EPL GW-12 Pre-Deadline and Live Chat

The games are coming thick and fast, with only two days between the weekend of GW-11 and the start of midweek GW-12. The Tuesday deadline will surely catch out a few unwary managers, and worse for them, the Man City vs Arsenal match was postponed due to Arsenal playing a rearranged Europa League match (bumped following the death of Queen Elizabeth II), so there could be a few unintentional zeros around this week. Add rotation risk to that, and there may be quite a few grumpy fantasy managers come Thursday evening.

So don’t miss the Tuesday evening deadline! The early game is Brighton hosting Nottingham Forest, so Fantrax managers should get to see those lineups confirmed and dog-pile into anyone-against-Forest ahead of the transfer deadline.

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Tuesday 18 October

• Brighton v Nottingham Forest
• Crystal Palace v Wolves

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Wednesday 19 October

• Bournemouth v Southampton
• Brentford v Chelsea
• Liverpool v West Ham
• Newcastle v Everton
• Man United v Tottenham

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Thursday 20 October

• Fulham v Aston Villa
• Leicester v Leeds

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Tuesday

Brighton v Nottingham Forest

Brighton’s recent form is not great, and since Graham Potter left the Seagulls have yet to properly find their feet again. But this game could be just the tonic the doctor ordered since Forest has been abysmal, especially away from home. Brighton is still well-placed in 7th while Forest is rock bottom.

Team news:

Brighton

OUT: Jakub Moder (knee), Kaoru Mitoma (foot)

QUESTIONABLE: none

Nottingham Forest

OUT: Omar Richards (calf), Moussa Niakhate (thigh)

QUESTIONABLE: Jack Colback (back), Renan Lodi (ankle), Lewis O’Brien (Illness), Serge Aurier (muscle)

Prediction: 2 – 0

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Crystal Palace v Wolves

Here are two teams struggling to find consistency. Wolves tallied only their second win of the season at the weekend, but that was only 1-0 at home to Forest, and even then they needed Jose Sa to save a penalty. Still, it will have given them confidence, and they may look to stifle the Eagles who themselves drew a blank against lowly Leicester on Saturday. A thrilling game this may not be.

Team news:

Crystal Palace

OUT: Chris Richards (hamstring), James McArthur (groin), Nathaniel Clyne (ankle), Will Hughes (illness)

QUESTIONABLE: Jack Butland (fitness), Nathan Ferguson (fitness)

Wolves

OUT: Chiquinho (knee), Kalajdzic (knee), Pedro Neto (ankle), Raul Jimenez (groin)

QUESTIONABLE: Toti (unspecified)

Prediction: 0 – 0

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Wednesday

Bournemouth v Southampton

This South Coast derby sees Bournemouth going unexpectedly well while Southampton sits in the bottom three. Saints are looking increasingly desperate, but perhaps a derby will energize them.

Team news:

Bournemouth

OUT: David Brooks (hamstring), Lloyd Kelly (ankle)

QUESTIONABLE: Benjamin Pearson (fitness)

Southampton

OUT: Valentino Livramento (knee), Romeo Lavia (undisclosed), Armel Bella-Kotchap (shoulder)

QUESTIONABLE: Diallo (illness), Walcott (illness)

Prediction: 1 – 1

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Brentford v Chelsea

This could be a good match between a Brentford team strong at home and a Chelsea side unbeaten under new manager Potter. Chelsea looks the stronger side, but Brentford and in-form Ivan Toney can upset.

Team news:

Brentford

OUT: Thomas Strakosha (ankle), Pontus Jansson (hamstring), Christian Nørgaard (Achilles), Aaron Hickey (ankle)

QUESTIONABLE: none

Chelsea

OUT: Wesley Fofana (knee), N’Golo Kante (hamstring), Reece James (knee)

QUESTIONABLE: Hakim Ziyech (illness), Thiago Silva (muscle)

Prediction: 1 – 3

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Liverpool v West Ham

Liverpool comes into this game with high off the win over Man City. West Ham has also been going well, but Anfield may be a daunting step too far for them.

