellerin, Kieran Tierney and Rob Holding are back. I don’t think I need to make a case for Auba as he’s already been consistent this season. United’s expensive defence hasn’t lived up to the billing so far and could be in for another test against Arsenal.
3. Aston Villa
M. Grealish (5.9), M. McGinn (5.7), F. Wesley (6.0)
Vs Burnley (H)
Villa beat Brighton 3-1 in the League Cup. They now face Burnley at Villa Park on Saturday. Sitting 18th on the table with just 4 points Dean Smith’s job doesn’t get any easier. McGinn and Wesley put Villa ahead twice vs Arsenal last week but still managed to lose to a team reduced to 10-men. Grealish played only for a few minutes vs Brighton mid-week and scored once.
4. Brighton and Hove Albion
Vs Chelsea (A)
Brighton’s last win was against in Bristol Rovers in the League Cup in August. Graham Potters men come up against a Chelsea side that won 7-1 to Grimsby town and had a majority of their players rested.
5. Burnley
M. McNeil (6.0), F. Wood (6.2), F. Barnes (6.6)
Vs Aston Villa (A)
A Chris Wood double gave the Clarets a 2-0 victory over Norwich last week. Sean Dyche’s men travel to Villa Park as this fixture could hand his strikers to grab goals. McNeil is slowly catching the eyes of several managers as the wingers hard work ethic is paying off.
6. Chelsea
M. Mount (6.6), F. Abraham (7.5)
Vs Brighton and Hove Albion (H)
Chelsea cruised to a 7-1 victory over Grimsby Town. Chelsea’s next 6 fixtures will make FPL managers want to get their hands on the blues top performing players in Mason Mount and Tammy Abraham. It might also be a good time to invest in Chelsea defenders, this season may not be the best in terms of clean sheets for goalkeepers and defenders. Hence, it could be worth a shot at owning some Chelsea defenders.
7. Crystal Palace
M. Zaha (6.8)
Vs Norwich (H)
Palace almost earned 3 points last week against Wolves only for Jota to ruin the party with a 95th minute equaliser! Palace took the lead with a Dendoncker own goal. The eagles seem to be struggling to score this season and they’ll have to put in more effort to do so.
8. Everton
M. Sigurdsson (7.6), F. Calvert-Lewin (5.8)
Vs Manchester City (H)
A shock 2-0 loss to Sheffield United and a 2-0 victory over Sheffield Wednesday (and training) for the toffees surely won’t be enough to prepare Marco’s Silva’s boys as they face a free scoring Manchester City. Calvert-Lewin scored twice in the victory over Sheffield Wednesday. He also scored in Bournemouth game which makes me think, it’s time that Marco Silva lets him start over Moise Kean.
