Last updated on November 3rd, 2021
By Matthew Petersen | Twitter: @Matt_Petersen13
Gameweek 10 saw Chelsea extend their lead at the top of the table after a convincing 3-0 victory over Newcastle. It was extra sweet considering Liverpool and Man City both dropped points at home to Brighton and Crystal Palace, respectively. Man United got back to winning ways with a 3-0 victory over Spurs, a result that cost Nuno Espirito Santo his job after only four months in charge. Elsewhere, West Ham beat Aston Villa 4-1 and Arsenal picked up a 2-0 victory over Leicester to move into 4th and 6th place respectively. On the FPL front, this week saw an average of 42 points with some big names failing to get considerable points. For my picks from last week, there were two players who returned points. The picks for this week are based on recent form, favourable fixtures and passing the ‘eye test’.
Gameweek 10 top 3 performers:
1. Reece James – 21 points (90 minutes, two goals, clean sheet, 3BPS)
2. Gabriel – 15 points (90 minutes, one goal, clean sheet, 3BPS)
3. Matthew Lowton – 14 points (90 minutes, one goal, one assist, 3BPS)
Let’s take a look at the 6 picks for this week, reviewing their GW10 performance and previewing their GW11 points potential
1. Reece James – £5.8m (DEF); 13.7% ownership
GW10 review – performance noted under top 3 performers
GW11 preview – Burnley (H)
James has registered three goals in his last two games and will be going into this game in a rich vein of form. Due to Chelsea’s nature of play, he gets forward often and their resolute defensive performances this season means he has a high chance of clean sheets and attacking returns so he should be on a lot of managers watchlists for the season. He was on the bench for their Champions League game against Malmo on Tuesday so that could see him play from the start against Burnley. Hopefully, he avoids the same fate Mason Mount (£7.6m) suffered from last week when he completely missed the game against Newcastle.
2. Emile Smith Rowe – £5.6m (MID); 14.9% ownership
GW10 review – 9 points (89 minutes, one goal, 1BPS)
GW11 preview – Watford (H)
I thought the permanent arrival of Martin Ǿdegaard (£5.5m) would see Smith Rowe’s impact diminish but it has been quite the opposite. All three goals and two assists he has registered this season have come since Ǿdegaard arrived. The partnership he has formed with the Norwegian and Bukayo Saka has been a revelation for Arsenal who are one of the form sides in recent weeks. A home game against a Watford side who, despite beating Everton a few weeks ago, have been relatively poor should give Smith Rowe and Arsenal an opportunity to run riot.
3. Kai Havertz – £8.1m (MID); 7.5% ownership
GW10 review – 6 points (90 minutes, one assist)
GW11 preview – Burnley (H)
If you have him, keep him for one more week. Kai Havertz was every manager’s go-to guy in the game against Norwich, where Chelsea scored seven and he failed to register a goal or an assist. He did get an assist against Newcastle last week, winning the penalty which Jorginho (£5.8m) slotted home. With their strikers still nursing injuries, Havertz will likely lead the line again and FPL managers will hope their faith in him will finally be repaid. He has created chances and it could only be a matter of time before he gets a big points haul.
4. Ethan Pinnock – £4.7m (DEF); 6.5% ownership
GW10 review – 1 point (90 minutes)
GW11 preview – Norwich (H)
Ethan Pinnock is this week’s “who to pick vs Norwich?” player. Brentford suffered a surprising 3-1 defeat against Burnley last week and that has put me off picking one of their forward options. Instead, Brentford’s defence have been solid this season and Pinnock has been one of the stalwarts. He has completed 90 minutes in eight of the ten fixtures this season and has registered one goal and one assist. Norwich’s attack is toothless so there is a strong chance of Brentford taking a clean sheet away from this game.
5. Che Adams – £6.8m (FOR); 0.8% ownership
GW10 review – 7 points (90 minutes, one goal, 1BPS)
GW11 preview – Aston Villa (H)
Last season, Adams was a revelation and proved an excellent differential option to strike partner Danny Ings (£7.8m), who has since moved to Aston Villa, Southampton’s opponents this weekend. Adams registered his first goal of the season against Watford to add to his two assists already and he will be hoping to kick on from there. His partnership with Adam Armstrong (£5.9m) has been strong this season and the two will be hoping they can add some more goals to their game. Villa have been all over the place defensively, compounded by their 4-1 defeat to West Ham last week so Southampton will be hoping to capitalise on that.
6. Aaron Ramsdale – £4.7m (GK); 8.5% ownership
GW10 review – 10 points (90 minutes, clean sheet, eight saves, 2BPS)
GW11 preview – Watford (H)
Arsenal are the second club this week to receive two entrants and it’s deserved. Like Chelsea, they are one of the form teams over the past month and their game against Watford looks favourable. Ramsdale received a lot of criticism following his initial move to Arsenal but has since displaced Bernd Leno (£4.7m) and hasn’t looked back. With four clean sheets in seven league appearances and plenty of save points racked up, Ramsdale is a safe option in Arsenal’s defence. Watford may not create many chances which bodes well for his clean sheet chances, and he is certainly a good long-term option.
