Fantasy Football: Expected Premier League line-ups
How will all of the teams line-up on the opening weekend? Be your own football boss by signing up for Fantasy Football
Friday 9 August 2019 21:26, UK
The Sky Games expert Billy Lumsden names his expected line-ups for the opening weekend of the new Premier League season...
LIVERPOOL v Norwich, 8pm Friday, Live on Sky Sports
Selection dilemmas: Jurgen Klopp has a big decision to make whether Sadio Mane, absent during pre-season due to Africa Cup of Nations commitments, comes back straight into the European champions' starting line-up. Joel Matip or Joe Gomez at centre-half is the Liverpool boss' other big choice.
Possible line-up (4-3-3): Alisson; Alexander-Arnold, van Dijk, Gomez, Robertson; Henderson, Keita, Wijnaldum; Salah, Firmino, Origi.
Fantasy Football top tip: It is hard to see past a win and a clean sheet for Klopp's men, which means Andy Robertson (£10.2m) or Trent-Alexander Arnold (£9.9m) are good options, offering passing bonus points and the chance of assists alongside clean sheets. Play here.
Liverpool v NORWICH, 8pm Friday, Live on Sky Sports
Selection dilemmas: Daniel Farke could have a selection headache regarding Patrick Roberts and new signing Josip Drmic, who will be giving the Sky Bet Championship top scorer of last season, Teemu Pukki, competition. With both recognised centre-backs out injured, Timm Klose and Cristoph Zimmermann, Grant Hanley could come in to play alongside Ben Godfrey at Anfield.
Possible line-up (4-2-3-1): Krul; Aarons, Hanley, Godfrey, Lewis; McLean, Trybull; Buendia, Stiepermann, Hernandez, Pukki.
Fantasy Football top tip: Tom Trybull (£5.9m) is a good option for this clash, as Norwich will have to endure a lot of pressure and will not see a lot of the ball, potentially allowing Trybull to pick up tier one or tier two tackle bonus points. Play here.
WEST HAM v Manchester City, 12:30pm Saturday
Selection dilemmas: Jack Wilshere has looked impressive during pre-season, and could be influential playing higher up the pitch. Manuel Pellegrini may want to bring in a defensive midfielder to play alongside Declan Rice and put Wilshere further up the pitch, especially for the visit of the Premier League champions.
Possible line-up (4-2-3-1): Fabianski; Fredericks, Balbuena, Diop, Cresswell; Rice, Wilshere; F.Anderson, Fornals, Lanzini; Haller.
Fantasy Football top tip: West Ham could well nick a goal in this one, so the £45m man Sebastian Haller (£8.2m in Sky Sports Fantasy Football) is a worthy choice. Alternatively, Lukasz Fabianski will be tested on numerous occasions and could pick up bonus points for saves. Play here.
West Ham v MANCHESTER CITY, 12:30pm Saturday
Selection dilemmas: Sergio Aguero was rested for Manchester City's Community Shield triumph, so he could come back into the fold on Saturday in place of Leroy Sane, who suffered an ACL injury in City's Community Shield win over Liverpool and will be out for several months.
Possible line-up (4-3-3): Ederson; Walker, Stones, Laporte, Zinchenko; Rodri, De Bruyne, D.Silva; B.Silva, Aguero, Sterling.
Fantasy Football top tip: Kevin de Bruyne has been tipped for a stand-out season and if he stays injury-free there is no doubting that this is a real possibility. Look out for long-range strikes and assists in plenty, all for £11.2m. Play here.
BOURNEMOUTH v Sheffield United, 3pm Saturday
Selection dilemmas: Eddie Howe may have to change his system in order to accommodate new signings Harry Wilson and Phillip Billing, who should start ahead of Andrew Surman. This would mean Josh King would probably drop back to a slightly deeper role, leaving Callum Wilson as the lone striker with three in support.
Possible line-up (4-2-3-1): Travers; Smith, Mepham, Ake, Rico; Billing, Lerma; H.Wilson, King, Fraser; C.Wilson
Fantasy Football top tip: If you are searching for a bargain buy, look no further than Harry Wilson (£7.3m), who scored in his last match against Sheffield United, in the Sky Bet Championship. Failing that, Callum Wilson (£9.9m), 14 goals and nine assists in 2018/19, is your man. Play here.
Bournemouth v SHEFFIELD UNITED, 3pm Saturday
Selection dilemmas: New signings Oliver McBurnie and Luke Freeman could come in and he may prefer Callum Robinson or Lys Mousset to Billy Sharp, with £10m Mousset up against his old side, albeit short on fitness. John Lundstram could shore things up in midfield.
