Fantasy Football Sidekick: Time to transfer in Tottenham favourite Son?
With the FA Cup quarter-finals taking place this weekend, there are just the seven Premier League games to pick from for Fantasy Football Sidekick ahead of today's deadline. Nevertheless, we have picked out five players to help your Fantasy Premier League side head into the international break on a high, with stars from Chelsea, Arsenal and Tottenham all featuring here.
Son Heung-Min - Tottenham (vs Southampton)
It's fair to say that Son Heung-Min hasn't enjoyed a particularly memorable season. After sharing the Golden Boot with Mohamed Salah last season, Son has scored just six league goals this term, and four of those have come when introduced off the bench. The South Korean did net in the 3-1 win over Nottingham Forest last week, and the hope is that this goal will kickstart a scoring run between now and end of 2022/23.
Son and Tottenham come up against the ideal opposition this weekend as they make the trip to the south coast to take on rock-bottom Southampton. Saints have a solid record at St. Mary's against Spurs, but also have the worst home record in the 2022/23 Premier League campaign. Southampton are also Son's favourite opponents in his career having scored 12 times in 16 meetings with Saints. The 30-year-old hit his stride around this time last season, so one to consider for your fantasy football team this weekend, and beyond.
Last season, Leeds' problems stemmed largely from their inability to shut opponents out. Now, the issue is their struggles in front of goal. Mired in the bottom three, they have only managed to score two goals in their last five away matches in all competitions, admittedly against Manchester United.
Nevertheless, they'll be hard pressed to get the better of a Wolves side that continues to remain solid at Molineux. Wolves have kept five clean sheets in their last nine home games, one of which was against Leeds in the Carabao Cup back in November. With that, Jose Sa is worth a look in this weekend. The Portuguese shotstopper has kept six home clean sheets this season, a return only three goalkeepers, all with seven, can better.
Ollie Watkins - Aston Villa (vs Bournemouth)
Ollie Watkins was unfortunate not to receive an England call up for the World Cup qualifiers later this month. Watkins has scored six times in his last seven appearances, including goals agianst title chasing pair Arsenal and Manchester City. We tipped the Aston Villa hitman against Arsenal last month, and we expect him to repeat the feat against Bournemouth this weekend.
The Cherries have looked better of late, with two of their six league wins this season coming in their last four games, but they still boast one of the worst away records in the division, collecting eight points from their 13 matches. In addition, they have conceded the most away goals (35) in the Premier League this season, with Watkins in ideal form to add to that unwanted record.
Wesley Fofana - Chelsea (vs Everton)
Speaking of international call-ups, Wesley Fofana received his first France call-up on Thursday as Les Bleus look forward to life without Raphael Varane following his decision to retire from international football. Injury has restricted Fofana to just four league starts this season, but Chelsea have won all four matches the young centre-back has featured in from the outset. For a team that has won just 10 league games this season, that's indicative of the 22-year-old's impact for Graham Potter's side.
Now on a three-game winning run in all competitions, fortunes are starting to change for Chelsea and Potter, with Fofana key, and with the welcome of Everton looming, they'll fancy their chances of yet another clean sheet. Only Nottingham Forest (4) and West Ham (7) have scored fewer away league goals than the Toffees (8) in 2022/23, while no team has conceded fewer home goals than Chelsea (8) in the Premier League this season. Fofana's inclusion in your fantasy football side is a bit of a no brainer.
Gabriel Martinelli - Arsenal (vs Crystal Palace)
A 1-0 defeat to rivals Brighton in midweek means Crystal Palace have now failed to win in 11 league matches, and the Eagles are starting to look nervously over their shoulder. As a result, Palace took the decision to relieve Patrick Vieira of his duties at Selhurst Park on Friday morning, so the Eagles approach this testing trip across the capital with an air of mystery.
The Gunners have only dropped points on three occasions at the Emirates this season and while they don't have the best recent home record against Palace, and were knocked out of the Europa League on Thursday night, few will expect anything other than an Arsenal win this time around. Following a barren run, Gabriel Martinelli is back among the goals, with his strike at Fulham last week his 12th in the Premier League last season. He scored in the reverse fixture as Arsenal got their campaign off to a winning start, and another goal this weekend wouldn't be a huge surprise.
