Fantasy football: David De Gea among must-have picks on this busy gameweek
All the key stats you need to know ahead of the weekend
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Your support makes all the difference.With 15 Premier League matches taking place in the next seven days, fantasy managers will be wise to factor in teams playing twice when picking their squad. Rotation is likely, making your subs bench more important than ever.
The Independent have teamed up with daily fantasy football game www.oulala.com and together we have analysed the key stats to identify four players that simply must be in your fantasy football team this weekend.
Oulala's extensive database of statistics, which comprises of 70 different criteria sourced straight from Opta, offers the perfect platform to pick out the stars you cannot afford to be without in the upcoming weeks.
Real Madrid target David de Gea has ensured that Manchester United have tightened up at the back of late. Despite conceding three goals at White Hart Lane last weekend, the Red Devils have conceded just six goals in their last six games – a ratio that is the 3rd best record in the league. Since the end of February, the goalkeeper has kept three clean sheets and made 16 saves – which works out to saves per game and per goal ratios of 2.7. When the Spaniard first arrived at Old Trafford in 2011, pundits identified de Gea’s slight frame as a weakness at set pieces. The goalkeeper has bulked up since, demonstrated by his claim success rate of 100 per cent in the last six games. His distribution accuracy in that spell stands at 56 per cent. Manchester United welcome Aston Villa to Old Trafford this weekend, and you wouldn’t bet against de Gea making it four clean sheets from seven league games against the doomed Villans.
Despite many people expecting Leicester City to slip up and relinquish their lead atop the Premier League, the Foxes have continued to grind out the gritty wins to fend off the chasing Spurs. Just as Mourinho used to do at Chelsea, Ranieri has seen his side win by one goal margins consistently in recent weeks. Leicester have had four 1-0 victories in their past six games. A big part of that has been captain Wes Morgan. The centre-half has helped Leicester keep five clean sheets out of six, letting in just two goals over that period – unsurprisingly both stats rank best in the league. The Jamaica international has made 14 interceptions, six blocks and 45 clearances. Additionally, Morgan has also won 20 aerial duels. The skipper put an end to his teammates’ teasing about not scoring this season with the winner against Southampton at the start of the month. Leicester City host West Ham this weekend, and they will do well to keep yet another clean sheet with Hammers striker Andy Carroll netting a hat-trick against Arsenal last weekend.
It’s been quite the year for Tottenham’s Dele Alli. A year on from being benched on his birthday away to Port Vale whilst playing for MK Dons, Alli celebrated his 20th birthday with the opener against Manchester United. The youngster has undoubtedly been one of the finds of the season, especially when you consider the bargain £5m fee Tottenham were able to secure his services for. In the last six games, Alli has netted once and laid on four assists. He has managed 11 shots from midfield, at an impressive 71 per cent shot accuracy – best in the team for players with more than two shots. Alli has also created 11 chances in that spell. Tottenham have not given up in their pursuit of Leicester for the league title, and they travel to the Britannia stadium this weekend to face a Stoke side that have conceded six goals in their last two matches. It’s not over ‘til it’s over.
Things are looking pretty bleak for Newcastle, who are currently six points adrift of safety. They are without a win in their last seven league games, and will need to start picking up points quickly to stay in the division. They will certainly need more goals from Aleksandar Mitrović, that’s for sure, who has scored three in his last six games. That’s just one of four stats that the Serb leads the team in over those six games – with the forward also coming out top in shots (17), key passes (9) and aerial duels won (18). Whilst many have branded him a hot head and a liability, fans will have loved the desire he showed to get back on the pitch in the Tyne Wear derby after getting a bang on the head. His eagerness to play on in search of a winner shows that he is up for the (relegation) fight. Mitrović will be hoping to improve his conversion rate, which stands at 18 per cent, to help Newcastle out of the dire situation they’re currently in. A win at home against Swansea is an absolute must. The Welsh side have conceded five goals in their last two away games, which will give Mitrović and co hope that they can secure all three points on Tyneside this weekend.
Stats supplied by daily fantasy football game www.oulala.com
Follow Oulala on Twitter: @OulalaGames
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