GameDay Squad EPL Gameweek 10 preview

It’s the final round to qualify for the GDS Cup and what better way to solidify your spot in it than checking out who you should be considering this week? Let's take a look below.

Nottingham Forest v Man Utd:

A much more defensive Forest still couldn’t overcome one of the better attacking teams in the league, in Bournemouth, now they come up against one of the more inform teams. United’s attack has finally clicked and now they get a real test against what should be, if they can fully revert back to old habits, one of the harder teams to break down in the league. A much more fifty fifty game than people expect.

Relevant historical data:

●     There hasn’t been a draw in this fixture for the past 15 games (United 12 wins) [last draw in 1995]

●     Forest have won the last two fixtures v United

●     Forest have only won once in the league at home this season, on the opening day to Brentford

●     Man Utd’s only away win this season was against Liverpool (their last away game)

Last five meetings:

●     Milenkovic 1G

●     E Anderson 1A

●     Gibbs-White 2G 1A

●     Hudson-Odoi 1A

●     Wood 1G

●     B Fernandes 1G 1A

Statistics (Top Five in the League for Conceding):

●     Forest: Shots on Target (2nd), Key Passes (3rd), Successful Dribbles (5th), Interceptions (5th), Saves (3rd)

●     Man Utd: Aerial Duel Wins (4th), Saves (1st)

Recommended Players:

●     Bruno Fernandes

●     Bryan Mbeumo

●     Matheus Cunha

●     Senne Lammens

●     Amad Diallo

●     Matz Sels

●     Elliott Anderson

Fulham v Wolves:

Two of the most out of form teams in the league match up in what is a great opportunity for Fulham to get back to winning ways. After a loss to Burnley last week, it’s hard to see Wolves being able to compete in this one. The undervalued Fulham attack could make for a good point of difference here.

Relevant historical data:

●     There has been no clean sheets in the past five in this fixture

●     There has been an average of 3.6 goals a game in the past five matchups

●     Fulham have only lost once at home this season (to Arsenal) in the Premier League

●     Wolves haven’t won away this season in the Premier League (only one draw to Spurs)

Last five meetings:

●     Sessegnon 1G

●     J Gomes 2G 1A

●     Muniz 1G

●     Iwobi 3G

●     Strand Larsen 1A

●     Robinson 2A

Statistics (Top Five in the League for Conceding):

●     Fulham: Shots on Target (3rd), Fouls Drawn (1st)

●     Wolves: Successful Dribbles (2nd), Accurate Crosses (5th), Fouls Drawn (2nd), Saves (5th)

Recommended Players:

●     Alex Iwobi

●     Kenny Tete

●     Bernd Leno

●     Kevin

Crystal Palace v Brentford:

Brentford have hit their stride in what hasn’t been an easy run of fixtures by any means. They’ve performed admirably against some of the better teams in the league, but have another big test against Crystal Palace’s defence. Palace have begun to slightly falter, however they too have had a rough run of fixtures after a great start to the season. This game could go either way.

Relevant historical data:

●     Brentford have won the last two in this matchup

●     There have been 11 games between these teams, Palace have only one once.

●     Palace’s one win did come at home, with two draws and one win for Brentford there

●     Whenever one team has scored in this fixture, the other team has also scored. There has been two 0-0, while the remaining nine games have resulted in both teams scoring

●     Palace are undefeated at home this season (1 W, 3 D)

●     Brentford have won two and lost three away this season in the Premier League

Last five meetings:

●     Schade 2G

●     Munoz 1A

●     Damsgaard 1A

●     Mitchell 1A

●     Guehi 1A

Statistics (Top Five in the League for Conceding):

●     Palace: Successful Dribbles (4th), Accurate Crosses (4th), Interceptions (3rd), Aerial Duel Wins (5th), Saves (2nd)

●     Brentford: Shots on Target (3rd), Key Passes (2nd), Fouls Drawn (5th), Saves (4th)

Recommended Players:

●     Dean Henderson

●     Daniel Munoz

●     Marc Guehi

●     Maxence Lacroix

●     Chris Richards

●     Tyrick Mitchell

●     Adam Wharton

●     Yeremy Pino

●     Ismaila Sarr

●     Jean Philippe Mateta

●     Kevin Schade

●     Mikkel Damsgaard

●     Michael Kayode

●     Caoimhin Kelleher

Burnley v Arsenal:

Arsenal may finally come out of their defensive shell this week as they meet a low block Burnley. Teams have been dominant on the ball against Burnley, doing what they like with plenty of time on the ball. Burnley have also suffered aerially and Arsenal could take huge advantage of that through their set piece routine. Expect set piece goals here from Arsenal, and plenty of them.

