TOTW 24 Predictions

Although we don’t have any of the elite players featuring this week with eight players rated either 86 or higher there’s plenty to get excited for in the upcoming TOTW promo. Justice for headliner Goretzka, a positional changed Alba and another IF for Insigne look to be the pick of the bunch.
 

Goalkeeper

Kasper Schmeichel – GK - OVR 84>>86
We start off the week with what is the biggest punt of the week for me with no clear-cut goalkeeper options I ended up taking Kasper Schmeichel for his six saves in Leicester City’s 1-1 away draw with Burnley. Although he picked up an 8/10 he was not named MOTM which does harm his chances but despite that, I couldn’t find another valid option and thus the Danish stopper does stand a chance.

Defenders

Frank Fabra – LB - OVR 79>>82
Boca recorded a ridiculous 7-1 away win over Velez late on Sunday which actually resulted in Velez’s first defeat of the season, quite something really. As for the IF it is not clear cut with multiple players scoring twice. It’s a defender which I feel gets the nod though with Fabra producing three assists from LB. Especially with him being a gold option he simply has to make the final cut.

Jonathan Tah – CB - OVR 79>>82
There were numerous options with one goal and a clean sheet from defence this week but perhaps surprisingly I am instead opting for a defender which just a clean sheet. Tah was superb for Leverkusen this weekend during their 1-0 win away at Gladbach, claiming MOTM from kicker with a 1.5 match rating.

Luke Shaw – LB - OVR 81>>86
Everything comes to an end at some point, but Manchester City will be disappointed that their 21-match winning streak comes to an end against rivals Manchester United. The Red Devils played phenomenally recording a 2-0 win in the Manchester Derby. Luke Shaw, who is having the season of his life scored a brilliant goal to secure the win and although Martial was named MOTM I can’t see a ST with no goals or assists making it and thus I have opted for Shaw.

Midfielders

Lorenzo Insigne – LW - OVR 85>>88
A third IF for Insigne could be on the way as the Italian continues to impress for Napoli. Scoring twice in their 3-1 win over Bologna it puts a gap between them and Lazio in 6th and 7th retrospectively giving them a good chance of at least finishing in the Europa League qualifying position at the very least. Insigne picked up a 7.5 from Gazzetta which should be enough for that TIF to come on Wednesday.

Mikel Merino – CM - OVR 80>>83
In recent weeks we have seen high scores on Whoscored produce IF’s from La Liga on a regular basis, even for strikers who have scored once or assisted once which although for me is bizarre I have to adapt to that. Merino thus looks to be a safe inclusion after the site awarded him a 9/10 for scoring the only goal of the game in Sociedad’s 1-0 win over Levante on Sunday.

Leon Goretzka – CDM - OVR 84>>87
This one really strange as Goretzka really should have made TOTW 23 but instead, EA opted for Lewandowski for no real reason and thus Lewandowski’s hat trick this week can’t be rewarded. Guess who the second-best option is? That’s right Goretzka. So, it looks like both will be picking up IF’s in the incorrect week. Goretzka scored once as Munich recorded a 4-2 rivalry win over Dortmund.

Jordi Alba – LM - OVR 86>>88
An interesting positional change could be on the way with Alba playing well at LM this weekend for Barcelona. The hosts came away with a 2-0 win over Osasuna and although Messi claimed MOTM, as he usually does, Alba was the next best option with a goal from LM. With a lack of La Liga options this really stands out and for me is quite likely to happen!

Forwards

Josip Ilicic – RF - OVR 84>>87
Atalanta ran away with a 5-1 win over Crotone during the midweek set of fixtures however despite it being the most convincing victory in Serie A it is still difficult to select an IF from the match. The best bet appears to be Ilicic though, who scored once and assisted another, claiming a 7.5 match rating from Gazzetta.

Harry Kane – ST - OVR 88>>90
Considering the tally of both goals and assists that Kane has for Tottenham this season it comes as a surprise to me that this would be only his second IF of the season so far. It comes as Tottenham comfortably beat Crystal Palace 4-1 with the Englishman scoring twice and assisting another two. Bale also stood out scoring another two as he looks to return to his best form. Kane is the obvious choice here though.

