An eight-goal thriller at Old Trafford rounded off Gameweek 16 of the Fantasy Premier League (FPL).
Here are our Scout Notes from the 4-4 epic.
A NEW SYSTEM – AND A NEW, MORE OFFENSIVE UNITED?
Manchester United’s ‘new’ setup was not a complete revolution, but more of an adaptation of what had gone before.
Instead of a 3-4-2-1 on the ball it was more like 4-4-2/4-2-4. Where one ‘wing-back’, Diogo Dalot (£4.4m), became more of a full-back, the other, Amad Diallo (£6.3m), moved all the way up to become a winger. United often had a front line of Amad on the right when attacking, Mason Mountain (£7.9 million) on the left, and Bryan Mbeumo (£8.2 million) and Matheus Cunha (£7.9m) down the middle.
“It is for you to argue, not for me. I will say the same. You can play with the same players, [it] looks like one thing, [it] is something else. Well guys, it’s up to you to do that [discuss]. I know you guys know I’ve been training this week, the back four. I don’t know how, but it’s good that you’re discussing this this week.’ – Ruben Amorim, when asked if United were building up a back four
Whether it was the formation or the mentality, it led to a stormy first half in which United produced one of their best attacking displays in recent times.
United’s already decent attacking numbers are now (30 goals, 30.77 xG) second only to Manchester City, thanks to Monday’s injection.
The question is: what happens now? Two important cogs in the system, Amad and Mbeumo, are leaving for the Africa Cup of Nations. Will it be back to a less fluid 3-4-2-1? Or could Dalot possibly take on the advanced Amad role on the right, with the fit again Benjamin Sesko (£7.2 million) centrally join Cunha? Dalot is already working on a series of three attacking returns in as many Gameweeks as now.
One to keep an eye on in the coming weeks.
SHOT HAPPY CUNHA
Cunha had no fewer than eight shots for the second game in a row:
He scored only his second goal of the season here. After some wayward finishing, he narrowly missed this opportunity as the ball ended up in Bournemouth’s penalty area.
Cunha was also inches away from converting Dalot’s cross, which Amad nodded in from the goal line.
The Brazilian has taken up many more central, threatening positions over the past two weeks. After having only one ‘big chance’ in the first fourteen gameweeks, he got three in the last eight days.
Will it continue now that Sesko is back?
Mbeumo was unable to pull out of AFCON with a return, squandering the best of his four chances. But if he will reprise this role when he returns, the signs look promising.
Remarkably, United now have the FPL’s three best midfielders for shots in 2025/26:
TWO ‘CMS’ STROKES
For all the talk of exciting front lines, it was two central midfielders who made big gains.
Bruno Fernandes (£9.3m) shot back to the top of the FPL midfielders points table with a third double-digit win in four gameweeks.
While his assist for Casemiro‘s (£5.5m) header was a lucky one (Djorde Petrovic (£4.5m should have stopped it), his goal from a free kick was pure class.
In the same way, Marcus Tavernier‘s (£5.5m) central midfield position – having fallen back somewhat during the recent injury/suspension crisis – did not hinder him. Both the assist and the goal came from a distance: a through ball Evanilson (£7.0m) from deep and a direct free-kick of his own.
He even crashed into the penalty area for a big double chance in the first half.
SEMENYO SUSPENDED AT BAN + CASEMIRO
The signs were already there in recent weeks Antoine Semenyo (£7.5m) would come back under the attacking returns.
He performed well on Monday to score Bournemouth’s first of the evening.
“Antoine is playing well. The other day he scored and was ruled out for nothing offside. I think he has been a threat for us. Today he also showed personality, good air quality, winning duels, and I think he is in a good, good moment. I don’t analyze Antoine just because he didn’t score last time, I don’t know how many games. I think it’s about the team performance, how much he helps us.” – Andoni Iroala about Antoine Semenyo
The worry for his owners is that a first-half booking at Old Trafford took him to four for the season. One more warning in the next three gameweeks will lead to a one-match suspension.
At least he gets the plum match against Burnley in Gameweek 17, and that could be enough. The competitions that follow will allow his remaining owners to make money over Christmas, regardless of availability.
Speaking of that Gameweek 17 clash with the out-of-form Clarets, owners of Eli Kroupi (£4.6m), especially Bench Boosters, may be hoping for a brutal start, especially after his equalizer here. However, we know how much Iraola loves Evanilson, and the Brazilian was also on the scoresheet to end his drought.
With plenty of rest on either side of Burnley’s visit, there is little reason to switch either. Kroupi’s best hope is probably a role with Evanilson (as in Gameweek 12), and not in his place.
United meanwhile lost their own player through suspension, in the form of Casemiro. For him there are five bookings for the season, so no trip to Villa Park.
A CASE FOR TO AIM THE DEFENSE
Finally, we have defended the attacks from both sides, but chaos reigns at the rear.
With United they are only on one clean sheet this season. This sort of 4-4-2 looked brilliant in the future, but with four players essentially all playing out of position at the back – including Leny Yoro (£4.3m) at right-back – defensively it was chaos.
The Cherries almost won the match, with two big late chances David Brooks (£5.0 million).
With Casemiro suspended next week, Villa attackers will be happy with their prospects.
As for Bournemouth, the central midfield crisis isn’t helping. They lost Tyler Adams (£5.0m) after just a few minutes on Monday, with Iraola saying he thinks it is an MCL injury (not season-ending but enough to keep him out).
This was the seventh game in 11 gameweeks in which the Cherries scored more than 2 goals.
Above: The leading players for defensive contributions at Old Trafford on Monday
Mark Senesi (£4.9m) went huge on defensive contributions, netting 21 in Manchester, but that still amounted to a net return of one point.
After Burnley, he will likely rely solely on DefCon for the next six Gameweeks.
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