TOTW 35 Predictions

Although not as strong as last week's side it is still another TOTW to look forward to with several big hitters performing well once again. Vinicius is not included due to La Liga’s TOTS being on Friday however we do have the likes of KDB, Aubameyang, Ben Yedder and an upgrade for Clauss.

Goalkeeper

Lukasz Fabianski – GK - OVR 82>>84
Goalkeepers were almost impossible to predict this week and while I wanted to include Bowen for his brace due to the fact there were no other good gold keeper candidates available, I simply had to opt for Fabianski instead. West Ham managed to hold Manchester City to a 2-2 draw and open the door in the title race by doing so. Despite being 2-0 up at one stage West Ham could have gone home empty handed but Fabianski stepped up late on to deny Manchester City from the penalty spot and keep the scores level.

Defenders

Nicolas Tagliafico – LB - OVR 82>>84
Ajax officially lifted the Eredivisie title this week, recording a 5-0 win at home to Heerenveen, maintaining a four-point advantage over PSV with just one game remaining. I expect there to be an Ajax IF as a result and with Tagliafico’s goal and clean sheet being enough for him to be awarded MOTM I would expect it to go the Argentine’s way.

Jonathan Clauss – RWB - OVR 77>>87
Clauss seems to be mentioned almost every other week and there is good reason for that with the Frenchman constantly providing attacking returns from the right-hand flank. With Ligue 1 being highly rating dependent, he often misses out however this week L’equipe awarded him an 8/10 for his goal and assist during Len’s 3-1 away win over Troyes, meaning he could get one last upgrade on the headliner item before his inevitable TOTS card.

Theo Hernandez – LB - OVR 84>>89
A Theo Hernandez TOTS is practically inevitable but with a couple of weeks between the Serie A TOTS and this TOTW, I see no reason as to why he can’t jam another TOTW in for the Frenchman. AC Milan is now just one result away from lifting the title after their 2-0 win at home to Atalanta on Sunday. Theo Hernandez scored one of those two goals and picked up an 8/10 from Gazzetta. It’s worth mentioning that Hernandez’s goal was a solo run from his own box too!

James Tavernier – RB - OVR 77>>88
The quality FIFA defenders just keep on coming, Tavernier could be set to pick up a simply ridiculous looking IF after he scored once and assisted another for Rangers during their 4-1 home win over Ross County. This was a midweek match which does pose a slight risk but he is a pack seller and with the majority of leagues playing midweek matches this week I can see EA picking up on it.

Midfielders

Jonas Hofmann – RM - OVR 79>>86
Despite finding themselves a goal down early on in the game Gladbach held strong and turned the match around in style. Eventually coming away with a 5-1 win, ending their season on a high. Hofmann is an easy shout for TOTW after he scored twice and assisted another in the said 5-1-win, Kicker awarded him MOTM with a 1.5 cementing his spot in the side.

Kevin De Bruyne – CAM - OVR 91>>94
In most scenarios, I would have ignored a player who had recently picked up a TOTS card however this isn't most scenarios. KDB helped Manchester City take a step closer to the title as they recorded a 5-1 win away at Wolves. The Belgian magician scored four of those five goals and was unlucky not to make it five. Sky awarded him the rare 10 match rating and despite recently coming out of packs how can you ignore someone with four goals to their name?

Mason Mount – CAM - OVR 83>>86
Chelsea received more final heartbreak in the FA cup this weekend however it was a much better result in the Premier League on Wednesday, beating Leeds 3-0 away from home. Mount was named MOTM from that match after scoring once and assisting another

Forwards

Jamie Vardy – ST - OVR 86>>87
Vardy has been very quiet this season and as a result, Leicester has found themselves as a mid-table side. It was a comfortable win for them on Wednesday over Norwich though, scoring three without reply. Vardy scored two of those three goals taking his season total to a modest 12. With just the one special card for Vardy this game I'm sure a cheaper IF wouldn’t go a miss by many. Vardy then added another two to his tally on Sunday during Leicester’s 5-1 win over Watford which took his total to 13. A strong wee for Vardy.

Aubameyang – ST - OVR 85>>88
Aubameyang managed to take his total to 11 in La Liga as his brace helped Barcelona to a 3-1 home win over Celta Vigo and in turn, looks set to receive his third IF in just eleven weeks. It really does ask the question of what happened to him in the Prem? 

