The final whistle at the Etihad Stadium also brought the conclusion of December which means it is time to the name the Advertiser Tribal League's Manager of the Month in association with Monroe's Tavern.
Manager of the Month: December
Drums rolls please, and our Manager of the Month for December is: Will Mooney - The Kouyaté Kid - 425.
December was a busy month of Premier League football with six and half game weeks for Fantasy managers to negotiate. But in spite of the games coming thick and fast over the last month of 2019, Will Mooney found it a breeze and his charges clocked up a massive 425 points. It was the deadly attacking display by the men up top who were the reason for Mooney's success; Danny Ings, Jamie Vardy, and Raúl Jiménez brought home 141 points over December. If Mooney can keep his front three fit and firing, the K Kids can bring home a bigger gong than a Manager of the Month in May.
Congratulations to Will who wins a matchday special burger or wings and a pint courtesy of Monroe's Tavern.
Top picks
It may be a new year but it is the same old story with a full league schedule on January 1. Who are the players who will have Fantasy managers basking in 2020 glory this Wednesday?
Dominic Calvert-Lewin (Everton - £5.8 million ) v Man City
The big 22-year-old striker is loving life at the moment with five goals in five league games. Dominic Calvert-Lewin's form has coincided with removal of Marco Silva as manager and the installation of first temporary supremo Duncan Ferguson and now Carlo Ancelotti. On New Year's Day Everton travel to champions Man City. Pep Guardiola's men have endured a rough patch with five wins, one draw, and three defeats in their last nine league outings. The form has resulted in Guardiola admitting that their chances of retaining their title are gone. One of the major issues for City has been their leaky defence which capitulated to Wolves on Friday night. I can see this match ending in a score draw with Calvert-Lewin exploiting the home side's defensive weaknesses.
Troy Deeney (Watford - £6.2 million ) v Wolves
Another player who has benefited greatly by change of manager is Watford's Troy Deeney. The Hornets' number nine had scored no goals and provided no assists until the arrival of Nigel Pearson. Three games later, Deeney has found the back of the net three times and Watford are daring to dream they can pull off the great escape. Watford invite seventh placed Wolves to Vicarage Road on Wednesday. I think this match is going to be a cracker and will see lots of goals. I'm going for a high score draw with Deeney on the score sheet. Get him in the team.
Anthony Martial (Man United - £7.9 million ) v Arsenal
Are they back it or is it another false dawn? No one knows what United team will show up when they take to the pitch. For the moment Ole Gunnar Solskjær is a man who knows what he is doing having won two games in-a-row against Newcastle and Burnley. One man who perform very well in those victories was French striker, Anthony Martial who scored three goals. United travel to north London for New Year's Day to take on Arsenal. Despite a much improved performance against Chelsea on Sunday, the Gunners still contrived to lose to the Blues. I cannot see them getting anything out of the late evening kick-off. United will win and Martial will score.
Don't miss a minute of action with Monroe's Tavern
Remember you can catch all of game week 21'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.
New Year's Day:
Brighton v Chelsea (12.30pm ) BT Sport.
Burnley v Aston Villa (12.30pm ) BT Sport.
Southampton v Spurs (3pm ) BT Sport.
Newcastle v Leicester (3pm ) BT Sport.
Man City v Everton (5.30pm ) BT Sport.
West Ham V Bournemouth (5.30pm ) BT Sport.
Arsenal v Man United (8pm ) BT Sport.
Thursday:
Liverpool v Sheffield United (8pm ) BT Sport.
