Welcome back to the Hive FPL Head to Head Leagues!
Last week saw some really tight matches across both Division 1 and Division 2. The average points total was 46 and only 3 sides across both leagues managed to breach the 60 point mark which meant that most fixtures were decided by the performance of just 1 or 2 players.
In Division 2 put in an unconvincing performance but still managed to win despite scoring just 38 points. He maintains top spot while
pummelled a weak
team to move back into the top 3.
In Division 1, maintained their 6 point lead at the top of the table.
at least won to ensure that they are keeping touch with the run away leaders because it's a 9 point gap now between 1st and 3rd!
Meanwhile at the bottom of Division 1, defeats for 5 out of the bottom 6 placed sides going into GW13 means that there are signs that a group of half a dozen clubs are being cut a drift towards the bottom but the inconsistency in results means all that could change in the coming weeks.
There are plenty of tasty looking fixtures in the EPL this weekend with City hosting Spurs and Brighton visiting Chelsea. The way that all 4 teams set-up to play is likely to mean they'll be plenty of goals in those 2 ties for managers to look to score big on.
Newcastle also host Manchester United. United may not be performing particularly well but they're currently top of the form table with 3 wins in a row. Elsewhere, home fixtures for Arsenal against Wolves and Liverpool against Fulham mean that managers will be looking for a higher points total than most achieved last week.
GW13 Results
Prizes for winners of last week's head to head matches will be sent later today.
Division 1
Division 2
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Suffragette City went back to the bottom of the league with a narrow defeat in GW13 while Legion FC continue their fall from grace with another under-par performance. Now 13th in the league, another defeat here could seem them slip ever closer to the relegation spots.
In midfield and forward areas there's not much to choose between these 2 sides. Suffragette City have the advantage of Palmer over Baptiste with the Sheffield United man having only made 2 sub appearances all season meaning that Legion FC will almost certainly be playing a 4 man midfield.
Similarly upfront, Neil Maupay has made just 3 starts all season and scored once. Brentford do have an appealing fixture at home to Luton but will Maupay get the minutes in order to warrant being picked? It means that Watkins away at Bournemouth and Alvarez at home to Spurs could go a long way to deciding the outcome of this H2H.
If not then Legion FC will need to look at picking 4 defenders and this is where the real differentials between the 2 sides can be found. Home fixtures for Saliba and Tsimikas would appear to give Suffragette City the edge in that department.
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Content Creators went from bottom to 16th with a win in GW13 and could move out of the relegation zone with victory in this match. Standing in their way are the number 1 ranked team not only in Division 1 H2H but the entire Hive FPL classic league too.
Shamzy FC appear to have the magic touch when picking players with relatively recent acquisitions in Hee Chan and Kudus continuing to perform well. Those 2 alongside Mo Salah look to give the team a significant advantage in the midfield.
Elsewhere it's fairly tight. Both have Arsenal defenders who could benefit from a clean sheet bonus against Wolves. You would imagine that Tsimikas will be given the freedom to run down Liverpool's left against Fulham and he's delivered 27 points in 3 home starts this season!
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Inzanagi FC became the latest side to taste defeat against top team Shamzy FC in GW13 and this week they face similarly tough opposition in Thoth442FC who'll be looking to close the gap at the top.
Upfront, the fact that Alvarez and Nketiah enjoy home advantage may be beneficial to Inzanagi FC although Brian Mbeumo must fancy his chances at home to Luton, the Brentford midfield has 9 goal involvements so far this season, 8 of which have come against sides currently outside the top 8 (8 matches).
At the back, Inzanagi FC continue to be somewhat handicapped by having 2 Sheffield United defenders in their squad. The Blades face a massively important game against Burnley this weekend whose home form this season has been wretched. Otherwise Saliba and Gabriel both played in midweek for Arsenal. Might Arteta be tempted to rest and rotate for the home match against Wolves? Similarly, both sides have Palace defenders whose points hauls could well cancel each other out so this one will be a H2H decided by fine margins.
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I Feel Qatari's winning run came to an end in GW13 while Yagman FC got their title challenge back underway with a 2nd consecutive victory.
There are plenty of differentials in this one starting with the goalkeepers. Matt Turner appears to have lost his spot as Forest's number 1 so I Feel Qatari will have Sam Johnstone whose Palace side travel to West Ham this weekend. That could mean a straight shoot out between him and Areola in that game or Yagman FC could be tempted to go for Pickford away at a struggling Notts Forest.
Otherwise you'd say that both teams might struggle to find an advantage in defence. Both have Palace defenders in their side who could cancel each other out. While Udogie and Castagne both face difficult away trips to City and Liverpool respectively.
In midfield there are still doubts over the fitness of Eze although for I Feel Qatari, the bigger question might be whether they feel they can bank on 3 Palace players in their squad more generally. Anthony Gordon has a goal involvement in every home match he's played in this season so he could be an important factor in this H2H.
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The Amirians now find themselves in free fall and heading towards the bottom of the league following another defeat, their 4th in a row. Espada Numero Uno sit level on points with them but their total haul for the season far exceeds that of their opponents and you'd have to say they are unlucky to have won only 4 matches.
