Gameweek 9 recap: Arsenal win at Anfield, Brighton stun City and the best possible XI
Gameweek 9 was the first with a bench and starters-only scoring. Arsenal won at Anfield, Brighton won at the Etihad, and Chelsea beat Manchester United. Here's who went furthest under par, who had a weekend to forget, and the best team anyone could have picked.
The results
| Chelsea 2–0 Manchester United |
| Bournemouth 2–0 Leeds |
| Brentford 2–0 Nottingham Forest |
| Coventry City 3–1 Sunderland |
| Hull City 2–2 Ipswich Town |
| Manchester City 0–1 Brighton |
| Tottenham 2–0 Crystal Palace |
| Aston Villa 1–1 Fulham |
| Liverpool 0–1 Arsenal |
| Newcastle 0–1 Everton |
Furthest under par
| Player | PAR | Rating | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bart Verbruggen (Brighton) | 6.7 | 8.8 | −2.1 |
| Roméo Lavia (Chelsea) | 7.0 | 8.9 | −1.9 |
| Jan Paul van Hecke (Spurs) | 7.3 | 9.1 | −1.8 |
| Oli McBurnie (Hull) | 6.9 | 8.5 | −1.6 |
| Julio Enciso (Ipswich) | 7.0 | 8.6 | −1.6 |
Bart Verbruggen kept Manchester City out in Brighton's 1–0 win at the Etihad and rated 8.8, finishing 2.1 under his PAR. It's exactly what our goalkeeper guide describes: a keeper on the underdog side who keeps a clean sheet. Jan Paul van Hecke's 9.1 in Spurs' win over Palace was the highest rating of the week.
A day to forget
| Player | PAR | Rating | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| Robin Roefs (Sunderland) | 7.1 | 5.1 | +2.0 |
| Lisandro Martínez (Man United) | 6.8 | 4.8 | +2.0 |
| Jean-Philippe Mateta (Crystal Palace) | 6.8 | 5.0 | +1.8 |
| Omar Alderete (Sunderland) | 6.8 | 5.1 | +1.7 |
| Erling Haaland (Man City) | 7.9 | 6.2 | +1.7 |
Sunderland were slight favourites at Coventry but lost 3–1, and their keeper and defence paid for it. Erling Haaland had the toughest PAR of the week at 7.9 and managed only 6.2 against Brighton, finishing 1.7 over. It's a reminder that the biggest stars carry the biggest risk in UnderPar.
The best possible XI
From this week only starters count, so this is the lowest-scoring team of starters anyone could have picked within the rules: one keeper, at least three defenders and three midfielders, up to three attackers, players from at least six clubs, and no more than three from one club.
| Pos | Player | Score |
|---|---|---|
| GK | Bart Verbruggen (Brighton) | −2.1 |
| DEF | Jan Paul van Hecke (Spurs) | −1.8 |
| DEF | Josh Acheampong (Chelsea) | −1.5 |
| DEF | Abdoul Ouattara (Ipswich) | −1.2 |
| DEF | Micky van de Ven (Spurs) | −1.2 |
| MID | Roméo Lavia (Chelsea) | −1.9 |
| MID | Yasin Ayari (Brighton) | −1.3 |
| MID | Jack Rudoni (Coventry) | −1.3 |
| ATT | Oli McBurnie (Hull) | −1.6 |
| ATT | Julio Enciso (Ipswich) | −1.6 |
| ATT | Cole Palmer (Chelsea) | −1.3 |
That team would have scored −16.8, exactly the same as Gameweek 8's best. Chelsea supply three players after their win over United. Cole Palmer and Jan Paul van Hecke had PARs of 7.3, the highest in the side, so a strong player can still be a great pick when his day comes.
How our tips did
Our picks all went under par this time. Ezri Konsa finished 1.0 under in Arsenal's win at Anfield, Evanilson 0.8 under and Nicolas Jackson 0.7 under. Two of our three players to avoid finished over. Bruno Fernandes started at Chelsea but went 0.9 over, and Marcos Senesi didn't play, which cost +1 for anyone whose bench didn't cover him. Carl Rushworth proved us wrong, going 0.3 under in Coventry's 3–1 win.
Gameweek 9 in numbers
- 218 starters got a FotMob rating, and 101 of them (46%) beat their PAR.
- Chelsea's starters went furthest under par on average (−0.81 each), followed by Spurs (−0.73) and Everton (−0.59).
- Sunderland's starters had the worst weekend (+0.74 each), then Nottingham Forest (+0.61) and Newcastle (+0.45).
- Defenders did best, averaging −0.09. Attackers were the costliest, at +0.04, but every position was close to par.
Next up: Gameweek 10
Gameweek 10 starts on Friday night with Everton v Coventry, so the deadline is 18:30 on Friday 6 November. Pick your XI and bench, and read our goalkeeper guide before you choose your keeper.