Premier League: Best 11 Players of Week 33

League leaders Manchester City had the weekend off from Premier League duties as they played in the final of the Carabao Cup which they won. So the focus was on the race for the top four.

Leicester and Chelsea emerged as the victors for this week as West Ham and Liverpool both dropped points. Leicester look like they will secure a top four spot more than most given their point advantage over Chelsea but also because they have a game in hand over their direct rivals.

One could argue that Everton remain dark horses for a top four finish, Carlo Ancelotti’s team beat Arsenal away from home for the first time since 1996 and they have a game in hand and shouldn’t be ruled out for a challenge.

Let’s take a look at the players who made the team of the week in a formation of 4-4-2.

Goalkeeper: Illan Meslier- Leeds United 7pts

It’s not always been a great season for Illan Meslier because even though he has kept 10 clean sheets Leeds are very good at conceding goals that is why Meslier only has 16 points so far. He made some great saves though in denying Manchester United a win and that game ended 0-0.

Defender: Ben Chilwell- Chelsea 7pts

Ben Chilwell has been an outstanding defender this season for Chelsea and he was able to hold firm and keep a clean sheet as Chelsea beat West Ham 1-0 in an very important top four battle. Chilwell along with keeping a clean sheet also assisted for the goal his 5th this season.

Defender: Jonathan Evans- Leicester 9pts

Jonathan Evans kept a clean sheet as Leicester beat West Bromwich Albion and he also scored the Foxes 2nd goal in a fantastic game for the defender as his side won 3-0. That was Evans first goal of the season.

Defender: Ashley Westwood- Burnley 9pts

Ashley Westwood scored his 2nd goal of the season as Burnley thumped Wolves 4-0 away from home which should seal their safety this season. Westwood’s value is just 1.5m and he had a fantastic game.

Defender: Timothy Castagne- Leicester 7pts

Castagne kept his 7th clean sheet of the season as Leicester eased to an easy 3-0 win over West Bromwich Albion. To cap off the day Castagne also assisted for the clubs first goal.

Midfielder: Jack Harrison- Leeds United 2pts

Along with the majority of midfielders there was no real star billing for any Premier League player. But Jack Harrison did well to keep a clean sheet against Manchester United who are unbeaten away from home.

Midfielder: Youri Tielemans- Leicester 2pts

Youri Tielemans is arguably the unsung hero of Leicester and he was controlling and solid in midfield as he picked up points because the Foxes kept another clean sheet as they beat West Bromwich Albion 3-0 to help their cause to qualify for next seasons Champions League.

Midfielder: Paul Pogba- Manchester United 2pts

Many midfielders picked up 2 points at the weekend but it has to be said just because Paul Pogba is not scoring goals lately or assisting as much as he would like he has really upped his game and his playing good football. Very hard to play against when he is on form, and he kept the Leeds United midfield very alert as his club drew 0-0 with them at the weekend.

Midfielder: Mohamed Salah- Liverpool 4pts

Mohamed Salah scored his 20th goal of the season for Liverpool as they drew 1-1 with Newcastle. Salah is just one goal behind Harry Kane now. Salah would have been pleased to score but wouldn’t have been pleased with the final result as Liverpool were pegged back for the second time in under a week.

Striker: Chris Wood- Burnley 16pts

Chris Wood had the weekend of his season as he earned a fantastic 16 points in one game. His side, Burnley beat Wolves away from home 4-0. Wood scored a hat-trick and then assisted for the 4th goal. He now has 10 goals so far and has 48 points in total now.

Striker: Jamie Vardy- Leicester 6pts

Jamie Vardy has been very quiet in 2021 and the Foxes striker will be hoping that his goal last week against West Bromwich Albion could kick start his season once again as Leicester try to finish in the top four. Vardy has 14 goals now.

Challenge the best EPL Fantasy Managers at www.fantasy-premier.com

Atalanta sign Miranchuk and Romero, sell Castagne

Atalanta moved quickly in the short transfer market window and already finalized two significant acquisitions ahead of the 2020/21 season, adding Aleksey Miranchuk from Lokomotiv Moscow and Cristian Romero from Juventus.

The 24-year-old Russian attacker was signed for €14.5M, as the fee was reduced by the fact that the contract with his former club was set to expire in 2021. He inked a four-year contract with the Goddess, with an optional fifth one. Miranchuk is coming off a career year where he scored 16 goals in 32 appearances across all competitions, including two against Juventus in Champions League, and provided five assists. He has found the target 43 times in 223 total matches in last nine seasons, all with the same team. Continue reading

Serie A Best Fantasy XI – Round 30

Jesse Joronen (7 points): after a bonanza of goals in the previous rounds, defences managed to have the upper-hand in few cases over the weekend and five teams kept a clean sheet. Brescia’s Finnish goalie had by far the best performance among #1s, as he answered the bell on the multiple big chances created by Verona attackers.

