Gameweek 20 Preview

We told you to captain Walcott a few weeks ago and it paid off in David Spades (15 points). After a tricky fixture at St. James' Park wherein he snuck an assist for a respectable 6 pts, Arsenal are back at home sweet home against a Cardiff side who probably have a stronger sense of what they'll be getting next Christmas than they do of what on earth is going on at their club at the moment. This fixture is TANtalising for the Gunners (aaathankyou) and even though Arsene may look to substitute Walcott should Arsenal hold a one-goal lead in the second half as he did against Newcastle, chances are this will be a demolition job. Who you gonna call? Miley Cyrus I'd expect. 

By firing blanks against City and Chelsea, Suarez illustrated perfectly why fixtures maketh or breaketh the fantasy manager's season. This week, though, up against the Hull Tigers (really?) it's hard to discount the Uruguayan. His ceiling is loftier than Stephen Merchant wearing a top hat, in stilts, on tippy toes. Hull looked solid as they slaughtered Fulham 6-0 on Saturday but I have it on good authority that the friend of a guy I know has a mate who beat Fulham 8-0 by himself last week and hadn't even brought his moulded studs. Hull have shown a propensity to leak goals against better sides - 3 against United, 2 against City, Chelski and Arsenal. That said, they beat Liverpool 3-1 in the reverse fixture only a month ago so don't expect another 20+ point week from Suarez just because he's back at Anfield. Expect is a strong word - it's been sculpting its guns at the office. 

Not fit enough to make the bench against Norwich but Wazza could be considered for the armband at Old Trafford against Spurs. Moyes expects the lively Liverpudlian to be back but then Moyes is about as reliable as the johnny my Mum lovingly pinned to my corkboard when I was 14. "Carrick is out until January", he cunningly decreed before bringing him on as a sub against Norwich and playing him for the full 90 against Norwich. Carrick could be an instrumental creative cog in a fixture against his old club that traditionally rains goals - or he may not even make the bench because, you know, he was never really fit to play those other games. Unfortunately captaining Rooney this GW is too dicey on account of Moyes' shenanigans but when he scores a hat-trick you'll look back and wonder why you didn't pick him. 

There's only one week until the January wildcard so it's the perfect time to take a punt on a short-term prospect. They don't come much more enticing (or short-term for that matter) than the towering Dzeko. 90 minutes under his belt, a goal and 3 BPs netted him 9 points in a surprisingly tight affair against Crystal Palace. The Swans are up next and he could well be handed another start. This is a real risk with Negredo waiting in the wings but Edin has a habit of popping off the bench to score and assist so you may not be too disappointed even if Alvaro gets the nod at game time. 

Adebayscore they call him now. Adebaysnore was too mean and is becoming less and less apt. 2 against Southampton and a couple of assists against Stoke have decorated three straight starts since Tim Sherwood has taken charge. Whether Sherwood plans to revert to a 4-5-1 against big teams like United is anyone's guess but after Spurs' dominant performance against Stoke, the smart money is he won't try and fix what 'aint broke. 

If you're looking further ahead, as all good boys and girls do, there are a few inevitabilities about 2014 - Celebrity Big Brother will have fewer recognisable faces than your average Clapham night bus, Ryan Gosling will play the same surly topless character in at least 8 Hollywood blockbusters and Aaron Lennon will loft one up to the back post for Adebayor to head home. 

Nevertheless, Soldado is probably a better option given his penalty prowess and the fact that someone with his talent is bound to capitalise on the abundance of chances he's getting eventually. If Brad Pitt struck out at Infernos a couple of times, you wouldn't tell him to give up the game altogether, would you? 

Ozil missed the Newcastle game with a shoulder injury. The FPL % machine, in its infinite wisdom and unparalleled accuracy, gives him a 25% chance of kitting up against Cardiff. but reports claim he will now miss two or three games.

We whined about his lack of value a few weeks ago and he's done nothing to prove us wrong. Still owned by 22.5%, it's time to trade Ozil in and find Wally (9.5), or at least someone cheaper. You just can't afford to pay that much for so little production and consistency. For just over half the price you could pick up Ross Barkley (5.3), who isn't at all injured and plays in an Everton side that are scoring more goals (17 in the last 8) than Arsenal (15 in the last 8). 

Silva is banned for the trip to Swansea but fret not - you knew this was coming and you've come prepared. Your team is so stacked with quality right now that you scoff at the idea of using a January wildcard. Alternatively, if you're not a successful perfectionist, plug in Nasri (8.4) for City coverage and put Silva back in next week with your Winter Wondercard.

You know this already but just for the avoidance of doubt - Hull aren't very good. Huddlestone (4.8) is not the answer to England's problems (despite what Danny Murphy might think) - nor is he a particularly threatening midfield player. That's why his barnet got to be the size of a wigwam before he managed to score. Hull now have Liverpool away then Chelsea at home. They're not the new Man City and it's not big or clever to put in any of their players. I learned that one the hard way with Sagbo (4.9), a striker who this week somehow managed to only get 5 pts despite his team scoring 6 goals. I'm not even sure that's mathematically possible but it's definitely bad. 

Moussa (best first name ever?) scored a Christmas cracker against Stoke and hauled in 2 BPs for his performance but is a bit part player in a turbulent starting line up for Spurs. He hasn't strung together two 90 minute spells since weeks 6/7 and dribbles more recklessly than a drunk toddler at the playboy mansion. His tendency to take four superfluous touches before squandering possession aimlessly is a source of great anxiety at WHL and even with Sandro out and Sherwood preferring two central midfielders capable of surging forward, the rotation risk remains higher than Kate Moss doing white strapped to a kite on a Saturday night. 

Out of the shadows and into the fire - Having become anonymous for the best part of the season after the whole "Actually I quite fancy retirement" debacle, Anelka's brace in his return to the West Brom line-up was soured by an apparently anti-semitic gesture which he has claimed was merely a tribute to his (famously anti-semitic) comedian friend, with whom he has been pictured making said gesture. A tricky case to crack for the FA, you might think, or you might not. Avoid putting him in your team lest he face a lengthy ban or decide he'd rather not bother again.