Fantasy football tips for Gameweek 28 in the Premier League

The FA Cup quarter finals may have decimated the Premier League calendar this weekend but not all of the fixtures have been postponed. There are still four undisturbed games going ahead in England’s top tier and it’s important to ensure you can try and get some points on the board.

As ever, the WhoScored tipster has examined the fixtures and here are some tips from each of the four games on offer in the Premier League this weekend.

STEVE COOK (BOURNEMOUTH)

International recognition and a £7m move to West Brom has accompanied Steve Cook’s name this week in the papers but for now the 25-year-old needs to help Bournemouth overcome their poor run of form and secure their status in the Premier League this season. No league win in 2017 has seen Bournemouth plummet down the table and they are now only five points above the bottom three.

The idea of Andy Carroll thundering his way onto the end of crosses may not be exactly what a Bournemouth side short of confidence would want to see this weekend but they should be more than capable of limiting the West Ham striker having kept Zlatan Ibrahimovic at bay for the majority of their 1-1 draw with Manchester United last weekend.

There are fitness concerns surrounding a number of Bournemouth’s players, but in Cook they have a reliable member of the defence and the man that will be tasked with subduing Carroll. Cook is one of just eight players to have featured in every minute of Premier League action this season, but crucially, has completed the most headed clearances (172) in England’s top tier. Crosses into the box will be the order of the day for West Ham and in Cook they have an ideal defender to repel West Ham’s best efforts this weekend.

TOM DAVIES (EVERTON)

It speaks volumes about how highly Ronald Koeman rates Tom Davies that there is still a place in the starting XI for the 18-year-old despite the fact the Everton manager can already call upon proven stars Idrissa Gueye, James McCarthy, Ross Barkley, Gareth Barry and Morgan Schneiderlin in central midfield.

The England Under-19 international has made a real impression since breaking into the first-team on a regular basis this season under Koeman and even earned the WhoScored Man of the Match in a thumping 4-0 win over Manchester City in January on just his third ever Premier League start.

Head here for detailed match preview news, including probable predicted line-ups

While it seemed unlikely to think Davies would remain a fixture in the first-team set-up even after Schneiderlin’s arrival in the winter transfer window, it begins to make sense when you peel back the layers. In Barry, Gueye, Schneiderlin and McCarthy, Everton have a solid platform from which to build on but none of those players can be expected to help ease the creative burden on Barkley and Romelu Lukaku. This is where Davies, who already has one goal and two assists to his name, can alleviate the pressure on those further forward and he will again be required to provide some creativity when they welcome West Brom on Saturday in a bid to get back to winning ways following their 3-2 defeat to Tottenham last time out.

FERNANDO LLORENTE (SWANSEA)

After a slow start to life in the Premier League, Fernando Llorente has finally found his feet at Swansea following a summer switch from Sevilla. The 32-year-old has broken double figures in a league campaign for just the second time in the last four seasons (11 goals scored) and it’s now starting to make sense why Antonio Conte was keen to reunite with the ex-Juventus frontman at Chelsea in January.

Llorente has found the back of the net three times in his two last matches and was the WhoScored man of the match in Swansea’s 3-2 win over Burnley last time out, in which he scored twice. Furthermore, only Michail Antonio (6) has scored more headers in the Premier League than Llorente (5) and the Spaniard’s threat in the air should be a more than useful weapon when they face relegation rivals Hull this weekend.

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The Tigers, like Swansea, have benefitted from a change of manager but they are still vulnerable. In fact, only Crystal Palace (16) have conceded more goals from set pieces in England’s top tier this season than Hull (14), while Swansea are among the most prolific teams from deadball situations (12). With Gylfi Sigurdsson in the team, Llorente should have plenty of chances to add to his league tally at the weekend.

ROBERTO FIRMINO (LIVERPOOL)

Not only has Liverpool’s dramatic slump in results in 2017 seen Jurgen Klopp’s side drop out of the title race completely, they now also face a real fight to secure their place in the top four this season. Last weekend’s 3-1 win over Arsenal has given Liverpool a two-point cushion on those outside of the top four, but they still have a long way to go to prove they are back to the side that thrilled earlier in the season.

Liverpool have become experts in beating those around them in the league table under Klopp but overcoming those lower down the table is the reason why they are not challenging Chelsea for the league title this season. The Reds have the chance to string together consecutive wins for the first time since December when they welcome Burnley on Sunday and they will also be looking to exact revenge from the 2-0 defeat they suffered at Turf Moor earlier in the campaign.

Burnley have almost exclusively secured their top flight status for another season thanks to their formidable form at home but they should prove the ideal opponents for Liverpool this weekend, having failed to win a single league game on their travels this season.

Head here for detailed match preview news, including probable line-ups

They should also hand Roberto Firmino the chance to improve his own fortunes after coming in for stick in recent months. While Firmino’s work off the ball is almost as valuable to Liverpool as his goal output, the Brazilian forward would still like to return to goalscoring form and break double figures in the league for the third season in four years.

Each of Firmino’s last eight goals and assists have been achieved at Anfield and he should be primed to add to the goal and assist he managed against Arsenal last weekend here.