Getting your team selection correct in Draft Premier League is just as essential as your pre-season draft or your weekly waiver wire claims. And that’s exactly why we’re here to help with our Gameweek 5 Start and Sit article! We’re here to talk you through some of the big Fantasy EPL decisions you may need to make for the upcoming fixtures.
Looking for a better way to play Fantasy Premier League? The Fantrax draft-style EPL Fantasy Soccer Leagues are the most feature-rich, easy-to-use, and customizable in the industry. Sign up now to enjoy the incredible experience that is a Fantasy EPL Draft League on Fantrax!
Gameweek 5 Start and Sit
Whether you’re an obsessed EPL fan like our Fantrax HQ team, or a casual player new to the world of Fantasy EPL, you know to start your attacking players against relegation-threatened sides. We’re not going to waste your time dealing with the obvious! The goal of this article is to delve into notable players across each Fantrax position and let you know if you should be starting or sitting those players.
For our Start and Sit candidates, we’re going to highlight one player in detail for each position, as well as suggesting a few alternatives. Let’s get to it!
Defender Starts
Max Aarons vs WAT
Even though Norwich are yet to win a game and have conceded 11 goals, Max Aarons has quietly begun putting a solid season together. If you were to remove the 11 Goals Conceded from Aarons’s scores (still not attributing him any Clean Sheets), Aarons would be averaging 10.75 fantasy points per game this season. Now, if only he played for a team who didn’t concede goals. Well, this week vs Watford, a team that has only scored three goals in four games, Norwich just might have a chance of not conceding. In fact, the oddsmakers give Norwich a 37% chance of keeping a clean sheet, and even if they do concede, they’re likely to only concede one. This, coupled with a solid floor of peripheral stats, leads Aarons to be a great option this week.
Alternate Starts:
Liam Cooper vs NEW
Michael Keane vs AVL
Oleksandr Zinchenko vs SOU
Defender Sits
Aaron Cresswell vs MUN
The West Ham left back has started the season wonderfully, scoring 10.5 points on average over 4 starts. He’s acquired points in a variety of ways in his previous matchups, which is generally a good sign. However, looks can be deceiving. His 3 high scoring games came against Newcastle, Crystal Palace, and Southampton. His remaining game, a 1-4 drubbing at the hands of Leicester City, he scored -1 fantasy points. We expect the matchup against United to go far more like the Leicester game. West Ham have a 19% chance of a clean sheet and are expected to concede 1.68 goals on average. Up against the Liverpool dynamic duo of Salah and Alexander-Arnold, Cresswell is likely to be pinned back in his own third, thus not allowing for many attacking stats or set pieces that he has thrived off of versus weaker opponents.
Alternate Sits:
Emerson Royal vs CHE
Timothy Castagne vs BHA
Sergio Reguilon vs CHE
Midfielder Starts
Milot Rashica vs WAT
Rashica showed promise two weeks ago in a near-draw vs. Leicester City, putting up 8 fantasy points, but was then promptly benched last gameweek. His replacement, Kieran Dowell, did not perform particularly well, and Norwich lost to, fellow bottom-of-the-table side Arsenal, 0-1. Thus, expect Rashica to come back into the Norwich side this week vs. Watford. This matchup will be crucial for Norwich to win, and they’ll likely be gunning for the win. That puts Rashica, as a winger and likely primary corner-taker, in a prime position to capitalize. If Rashica does not happen to start, we advise starting whoever is playing in his position (right wing).
Alternate Starts:
Fernandinho vs SOU
Pierre Lees-Melou vs WAT
Joe Willock vs LEE
Midfielder Sits
Dele Alli vs CHE
Dele is a big-name player for a big-name team. However, he’s inconsistent and has almost no floor as a Fantrax player. Without goals, assists, and clean sheets, Alli is averaging less than 5 points a game. Versus a tough opponent in Chelsea, Alli is likely to get zero of the aforementioned stats. Chelsea plays a possession heavy game, and Spurs have multiple first-choice attackers injured. It all adds up to a threatening scenario, that we wouldn’t advise risking.
Alternate Sits:
Conor Gallagher vs LIV
James Ward-Prowse vs MCI
Forward Starts
Emmanuel Dennis vs NOR
Dennis has scored 3.5, 3.5, and 7.5 in his last 3 games (after scoring 30 in his debut) which does not inspire a ton of confidence in his fantasy prospects, particularly his floor. Well, Norwich is once again the solution to every fantasy problem. They’ve conceded 11 goals and many, many shots to opponents. According to the oddsmakers, Dennis has a 23% chance of scoring and a 20% of assisting. On top of that, as of last game, he was taking corners for Watford. Particularly if Masina and Cleverley again do not start again, that provides a great floor versus a team that has conceded the most corners in the league. Expect a more similar score to Dennis’s debut than to his last three starts.
Alternate Starts:
Rodrigo vs NEW
Joelinton vs LEE
Chris Wood vs ARS
Forward Sits
Osdonne Edouard vs LIV
Edouard had a phenomenal debut last week, scoring 2 goals after subbing on in the 86th minute. There’s no denying he’s a great finisher, and he proved that repeatedly at Celtic, his previous club. So, as tempting as it is to start him this week, when he likely takes the starting striker role from Benteke, we’d advise heavily against it. Liverpool are expected to keep a clean sheet 54% of the time, and Edouard is only expected to score 19% of the time. Against Van Dijk and company, attacking stats are hard to come by, so without a goal, Edouard may put up a shocking score this week.
Alternate Sits:
Wilfred Zaha vs LIV
Che Adams/Adam Armstrong vs MCI
Steven Bergwijn vs CHE
Check out Draft Society’s Fantrax Weekly Player Projections page for more player evaluations for the upcoming week!
Follow DraftLad on Twitter @DraftLad for all the latest!
Fantrax was one of the fastest-growing fantasy sites of 2020, and we’re not stopping now. With multi-team trades, designated commissioner/league managers, and drag/drop easy click methods, Fantrax is sure to excite the serious fantasy sports fan – sign up now for a free year at Fantrax.com.