Expected line-up (3-4-1-2): Henderson; Basham, Egan, O'Connell; Baldock, Lundstram, Norwood, Stevens; Freeman; Mousset, McBurnie.
Fantasy Football top tip: Lys Mousset (£7m) has a point to prove after signing from Bournemouth, which could be a potential option to exploit, while Enda Stevens could grab an assist and cause problems down the left - perhaps a shrewd buy for £7.4m. Play here.
BURNLEY v Southampton, 3pm Saturday
Selection dilemmas: Sean Dyche will probably stick with the same solid style that has suited Burnley so well during their Premier League stay. Despite doubts over his future, James Tarkowski should play alongside Ben Mee in defence, while Jay Rodriguez could push Ashley Barnes or Chris Wood out of the side to start his first Premier League game with Burnley since returning home.
Expected line-up (4-4-2): Pope; Lowton, Tarkowski, Mee, Taylor; Hendrick, Westwood, Cork, McNeil; Wood, Barnes
Fantasy Football top tip: Goal-hungry Chris Wood has hit nine goals during pre-season and hit double figures for Premier League goals last campaign. The Burnley frontman would cost you just £8.5m and is cheaper than rival options Jay Rodriguez (£8.7m) and Ashley Barnes (£8.9m). Play here.
Burnley v SOUTHAMPTON, 3pm Saturday
Selection dilemmas: Oriol Romeu will be pushing for a start, which will be the more defensive option in comparison to James Ward-Prowse, who will be on set-piece duty should he start. Ralph Hasenhuttl will most likely stay with Nathan Redmond and new signing Che Adams rather than utilising 20-year-old Moussa Djenepo, who arrived from Standard Liege.
Expected line-up (3-4-3): Gunn; Yoshida, Bednarek, Vestergaard; Valery, Ward-Prowse, Hojbjerg, Bertrand; Adams, Ings, Redmond
Fantasy Football top tip: James Ward-Prowse (£7.8m) will be on set-piece duty, which could be plentiful with VAR in use throughout the season. Nathan Redmond (£8.2m), fresh off the back of a new four-year contract, is classed as a midfielder on Sky Sports Fantasy Football but is likely to play as a front three, meaning his goal tally could ramp up this campaign, with midfielders receiving seven points per goal as opposed to the five of strikers. Play here.
CRYSTAL PALACE v Everton, 3pm Saturday
Selection dilemmas: The experienced Gary Cahill will miss out on a start as he will be lacking match fitness, which means Roy Hodgson may go with Scott Dann and Mamadou Sakho at the back. With Wilfried Zaha handing in a transfer request, it enables Roy Hodgson to potentially pick Jordan Ayew, who would play as a front three - that being said, it is not the ideal situation for Hodgson and Crystal Palace. Although Zaha is staying, will he start? New additions Victor Camarasa and James McCarthy could feature.
Expected line-up (4-3-3): Guaita; Ward, Sakho, Dann, Van-Aanholt; Milivojevic, McCarthur, Meyer; Townsend, Benteke, Ayew
Fantasy Football top tip: Patrick van Aanholt registered 147 Fantasy Football points last season and more onus will be on him to provide from defence with the loss of Aaron Wan-Bissaka. He made the Team of the Week for the first Premier League weekend of 2018/19 with an assist and clean sheet in Palace's win over Fulham. Play here.
Crystal Palace v EVERTON, 3pm Saturday
Selection dilemmas: Fabian Delph is set to miss out with injury, so Marco Silva must make the decision between who starts with Andre Gomes and Morgan Schneiderlin in contention. Will Moise Kean make his first start in the Premier League or will Silva go with the tried and tested Dominic Calvert-Lewin?
Expected line-up (4-2-3-1): Pickford; Coleman, Keane, Mina, Digne; A.Gomez, Delph; Richarlison, Sigurdsson, Bernard; Kean
Fantasy Football top tip: Moise Kean (£10.2m) arrives from Juventus with a hefty amount of expectation, and he may get off to the flying start that he needs at Selhurst Park. He is also a long-term option as Everton face none of the top six in their first six fixtures of the campaign, with two of those involving newly-promoted teams. Play here.
WATFORD v Brighton, 3pm Saturday
Selection dilemmas: Javi Gracia has the dilemma of choosing between Adrian Mariappa or new signing Craig Dawson to play in the heart of the defence, while Gerard Deulofeu and Roberto Pereyra should start despite carrying knocks from pre-season and the Copa America respectively. New signing Danny Welbeck is out injured.
