It all comes down to this.
J-League
Leicester City already have the Premier League title sewn up going into the final weekend of the season and, barring a miracle, it would seem that the J-League is done and dusted too.
The situation at the top of the J-League was impossibly tight up until Gameweek 37, when Brendan Nohilly’s Odds Are Against Me!, who came from nowhere to make their mark in the top five in recent weeks, blew away the opposition.
Brendan, who utilised his bench boost in very timely fashion, now stands 35 points ahead of the nearest challengers, Allan Johnson’s Comeback Kids and would appear to have the J-League title all wrapped up.
Mark Anderson’s Aidan Carroll is 38 and Ciaran Tracey’s Bacuna Mata-ta are both within touching distance of second place, as are Paul Whyte’s No more Zeroes, who registered a whopping 122 points to claim fifth place from way down the table.
Brendan already has one hand on the trophy, but we’d be amazed if it isn’t firmly in his grasp by the end of the weekend.
J-League Top 5
1) Odds are against me! – Brendan Nohilly: 2,332 points
2) Comeback Kids – Allan Johnson: 2,297 points
3) Aidan Carroll is 38 – Mark Anderson: 2,296 points
4) Bacuna Mata-ta – Ciaran Tracey: 2,292 points
5) No more Zeroes – Paul Whyte: 2,291 points
Gameweek 38
Apart from a cluster of teams fighting for Champions League and Europa League places, the final weekend of the season has a real anti-climactic feel, inevitable perhaps given all the excitement that’s preceded it.
The by-product of a situation like this, of course, is that very often the most entertaining games occur on the final day of the season, when teams throw caution to the wind and tactics go out the window.
Remember Manchester United’s 5-5 draw with West Brom a few seasons back, for instance?
Most wildcards and chips will have been used up at this stage so all a manager can do is best identify where the points might come from.
This Sunday, we’ve a feeling that players from Arsenal (at home to Aston Villa) and Southampton (in form and playing a Crystal Palace side with an FA Cup final to look forward to) might be your best bet.
This week’s picks
Safe bet: Olivier Giroud (£8.7 million). Like Wayne Rooney, Giroud is a man that scores in spurts and after going five months without a goal in the league, we fancy his chances of adding to the one he was gifted against Manchester City last weekend.
Especially against Villa at home.
Dark horse: Shane Long (£5.7 million). So close to the Euros, it gives us great pleasure to recommend an Irish striker in superb form at the moment.
The Tipp man has registered three goals, three assists and 31 points in his last five matches and though he didn’t score, he gave Spurs’ Belgian centre-half pairing the runaround last weekend.
Captain’s choice: Eden Hazard (£10.9 million). Champions Leicester will want to finish the season on a high, but even if they were operating at full power they’d have trouble stopping the in-form Belgian.
His goal against Liverpool was his fourth in four matches, during which time he’s scored 36 points at an average of nine points a game.
Potential to use chips
You hardly need us to tell you that if you have any left, then go for it.
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