Fantasy Football GW38: Top Captain Picks, feat. Tottenham and Arsenal stars

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After 38 rounds of Premier League football, this season has finally come to an end, and what a season it has been!

Leicester City, a team that barely escaped relegation last season, have proven to all of us that hard work and passion can beat money, Tottenham have stepped out of the shadows of 5th place to 2nd place; Arsenal will actually manage to avoid finishing 4th (unless they lose to Aston Villa – about as likely as Leicester winning the league), Rafa Benitez made the impressive leap (fall) from Santiago Bernabéu to Tyneside; and Jurgen Klopp brought his enigmatic personality – and perhaps even a Europa League trophy – to the Kopites.

Perhaps most importantly though – next season we might see Pep and Mourinho go head to head with each other again, as managers of the respective Manchester clubs this time. I am sure plenty of you have seen your Fantasy Premier League experience boost you up the rankings in recent weeks given the recent double game-weeks and the planning necessary to fully exploit these, but if not – congratulations, we are at the season’s end, so your misery will soon be over. Without further ado, let us look at the best captain choices for this week and hope to finish this season with a blast!

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Alexis Sanchez (home vs Aston Villa)

If you have ventured on the forum the last few weeks, then surely you have seen people suggesting that Alexis Sanchez should be considered for the triple captain chip when he faces Aston Villa at home in the last round of the season. Since these suggestions initially came to light, Arsenal’s form has dipped somewhat, as they were not able to beat considerably lesser opposition in Crystal Palace and Sunderland and barely beat Norwich, which I am sure has made many second guess their plan to triple captain Sanchez. Perhaps his goal against City lessened some of that doubt; nevertheless, let us look at the opposition’s defensive stats to see what he is up against. Aston Villa have lost all their last six away matches – in fact, before their draw against Newcastle last weekend, you would have to go back to GW25 to find another match they did not lose, when they beat Norwich 2-0 at home. Aston Villa have conceded 72 goals throughout the season, which is the highest in the league, and 24 of those were conceded in the last 10 matches, averaging 2.4 goals conceded per match. Here is what I am getting at – despite Arsenal dipping in form, they are facing a team that they still should beat without breaking a sweat. Meanwhile, Arsenal also have another motivation – they have not finished below Tottenham in the Premier League before, and need to win to have any hope to preserve this tradition. Taking all this into consideration, Sanchez should be considered a safe captain choice this week.

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Sergio Aguero (away vs Swansea)

Jamie Vardy (away vs Chelsea)

In 2007, this lad was playing for the Stocksbridge Park Steels with a tag around his ankle for six months, not even being able to finish matches as he had to hurry back home in time for his curfew. Five seasons ago, this lad was knocking in goals for non-league side Fleetwood Town. 7th May 2016, this lad got to lift the Premier League trophy as top scorer for a Leicester team that will go down in footballing history. If you have Jamie Vardy in your team, you might as well give him the armband just for the sentimentality. With 24 goals this season, he is fighting for the top scorer title alongside Aguero and Kane, and will certainly be motivated to finish this season with another honor to his name. Despite being suspended for two games, he did not let that get to him as he netted two goals against Everton last round, bringing his goal tally to five games in his last three matches. Leicester travel to Stamford Bridge with great away form, winning 3 of their last 4 away matches, while Chelsea seem to have taken an early vacation, only winning one of their last six home matches. Leicester should definitely be seen as favourites for this match; in fact, Chelsea have conceded 10 goals in their last five matches, proving their defensive instability. Forget sentimental value – Vardy can be given the armband with confident expectations that he will perform.

Harry Kane (away vs Newcastle)

Tottenham may have fallen short of winning the title for the first time since 1961, but at least they have managed to qualify for the Champions League and finally, for the first time since 1995, finish above Arsenal in the Premier League. Or that is at least what it seemed like, before they decided to take a break and not win any of their last three matches, allowing Arsenal to sneak up to two points behind them. Do not assume that Tottenham are in vacation mode just yet though – Harry Kane has said to the media that the Spurs players are determined to give the fans bragging rights over their rivals. A bigger motivation for Kane to perform is that he is leading the top scorers chart by a single goal, meaning that he will need to perform to ensure that he will finish top scorer. As Spurs’ form has declined Kane’s returns have declined as well, seeing him blank in three of his last five matches, but still scoring three goals in the process. Tottenham go up against a Newcastle team that will have to win to have any hope of staying in the Premier League, meaning that they should expect to be pressured, but also be given room when Newcastle push forward. Newcastle have actually found decent home form under Benitez, winning three and only losing one of their last six home matches, while Spurs are in good away form as well with three wins in their last six away matches. While Kane is chasing the top scorer title, Newcastle’s home form and need to win mean that Kane might not be some peoples first choice on this list.

Andy Carroll and Dimitri Payet (away vs Stoke)

Andy Carroll, they said. Haha, we said. Then he came back from injury, scored a hat-trick against Arsenal, two more goals in the two subsequent matches, and suddenly were we not only silenced, but considering him for the triple captain chip. Then West Ham were decimated by Swansea, and he blanked against United, much to the dismay of any who triple captained him. In other words, some of us might not be sure what to think of Carroll and West Ham at the moment. Still, he has registered five goals and one assist in his last six matches, which shows that the man is on form. He did not get anything from Tuesday’s match against United, but he had several chances and could have scored. Remember that two of West Ham’s goals against United were headers from set pieces, and Carroll will more often than not be at the end of those set pieces, highlighting his potential. Dimitri Payet, West Ham’s standout player of the year, picked up two assists against United, tallying four assists in four matches. He always has the chance to perform fantasy-wise as West Ham’s attacking play goes through him and he is on set pieces, which is how he got his two assists against United. Despite the surprise loss to Swansea, West Ham are still in decent form – they have three wins, two draws, and one loss in their last six matches, and two of those draws came against Arsenal and Leicester. West Ham’s opponent Stoke sit second last in the form table, only better than Aston Villa, and they have lost four of their last six matches, conceding 17 goals in the process. West Ham have little left to play for, except a Europa League spot (which they may or may not want), meaning that their motivation is questionable heading into this match. As with Kane, Carroll & Payet have the potential to perform, but there are probably better options on this list. In theory. But since when has theory panned out this season!

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