FANTASY FORECAST 2018/19: FPL Gameweek 38
Ahead of each Gameweek in the Fantasy Premier League, The Hype Train invites a special guest onto its Fantasy Forecast, where the three members of the Hype Team and its Special Guests will duel for FPL supremacy in predicting Premier League scores, as well as going head to head in picking a Scout Picks squad for the relevant Gameweek. In addition, we give our insight into who are the players to watch and those to drop, both for traditional FPL leagues and the Draft mode, as well as providing insight into captaincy picks, differentials for the week, and more. Welcome to the Forecast. All aboard.
Fantasy Premier League: Gameweek 38 Deadline
For the 2016/17 Premier League season, the FPL deadline will be one hour before the commencement of the week's first game. The Premier League website lists each FPL deadline, you can always ask on social media, and you can also view a real time countdown on our Weekly Hype page.
How does our Forecasting work?
We have taken to our Hype Team, and the FPL Community, to compete in a weekly head to head dual of wits. We ask the questions that dominate each week in the Fantasy Premier League: who to pick, who to avoid, who to captain, and who may surprise. The three members of the Hype Team, and a Guest, will provide weekly insight for the Gameweek ahead.
For the sake of respecting the rules of the Forecast, we have provided an example of what we're sending out to interested parties that will feature throughout the season.
Premier League Fixture Prediction: As pundits, we are testing our football acumen with PL predictions and will be providing regular updated tables and stats in each edition of the FPL Forecast. A perfect score is worth 3 points whilst a correct result is worth 1 point.
FPL Gameweek Forecasting: Answering the regular questions that come up every single week in the Fantasy Premier League community that helps with identifying captaincy picks, transfers, attacking options, clean sheet potential, teams to look our for and avoid, players to consider for the Draft game, the wildcard differential players, as well as general analysis and comments.
Scout Picks: Picking a squad of 15 for a single Gameweek, without any budget, using the rules of the FPL - formations, captains and vice captains, and the player limits of 3 per club (chips will not be feature of these weekly picks)
Each team must pick a Captain, labelled as (c) and a Vice Captain listed as (vc).
Fixture Prediction: Gameweek 38
Brighton 2-1 Man City
Burnley 2-1 Arsenal
Crystal Palace 2-2 Bournemouth
Fulham 0-2 Newcastle
Leicester 3-1 Chelsea
Liverpool 3-0 Wolves
Man United 2-1 Cardiff
Southampton 2-0 Huddersfield
Spurs 1-0 Everton
Watford 1-1 West Ham
FPL Hype Picks: Gameweek 38
Formation: 3-4-3
Starting 11
GK: David de Gea
DEF: Virgil van Dijk
DEF: Amyeric Laporte
DEF: Fabian Schar
MID: Mohamed Salah (VC)
MID: Sadio Mane (C)
MID: Raheem Sterling
MID: Eden Hazard
FOR: Marcus Rashford
FOR: Sergio Aguero
FOR: Salomon Rondon
Substitutes
GK: Ben Foster
MID: Christian Eriksen
DEF: Aaron Wan-Bissaka
DEF: Ben Mee
Fixture Prediction: Gameweek 38
Brighton 0-4 Man City
Burnley 1-2 Arsenal
Crystal Palace 1-1 Bournemouth
Fulham 2-1 Newcastle
Leicester 0-2 Chelsea
Liverpool 1-1 Wolves
Man United 3-0 Cardiff
Southampton 2-0 Huddersfield
Spurs 3-0 Everton
Watford 1-0 West Ham
FPL Hype Picks: Gameweek 38
Formation: 3-4-3
Starting 11
GK: David de Gea
DEF: Trent Alexander-Arnold
DEF: Amyeric Laporte
DEF: Jan Valery
MID: Paul Pogba
MID: Sadio Mane (VC)
MID: Raheem Sterling
MID: Lucas Moura
FOR: Alexandre Lacazette
FOR: Sergio Aguero (C)
FOR: Marcus Rashford
Substitutes
GK: Ben Foster
MID: Eden Hazard
DEF: Virgil van Dijk
DEF: David Luiz
Fixture Prediction: Gameweek 38
Brighton 0-1 Man City
Burnley 2-1 Arsenal
Crystal Palace 2-2 Bournemouth
Fulham 1-3 Newcastle
Leicester 2-1 Chelsea
Liverpool 3-0 Wolves
Man United 2-0 Cardiff
Southampton 3-1 Huddersfield
Spurs 3-2 Everton
Watford 1-1 West Ham
FPL Forecasting: Gameweek 38
Best GW Attacking Options:
Liverpool (H) vs. Wolves
Crystal Palace & Bournemouth
Newcastle (a) vs. Fulham
Man United (H) vs. Cardiff
Southampton (H) vs. Huddersfield
Spurs & Everton
Best GW Defensive / Clean Sheet Potential:
Liverpool (H) vs. Wolves
Man United (H) vs. Cardiff
Man City (a) vs. Brighton
*It’s the final day, there will be goals everywhere.
