TOTW 33 Predictions

Thankfully we have the Premier League TOTS to look forward to this week with not many names worth mentioning as we look towards TOTW 33. With a lot of fodder mixed in with potential IF’s for Foden, Perisic and Mertens

Goalkeeper

Predrag Rajkovic – GK - OVR 78>>82
Most will be expecting to see Pickford here and although yes, he was by far the best keeper this week with just a three-week gap from his previous IF it's probably too soon. There are multiple strong keepers this week though, Rajkovic being one of them. The Reims keeper ensured they went home with all three points making eight saves in total as they beat Lorient 2-1. Rajkovic was named MOTM with an 8/10 and we all know how easily Ligue 1 keepers get included.

Defenders

Ivan Perisic – LWB - OVR 81>>86
Perisic has been snubbed on a couple of occasions this season, especially since being operated in the LWB role. He once again stands a chance of getting his first IF after the Croatian was named MOTM for his goal during a 2-1 win over Inter. Inter who were top for most of the title race are now praying that AC slip up after the well documented mistake by Radu earlier in the week.

Christian Gunter – LWB - OVR 79>>86
For the second consecutive week Gunter has recorded a goal and an assist but still conceded three times. Last week I correctly ignored him but I am willing to take the punt this time around, especially seeing as Freiburg won 4-3. I don’t have Bundesliga ratings this week due to a German Bank Holiday and thus it becomes even harder to predict the Bundesliga this week.

Leonardo Bonucci – CB - OVR 85>>87
It’s been a quiet year of special items for Bonucci who despite obtaining an honourable mention card only has the one IF to his name previous to this one. After scoring both Juventus goals during a 2-1 win over Venezia the SIF is inevitable. The Italian only picked up a 7 from Gazzetta but that was still enough to be named MOTM too.

Lutsharel Geertruida – RB - OVR 76>>81
Talking of defenders scoring twice here is another with Geertruida’s brace coming as Feyenoord recorded a 3-1 away win over Fortuna. There are a few Eredivisie options this week and with their TOTS currently underway I see no reason as to why a couple won't be included by EA.

Midfielders

Rodrygo – LW - OVR 79>>84
It had been coming for a while but Real Madrid mathematically won the La Liga title this weekend with a comfortable 4-0 win at home to Espanyol. The IF is obvious with Rodrygo scoring twice and claiming MOTM but the Brazilian could also be the featured player. Although he already has a dynamic card to his name with EA giving the featured player to Kalulu a couple of weeks ago I’m not sure they are sticking to the original rule they set out. Either way, Rodrygo will definitely feature in TOTW 33.

Dries Mertens – CAM - OVR 84>>86
Despite running away with a 6-1 win while hosting Sampdoria, Napoli received rather modest match ratings with 7/10 being the highest which was achieved by both Lorenzo and Mertens. The latter scored two of the said six goals and will most likely be the option that EA goes for.

Phil Foden – CAM - OVR 84>>88
There are a couple of Premier League options that fail to make the cut due to the upcoming TOTS however I do not expect Foden to be a part of that side and thus his two assists could be enough to see him into this side. It's quite a weak TOTW and despite TOTS being live I still expect EA to include a couple of big hitters, Foden fits the bill. 

Mark Uth – CAM - OVR 77>>81
Uth is another player who has been knocking at the door for a few weeks now. I can finally see him sneaking into TOTW 33 after scoring once and assisting another. There were multiple 1-1 draws in the Bundesliga so those that one is more likely to see an IF from their retrospective matches and with a convincing 4-1-win Koln are strong candidates.

Forwards

Andrea Belotti – ST - OVR 81>>84
With Empoli leading late on Torino looked to exploit the fact that Empoli was also reduced to 10 men, bringing Belotti on in the 71st minute. The Italian went above and beyond what was expected of him scoring 79th, 87th and 97th to complete a hat trick and ensure Torino went home with all three points.
Julian Alvarez – ST - OVR 75>>86
There is a lot of excitement to see Alvarez at City next season and after the year he has had I don’t see why they won't at least rotate him in the squad. The Argentine managed three goals and one assist this weekend during River Plates convincing 7-0 win and looks set to receive his third IF of the game as a result.

