After a small hiatus in GW35+, the Stat Attack is back for GW36+. Let's jump straight into it.

All stats taken from @FFScout

1. Michail Antonio delivered on his recent promise as he put a woeful Norwich to the sword. Here are some of his numbers since restart:
Shots: 26 (1st)
SITB: 22 (1st)
SOT: 13 (joint 1st)
BCT: 9 (1st)
CC: 10 (14th)
BCC: 3 (joint 4th)
Those numbers are ridiculously good especially

when you think he's a £7.0m mid playing up top. He had 9 S, 8 ITB, 6 OT, 5 BCs & an xG of 2.72 in GW35. If that wasn't enough, he also created 3 chances with 1 BC in the game. Obviously his owners would be absolutely chuffed with a 26 point score but could've had more on another

day. With Watford & Villa in the next 3, the boat hasn't necessarily sailed. Watford have looked shaky at the back having conceded 13 BCs inspite of only facing Chelsea amongst the big boys. They play Villa in GW38 who would either need a win to stay up probably or would already

be relegated by the time Hammers face them & hence that could be a very open game. United is the only tough game in GW37 but from the eye test United haven't completely looked watertight at the back so that game isn't a complete write off either.

2. We often tend to associste Palaxe with defensive solidity but their numbers since restart haven't looked great especially when Sakho has been on the pitch.
Palace since restart: With Sakho: Without Sakho
Mins: 352: 188
GC: 7: 2
Shots: 61: 21
SITB: 41: 14
SOT: 31: 25
BC: 15: 1

With Gary Cahill out for the rest of the season most likely Sakho is likely to start all the games alongside Dann. A 30 y/o Sakho & a 33 y/o Dann will be especially troubled if United manage to get behind them. Even though Palace are playing at home they're likely to defend deep

yet with United's silky creativity offered by Bruno & Pogba, if the likes of Rash, Martial, Greenwood or James manage to get behind the defence, you can probably bet that the 2 CBs won't be catching them. Even though, City & Chelsea would offer more explosive captaincy options,

a United attacker wouldn't be the worst shout for a differential captaincy.

3. I can babble about City's attacking prowess but it's probably obvious & known to everyone already. Let's talk about Pep roulette. Analysing the Pep roulette matrix prepared by my good friend

@Legomane_FPL here are some inferences I've come to
No player has been benched 2 games in a row except for Foden
No player has been benched for 2 PL games in a row except for D Silva
Foden hasn't started an away game yet
Mahrez has started most games since

restart (7/8)
Jesus has been benched for just 1 game since Kun's injury
Foden has completed 90mins just once, Jesus twice
The only game Pep started with a false 9 (Chelsea),they lost
Chelsea is the only game in which City had less shots, SITB, SOT & BC than their opponent

It's obviously nigh impossible to predict Pep here's my shot at it:
Sterling Jesus Foden
D Silva Gundo KDB
Mendy Ota Garcia Cancelo

4. The Sheffield United (SHU) resurgence continues. Since GW32, SHU have conceded only 39 shots (6th best), 23 SITB (3rd best), 11 SOT (3rd best) &

6 BCs (5th best) in the league. This has also coincided with them having Jack O'Connell back & reverting to the favoured back 5. What is also noteworthy is that with Fleck & Lundstram out, Wilder has fielded a mid 3 of Norwood, Osborn & Berge who have contributed to this

defensive solidity in recent games.

5. Gabriel Jesus is the best forward to own right now. His numbers are completely off the charts. He is top of Shots, SITB, BC amongst all forwards from GW30-35. He's also showing his creative side too. With 12 CC & 2 BCC & 3 A, he's showing

multiple avenues to points. Another thing which goes in his favour slightly is that inspite of what Pep has said about Gundo or B Silva playing as the false 9, he prefers to play with a striker. This season, City have only started 2 games without a proper striker, GW 19 vs Wolves

& GW 31 vs Chelsea. City went on to lose both games & the way Pep has managed his minutes recently, I'd back him to start all the remaining games even if he comes off early in most of them.

