It is that time of the week again; make your transfers, study the fixture list and form guides and name your fantasy football team ahead of the weekend’s Premier League action.
This weekend has an array of what should be entertaining fixtures, with a top of the table clash between Arsenal and Liverpool, Chelsea’s visit to Newcastle and Sunday’s match up between Everton and Tottenham the standouts.
But who should you be looking to bring into your team ahead of the games?
With goalkeepers and defenders, clean sheets are the name of the game. Of the top six sides, only Manchester City have a favourable fixture, but their number one stopper is yet to be decided for the game. A home game against Norwich at the Etihad Stadium should herald three points and maybe a clean sheet, but will it be Costel Pantilimon or Joe Hart that starts for Manuel Pellegrini’s men?
With West Brom’s home form improving of late and a game at the Hawthorns against Crystal Palace, Boaz Myhill may also be a clever addition.
In defence, you can’t look past Southampton at the moment. The Saints have the most miserly rearguard in the business, with Mauricio Pochettino’s men only conceding three goals in nine games. With the south coast side travelling to take on goal-shy Stoke this weekend, look to Dejan Lovren or Jose Fonte. The Potters have scored the least goals in the division this term (six).
If you want to take a punt on a defender getting goals or assists, Leighton Baines is a solid option every week. However, with the Everton left-back playing against the attacking-minded Tottenham duo of Andros Townsend and Kyle Walker, the England left-back could find space in the final third at Goodison Park.
In midfield, Chelsea playmaker Oscar has started the season in great form, and has seemingly found his shooting boots this term. Back him to add to the four goals he has scored so far against Newcastle on Saturday.
Lee Cattermole put in an assured performance in the Tyne-Wear derby last weekend, and will be an important man for Sunderland against Hull. Going the other way, Scotsman George Boyd is a goal threat.
West Ham host an unpredictable Aston Villa outfit, with Ravel Morrison and Mark Noble key men for the Hammers. Meanwhile, Philippe Coutinho is back fit and will look to make Arsenal pay at the Emirates with Mathieu Flamini and Mikel Arteta unavailable.
In attack, Fernando Torres is one of the strikers in the best form after his man-of-the-match performances against Schalke and Manchester City of late. The Spaniard will look to take advantage of injury concerns in Newcastle’s backline at St James’ Park.
Dimitar Berbatov has been in poor form of late, but the Bulgarian plays against former club Manchester United this weekend, which should give him more motivation to excel. United attackers Adnan Januzaj, Wayne Rooney and Robin van Persie are always safe bets.
Going back to the Etihad, Alvaro Negredo and Sergio Aguero have been in great form of late and will look to test John Ruddy in his first game since signing a new Norwich contract. But which one will get more points?
Smart money dictates staying away from the Cardiff-Swansea clash, as it could well descend into a foray of yellow and red cards.
Can Steven Fletcher make it two goals in two weeks against Hull? Will Luis Suarez haunt Arsenal after they failed to sign him in the summer?
Finally, if you don’t have Romelu Lukaku in your team already, what are you doing? The powerful Belgian will be rubbing his hands when he sees the fear in flat-footed Michael Dawson’s eyes ahead of Sunday’s kick-off – back the Chelsea loanee to add to his five-goal haul for the campaign this weekend.
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