Relevant historical data:

●     Arsenal are unbeaten against Burnley in the last five meetings

●     Arsenal have only conceded two goals in the past five meetings

●     Arsenal have kept three clean sheets in the past five meetings

●     Arsenal are unbeaten in the past nine Burnley home fixtures in this matchup

●     Burnley have only lost once at home in the Premier League this season (Liverpool)

●     Arsenal have only lost once away this season (Liverpool)

Last five meetings:

●     Saka 2G 1A

●     Trossard 2G 2A

●     Saliba 1G

Statistics (Top Five in the League for Conceding):

●     Burnley: Shots on Target (1st), Key Passes (1st), Accurate Crosses (1st), Aerial Duel Wins (2nd)

●     Arsenal: Blocks (2nd), Clearances (1st)

Recommended Players:

●     Bukayo Saka

●     Gabriel

●     Jurrien Timber

●     David Raya

●     Declan Rice

●     Viktor Gyokeres

●     Eberechi Eze

●     Leandro Trossard

Brighton v Leeds:

Both teams have run into defensive problems recently, which doesn’t bode well for defenses. Brighton have excuses with their difficult fixture rearing its head, while Leeds have arguably underperformed against some of the lesser teams in the league. Brighton have the potential to put Leeds to the sword here, despite recent struggles and their impressive defensive home record against Leeds may mean they can once again achieve a clean sheet.

Relevant historical data:

●     Brighton undefeated in the past six matchups with Leeds

●     Brighton have won six of the past seven of their home fixtures in this matchup

●     Brighton are unbeaten at home this season (2 Ws and 2 Ds)

●     At home, Brighton have beaten Newcastle and Man City this season and drawn with Spurs

●     Leeds have only won once at home this season (to Wolves)

●     Brighton haven’t conceded to Leeds at home in the past seven games

Last five meetings:

●     Mitoma 1A

●     J Harrison 1G 1A

●     Welbeck 2G

●     Struijk 1G

Statistics (Top Five in the League for Conceding):

●     Brighton: Successful Dribbles (1st), Fouls Drawn (3rd)

●     Leeds: Blocks (5th)

Recommended Players:

●     Danny Welbeck

●     Yankuba Minteh

●     Sean Longstaff

●     Jan Paul van Hecke

Tottenham v Chelsea:

Historically, Chelsea have the dominance over Spurs, however they are a different prospect under Thomas Frank. This one has the potential to be the game of the round, and with Spurs coming off, arguably, their best league game of the season they could cause a mini upset here (although is it really an upset at home?).

Relevant historical data:

●     Chelsea have won the last four fixtures against Spurs

●     Tottenham have only won once in the last eighteen fixtures against Chelsea

●     Chelsea have kept three clean sheets in the last five matchups v Spurs

●     Spurs have only won one of their past eight home games v Chelsea

Last five fixtures:

●     E Fernandez 2G

●     Porro 1A

●     Cucurella 1A

●     Chalobah 1G

Statistics (Top Five in the League for Conceding):

●     Tottenham: Tackles (4th), Clearances (5th)

●     Chelsea: Interceptions (5th), Tackles (5th), Blocks (1st), Saves (5th)

Recommended Players:

●     Enzo Fernandez

●     Marc Cucurella

●     Reece James

●     Robert Sanchez

●     Trevoh Chalobah

●     Pedro Neto

●     Palhinha

Liverpool v Aston Villa:

Another fixture that Liverpool have dominated in the past, but just like last week their form indicates history may not repeat here. Aston Villa have been slowly building into the season and this could be the stepping stone they need to fully find their feet. Liverpool could snap their losing streak after massive rotation in their cup game midweek, but I wouldn’t bank on it.

Relevant historical data:

●     Aston Villa haven’t beaten Liverpool in the past ten meetings (last time they won it was 7-2). They’ve had three draws in that run, which have all come within the last five meetings

●     Liverpool averages 2.1 goals in the past ten game meetings

●     There have only been three clean sheets in the past ten games , all of which have been Liverpool

●     Liverpool have won six of the past seven home fixtures v Villa with the other being a draw

●     Liverpool average 1.7 goals per game at home in the last ten against Villa

●     Liverpool have kept three clean sheets in their past five home games against Villa, while Villa only have two goals in those games

●     Liverpool's only home league loss this season was in their most recent game against Man Utd

●     Liverpool have only kept one clean sheet at home in the league this season (to Arsenal)

●     Villa have only won one away league game this season (to Spurs)

Last five fixtures:

●     Salah 3G 3A

●     Watkins 1G 1A

●     Digne 1A

●     Gakpo 1G

●     Szoboszlai 1G

●     Cash 1 OG

Statistics (Top Five in the League for Conceding):

●     Liverpool: Interceptions (1st), Blocks (3rd), Clearances (4th)

●     Aston Villa: Key Passes (4th), Accurate Crosses (5th), Interceptions (3rd), Tackles (2nd)

Recommended Players:

●     Dominik Szoboszlai

●     Mo Salah

●     Matty Cash

●     Cody Gakpo

●     Giorgi Mamardashvili

●     Florian Wirtz

West Ham v Newcastle:

The appointment of a new manager hasn’t done the trick for West Ham, as even Nuno’s defensive set up hasn’t been able to find results for them. Newcastle are expected to easily dispatch West Ham in this one and the scoreline could get very very big.