6. Is Jimenez worth a keep now that he's scored again? Not IMO, but he isn't a priority

sell. He had 3 shots in the game vs Everton with 2 of them on target with 1 BC. However, having watched the game & also from the touch heatmap it is evident that Jimi is either dropping to deep to create play or drops wide to support the wings especially when Traore isn't on the

pitch. It's likely that players in & around Jimi benefit from it. The 2nd striker starting along with Jimi & sometimes even the wingbacks are found waiting in the box when Jimi is often trying to catch-up with play having dropped deep or providing crosses. With Palace up in GW37

though he isn't a priority sell however the likes of Jesus, Ings, Rash, Greenwood are making more of a claim right now than Jimi.

7. The last 2 GWs have taught us a few lessons as fantasy managers & they've not been pleasant. Targetting teams like Bournemouth & Norwich is all

well & good but it's important to also see who you're targetting them with. If the "sword" you're picking isn't in the best shape & looks a bit rusty, then going gung-ho on it might not be the smartest play. After United's 5-2 annihilation of Bournemouth there was a frenzy to

target teams facing them. Even though, Spurs & Leicester haven't looked themselves lately, it was ignored & we all jumped on the likes of Kane, Son, Vardy, Iheanacho, Soy etc. Even though people might argue that Vardy could've got another goal or 2 against Bournemouth, the eye

test also showed their failings. The chances that Leicester created were often gifted by Bournemouth & it's not as if Leicester dominated them for chances, even before the red card. With Leicester, it's clear that the morale is down & Rodgers has experimented a lot with his

formations recently. It's not to say that Vardy won't score a goal or 2 over the next few but just that we should be careful about the "swords" we pick to target these "cakes"(weak teams).

8. Captaincy conundrum for GW36? With rotation looming large on City assets, Chelsea &

United faltering & Liverpool playing Arsenal the captaincy is quite open this GW. On paper, City vs Bou looks like the game to target if you can nail down a starter from the City team. Foden looks likely to start but managers might be put off by his recent blanks although based

on stats, he could be in for a haul. Jesus & Sterling are the next best options from City. Based on the analysis above regarding false 9, I think Jesus starts. Sterling again is likely to start but lesser so than Jesus IMO.

9. With Norwich's relegation confirmed Chelsea assets looked primed to put them to the sword. Pulisic, Willian & Giroud must all be under consideration. Abraham has started 2 games since restart & Chelsea have been beaten in both, with no margin for error remaining, Lampard is

likely to field his strongest possible 11 with a rotation or 2 in the full back position or on the wings. Giroud starting though should mean good news for mids around him. Giroud's style of play is such that he looks to bring in players around him into the game & it's no surprise

that Chelsea mids have flourished for goals since he's started in the team recently.

10. Regarding United assets for captaincy they offer something that both Chelsea & City can't. A guarantee of start. With Palace's aforementioned defensive woes with Sakho in the team, United are likely to do well against them. The conundrum is who to go for. Martial has had just

1 assist in 3 away games since restart. Palace will bring their physical side of the game with the likes of Ward, Dann, Sakho, Koyuate trying to out-muscle Martial. Bruno is a good pick & with United dropping points against the Saints & him not having his best game, he's likely

to be more up for this game. The only drawback with Bruno is that he feels like a shield pick, captaining him is the only way to gain points from him & then too the upside might not be high enough for some people. Rashford & Greenwood have shown their inconsistencies over the

past few games. Rashford looked much more threatening against Southampton as he often interchanged his position with Martial & playing as the striker with Martial going out wide. He's likely to be on the next penalty too & could prove to be a major differential captain for GW36+

Apologies for the delayed thread & also for putting them out in parts (Twitter is to be blamed for this).
Likes & RTs appreciated.
@FPLarrows @FplRichard