Expected line-up (4-2-2-2): Foster; Femenia, Dawson, Cathcart, Holebas; Doucoure, Capoue; Hughes; Pereyra; Deulofeu, Deeney
Fantasy Football Top Tip: Abdoulaye Doucoure (£8.1m) was the subject of a £32m move from Everton. The 11 goals (five strikes, six assists) he contributed to in 2018/19, as well as his breaking up of play leaves little reason as to why. Doucoure is a midfielder that can earn countless tackle bonus points as well as the ever-important goal and assist points. Play here.
Watford v BRIGHTON, 3pm Saturday
Selection dilemmas: Graham Potter has a couple of tough decisions to make, as Pascal Gross could be preferred to Jurgen Locadia, while Neal Maupay could replace Glenn Murray in the frontline after scoring 25 Sky Bet Championship goals in 2018/19. Aaron Mooy could replace Dale Stephens, signing from Huddersfield on Deadline Day. New defender Adam Webster could replace Dan Burn at the back.
Expected line-up (3-4-3): Ryan; Webster, Duffy, Dunk; March, Propper, Stephens, Montoya; Trossard, Murray, Locadia
Fantasy Football top tip: With Martin Montoya (£7.3m) set to play as a wing-back on Saturday, Fantasy Football points could be earned in abundance with the right balance of attack and defence. There is a chance of an assist and a clean sheet at Vicarage Road, as Graham Potter takes charge of his first Premier League game. Play here.
TOTTENHAM v Aston Villa, 5:30pm Saturday, Live on Sky Sports
Selection dilemmas: Mauricio Pochettino could opt with Ben Davies instead of Danny Rose, such as the uncertainty of his future with Tottenham, while Harry Winks will be competing with Moussa Sissoko to start alongside their record-signing Tanguy Ndombele. Dele Alli is injured, while Heung-Min Son is suspended.
Expected line-up (4-2-3-1): Lloris; Walker-Peters, Alderweireld, Vertonghen, Davies; Ndombele, Sissoko; Lamela, Eriksen, Moura; Kane
Fantasy Football top tip: Tanguy Ndombele (£8.9m) has impressed during pre-season and has been warned about adapting to the Premier League, yet this is a prime fixture to hit the ground running, against a fired-up Aston Villa with an array of new faces. Harry Kane (£12m) has been tipped by many for the Premier League Golden Boot, but will he break the trend of his August hoodoo like he did last season? Play here.
Tottenham v ASTON VILLA, 5:30pm Saturday, Live on Sky Sports
Selection dilemmas: Douglas Luiz joined up with the squad late due to work permit issues so could miss out. Frédéric Guilbert showed glimpses in pre-season and could get the nod over Ahmed Elmohamady. Tyrone Mings will be the first choice centre-back so Dean Smith will have to make the decision on who partners him, but Bjorn Engels missed part of pre-season and could be overlooked here. He will be keen not to change it up too much, with the likes of John McGinn, El Ghazi and Jack Grealish in midfield.
Expected line-up (4-3-3): Heaton; Guilbert, Mings, Engels, Targett; Hourihane, McGinn, Grealish; Jota, El Ghazi, Wesley
Fantasy Football top tip: Tom Heaton (£6.7m) is now a Villa player and this was considered a great piece of business in the transfer window. He will be straight in the firing line as he attempts to keep a clean sheet for Dean Smith's side, but could achieve tier one or tier two bonus points depending on how the game unfolds. Play here.
LEICESTER v Wolves, 2pm Sunday
Selection dilemmas: In a four-man midfield the main battle is between two players at the opposite ends of the age and experience spectrum - Marc Albrighton and Harvey Barnes. Brendan Rodgers will start with Albrighton, while Barnes should be introduced to stretch tiring legs and minds in the second period. Depending on Rodgers implementing a 4-4-2 or 4-3-3, it will mean that he could have a decision to make over playing Ayoze Perez out wide with Jamie Vardy as the central striker, or Demarai Gray instead.
Expected line-up (4-4-2): Schmeichel; Pereira, Evans, Soyuncu, Chilwell; Choudhury, Tielemans, Maddison, Albrighton; Perez, Vardy
Fantasy Football top tip: Everyone has been focusing on Jamie Vardy (£10.7m) and James Maddison (£8.3m), yet Ayoze Perez (£9.2m) has gone under the radar and should receive the same service with the players behind him. Perez comes in at £1.5m cheaper than Vardy, which could allow for reinvestment in other areas. Play here.
