Game Week 9 Pre Deadline Chat

Fantasy managers will be seeking solutions to several team selection quandaries heading into week nine. Here are three items we should ponder prior to this week's deadline.

How many is too many?

We're not talking about cooks or flowers here folks. It is with absolute certainty that every manager will be pondering the question: How many Manchester City attackers should be included in our starting line ups?

With 17 goals scored in the last 3 games at home, the task at hand is sure to induce tremendous anxiety and nausea on deadline day. Burnley are this week's lambs to the slaughter (apologies to any Burnley fans out there). There isn't a pundit brave enough to predict a result other than a victory for the men in the blue half of Manchester, even though the visitors already claimed an away win at Chelsea and draws at Tottenham and Liverpool.

City are in the type of form that having the maximum three players allowed for this fixture is not only a good strategy, but may be the only thing that prevents a fall in our respective leagues.

Hazard & Morata

Some of us already have 3 Manchester City players in our squads, and there are those whose internal compasses force them off the beaten path. For those counted in this lot, the conversation will center around what should be done about the Chelsea power pairing of Eden Hazard and Alvaro Morata. Hazard has been a supreme player in previous years, and his midweek exploits have placed many on high alert. Morata is also intriguing because of his seamless transition to the Premier League. It is also worth mentioning that there will be many who will nurse doubts over who starts between Gabriel Jesus and Sergio Aguero.

Morata is the unquestionable first choice for Conte, so fantasy mangers should feel confident pairing him with two midfielders from Manchester City. Chelsea's loss to Crystal Palace was surely difficult to swallow, but Watford is expected to play a little more openly and provide Chelsea the opportunity to return to winning ways. Owning one of these premium Chelsea players is surely not a bad idea this week.

The way my account is set up...

This brings us to our third and final question: Where can money be saved to be able to afford these expensive Manchester City and Chelsea players? Without naming names (I had Tammy Abraham last week) look to Newcastle, Stoke, and Swansea to provide low budget players who seem to have welcoming fixtures.

Fixtures

West Ham vs Brighton

Chelsea vs Watford

Huddersfield vs Man Utd

Man City vs Burnley

Newcastle vs Crystal Palace

Stoke vs Bournemouth

Swansea vs Leicester

Southampton vs West Brom

Everton vs Arsenal

Tottenham vs Liverpool

What are the questions lingering in your mind as we approach the deadline? Did you even remember that we have a Friday match causing a Friday (in most formats) deadline? Let us know in the comments.