Substitutes

Emil Audero – GK - OVR 78>>82
Sampdoria recorded a hard fought 1-0 home win over Genoa on Saturday with Audero becoming a late hero. Genoa was awarded a late penalty in the 94th minute when Destro was taken down. Audero managed to stop the resulting Criscito spot kick though making it four saves in total for the Italian and a likely IF as a result.

Rob Holding – CB - OVR 77>>81
Either of Arsenal’s goalscoring defenders could end up making EA’s TOTW but for me it's Holding over Gabriel, Holding was named MOTM with a 9/10 instead of an 8 which Gabriel received. The goals allowed Arsenal to come away with three points, beating West Ham 2-1 and putting them one step closer to a top 4 finish.

Lovro Majer – CM - OVR 76>>81
Majer has been snubbed of a TOTW spot over and over again this year but surely, he will finally manage to sneak in after the Croatian scored twice to help secure a 2-0 win for Rennes at home to St Etienne. L’equipe awarded the midfielder an 8/10 making him one of the best performers in the division this week.

Davy Klaassen – CAM - OVR 79>>82
With it being confirmed that it will be Ten Haag’s final season with Ajax with the Dutchman being the newly appointed Manchester United manager he will want to leave them with yet another title to their collection. As it stands, he is in a magnificent place to do so with their latest win, a 3-0 win at home to Zwolle putting them seven points clear at the top, although PSV does have a game in hand. Klaassen scored two of those three goals and picked up a match rating of 8.

Gedson Fernandes – CM - OVR 77>>81
When a side wins as convincingly as Rizespor I feel that an IF should be guaranteed. That is not the case however and Fernandes is far from a certainty heading into TOTW 33. With two goals and an assist from CM, he is definitely up there in terms of pecking order however. With a 7-1 away win to their name the match stand out to EA as well.

Veton Berisha – ST - OVR 70>>82
There were so many originally silver cards that had a chance for their SIF this week which made it difficult to narrow the side down. Another that is likely to pick up their SIF is Berisha after the striker scored three times for Viking as they recorded a 5-1 home win.

Scott Twine – ST - OVR 65>>81
MK Dons narrowly missed out on automatic promotion to the championship, finishing just one point off second. They enter the playoffs on great form though, having recorded a 5-0 win over Plymouth on Saturday. Twine scored four of those five goals and thus easily makes the side.

Reserves

Wes Burns – RWB - OVR 66>>76
It was a dead rubber game for Ipswich who will be very disappointed with their eventual finish in League 1 but it looks promising for the 2022/23 campaign as long as Mckenna stays in charge. A comfortable 4-0 win over Charlton ended the season and stand out player for the season, Wes Burns, was once again linked with their success. The Welshman scored twice from RWB alongside helping to keep the clean sheet and could even be a candidate for the ELL TOTS.

Sean McConville – LM - OVR 65>>81
A seven-goal thriller confirmed the relegation of Wimbledon with a 4-3 loss being enough to send them down. Accrington had nothing to play for but still found themselves leading 3-0 at half time. There was a fight back but it wasn’t enough. McConville gets the nod for TOTW after providing the assist on three of Accrington’s four goals. There are a lot of candidates from the ELL though, which could work against the winger.

Rasmus Alm – RM - OVR 75>>85
Not exactly an IF to shout about but Alm is practically inevitable come Wednesday after being involved in four Elfsborg goals. With three of his own going alongside an assist it's easy to say the Swedish midfielder was heavily influential during Elfsborg’s 6-0 away win

Sam Surridge – ST - OVR 67>>76
Having now won nine of their last ten matches Forest has climbed way up the table into third and continues to push for an automatic promotion place late into the season, something which a couple of months ago you would never have imagined happening. Their latest win came via a 5-1 home win over Swansea. Surridge scored three of those five and thus is likely to make his way into TOTW 33.

Lee Gregory – ST - OVR 67>>76
Sheffield Wednesday had already secured a playoff position coming into their match against Fleetwood, who were in a relegation battle. They wanted to maintain momentum though and thanks to Gregory they did. Scoring all three goals the striker helped them towards a 3-2 win while Fleetwood survived the drop on goal difference alone.