What a battle this is shaping up to be. Bruno is the runaway favorite for MVP and an automatic 25-30 points per game. I hate everything about his demeanor and watching him just makes me mad. But he does so much for Man U and created nearly 19% of their offensive production, by far the tops in the league. Amad continues to find himself in great scoring positions but is allergic to putting the ball in the net. I don't see that changing this week. Wirtz is a must-start as he has really come on over the past 4 weeks. There could be some serious value to be found on the Liverpool wings with both Ekitike & Salah (likely) out. If Ngumoha gets the start, I think he's worth the flyer.
Don't have too much for you here. Palace's offense is putrid but Sarr seems like a good value play if he's starting. On the Bournemouth side this is a tough matchup but Rayan is an absolute stud. Tavernier and Senesi are both high floor players and should be relevant this week.
We have Wolves & Sunderland in the Toilet Bowl this week. Somehow Sunderland has lucked their way into a mid-table spot despite horrendous season-long offensive and defensive performances. Wolves are rightfully already relegated. This one is going to be a 0-0 tie or 4-3 slugfest. Everyone in this game is high risk high reward, and frankly they've all sucked so bad all year long I have no idea who is going to perform or not. I refuse to do research on these bums. Other than Granit Xhaka. I can tolerate Granit Xhaka.
Brighton was on fire in April and get a decent matchup against Newcastle. Newcastle is a completely different squad with Guimaraes back and he is an absolute steal at $11,500 this week. Pascal Groß has been one of my favorite players since De Zerbi was managing Brighton (RIP Julio Enciso) and has been a revelation since returning to the squad. Van Hecke has been on a downswing and no longer has the prime Travis Kelce value. I love Minteh in this one. Outside of Guimaraes it will be tough sledding for the Magpies.
Normally I would say load up on Brentford, but West Ham has been playing inspired ball as they pulled out the win against Everton in stoppage time. They have not exactly faced a murderer's row of opponents over the past month but they actually had the 3rd best defense in the league in April. That being said I could be talked into starting all of Brentford's top 4 in this one. Jensen absolutely erupted last week with 42 points against a solid Man U squad, and Damsgaard and Ouattara both played well. On the West Ham side, Jarrod Bowen is the heart and soul of this team and is long overdue to find the net.
What can I say about Tottenham that hasn't already been said about Afghanistan? They look bombed out and depleted. Will James Maddison make his first appearance of the season? Probably not, but it would be great to see him back. Will Pedro Porro get any help from anyone? Probably not. On the Villa side Rogers, Tielemans, and McGinn could all be smart value picks here as Tottenham is on the verge of holding Invincible-style open to the public tryouts just to field a team. Who would take Marky Mark's role in the EPL version of Invincible? I think it'd have to be Jason Statham. Regardless, there is definitely some value to be found in Tottenham's starters this week, but may be a little too risky to wait until the last game of the week to try to take a flyer on someone.
With Iwobi out this is going to be a bloodbath. Treat the entire Fulham squad like they have leprosy (shoutout Robert the Bruce's father in Braveheart and Ed Norton in Kingdom of Heaven). Declan Rice has been irrelevant since Odegaard's return and Odegaard is an absolute must-start. Saka is overdue for a big game but has been hampered by injuries. Madueke and Martinelli have both been underwhelming but something has got to give here. I'm calling a huge Saka game and frankly think everyone on the Arsenal squad has a solid day. Pile on the Gunners.