Relevant historical data:

●     There have been two clean sheets in the past two meetings (one to each team)

●     West Ham have only won one of the past five meetings, while Newcastle have won three

●     Newcastle are unbeaten in the past five West Ham home fixtures

●     West Ham have lost every away game in the league this season, conceding three goals a game on average

●     Newcastle are yet to win an away league game this season (3 D 1 L)

Last five fixtures:

●     Guimaraes 1G 1A

●     Barnes 2G 1A

●     Soucek 2G

●     Wan Bissaka 1G

●     Bowen 1G 3A

●     Paqueta 1A

●     Gordon 1A

●     Trippier 1A

●     Joelinton 2G

●     Schar 1A

Statistics (Top Five in the League for Conceding):

●     West Ham: Shots on Target (3rd), Accurate Crosses (3rd), Aerial Duel Wins (2nd)

●     Newcastle: Successful Dribbles (2nd), Interceptions (2nd), Fouls Drawn (5th), Blocks (4th)

Recommended Players:

●     Kieran Trippier

●     Nick Woltemade

●     Sandro Tonali

●     Bruno Guimaraes

●     Nick Pope

●     Jarrod Bowen

●     Lucas Paqueta

●     Anthony Gordon

Man City v Bournemouth:

Two exceptional attacking teams meet as GDS stars Semenyo and Haaland go head to head. It may be a case of who can outscore the other in this one, but I’d back City to hold up better defensively than Bournemouth.

Relevant historical data:

●     There has been one clean sheet in the past five meetings (Man City)

●     Man City have won four of the past five meetings, with Bournemouth winning one

●     In the 20 games played between the two in history, Man City have won 18, Bournemouth one and there has been one draw

●     Man City have won every single meeting at home against Bournemouth

●     Man City’s only loss at home in the league this season was to Spurs

●     Man City average 3.33 goals in their home wins in the league this season

●     Bournemouth only have one away league win this season, which was to Spurs

●     Bournemouth have scored in every away league game this season

Last five fixtures:

●     Marmoush 2G

●     B Silva 3G

●     Gonzalez 1G

●     Nunes 1A

●     Haaland 1G

●     O’Reilly 2A

●     Evanilson 2G

●     Kluivert 1A

●     Semenyo 1G

●     Gvardiol 1G

●     Foden 2G

●     Doku 1G 4A

●     Rodri 1A

●     Ake 1G

●     Bobb 1A

Statistics (Top Five in the League for Conceding):

●     Man City: Tackles (1st), Blocks (5th)

●     Bournemouth: Aerial Duel Wins (1st), Fouls Drawn (4th), Tackles (3rd), Clearances (2nd)

Recommended Players:

●     Erling Haaland

●     Phil Foden

●     Antoine Semenyo

●     Gianluigi Donnarumma

●     Djordje Petrovic

Sunderland v Everton:

Everton’s change of style this season makes this game an interesting prospect as Sunderland will look to keep Everton’s attacking talent at bay throughout. I could see Grealish’s creativity unlocking the Sunderland defence, but they have been very very good at home this season.

Relevant historical data:

●     Haven’t played against each other since 2017

●     Everton have won four of the past five meetings (Sunderland one win)

●     The last four meetings have had a clean sheet. The team with the clean sheet has scored a minimum of 2 goals in those games

●     Sunderland haven’t lost at home this season in the league (3 W 1 D)

●     Everton have only beaten Wolves away in the league this season, losing the remaining ones

Statistics (Top Five in the League for Conceding):

●     Sunderland: Key Passes (4th), Accurate Crosses (2nd)

●     Everton: Clearances (3rd)

Recommended Players:

●     Robin Roefs

●     Nordi Mulere (Mukiele)

●     Jack Grealish

●     Trai Hume

●     James Tarkowski

●     Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall

●     Iliman Ndiaye

●     Jordan Pickford

●     Granit Xhaka

Goalkeepers:

●     Roefs ⭐️

●     Henderson

●     Pope

●     Lammens

●     Raya

Uniques: Kelleher and Mamardashvili

Defenders:

●     Gabriel ⭐️

●     Munoz

●     Timber

●     Guehi

●     Lacroix

●     Trippier

●     Cucurella

●     Chalobah

●     Mulere

●     Mitchell

Uniques: Tete and Cash

Midfielders:

●     Bruno Fernandes ⭐️

●     Mbeumo

●     Szoboszlai

●     Grealish

●     Rice

●     Enzo Fernandez

●     Guimaraes

●     Foden

●     E Anderson

●     Longstaff

Uniques: Wirtz and Wharton

Forwards:

●     Haaland ⭐️

●     Saka

●     Cunha

●     Salah

●     Iwobi

●     Woltemade

●     Gyokeres

●     Semenyo

●     Bowen

Uniques:  Trossard and Kevin

…And that’s a wrap! Best of luck with round ten.