Alvaro Morata – ST - OVR 82>>87
There were a fair few strikers in Serie A when it came to selecting TOTW 24 but perhaps the best of the bunch was Morata. Juventus played twice this week with the Spaniard performing in both. Firstly, scoring once before then scoring twice and assisting another in Juventus’s impressive 3-1 home win over Lazio. I would be very surprised to see Morata go on to miss out on Wednesday.

Substitutes

Jonas Omlin – GK - OVR 77>>81
In truth, this could literally be anyone with not many keepers standing out at all. Omlin gets the nod from me on his L’equipe rating alone which at 7/10 is not overly impressive but he is the best of a bad bunch. In total, the Swiss stopper made five saves in Montpellier’s 1-1 draw with Lorient.

Frederic Guilbert – RB - OVR 76>>81
I have managed to be pretty consistent in predicting Ligue 1 defenders with several punts in a row paying off. This one however is far more obvious than many previously selected options with Guilbert scoring the only goal of the game as Strasbourg upset Monaco by recording a 1-0 win. L’equipe awarded the Frenchman an 8/10, practically cementing his spot in the side.

Romarinho – CAM - OVR 74>>83
Going off the only previous case of a silver star getting another IF related item it would make Romarinho an 83 rated IF and with the Brazilian scoring a hat trick this weekend for Al Ittihad it looks very likely to happen and what an IF it looks to be. There are now a fair few Brazilians in random divisions that you can easily link together to create unique sides.

Ryan Kent – LW - OVR 72>>82
Rangers managed to confirm their league title this weekend with a 3-0 win over St Mirren and what’s more they have managed to do it while still unbeaten! Kent scored one goal and produced one assist in their most recent win and with them lifting the title I would expect to see a SIF for him on Wednesday.

Rogelio Funes Mori – ST - OVR 78>>82
As far as TOTW goes Funes Mori really should be making the cut. Although he played twice this week with four goals and one assist to his name you can’t really argue against him. Two goals and one assist in his first, which could easily get him in on its own was then topped off on Sunday where he added another two goals. Monterrey went on to win both matches, with the Argentine claiming MOTM in both.

Alexis Sanchez – ST - OVR 80>>83
Sanchez has been very limited on opportunities for Inter this season due to the brilliance of both Lukaku and Martinez but when he has featured the Chilean has performed well. Managing to score twice during Inters 2-1 away win over Parma he was named MOTM but more importantly helped his side to all three points as they close in on their first domestic title since 2010

Jonathan David – ST - OVR 77>>81
Many have called for David to receive an IF for simply scoring once and to no surprise he has yet to pick one up but TOTW 24 looks set to be a serious opportunity for OTW David owners with the Canadian forward scoring both Lille goals in their 2-0 win over Marseille, claiming the joint highest score of the week by doing so. He did recently pick up a future star item but that should be long enough gone now for an IF to head his way.
 

Reserves

Markus Kolke – GK - OVR 69>>79
There were a couple of outstanding silver keeper choices this week with both Kolke and Siegrist making it on a normal week. Due to Kent already being on the predicted side I have opted for the German route though and with a perfect 1 match rating seeing him named POTW for a last-minute penalty save to ensure all three points for his side I find it difficult to look anywhere else.

Jens Toornstra – CM - OVR 75>>81
There were several players from the Eredivisie who could end up making TOTW 24 but I also almost snubbed the league entirely. Zahavi was named POTW but with multiple strikers already I still think Toornstra, who picked up the same match rating as Zahavi could sneak in. The Dutchman scored twice in Feyenoord’s 6-0 win in a match which EA has already highlighted due to What If Fer.

Yu Kobayashi – ST - OVR 73>>79
The J-Leagues inclusion last week came as a bit of a surprise to me but it's something I am not going to miss out on twice. Kobayashi looks to be a safe bet this week after the Japanese striker scored twice and assisted another during a 5-1 win.

Jordan Larsson – ST - OVR 71>>78
Once again, we were very limited on hat trick options in the reserves with just one player managing the feat. There were several with two goals and one assist but perhaps the most likely from those is Jordan Larsson. The Swedish striker claimed multiple plaudits for his performance during Spartak’s convincing 6-1 win over Krasnodar and despite EA continuing to snub the RPL I am still confident that he will be selected

Matt Jay – ST - OVR 58>>68
Exeter continues their push for promotion this season with a comfortable 4-0 home win over Leyton Orient. Matt Jay, who played a more advanced ST role scored three of those four goals which likely adds to the ever-growing list of English silver IF’s