The English Premier League 2020/21 season kicks off in just under a week and we already have drama with the Manchester clubs, Burnley and Aston Villa facing blank fixtures. On top of that, the teams head into the season with a very short pre-season so there is the risk of injuries too.
You realize this season is going to be a tricky one when there are blank fixtures in Gameweek 1. The challenging start to the season has put FPL managers in a dilemma whether to buy the likes of Kevin de Bruyne, Bruno Fernandes and Anthony Martial in GW1 to avoid the price rises or go all-out now and wildcard in GW2. We’ll be publishing a Gameweek Preview article later covering all these topics for you. However, in this article we will be analyzing the GW1 fixtures and the players to watch for. So, let’s get started.
#1 Fulham vs Arsenal
Fulham
Fulham are back in the Premier League after being relegated at the end of the 2018/19 season where they conceded 81 goals (highest in the league). Fulham had high hopes in 2018 with the Cottagers spending around 100 million in the transfer market bringing in some big names like Andre Schurrle and Jean-Michael Seri and a lot was expected from then manager Slavisa Jokanovic who failed massively leading to relegation for the Lilywhites.
However, since then club legend Scott Parker has taken over as the manager and did an impressive job to help Fulham gain promotion. Fulham have done a great job by retaining Aleksandar Mitrovic and if you have been a part of FPL since 2018/19 you know that players like Aleksandar Mitrovic and Teemu Pukki are legends of the game.
Team News
Fulham have a fully fit squad available for this game.
Arsenal
The Gunners have momentum on their side after a wonderful end to last season winning the FA Cup over London rivals Chelsea and a very start heading into the new season winning the Community Shield against the league Champions Liverpool. Arsenal have been doing some good work in the transfer market too by signing Gabriel Magalhaes, retaining Dani Ceballos for another season and aiming for a few more signing before the window ends.
Team News
Shkodran Mustafi (Thigh), Pablo Mari (Ankle), David Luiz (Neck), Gabriel Martinelli (Knee) and Calum Chambers (Knee) are ruled out for the fixture.
Players to Watch Out
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (£12.0m)
Willian (£8.0m)
Aleksandar Mitrovic (£6.0m)
Ivan Cavaleiro (£5.5m)
Betting Odds
Fulham to win @11/2
Arsenal to win @4/7
Draw @16/5
#2 Crystal Palace vs Southampton
Crystal Palace
Crystal Palace head into yet another season with uncertainty surrounding their talisman Wilfried Zaha. Zaha has been quite vocal about wanting to join a bigger club but contract clauses have prevented him leaving the london side so far.
Team News
James Tomkins (Thigh), Gary Cahill (Thigh), Patrick Van Aanholt (Shoulder), Christian Benteke (Foot), Mamadou Sakho (Thigh) and Nathan Ferguson (Thigh) are unlikely to feature in this fixture.
New signing Eberechi Eze (Groin) remains a doubt for this game.
Southampton
After a strong finish to last season, Southampton will be hoping to build on that and aim for a top 10 finish this season. Danny Ings, who scored his career best figures for the Saints last season is pivotal to Ralph Hasenhuttl’s plans along with new signings Karim Salisu and Kyle Walker-Peters.
Team News
Saints have a fully fit squad available for this fixture.
Players to Watch Out
Danny Ings (£8.5m)
Eberechi Eze (£6.0m)
Betting Odds
Crystal Palace to win @21/10
Southampton to win @29/20
Draw @9/4
#3 West Ham vs Newcastle
West Ham
West Ham head into the new season looking weaker than they were last season partly due to no significant additions in the squad and mostly because of the fear of losing some of their key players. Recently, the sale of youngster Grady Diangana to West Brom caused some unhappiness among certain parts of the club. Club captain Mark Noble publicly expressed his frustrations on Twitter about this which is not a good sign for the Hammers. Apart from that, West Ham could also be losing Declan Rice this summer as Chelsea are very keen on him. Some West Ham fans think that losing Declan Rice could get them relegated this season.