Wissam Ben Yedder – ST - OVR 84>>88
Ben Yedder is a player who is never short of a few special cards over the course of a FIFA. He looks set to receive his third IF and fifth special item of the game after scoring three times for Monaco this weekend as they recorded a 4-2 home win over Brest. WBY was named POTW in Ligue 1 with a 9/10 from L’equipe.

Substitutes

Guglielmo Vicario – GK - OVR 71>>78
It’s very rare that I will opt for a silver keeper but when I do, they have always done something special. Vicario’s inclusion comes from a 1-1 draw but it’s the Gazzetta match rating that really stands out. Anything above an 8 is ridiculously rare, especially for a keeper so when I saw Vicario had received an 8.5, he was straight into the side. In total, the Italian made seven saves to keep the scores level with several being very impressive.

Alfonso Pedraza – LB - OVR 77>>84
Looking at the Villarreal vs Vallecano game you would think that Villarreal’s defence was their attack, with three of the back four scorings while two of them also assisted. Pau Torres misses out with a goal and an assist but only down to one reason and that is Pedraza. With two goals and one assist from LB the Spaniard is one of the easiest choices this week. Villarreal won the match 5-1 with Pedraza obviously being awarded MOTM.

Sebastian Blanco – LW - OVR 77>>84
Sporting Kansas has struggled during the early parts of this MLS season but I feel this result against Portland really summarises just how much they need to improve now. Portland ran riot and came away with a 7-2 home win on Sunday. Blanco was involved in four of those seven goals, both scoring and assisting twice.

Lucas Paqueta – CM - OVR 81>>84
There are a few Ligue 1 TOTS candidates who also have a chance of featuring in TOTW this week, Paqueta is yet another after his goal during Lyon’s 3-2 home win over Nantes was enough for L’equipe to award the Brazilian MOTM with an 8/10 match rating. Bizarrely this would actually be Paqueta’s first IF too.

Wataru Endo – CM - OVR 78>>84
It looked as though Stuttgart were destined for a relegation play-off match but in the dying embers of the match up popped Endo to score a late winner and in turn secure their spot in the Bundesliga for next season. Schwabe was MOTM but with Koln losing and the Stuttgart scenario I can see Endo sneaking into the side, potentially even as a hero item.

Sergio Canales – CAM - OVR 83>>85
Real Betis are now just one game away from securing European football next season which is a superb achievement for them, after winning both matches this week. Canales picks up the IF from the first of those two games where he scored once and assisted another during a 3-0 away win over Valencia. There is a risk of a La Liga TOTS card however I don’t feel that Canales is even close to that with the limited spots available.

Andy Delort – ST - OVR 81>>87
Once again it looks set to be a high rated bench with multiple big names performing, especially in the striker role this week. This would be Delort’s third IF and with two goals and one assist there is no reason why he can’t be selected. Nice went on to win 4-2 with Delort being awarded MOTM with an 8/10.

Reserves

Jonathan Levi – LW - OVR 70>>78
There are two strong options from Norrkoping’s 5-1 home win over Sundsvall with both Levi and Ortmark picking up two goals and two assists. With two bronze options already in the side I opted for Levi though, who I believe was also nominated as MOTM. The strong options from Sweden never normally miss out so I am confident that we will see either of the two mentioned players come Wednesday.

Karol Angielski – ST - OVR 64>>74
There were some outstanding performances from non-gold strikers this week which does put Angielski at risk but his hat trick should still be enough to see him sneak in. The Polish forward came off the bench while his side found themselves two goals down before Karol’s 18-minute hat trick helped Radom come back to win 4-2

James Scott – ST - OVR 63>>73
Relegation round matches are always difficult to predict but usually, if a hat trick occurs in them, they will be included. I am hoping that will be the case hereafter Scott scored three times for Hibernian during their 4-0 win at home to St Johnstone.

Marcel Bar – ST - OVR 68>>77
There were many high scoring matches in the third tier of Germany this weekend but the highest scoring was Munich’s encounter with Dortmund from which the former came out as 6-3 winners. Bar was involved in five of those six goals with two for himself going alongside three assists.

Kodjo Fo-Doh Laba – ST - OVR 74>>80
Laba has been missed on numerous occasions by EA, even a couple of hat tricks have been ignored but the Togo international has previously received IF’s in FIFA 21 so can definitely be included. A lot of predictors will miss this one though so hopefully EA doesn’t. Al Ain recorded a comfortable 5-0 win with Fo-Doh Laba scoring four of those five goals.