The key Fantasy Premier League (FPL) notes, quotes and statistics from Newcastle United v Arsenal and West Ham United v Manchester United are covered in our Scout Notes.
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ISAK + WILSON START TOGETHER
Eddie Howe named Alexander Isak (£6.9m) and Callum Wilson (£7.1m) in the starting XI for the first time on Sunday. Often heralded as Newcastle’s ‘Plan B’, the pair had the opportunity to impress from the outset but failed to make much of an impact against a resilient Arsenal side.
Isak, deployed on the left wing in Howe’s 4-3-3 formation, had a fair bit of tracking back to do but was livelier after the break, hitting the post from a close-range header.
Wilson, meanwhile, had a couple of half chances but couldn’t get his shots off, failing to register a single effort on goal. He only managed 19 touches, too, fewer than any other starting player.
Howe ended the experiment on 77 minutes, withdrawing Wilson, with Isak playing the remainder of the game through the middle.
It remains to be seen if both players will start in Double Gameweek 36, although it is a three-game week, so Howe could potentially look to protect Wilson by resting him in one of those games. That is, however, just speculation at this stage.
- Saturday 13 May: Leeds United (a) – Double Gameweek 36
- Thursday 18 May: Brighton (h) – Double Gameweek 36
- Monday 22 May: Leicester City (h) – Gameweek 37
- Sunday 28 May: Chelsea (a) – Gameweek 38
GAMEWEEK 35: ISAK V WILSON
TRIPPIER BLANKS AGAIN
Another blank for Kieran Trippier on Sunday means FPL’s top-scoring defender is averaging just 2.6 points per match across his last 14 appearances.
It was a difficult afternoon for the England right-back on Sunday, with Gabriel Martinelli (£6.7m) causing plenty of problems down his flank. Still, he created four chances for his team-mates and came extremely close to an assist, when his free-kick delivery was met by Fabian Schar (£5.1m), only for Aaron Ramsdale (£4.8m) to pull off a great save.
Another talking point is that Trippier had the ball in his hand when Newcastle were awarded a first-half penalty. However, it was later overturned by VAR, and he would presumably have handed it over to either Wilson or Isak at the last minute anyway, which has happened before.
Newcastle’s defence has generally been sound this season, but the Gunners found lots of gaps in the back four. Having conceded again, it’s now just one clean sheet in 14 matches for the Magpies.
As for Schar, he ends Gameweek 35 on -2 points, courtesy of an own goal and late booking.
“We are disappointed as I don’t think we defended as well as we have done for the majority of the season.” – Eddie Howe
ODEGAARD INSPIRES
Martin Odegaard (£6.7m), arguably one of the players of the season, was excellent at Newcastle, as Arsenal kept their Premier League title hopes alive.
After scoring a midweek brace, the Norwegian was at it again with a superb low strike that found the inside corner of the net. He looked almost certain to add a second, too, but was denied by the impressive Nick Pope (£5.4m).
It means Odegaard has 15 non-penalty goals in 34 Premier League appearances for Arsenal this season, a record most strikers would be proud of. Throw in eight assists, and it’s no surprise to see him move up to second in the midfielder standings, only behind Mohamed Salah (£13.1m).
Elsewhere, it was Martinelli’s low cross that Schar diverted into his own net, while the Brazilian also curled a shot against the bar.
The clean sheet, meanwhile, is Arsenal’s first since losing William Saliba (£4.9m) to injury in Gameweek 27. In an assured display, £4.0m defender Jakub Kiwior partnered Gabriel Magalhaes (£5.2m) at the back, earning his second consecutive start.
FATIGUE AT MAN UTD?
In a poor performance, Man Utd lost 1-0 at the London Stadium, a match in which West Ham could and probably should have scored more.
The only goal of the game was scored by Said Benrahma (£5.5m), his tenth of the season, from a David De Gea (£5.0m) howler. The Spaniard has now made four errors leading to a goal in all competitions this season, the joint-most of any Premier League player, along with Hugo Lloris (£5.4m).
Marcus Rashford (£7.3m) looked the most likely ‘red’ to make something happen, attempting five shots, but they have now lost consecutive matches to nil, scoring just one goal in their last three.
The squad is certainly stretched by injuries, but is fatigue creeping in, too? Today was after all their 57th game of a gruelling season, and they still have another five games to play before the curtain finally comes down on 2022/23.
The good news is they don’t play again after today until Saturday when Wolverhampton Wanderers visit Old Trafford in Gameweek 36.
- Saturday 13 May: Wolves (h) – Gameweek 36
- Saturday 20 May: Bournemouth (a) – Double Gameweek 37
- Thursday 25 May: Chelsea (h) – Double Gameweek 37
- Sunday 28 May: Fulham (h) – Gameweek 38
- Saturday 3 June: Man City (n) – FA Cup final
“Of course, disappointment with the result, same as Thursday [against Brighton]. We lost for ourselves and now we have one week, the first time since Christmas, we need energy because both second halves were below standards.” – Erik ten Hag
As for West Ham, they should be safe now on 37 points, and they still have to face two of their relegation rivals – Leeds United and Leicester City – during the run-in.