Team News
Tomas Soucek (self-isolating) will be unavailable where Manuel Lanzini (Thigh) remains doubtful for this game.
Newcastle
Just when you thought Newcastle United were doomed after the proposed takeover of the club didn’t go through, Mike Ashley splashes some cash and boom, Newcastle sign Callum Wilson, Ryan Fraser and Jamal Lewis in just a matter of days. The Magpies suddenly look a lot stronger and feel like they could push for a mid-table finish.
Team News
Martin Dubravka, who made the highest saves in the league last season is currently rules out with an ankle injury.
Fabian Schar (Shoulder), Paul Dummett (Hamstring), Dwight Gayle (Knee) are also ruled out with injuries.
Matt Richie (Knock) and Matty Longstaff (Thigh) will face late fitness tests to be fit for the game.
Players to Watch Out
Callum Wilson (£6.5m)
Ryan Fraser (£6.0m)
Allan Saint-Maximin (£5.5m)
Jarrod Bowen (£6.5m)
Tomas Soucek (£5.0m)
Michail Antonio (£6.5m)
Betting Odds
West Ham to win @23/20
Newcastle to win @5/2
Draw @12/5
#4 Liverpool vs Leeds
Liverpool
Liverpool are once again contenders heading into the new season. Jurgen Klopp’s men would be disappointed not to add the Community Shield to the trophy cabinet but that would just add more fuel to the fire. Liverpool are proven winners on the pitch but they’re struggling off the pitch as they lost Timo Werner to Chelsea whom Jurgen Klopp is a big admirer of and face a similar kind of situation with Thiago Alcantara.
Team News
Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain (Knee) and Xherdan Shaqiri (Muscular) remain ruled out.
New signing Konstantinos Tsimikas (Covid-19) will also miss out while Jordan Henderson (Knee) could be fit to face Leeds.
Leeds
In 2018/19 it was Wolves, in 2019/20 it was Sheffield United and in 2020/21 Leeds United are expected to be the underdogs of the season who will not only fight for relegation but challenge the big teams for a spot in the top half of the table. Led by Marcelo Bielsa, Leeds have been a revelation in the Championship and now they hope to bring the challenge to the Premier League. Leeds have been pretty active in the transfer market too with the Peacocks bringing in some top players like Rodrigo and Robin Koch.
Team News
Gaetano Berardi remains out with an ACL injury.
Players to Watch Out
Sadio Mane (£12.0m)
Mo Salah (£12.0m)
Trent-Alexander Arnold (£7.5m)
Rodrigo (£6.0m)
Betting Odds
Liverpool to win @3/10
Leeds to win @21/2
Draw @5/1
#5 West Brom vs Leicester
West Brom
West Bromwich Albion have come a long way since they got relegated in the 2017/18 season. The Baggies now have a young squad with a great energy who believe they can compete in the top flight of English football. Much has to be talked about Matheus Pereira who was on loan from Sporting last season, Pereira exploded in the Championship with 8 goals and 16 assists and was one of the main reason West Brom were in the top 2 for most of the season.
Team News
Kenneth Zohore (Calf) and Conor Townsend (Ankle) remain doubtful for this fixture.
Leicester
Leicester City must were in touching distance of a top four finish last season but a dip in form in the second half of the season cost them the opportunity to compete in the Champions League. However, there were a lot of positives for Brendan Rodgers’ who now believe that they can be a big threat for top 4 this season. The Foxes have managed to retain most of their top players except for Ben Chilwell who went to Chelsea.
Team News
James Maddison (Groin) could be fit enough to make the matchday squad while Jonny Evans (Thigh) and Wes Morgan (Thigh) remain doubtful.
Ricardo Pereira (Knee) and Christian Fuchs (Groin) remain injured.
