"Staggeringly, Liverpool would be sitting in 16th place if you take into the account the Fantasy Football points from midfield..."
Tuesday 28 January 2020 22:41, UK
Ahead of Liverpool's trip to West Ham on Wednesday, the Fantasy Football team look at the point-pullers in Jurgen Klopp's side's unbeaten season so far, focusing on one region in particular.
Liverpool's incredible run of keeping seven successive clean sheets during their terrific Premier League unbeaten run has certainly had an impact on Fantasy Football tallies. Virgil van Dijk tops the Fantasy Football defending charts once again with 166 points, while flying full-backs Trent Alexander-Arnold and Andy Robertson take up the second and fourth spots respectively with 157 and 139 points.
Alexander-Arnold was the standout defender during this clean-sheet period, scoring once and creating four goals for Jurgen Klopp's side, while registering two man-of-the-match awards alongside the abundance of clean sheets.
It was remarkable to see Van Dijk - who was just behind his team-mate during this period - pick up tier two passing bonus points (over 70 passes) in the first six matches of this run, notching a consistent 10 Fantasy Football points in each of those games. He followed that up with a goal against Manchester United.
Of course, the clean sheet run came to an end at Wolves.
Joe Gomez has made up 90 per cent of his points from the last eight games, after initially being displaced in the Liverpool back four by Joel Matip. He was also struggling in his return from injury, but the English centre-back looks back to his best.
With Liverpool playing on Wednesday, before hosting Southampton at Anfield on Saturday, NOW could be the time to load up on Liverpool defenders before the Fantasy Football Overhaul (unlimited transfers for a week, commencing Sunday 2nd February 4:30pm to Saturday 8th February 12:30pm).
Will you opt for the defence or the attack? Change your team up here!
Staggeringly, Liverpool would be sitting in 16th place if you take into the account the Fantasy Football points from midfield. Although Liverpool's midfield has been ever so important for them this year, they have not been bringing in the points for Fantasy Football managers.
This largely comes down to the fact that the front three of Mohamed Salah, Sadio Mane and Roberto Firmino, on top of the strong back four and creative ability of Trent Alexander-Arnold and Andy Robertson, are posting hauls left, right and centre.
A word on the Liverpool frontmen - just the small matter of 30 goals, 17 assists and 12 man-of-the-match awards between Salah, Firmino and Mane, all included in the enormous 431 Fantasy Football points they have racked up.
Jordan Henderson is Liverpool's highest-scoring midfielder with 96 Fantasy Football points. Aside from his two goals, three assists and solitary man-of-the-match performance, he has recorded a host of points from the bonus tiers too, hitting over 70 passes on six differing occasions.
Follow West Ham vs Liverpool in our dedicated live blog, while highlights will also be published on the Sky Sports digital platforms and the Sky Sports Football YouTube channel shortly after the final whistle.