Who are your essential Gameweek player picks?:
Man City: Defensive players are ruling the roost right now, with any combination of Laporte, Kompany and Ederson well worth their value head of a Brighton tie that looks on the surface like a low-scoring affair if recent weeks are to go by.
Man United: I’ve just got a sense that United will finish the season strongly and Pogba will have one final moment to say goodbye to (with this implying that he’s on his bike to Real Madrid in the summer).
Liverpool: Man City and Liverpool are the only teams with anything desirable to play for on the final day, so of course given that both teams are on 90+ points, that there players are options. Mane looks set to be my triple captaincy pick on the final day.
Attacking options elsewhere:
Nathan Redmond (SOU) – Well rested after being dropped. Should be back in the Saints team to chip in with a final attacking return.
Jamie Vardy (LEI) – If form is key, then Vardy is king. Chelsea aren’t all that defensively, so I am anticipating another Vardy haul on the final day.
Ashley Barnes (BUR) – I’ve loathed seeing loads of ‘pro-players’ back Ashley Barnes this season, but can’t help but think that the Europa League comedown will take its toll on Arsenal ahead of a difficult last day of the season.
Salomon Rondon (NEW) & Ayoze Perez (NEW) – Rondon is a beast and Perez is a little maverick for my beloved Newcastle. Both should be among the points this weekend in a big win at Fulham.
Who are the teams to look out for?:
Newcastle: Fulham have been good defensively since Scott Parker has whipped his team in to shape, but Rafa Benitez is a master tactician who I expect will have us go at Fulham.
Liverpool: Please win the league ahead of City, lads.
Spurs & Everton: We’re probably looking at quite an open final day between these two. That or a 0-0. As it is the final day, I’m on the side of attack.
Crystal Palace & Bournemouth: See above.
Who are the teams to avoid?:
The relegated trio: Fulham, Huddersfield and Cardiff all have horrible final day games.
Chelsea: A final day at Leicester is not a walk in the park, with the Foxes boasting some top-level attacking talent. Chelsea will have had been in the Europa League just a few days before and I’ve never been one to bank on Europa League teams after a Thursday evening match.
Arsenal: See above and just change Leicester with Burnley.
FPL Captaincy Picks:
(C) Sadio Mane – I’ve got my Triple Captain chip available and given the fixtures, I’ll be banking on Mane as the man to push me over the line in my mini-league
(VC) Sergio Aguero - Don't think the ceiling is that high for a goal-fest with City this week, but in case I am wrong with my final day prediction I'll stick the VC on Aguero to play it safe.
Other Gameweek Comments:
I can’t believe the last few days of football. The Champions League has been the best competition in the world by quite some distance this year, and as I write this on a train, my head is still spiralling with the comebacks that Spurs and Liverpool mustered to make the Champions League final.
I’ve just got a sense that we’re done quite yet with surprises. Everyone and their cat thinks that Man City will lift the title in the south coast on Sunday, but what if… What just if there is something else in store?
I’ve been quite open in my support of Liverpool winning the title this season, and seeing how much the Champions League final meant to Sam (and true Liverpool fans across the world), I’d love to see Klopp’s men pull off another massive result.
Also…
On a personal level in our mini-league, myself and Phil are literally neck and neck, with our 13-team mini-league braced for an epic final day. Phil’s 15 points behind me, but has 2 free transfers… I’ve got suspended Son and a trio of Wolves players, so there’s work to be done on the final day to lift our gold trophy.
