SOCCER

FanDuel Premier League Matches to Target in Matchweek 14

Douglas Smith  —  @DFresh39 Dec 2nd, 2016
Two London teams have favorable matchups this week in the Premier League, but do not completely count out their opponents.

This week's FanDuel slate has plenty of storylines. Half of the six-game slate has clear favorites, while the others are much more up in the air. Unsurprisingly, this week's matches to target are games with a three goal over/under and a clear favorite.

London is where the focus is in the matches that follow. Three of the four teams we're targeting hail from the city.

Tottenham Vs. Swansea City

Swansea travels to Spurs after winning the wildest game of the Premier League season, but Tottenham are still expected to take the win. The teams are separated by 15 points in the table with Tottenham trying to stay in a European qualifying spot while Swansea looks to escape the bottom.

Tottenham will see the return of Danny Rose as he comes off suspension. Toby Alderweireld will be assessed on Friday and could also make his return. Erik Lamela is the only regular that is definitely out for the Saturday match against the Swans.

Although Tottenham is the favorite and they are getting healthier, they suffered their first loss of the Premier League season last week just days after getting knocked out of the Champions League.

Harry Kane may be the chalk pick at striker this weekend. He just signed a new contract to keep him with Tottenham through 2022. Kane is just one of seven players to sign a new deal with Tottenham in the last few months and manager Mauricio Pochettino says Kane's new deal is important for the club as a whole. It may be a nice confidence boost for a team encountering its first real adversity of the season.

Tottenham has scored at least two goals in their last five meetings with Swansea. They are sixth in the league in total goals scored.

Swansea has also scored at least once in eight of their 10 meetings since the Swans promotion. Gylfi Sigurdsson faces his old team and the Swansea midfielder has scored in two of his three games against Tottenham at White Hart Lane.

Swansea has struggled defensively and some think their best defense may be their offense. Perhaps the best thing to do is trying to keep the ball and put pressure on Spurs. Last week's match shows Swansea can get creative around the net. If Bob Bradley decides to stay on the front foot, Fernando Llorente could be inserted back into the starting lineup.

Signs are pointing to a Spurs win, but a Swansea goal is likely.

West Ham vs. Arsenal

Both West Ham and Arsenal bowed out of the EFL Cup this week, but may have other priorities. West Ham is just above the relegation zone, having won just three matches this season. Arsenal would like to stay within striking distance of first place in the league. West Ham did not win any matches in the month of November while Arsenal won just two of six.

West Ham striker Diafra Sakho is out until the next calendar year with a thigh injury. Luckily, Andy Carroll should return. Carroll scored a hat trick against Arsenal last season, which led to a 3-3 draw. Carroll has not played since the start of the season, so it is unclear how long he can stay on the field. Manager Slaven Bilic will have his work cut out for him in constructing a starting lineup. Havard Nordtveit, Edimilson Fernandes, Sofiane Feghouli and André Ayew are all candidates for a start on Saturday.

Arsenal are not without their own injury concerns. Santi Cazorla has been ruled out for three months while Olivier Giroud is a game-time decision. Hector Bellerin is also doubtful for the match. These injuries will likely not be enough to slow down a potent Arsenal attack.


That attack could be led by Theo Walcott, who has scored five goals against West Ham, which is the most against any team. He will cost $10,200 on FanDuel this weekend, but could be a nice pivot from teammate Alexis Sanchez, who is $12,800 and the most expensive player on the slate. Both are averaging over 25 FanDuel points per game.

Arsenal has a unique goal-scoring history against West Ham. Their last nine Premier League goals scored against this week's opponents have all been scored by a different player. That list includes two players no longer with the team. West Ham has let in two or more goals in each of their last seven home Premier League games against Arsenal, so the trend of someone different finding the net may continue.

Good luck on your games this weekend and make sure to pay attention to squad rotation. The busy holiday schedule is quickly approaching, so managers will need to juggle their squads.