Timothy Castagne (5 points): Atalanta’s key reserve on the flanks got the nod in Cagliari, put in a very solid shift and could have easily provided an assist with the usual cross wingback-to-wingback if Hans Hateboer correctly met his great delivery.   Continue reading

Serie A Fantasy Preview – Round 23

Atalanta-Roma: the Goddess continue to add to their offensive arsenal, as Duvan Zapata is returning two his usual pre-injury numbers (two goals and three assists in the last four games) and Ruslan Malinovskyi came through last week. The Ukrainian attacker seems to have surpassed Luis Muriel as first option off the bench. Josip Ilicic did not score against Fiorentina, but still had a great performance and he has been en fuego for a while. The one small negative is that, with their front-line now featuring two quality scorers, Alejandro Gomez is back at looking more to feed them rather than finishing on his own: as a matter of fact he set up two goals last week and has not hit the net since in six weeks. Timothy Castagne came back and he is a bigger offensive weapon than the more diligent Hans Hateboer, but they will likely continue to alternate, while Robin Gosens on the opposite flank is slowing down a bit after a gorgeous January. Mario Pasalic fumbled away a pair of sitters in Florence. Rafael Toloi (one goal and six assists) has been their most intriguing defender. Continue reading

Serie A Injury and Suspension Report – Round 22

Atalanta: Josip Ilicic is dealing with some thigh soreness but there is optimism it is nothing serious. Timothy Castagne resumed practicing after some knee pain and Lennart Czyborra is available as well following a contracture. Tomas Sutalo will miss time with a navicular bone edema. 

Bologna: Takehiro Tomiyasu is suspended. Nicola Sansone should be fine after some muscle fatigue and Stefano Denswil is on track to return from a thigh problem. Gary Medel (thigh) and Ladislav Krejci (knee) are poised to remain on the shelf.

Brescia: Mario Balotelli will finish serving his two-game suspension. Continue reading

Serie A Injury and Suspension Report – Round 21

Atalanta: Timothy Castagne is out with a sore knee for the second week in a row. 

Bologna: Mattia Bani and Nicola Sansone are suspended. Stefano Denswil and Gary Medel and Ladislav Krejci (knee) remain sidelined.

Brescia: Mario Balotelli was slapped with a two-game suspension. Continue reading

Serie A Injury and Suspension Report – Round 20

Atalanta: Hans Hateboer is suspended, while Timothy Castagne missed the midweek Coppa Italia game with knee soreness, but it was likely just precautionary.

Bologna: Stefano Denswil remains iffy after missing one with a thigh ailment and it will likely be a couple more weeks before Ladislav Krejci comes back from his knee problem.

Brescia: Dimitri Bisoli is disqualified. Daniele Dessena is close to being fully cleared from his malleolus fracture. Continue reading

Serie A Fantasy Picks – Round 20

Thomas Strakosha: the Biancocelesti held up against Napoli’s attack, confirming their solidity at home, and the goalie answered the bell when he was required. It is not a particularly great round for defences on paper, so it is better to stick with safe picks.

Matthijs De Ligt: the injury of Merih Demiral will allow him to return to the XI on a consistent basis and he did look good against Roma and in Coppa Italia. Juventus have allowed nine goals at home (second-best in Serie A), so their defenders can be deployed even though Parma are the quintessential sneaky team. Continue reading

Serie A Fantasy Preview – Round 19

Cagliari-Milan: the Rossoblù played their worst game of the season against Juventus and will be eager to bounce back here and snap out of a three-game losing streak. Their last two goals were scored by Joao Pedro and Giovanni Simeone and obviously the Brazilian forward, who has tallied 11 in the season, remains their most appealing player, while the ex-Fiorentina man is more inconsistent, but has his moments in the sun. Radja Nainggolan has not been done a lot in the past four games and that has caused a decline in their offensive efficiency. They lack reliable fantasy option behind those because Nahitan Nandez and Marko Rog are not involved in the offense on a regular basis and their yield there is spotty. Their fullbacks, Luca Pellegrini in particular, have picked up few assists. Continue reading

Serie A Fantasy Picks – Round 18

Samir Handanovic: the match-up against Napoli is not that inviting fantasy-wise, but Inter boast the best statistical defence in the League by a decent margin and the Partenopei had not bagged two goal in a game in a long while before the last fluky one versus Sassuolo. It could be a low-scoring affair, giving an edge to defences and goalkeepers.

Chris Smalling: Roma have not conceded more than once in the past five fixtures and they will tangle with Torino this weekend, which are not a very explosive side. Smalling is also always a threat on set pieces. Continue reading