FPL Hype Picks: Gameweek 38
Formation: 3-4-3
Starting 11
GK: David de Gea
DEF: Virgil van Dijk
DEF: Amyeric Laporte
DEF: Vincent Kompany
MID: Mohamed Salah
MID: Sadio Mane (C)
MID: Nathan Redmond
MID: Christian Eriksen
FOR: Jamie Vardy
FOR: Sergio Aguero (VC)
FOR: Salomon Rondon
Substitutes
GK: Martin Dubravka
MID: Paul Pogba
DEF: Lucas Digne
DEF: Aaron Wan-Bissaka
Fixture Prediction: Gameweek 38
Brighton 0-4 Man City
Burnley 1-2 Arsenal
Crystal Palace 1-1 Bournemouth
Fulham 1-2 Newcastle
Leicester 2-2 Chelsea
Liverpool 3-1 Wolves
Man United 2-0 Cardiff
Southampton 3-0 Huddersfield
Spurs 3-1 Everton
Watford 4-2 West Ham
FPL Forecasting: Gameweek 38
Best GW Attacking Options:
◼️ Sterling is top for me this gameweek. His form is through the roof, consistent minutes, scoring amazing goals, assist + clean sheet potential, and on a team on fire. He ticks every box for me.
◼️ Next on my list would be Aguero. You know that City will be going hard for goals and if he is healthy he will probably be at the center of it.
◼️ Liverpool is going to go all in, so you know Mane will feature and give it his all. His goal scoring instincts this season have been incredible and his confidence is through the roof. His work rate alone is worth having him in your team.
◼️ I really like Paul Pogba this week. Manchester United needs to prove something in this last game, and I would expect that Paul Pogba will choose to perform well. He ticks many of the same boxes that Sterling does, but you could say what he lacks compared to Sterling he makes up for by being the main penalty taker.
Best GW Defensive / Clean Sheet Potential:
Manchester City has to be top here, followed by United. I don't see either team conceding a goal. Cardiff seems to me to be the easier defensive fixture, but City's form is in a different league than United's right now.
Who are your essential Gameweek player picks?:
Sterling, Aguero. Liverpool will win but City have the easier match.
Who are the teams to look out for?:
This answer is written for us. They have to be Liverpool and Man City. Neither team is going to budge an inch and they will both be gunning for as many goals as possible.
Who are the teams to avoid?:
Brighton, Cardiff, West Ham, Huddersfield.
GW Differential Picks:
Luke Shaw (MUN) - under 8%, looking good for a clean sheet and maybe more.
Ayoze Perez (NEW) - 3% ownership with 5 goals from the last 4 fixtures.
FPL Captaincy Picks:
(C): Raheem Sterling
(VC): Sergio Aguero
Other Gameweek Comments:
Congratulations to Manchester City on winning the league and to Liverpool on winning the Champions league.
FPL Hype Picks: Gameweek 38
Formation: 3-4-3
Starting 11
GK: David de Gea
DEF: Luke Shaw
DEF: Virgil van Dijk
DEF: Aymeric Laporte
MID: Raheem Sterling (C)
MID: Sadio Mane
MID: Paul Pogba
MID: Mohamed Salah
FOR: Sergio Aguero (VC)
FOR: Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang
FOR: Ayoze Perez
Substitutes
GK: Neil Etheridge
MID: Gerard Deulofeu
DEF: Sead Kolasinac
DEF: Kieran Trippier
Want to know more about The Hype Train?
The Hype Train is an entertainment website founded in 2015, specialising in the Fantasy Premier League (#FPL), providing beautiful graphics and weekly insight for hopeful players attempting to climb ranking tables. We are also occasional media reviewers, with a keen interest to review movies, live sport, and professional wrestling.
As well as providing FPL articles on our website, we are a founding Contributor to the new Fantasy Football Hub, where you can find more unique articles, including weekly Power Rankings, from The Hype Team. You can support us and read exclusive members only content for just £2 per-month by clicking here.
The Hype Train were nominated and shortlisted for the 'Best Football Blog 2016' by the Football Bloggers Association at their annual Football Blogging Awards (The FBA's), with the final presentation held at Old Trafford in Manchester.
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All aboard.
