Game week 13's action concluded as Aston Villa secured a comfortable 2-0 victory over Newcastle in Birmingham on Monday night. Elsewhere Liverpool's assault on the Premier League title continued unabated with a hard fought 2-1 success over Crystal Palace; Leicester strengthened their grip on second spot with 3-0 win over Brighton; Man City defeated Chelsea 2-1; and Man United made a Lazarus like comeback to secure a 3-3 draw with Sheffield United in south Yorkshire.
In Fantasy land, it was a good week for managers with the average points total ending at 49. So let's look at how game week 14's action affected the Advertiser Tribal League table in association with Monroe's Tavern.
Top three
1 Reggie Red - Reginald's Reds - 830
Different week, same position. Reginald's Reds like Liverpool maintained their position as top dogs for another with a very good 71 points. Goals from Jamie Vardy, Raúl Jiménez, Heung-Min Son, and Sadio Mané plus shutouts by Kasper Schmeichel and Çaglar Söyüncü contributed to a very successful weekend for the Reds. Is there anyone that can stop the Red march towards the title?
2 Declan Ryan - Decs Villians - 823
The Villians are getting closer to the their goal of top spot. A score of 72 points saw Declan Ryan's men jump from third to second at the weekend and they now only sit seven points behind the league leaders. Goals win games and The Villians had a great spread at the weekend with five different names on the scoresheet. Where Ryan's charges may need to strengthen would be at the back. A few more clean sheets and Decs Villians may reach summit sooner rather than later.
3 Cian de Lamport - Chris Woodbines - 821
Garnering 66 points at the weekend would be enough to see most Fantasy managers move up the table. But such is the competitiveness of the Advertiser Tribal League, Chris Woodbines have dropped to third position. Sadio Mané, Kevin De Bruyne, Jamie Vardy, and Raúl Jiménez found the back of the net for manager Cian de Lamport at the weekend. But like Decs Villians, Chris Woodbines' defence needs to be strengthened with Çaglar Söyüncü providing the only clean sheet. A quality defender and goalkeeper may be the key for de Lamport's men in getting to the top of the table.
Top picks
1 Jamie Vardy (Leicester City - £9.7 million ) v Everton
He is the first name on most Fantasy managers' team sheets as well as being entrusted with captain's armband, Jamie Vardy is on fire at the moment with nine league goals in seven outings. On Sunday, the Foxes who are sitting pretty in second place, invite Everton to the King Power Stadium. The Toffees sit in 16th place after a poor run of form which culminated in a meek 2-0 home defeat to Norwich City on Saturday. It will be three points on Sunday to the home side and Vardy will score. Make him your captain.
2 Raúl Jiménez (Wolves - £7.4 million ) v Sheffield United
Four goals in five league appearances for the Mexican sees Raúl Jiménez as one of the hottest properties going in the Premier League. This Sunday it is fifth versus sixth as Wolves host Sheffield United in the Black Country. Who would have thought we would have been saying that at the end of November? Chris Wilder's United have been the surprise package of the season as they continue to confound the experts, sitting far, far away from the threat of relegation. I think this will be the match of the round with goals galore. Among the goals will be Jiménez.
3 Danny Ings (Southampton - £6 million ) v Watford
How did Southampton not secure three points at the Emirates last Saturday? It will be one of the great mysteries of the 2019/20 Premier League season as the Saints bombarded Arsenal's goal with 25 shots and still only managed to secure a point from their trip to north London. It has been a tough campaign to date for Ralph Hasenhüttl's men who sit 19th in the league. But one shining light has been the performances and recent form of striker Danny Ings who has five goals in seven games for the south coast outfit. On Saturday evening, Southampton host the only side that sit below them in the table, Watford. The Hornets have been awful with only one win so far. This will be a very cagey match with both sides unlucky to risk defeat for the carrot of victory. If there is a goal it will come from Ings. Get him in your team.
Don't miss a minute of action with Monroe's Tavern
Remember you can catch all of game week 14's action live at Monroe's Tavern where punters can enjoy wings and a pint or burger and a pint for €10 during the matches.
Saturday:
Newcastle v Man City (12.30pm ) BT Sport.
Chelsea v West Ham (3pm ) Premier Sports.
Southampton v Watford (5.30pm ) SKY Sports.
Sunday:
Norwich City v Arsenal (2pm ) SKY Sports.
Leicester City v Everton (4.30pm ) SKY Sports.
