As we reach the halfway point of the Fantasy Premier League season, things are really beginning to heat up in the Premier League and FPL. Gameweek 19 saw Leicester City continue their impressive run with a credible draw at home to Manchester City, while Arsenal went to the top of the league with a 2-0 victory over Bournemouth.
In FPL it was the midfield that really stood out in Gameweek 19, with five players making up the Team of the Week. Read on and find out which other players scored high this week and whether they helped your FPL team move up the table.
Goalkeeper
Kasper Schmeichel – Despite Leicester’s amazing start to the season there hasn’t been too many times their defensive players have scored highly. That all changed this week, with Schmeichel keeping a clean sheet and making several saves to score an impressive 10 points.
Defenders
Gabriel Armando de Abreu – The Arsenal centre back has been used sparingly this season, but with fixture congestion he was handed his chance and he didn’t disappoint. A fine header to put Arsenal 1-0 up and a clean sheet means he finished the game with 14 points; the joint highest scoring player this week.
Cesar Azpiliqueta – A solid performance at Old Trafford from Azpiliqueta gave him two extra bonus points, along with a clean sheet, to take his total to 9 points. Chelsea have shown small signs of a resurgence lately and any further improvement will surely have something to do with the full backs return to form.
Ashley Williams – Swansea have kept three clean sheets in a row now, going back to basics after a horrible run of form which saw manager Gary Monk lose his job and The Swans in the relegation zone. Williams gave a captain’s performance, scoring 9 points in the process.
Kyle Naughton – Another Swansea defender, this time Kyle Naughton. The full back put in a good showing to earn bonus points this week. With Swansea’s watertight defence, he may be a good choice going forward for anyone who wants to save some money.
Midfield
Mesut Ozil – The joint highest scorer this week put in a majestic performance against Bournemouth, pulling the strings and facilitating all of Arsenal’s attacks. A goal and assist, coupled with three bonus points, gives him a total score of 14 for the week.
Xherdan Shaqiri – The Stoke midfielder scored his first goals of the season, in a 4-3 victory away at Everton which included a sublime finish for his second. 13 points for the week means he makes his first appearance of the season in the Dreamteam.
Michail Antonio – His goal may have had a huge slice of luck, but his overall performance in the 2-1 win at home to Southampton more than warrants his place in the Team of the Week. A bit-part player this season, Antonio is making the most of his chance in the first team after West Ham’s dreadful luck with injuries.
Marko Arnautovic – A calm penalty in 89th minute against Everton rounded off a fantastic away win for Stoke. Arnautovic was at the heart of everything the Potters did on Monday, showing how important he is to the team. He managed an assist too, which gives him a total of 12 for the week.
Darren Fletcher – Darren Fletcher completes a five-man midfield this week after scoring West Brom’s winner against Newcastle. 11 points is a season high for the defensive midfielder, who doesn’t normally find himself so high up the pitch.
Strikers
Romelu Lukaku – The Premier League’s joint top goal scorer was at it again in gameweek 19. His brace wasn’t enough to stop Everton losing, but his form this season has been sensational. Two goals gives him a total of 13 points for the week.
How did you do this week? Ozil and Lukaku surely meant points for the majority, as they’re picked by most FPL players, but anyone who had Darren Fletcher or Kyle Naughton would’ve been dealt a nice surprise.
Written by Simon Banks