Leicester v WOLVES, 2pm Sunday
Selection dilemmas: Matt Doherty had a superb Premier League season last year and has featured in the Europa League on his return to gaining match fitness, so Nuno Espirito Santo could opt to play him ahead of Adama Traore.
Expected line-up (3-5-2): Patricio; Boly, Coady, Ballejo; Doherty, Neves, Dendoncker, Moutinho, Jonny; Jimenez, Jota
Fantasy Football top tip: Raul Jimenez (£10.6m) has been on fire in pre-season, and the Europa League, since making his move to Wolves permanent. Matt Doherty has also featured and scored on a couple of occasions, starting just how he left off last season, scoring four times and creating five for Nuno Espirito Santo's side. This has been reflected in his price increase from £6.5m to £8.5m. Play here.
NEWCASTLE v Arsenal, 2pm Sunday, Live on Sky Sports
Selection dilemmas: Steve Bruce is unsure on the fitness of Matt Ritchie so he may start Jetro Willems at left wing-back. Bruce must then decide whether to play Miguel Almiron or Allan Saint-Maximin alongside Joelinton. That being said, there may be question marks as to how Saint-Maximin fits into this starting line-up.
Expected line-up (3-5-2): Dubravka; Schar, Lascelles, Dummett; Manquillo, Willems; Shelvey, Longstaff, Hayden; Almiron, Joelinton
Fantasy Football top tip: Joelinton (£8.2m) has the chance to announce himself to the St James' Park faithful on Sunday, having the chance to exploit a newly-formed Arsenal back four. He has already notched in pre-season since joining from Hoffenheim and could be a shrewd choice for this fixture. Play here.
Newcastle v ARSENAL, 2pm Sunday, Live on Sky Sports
Selection dilemmas: New signing Kieran Tierney is injured and Unai Emery will make a late call over Pepe and Alexandre Lacazette. Emery must decide whether to pair David Luiz with Shkodran Mustafi or Sokratis Papastathopoulos. Granit Xhaka could miss out too, with Emery potentially preferring Lucas Torreira.
Expected line-up (4-3-3): Leno; Maitland-Niles, Luiz, Sokratis, Kolasinac; Guendouzi, Torreira, Ozil; Pepe, Aubameyang, Mkhitaryan.
Fantasy Football top tip: Nicolas Pepe is expected to play in a front three, which could prove lethal for Fantasy Football bosses. One, Pepe is registered as a midfielder on the game, and secondly, he costs only £9.8m, £1.3m less than Alexandre Lacazette, and £1.9m less than Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang. An absolute steal. Play here.
MANCHESTER UNITED v Chelsea, 4:30pm Sunday, Live on Sky Sports
Selection dilemmas: New signing Daniel James could cause a selection headache for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, who may turn to Jesse Lingard for the Chelsea contest, as he possesses more experience than James. The world's most expensive defender Harry Maguire should play alongside Victor Lindelof in place of Chris Smalling or Phil Jones.
Expected line-up (4-3-3): De Gea; Wan-Bissaka, Maguire, Lindelof, Shaw; Pogba, Matic, McTominay; Lingard, Rashford, Martial.
Fantasy Football top tip: It will be a tight and edgy affair between two managers and two teams that will not want losing starts. With this comes the opportunity for new signings to impress, but Victor Lindelof (£8.7m) will be on hand to guide Aaron Wan-Bissaka (£8.6m) and Harry Maguire (£8.9m) through their first Premier League game in a Manchester United shirt. Clean sheet points are on offer in this blockbuster. Play here.
Manchester United v CHELSEA, 4:30pm Sunday, Live on Sky Sports
Selection Dilemmas: N'Golo Kante has not featured much in pre-season for Chelsea, leaving Jorginho as the frontrunner to be Frank Lampard's defensive midfielder. Mason Mount on the flip side, has impressed during pre-season and signed a five-year contract with Chelsea, meaning Lampard could choose him ahead of Ross Barkley.
Expected line-up (4-3-3): Kepa; Azpilicueta, Zouma, Christensen, Emerson; Kovacic, Jorginho, Barkley; Pedro, Abraham, Pulisic.
Fantasy Football top tip: It is hard to look past Christian Pulisic (£10.1m), yet Pedro has the experience of playing in these high-intensity Premier League fixtures so - although this may be unpopular - the Spaniard (£9.4m) could pay dividends against a potentially nervy United back four. Play here.
