We need to talk about Kevin de Bruyne.
J-League
It’s all change in the upper echelons of the J-League again this week, with no real pattern emerging just yet as to who is likely to be leading the chasing pack for the foreseeable future.
The only surviving team from last week’s top five is Ronan Sherman’s Thespicers, who had top spot taken away from them by the new number one, Padraic Flesk’s cleverly-titled Dyslexia Untied.
Those two have opened up a bit of a gap at the top, with Neil Finnegan’s Pique Blinders a further 12 points back in third place, a position he shares with Cormac Stopes’ Ronaldo’s Moth XI.
Propping up the top five, meanwhile, is Philip Murray’s Philmino, who registered a whopping 99 points last time out.
This week’s leaders: Dyslexia Untied – Padraic Flesk
J-League Top 5
- Dyslexia Untied – Padraic Flesk: 285 points
- Thespicers – Ronan Sherman: 283 points
- Pique Blinders – Neil Finnegan: 271 points
- Ronaldo’s Moth XI – Cormac Stopes: 271 points
- Philmino – Philip Murray: 267 points
Gameweek 5
You’re probably well aware of this week’s early deadline owing to Chelsea’s clash with Liverpool at Stamford Bridge, so get your changes made by 7pm on Friday evening.
Both of those sides are in decent form and seem pretty evenly-matched, which probably can’t be said for some of this weekend’s games, which look pretty appetising for Fantasy Football managers.
Manchester City, for example, can seemingly do no wrong at the moment and have a home clash against a Bournemouth side with only four points from four games.
Granted, Sergio Aguero is still suspended, but it didn’t seem to bother them in the derby, where Kevin de Bruyne in particular took up the attacking mantle in his absence.
Spurs, meanwhile, are home to Sunderland, who have only one point from four games and have conceded an average of two goals per game so far.
After a goal last week, Christian Benteke is not a bad shout if you fancy Stoke’s miserable run to continue, while Arsenal, although they can be frustratingly inconsistent at times, tend to flourish in games like the one away to Hull City on Saturday afternoon.
This week’s picks
Safe bet: Romelu Lukaku (£9.0 million). Had barely done a tap before Monday, when his season burst into life with a hat-trick at Sunderland.
A confidence player, this could be the trigger for the Belgian to go on a similar run to last season, when he was a must-have for Fantasy managers for large parts of the campaign.
Dark horse: Etienne Capoue (£4.8 million). As the highest points scorer in the league to date, it might be a bit of a stretch to label the Watford midfielder as a dark horse.
Despite three goals, an assist and eight out of a possible 12 bonus points so far, however, he’s still available for less than £5 million.
Captain’s choice: Kevin de Bruyne (£10.5 million). Outstanding at Old Trafford last weekend, where he registered a goal and an assist to add to the two assists he had to his name before kick-off.
In this form and against Bournemouth at home, you’d fancy him to top up his already healthy points tally.
LISTEN: You Must Be Jokin’ podcast – listen to the latest episode now!