Players to Watch Out
Jamie Vardy (£10.0m)
Matheus Pereira (£6.0m)
Betting Odds
West Brom to win @29/10
Leicester to win @1/1
Draw @13/5
#6 Spurs vs Everton
Spurs
Tottenham had a disastrous start to last season under Mauricio Pochettino and could have finished much worse if Jose Mourinho was not there to save the day. Make no mistake, a 6th place finish is not good enough for a team like Tottenham but considering the circumstances, you would take it. However, the expectations on Jose Mourinho are high because of his reputation and bringing them back into the Champions League picture should be a priority.
Team News
Jose Mourinho will have a fully fit squad available for selection.
Everton
Spending lots of money every season and performing below expectations to finish in the top 10 purely sums up Everton, isn’t it? The Toffees have once again splashed the cash but this time they have indeed brought in some elite players like Allan and James Rodriguez. They also have a top class manager in Carlo Ancelotti who has managed clubs like Chelsea, Real Madrid and Bayern Munich before. The Blues of Merseyside are serious this time break into the top 7 and compete in Europe.
Team News
Mason Holgate (Foot), Jean-Philippe Gbamin and Cenk Tosun (Knee) face a lengthy spell on the sidelines while Andre Gomes (Knock) and Fabian Delph (Calf) should be fit for the game.
Players to Watch Out
Harry Kane (£10.5m)
Heung-Min Son (£9.0m)
Matt Doherty (£6.0m)
Richarlison (£8.0m)
James Rodriguez (£7.5m)
Betting Odds
Spurs to win @20/23
Everton to win @17/5
Draw @13/5
#7 Brighton vs Chelsea
Brighton have been playing some of their best football under Graham Potter but it’s the same story for them as many other clubs, they switch off in the second half of the season. However, Brighton have made some decent signings this season with Joel Veltman and Adam Lallana to name a few, also the return of Ben White will add some strength to the defensive force.
Team News
Jose Izquierdo (Knee) and Christian Walton (Ankle) remain on the sidelines while Davy Propper (Achilles) is a doubt for the game.
Chelsea
Chelsea come out as the clear winners of the transfer market with the Blues signing seven players already and they are not done yet. Chelsea have added new energy, experience and leadership into the squad which makes them strong contenders heading into the season. With so many new additions to the squad they will need some time to adjust and play with each other, however things are looking good for Frank Lampard at Stamford Bridge.
Team News
Mateo Kovacic remains suspended due to the two yellow cards he picked up in the FA Cup final.
Ben Chilwell (Foot), Billy Gilmour (Knee) and Hakim Ziyech (Knee) will not be available for this fixture.
Cesar Azpilicueta (Hamstring), Christian Pulisic (Hamstring) and Reece James (unspecified) should be available for selection after recovering from their respective injuries.
Players to Watch Out
Timo Werner (£9.5m)
Kai Havertz (£8.5m)
Neil Maupay (£6.5m)
Tariq Lamptey (£4.5m)
Betting Odds
Brighton to win @17/4
Chelsea to win @4/6
Draw @3/1
#8 Sheffield United vs Wolves
Sheffield United
Sheffield United having been the underdogs of last season did a tremendous job by finishing in the top half of the table. The Blades manager, Chris Wilder was nominated for the manager of the season which speaks for itself. Now that Sheffield United have a good season in their bag, the objective must be to finish in the top 7 so that they can compete in Europe.
Team News
Sander Berge suffered a knee injury while on International duty and could miss the game.
Wolves
Wolves had quite a busy time last season playing every three days and also having to maintain their consistency. They managed to go deep into the Europa League and manage another top half finish but they failed to qualify for Europe this season. Wolves manager Nuno Espirito Santo has done a decent job till now and while they have retained most of their key players they should go all out for a top 4 finish before some big clubs come in and poach their players.
Team News
Jonny Otto faces a lengthy spell on the sidelines with an ACL injury.
Players to Watch Out
Raul Jimenez (£8.5m)
Adam Traore (£6.5m)
David McGoldrick (£5.5m)
Betting Odds
Sheffield to win @12/5
Wolves to win @11/8
Draw @11/5
We hope you liked our “FPL 2020/21 season GW1 Fixtures Analysis” article. If you think we missed out on someone in the Player watch do let us know in the comments below.
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