Hazard warning.
The J-League
58 was a popular figure on what was a difficult Gameweek 3 given the struggles of early pacesetters Sergio Aguero and Zlatan Ibrahimovic.
The top three teams in the J-League all finished on that number in the last round of fixtures before the international break and given it’s still early days, it’s probably no surprise that only two teams hung onto their places in the J-League top five.
One of those teams, Ronan Sherman’s Thespicers, have moved up to top spot and hold a four-point lead over Rory Mac Clancy’s The Winklepickers.
James Burns’ Red Devils and Fintan Carroll’s Mon the Town are neck and neck in third and fourth place, while William McCarthy’s charges, whose name we won’t be mentioning here, are a point further back in fifth.
This week’s leaders: Thespicers – Ronan Sherman
J-League Top 5
- Thespicers – Ronan Sherman: 221 points
- The Winklepickers – Rory Mac Clancy: 217 points
- Red Devils – James Burns: 216 points
- Mon the Town – Fintan Carroll: 216 points
- Team name removed – William McCarthy: 215 points
Gameweek 4
The first international break after a major tournament always turns out to be something of a damp squib, but it will soon be forgotten about when the biggest game of the season rolls around on Saturday lunchtime.
It’s been a while since a game has been as anticipated as the Manchester derby is and Fantasy managers can while away the time until kick-off by deciding how to cope with the suspension of Sergio Aguero.
Changing your team to accommodate the red hot Raheem Sterling (£8.2 million) is one option, or how about the in-form Marcus Rashford at £6.8 million?
They should also look out for any information regarding the availability of one of United’s players of the season so far, Antonio Valencia, who may not start due to his late return from international duty.
Outside of the derby, Liverpool’s first home game of the season against the Champions, Leicester City, has the makings of a cracking fixture on Saturday evening, while Middlesbrough’s strikers Alvaro Negredo and Christhian Stuani (both of whom are available for under £7.0 million) will fancy their chances of continuing their hot streak at home to Crystal Palace.
With new signings on board, Arsenal will be looking for a first home win of the season against struggling Southampton and, depending on the Manchester derby, Chelsea could end the weekend on top of the table if they beat Swansea on Sunday afternoon.
This week’s picks
Safe bet: Alexis Sanchez (£11.0 million). There’s been so much hoopla surrounding the ins and outs at Arsenal that you’d nearly forget about the world-class talent already within their ranks.
Alexis Sanchez is certainly one of them and his season sparked into life with a goal, two assists and 16 points against Watford last time out.
Dark horse: Wilfried Bony (£7.3 million). Not wanted at Manchester City, but Bony is a proven performer in the Premier League and a deadline day move to Stoke could be just the tonic for the player and for Mark Hughes’ side.
A home game against Spurs is a tough start, but he could be a decent shout in the long run.
Captain’s choice: Eden Hazard (£10.2 million). A different player to the one who looked disinterested last season, the Belgian is the highest scorer in Fantasy Football circles so far with two goals, an assist, six bonus points and 25 points in total in his first three games.
More importantly, he looks like the man who deservedly won the Player of the Year award when Chelsea took the title in 2014/15 and the Swansea defence can expect a torrid time this weekend.
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