The differences between the two squads are not massive but could be significant where they do occur. Tsimiskas and Gabriel have appealing home fixtures to bank on this weekend and while Chelsea also play at home, Colwill hasn't started in either of their last 2 matches and both he and Coufal are playing in sides that have conceded in their last 6 EPL matches.
Espada Numero Uno will hope that Diaby can have a more significant impact than he did last week when he was subbed at halftime. Otherwise, I've already suggested why Mbeumo looks a good pick for this weekend, while the Amirians will hope that Son can continue his good record against the Champions.
Upfront it looks likely to be a case of Man City forward vs Man City forward. Haaland continues to keep hitting the back of the net while Alvarez after a bright start to the season has just 3 goal involvements in his last 8 appearances.
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A big fixture towards the top of the league sees 2nd take on 6th. A win for Augment FC would see them move level on points with Lazz, a defeat could see them slip to 12 points off the lead.
At the back neither side has any common defenders or keepers but it should be noted that many of the teams they play for are the same. In that sense the real game changers could come in the form of Macguire whose United side face a tough trip to Newcastle fresh off the back of conceding 3 goals in Istanbul on Wednesday. Augment FC have 2 City options with the champions hosting injury ravaged Spurs while Konate looks to be fit for the visit of Fulham.
In more forward positions there is very little to choose between the 2 sides. Augment will hope that Mitoma is fit to play against a Chelsea side who are leaking goals at the moment and who have still not won at home in a very long time! Douglas Luiz has 4 goal involvements in his last 5 Premier League matches while Salah at home to Fulham will surely be a captain consideration for Lazz.
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BlockchainFPL avoided dropping back into the relegation zone despite defeat in GW13 thanks largely to the majority of teams around them also losing. A win today could put them level on points with their opponents Hungry Lions who ended a losing streak. With only half a dozen differentials across the 2 squads this looks likely to be a very close H2H that will be decided on a couple of individual performances.
It's unlikely that either side would fancy their alternative goalkeeper in GW14 so realistically that takes it down to just 5 different players.
In defence, Blockchain FPL look like they hold the edge with Tsimikas and White playing at home against lower half of the league opposition. That being said, White has played just 1 minute of Arsenal's last 2 league games and didn't start in midweek either.
Further forward, Cole Palmer blanked last week but still has 7 goal involvements in 7 starts this season. Chelsea v Brighton should be an open game with plenty of goal chances at both ends. It's then a straight shoot out between the league's 2 premier forward options although you would fancy Haaland against a Spurs side without any centre backs.
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Both teams got wins in GW13 to maintain their positions in the top half of the table where things remain very tight, so much so, that if Likodra FC can take the win in this game, they'll be level on points with Creekside FC who themselves have eyes on 2nd spot.
As with so many head to heads at the moment, the big differences between these 2 squads can be found at the back. Both teams are likely to start Areola in goal but that is where the similarities will end.
However, unlike a lot of other Division 1 squads, Likodra FC aren't scrimping on their defenders and instead have used the funds freed up by not having Haaland to sign some of the premier defensive point scorers in the game. TAA, Zinchenko and Trippier all play at home this weekend and could therefore be a huge factor in the outcome of this match.
Further forward, you would say that Creekside FC hold the advantage particularly in the Haaland v Calvert Lewin match-up. In midfield it's a bit closer although Likodra are currently hamstrung by the injuries to Neto and Bowen, a clever piece of business in the transfer market could yet hand them the advantage.
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Both sides unbeaten runs which had seen them moving up the table came to an end last week resulting in both slipping 3 places back down the league. Again, the outcome of this game will either see the 2 sides meeting in the middle should Hiveheadz win or Whyte FC could establish a 7 point lead - this seems to be the theme of a lot of the Division 1 fixtures this week!
It also looks like it's going to be a very tight match with the differentials limited! Whyte FC are at a disadvantage with injuries to Lamptey and Anderson certainly ruling them out while both Bowen and Eze are listed as having only a 50% chance of playing at the time of writing and are therefore not included in this analysis. Their involvement (or not) as well as the actions that Whyte FC take with their transfer could be crucial to deciding the tie.
Hiveheadz will feel that Tsimikas at home to Fulham gives them the edge in defence while further forward a lot rests on Arsenal getting goals against Wolves with both Saka and Martinelli in the side.
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Both these teams got much needed wins last week to open up a bit of a buffer between themselves and the melee at the bottom of the league. FC McKane were particularly impressive in notching 60 points, the highest total of the game week in Division 1.
Unusually for this season, both teams have high price keepers in their squads. FC McKane are stuck with Onana at the moment with Turner being relegated to the bench at Forest but Nonz FC have a decision to make over Ederson. Spurs may look very vulnerable at the back with their plethora of injuries and suspensions but they have scored in every game so far this season!
Otherwise, in defence there are really very few differnces with Palace defenders on either side likely to cancel one another out, it then comes down to Lascelles v Tsimiakas.
Further forward and Nonz FC have managed to find a place for the impressive Doku in their side. I guess the only disadvantage in as far as this head to head is concerned if that he might just be laying on the goals for Haaland this weekend. Otherwise FC Mckane look overly reliant on Spurs players overcoming their current losing streak away at the reigning champions.
Division 2 Fixtures
Good luck to everyone in their head to head matches this weekend!