Team news:

Liverpool

OUT: Luis Diaz (knee), Naby Keita (muscle), Diogo Jota (calf), Ibrahima Konaté (muscle), Joel Matip (calf),,

QUESTIONABLE: Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain (fitness)

West Ham

OUT: Nayef Aguerd (ankle), Maxwel Cornet (calf)

QUESTIONABLE: Kurt Zouma (illness), Craig Dawson (leg)

Prediction: 2 – 0

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Newcastle v Everton

Everton got little out of Spurs last game and may find another road-trip to a high-flying club too much as well. Newcastle has been drawing too many games, but the Magpies are still unbeaten at home, and they don’t let in too many goals. Everton on the other hand is finding it hard to score.

Team news:

Newcastle

OUT: Matt Ritchie (calf), Emil Krafth (knee), Karl Darlow (ankle), Aleksander Isak (leg), Allan Saint-Maximin (hamstring)

QUESTIONABLE: Fabian Schar (foot, slight doubt)

Everton

OUT: Ben Godfrey (broken leg), Nathan Patterson (knee), Andros Townsend (knee), Yerry Mina (calf), Mason Holgate (fitness)

QUESTIONABLE: Dominic Calvert-Lewin (match fitness)

Prediction: 2 – 0

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Man United v Tottenham

In the absence of the postponed Man City v Arsenal game, Manchester United gets top billing this round, hosting Spurs pitting 5th against 3rd. Spurs warmed up for this one with a comfortable home win against Everton, while United was unable to score against Newcastle although the defense did also keep a clean sheet. Cristiano Ronaldo was subbed off early, and his replacement Rashford fluffed a great chance to win that match. An open game with lots of goals doesn’t look very likely, so probably one goal will be enough to win it - but will we even see that?

Team news:

Manchester United

OUT: Harry Maguire (hamstring), Aaron Wan Bissaka (knock), Donny van de Beek (knock), Brandon Williams (undisclosed), Anthony Martial (back)

QUESTIONABLE: Christian Eriksen (illness)

Tottenham

OUT: Emerson Royal (suspended), Richarlison (knee),

QUESTIONABLE: Dejan Kulusevski (hamstring)

Prediction: 0 – 1

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Thursday

Fulham v Aston Villa

Fulham goes into this game placed higher in the table than many expected, and with a team that is capable of scoring goals (especially with Mitrovic having returned earlier than expected). Villa on the other hand is flirting with the bottom three, and manager Gerrard is under some pressure. But Villa’s recent form is slightly better than Fulham’s, so I sense a possible upset here, and certainly a few goals.

Team news:

Fulham

OUT: Nathaniel Chalobah (suspension), Layvin Kurzawa (calf), Manor Solomon (knee), Kenny Tete (muscle)

QUESTIONABLE: none

Aston Villa

OUT: Diego Carlos (achilles), Lucas Digne (heel), Boubacar Kamara (knee), Ludwig Augustinsson (hamstring)

QUESTIONABLE: Tyrone Mings (ankle, slight doubt)

Prediction: 2 - 2

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Leicester v Leeds

The week’s final fixture pits a desperate Leicester against a Leeds side that is gradually sliding with even worse recent form than the host side. Leicester really needs to find a way to win, and James Maddison’s suspension heaps further pressure on them.

Team news:

Leicester

OUT: James Maddison (suspended), Wilfried Ndidi (hamstring), Ricardo Pereira (achilles), Ryan Bertrand (knee), Jonny Evans (calf)

QUESTIONABLE: Soyuncu (knee)

Leeds

OUT: Stuart Dallas (thigh), Adam Forshaw (ankle),

QUESTIONABLE: Archie Gray (ankle)

Prediction: 1 – 0

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[Stats and info referenced in this article were sourced from fantasypremierleague]

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What are your predictions for this game-week? Whom are you planning to captain? How are you planning to manage the blank for Arsenal and City players — are you using a chip? In Fantrax, especially if you’re still in the Blog Cup, how many zeros are you prepared to take? Any player you think will shine during the GW-11? What late news have you seen? Please take our poll and add your thoughts to the comment section below!

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