Gameweek 11 saw a couple of heavy hitters at the top of the table drop points alongside a number of managerial departures. Southampton’s 1-0 over Aston Villa in the Friday night kick-off led to Dean Smith’s dismissal as manager with the Villains currently in 16th-place and just two points above the drop zone. Man City were ruthlessly efficient as they emerged triumphant in the Manchester derby, beating Man Utd 0-2 through a goal from Bernardo Silva (£7.1m) and an Eric Bailly (£4.9m) own goal. Pep Guardiola’s side will have been delighted to see Chelsea drop points following their Saturday lunchtime victory, as the Blues could only draw 1-1 with Burnley after Kai Havertz (£8.1m) saw his goal cancelled out by Matej Vydra (£5.2m). Saturday also saw Norwich secure their first Premier League win of the season, beating Brentford 1-2 with Teemu Pukki (£5.8m) and Mathias Normann (£4.5m). Unfortunately for head coach Daniel Farke, his reward for overseeing the victory was the loss of his job.
Sunday was a good day for Emile Smith-Rowe (£5.8m), the young midfielder firing Arsenal to a 1-0 win over Watford, whilst North London rivals Spurs drew 0-0 away at Everton in new boss Antonio Conte’s first game back in the Premier League. Leeds Utd and Leicester played out a thoroughly entertaining 1-1 draw, which saw Brazilian Raphinha (£6.6m) on the scoresheet again for Marcelo Bielsa’s side. However, the most entertainment was saved for the London Stadium as West Ham toppled Liverpool by three goals to two.
After a long international break, the Premier League gets back underway with Gameweek 12 and we highlight those fixtures that are likely to lead to a high distribution of FPL points, pointing out some key players in the process.
GAMEWEEK 12 FIXTURES
Saturday 12th November
Leicester vs Chelsea (12:30)
Aston Villa vs Brighton (15:00)
Burnley vs Crystal Palace (15:00)
Newcastle vs Brentford (15:00)
Norwich vs Southampton (15:00)
Watford vs Man Utd (15:00)
Wolves vs West Ham (15:00)
Liverpool vs Arsenal (17:30)
Sunday 13th November
Man City vs Everton (14:00)
Spurs vs Leeds Utd (16:30)
HOWE-WAY THE LADS
After a full international break working with his squad, Newcastle’s brand-new manager Eddie Howe takes his place in the St. James’ Park dugout for the first time as the Magpies host an out of form Brentford in Gameweek 12. The visitors have lost each of their last four matches, including most recently against rock-bottom Norwich and another relegation threatened side in Newcastle will be looking to cash in with the Bees also without their first-choice goalkeeper through injury.
No doubt an attacking playstyle is expected from Howe and his men with the likelihood that forward Callum Wilson (£7.3m) will play a key role. The striker performed brilliantly for Howe at Bournemouth and with four goals to his name this season will be looking to add to that here. The expectation is that Wilson could link up with former Cherries teammate Ryan Fraser (£5.3m), who has failed to establish himself in the Newcastle team so far, but managed 14 goals and 9 assists in the 2018-19 season under Howe. However, FPL managers should be aware that Fraser is an injury doubt. One player, who has also proved himself as a viable FPL option in the past is Allan Saint-Maximin (£6.8m). Whilst the pacey frontman has not recorded an attacking return since Gameweek 6, his quality cannot be questioned and Brentford in Gameweek 12 may be the ideal fixture for Saint-Maximin to show his best form.
VILLA CAN’T AFFORD TO SLIP-UP
Following Dean Smith’s sacking, the Aston Villa hierarchy moved quickly to appoint Rangers boss Steven Gerrard as their new manager, with the Liverpool legend and reigning SPL champion taking charge of his new club for the first time in Gameweek 12, with Brighton the opposition. Villa have lost their last five Premier League fixtures, but will be hoping for that fabled new manager bounce against a side who themselves have not won any of their last seven matches in all competitions.
Aston Villa fans will no doubt be hoping that Gerrard’s arrivals leads to an upturn in form for Emi Buendia (£6.2m) who has accrued just one attacking return since his first goal for the club back in Gameweek 3. With Danny Ings having missed the past two gameweeks due to injury, FPL managers would be wise to consider investing in Ollie Watkins (£7.3m). Aston Villa’s last home game saw Watkins get on the scoresheet, picking up seven FPL points in the process and he’ll be desperate to make an impact for new boss Gerrard against the Seagulls. Another player worth considering is defender Matty Cash (£5.1m). Rangers captain James Tavernier was a crucial attacking figure for Gerrard at right-back, so it would be no surprise if Cash plays a similar role here, opening up potential for him to accumulate FPL points from multiple avenues.
CONTE LEEDS HIS TROOPS INTO BATTLE
Whilst a 0-0 draw away at Everton in Gameweek 11 was a significant improvement by Spurs from a defensive perspective, they are expected to sharpen up their attacking potency in Gameweek 12 against Leeds Utd in Antonio Conte first home Premier League match as manager. Conte has already taken charge of Spurs at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in the Europa Conference League, a match that saw them triumph 3-2 against Dutch side Vitesse and the Italian will be expecting a similar performance from an offensive point of view.
The last time these two teams clashed in North London, Heung-Min Son (£10.3m) registered a goal and an assist in a 3-0 Spurs win. The South Korean attacking midfielder will be hoping for similar success here and with four goals, two assists and 58 FPL points to his name already this season, Son may prove worth his weight in fantasy gold in Gameweek 12. Another tempting prospect is forward Harry Kane (£12.2m), who is coming off the back of a first-half hat-trick for England against Albania during the international break. Kane has scored just once in the Premier League this season and he’ll be looking to replicate his England form for Spurs against a Leeds side who have failed to keep a Premier League clean sheet away from home so far this season.
