SOCCER

FanDuel Premier League Trends to Know for Matchweeks 15 and 16

The matchweeks have been shortened as the Premier League hectic holiday schedule kicks off and Jose Mourinho has Tottenham getting hot at just the right time.

The next Premier League main slate hits FanDuel at 2:30 p.m. EST on Wednesday as the hectic holiday schedule begins. Another main slate will hit FanDuel on Saturday at 10:00 a.m. EST. There will be 16 days in the month of December with a Premier League match.

Liverpool, Tottenham, Watford, and Manchester United appear on both slates with Saturday's slate likely to be just four matches.

Matchweek 15
Wednesday December 4
Aston Villa at Chelsea
Watford at Leicester City
Tottenham at Manchester United
Norwich City at Southampton
West Ham at Wolverhampton
Everton at Liverpool


Matchweek 16
Saturday, December 7
Liverpool at Bournemouth
Crystal Palace at Watford
Burnley at Tottenham
Manchester United at Manchester City


Let's look at the teams and players that are rising and falling this week.

Hot

Team: Tottenham

Jose Mourinho has won three matches in a row across all competitions after Tottenham's 3-2 win over Bournemouth on Saturday. The change at manager was a bit drastic, but it is paying off at the moment. The other Premier League match was also a 3-2 win against another struggling team, West Ham. The 4-2 comeback victory over Olympiakos in the Champions League is the most impressive of the three. Dele Alli has been leading the charge with three goals and one assist during the win streak. The match against Manchester United should be close, although a lingering Manchester Derby and revenge for Mourinho are part of the narrative to consider. The last time Tottenham traveled to Old Trafford in league action, they won 3-0 with Lucas Moura scoring twice. Tottenham are heavy favorites against Burnley. Spurs have shut out Burnley three times in their last five league games.

Player: Marcus Rashford, Manchester United

Prior to Sunday's match against Aston Villa, United had scored three goals in three of their last four matches and Rashford has contributed one in each. Rashford added an assist in the 3-3 draw against Sheffield. Rashford was also fouled once and contributed one tackle to pad his stats. Rashford now has seven goals -- two of which are from the penalty spot -- and four assists in the Premier League. He is averaging over three shots per 90 minutes, with 40% of his shots hitting the target. Rashford's per 90 minute expected goals plus expected assists number is the highest it has been in his career. He is no stranger to scoring against Spurs either.


Rashford should have some fuel going against Mourinho, who recently questioned how the attacker was being used at Manchester United.

Cold

Team: Chelsea

Chelsea were on fire, but they have now lost two in a row in the Premier League and drew their recent Champions League match with Valencia, meaning they must clinch the Round of 16 on the last matchweek of group play. Chelsea are still in fourth place in the Premier League despite a lackluster showing against 13th place West Ham. Chelsea failed to convert their chances and were saved from a bigger deficit by keeper Kepa Arrizabalaga and VAR. Chelsea will be expected to beat Aston Villa, but it is clear the busy schedule has taken its toll and their confidence is wavering. If you are looking for a team to stay away from that appears on both slates, it is Watford; they sacked manager Quique Sanchez Flores on Sunday.

Player: Mohamed Salah, Liverpool

Salah is a victim of his own success as he and his team are still playing great, but people's expectations of his play are somewhat unrealistic. Salah has been dealing with an ongoing ankle injury and played just 69 minutes against Brighton in matchweek 14. Salah sat out the previous Premier League match up against Crystal Palace to get ready for a Champions League affair last week, but he was not very effective in the draw against Napoli either. He has just four shots with one on target in his last two matches. Salah has drawn just two fouls in his last five matches across all competitions. Liverpool have not clinched their place in the knockout stages of the Champions League and will have their final match of group play on December 10, so Salah may need to be rested for one or both of these matches if the ankle is truly an issue.



Doug Smith is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Doug Smith also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username aquemini03. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his/her personal views, he/she may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his/her personal account. The views expressed in his/her articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.