FPL Best XI: Top Picks for Gameweek 35

FPL Best XI: Top Picks for Gameweek 35

This article is part of our FPL Best XI series.

This season's Premier League champions could be crowed in Gameweek 35, as Chelsea just need to beat Crystal Palace at Stamford Bridge on Sunday to clinch their first title since 2010.

Last year's winners, Manchester City, are also slated to play Sunday, with their match coming across London at Tottenham, who are clinging to a Europa League qualifying spot at the moment.

While Arsenal close out the round at Hull City on Monday, the opening contest of Gameweek 35 could continue Leicester City's path to safety, as the 17th-place Foxes host a Newcastle team with seven straight losses.

Later on, fellow Tyneside club Sunderland sits in danger of relegation as they host seventh Southampton, who are still pushing for a European spot.

Saturday also features a match between the two teams immediately behind Southampton, as ninth Stoke City travels to Wales to take on eighth-place Swansea City.

Back in the English capital, West Ham will hope to snap their run of horrible form against Burnley, while fellow Londoners Queens Park Rangers trek to Liverpool just a point ahead of the last-place Clarets.

At 16th position, Aston Villa is still just two points clear of the drop, making their home date with a streaking Everton side a bit tricky.

To close Saturday, Manchester United will try to rebound from two straight losses when they welcome West Brom to Old Trafford.

Now that all the Gameweek 35 pairing have been touched upon, let's dive into the Best XI for the latest round of the Premier League.

Goalkeeper
David de Gea
Arguably Manchester United's best player over the course of the entire campaign, de Gea has helped the Red Devils build the league's fourth-best defensive record. The Spaniard has been especially good at Old Trafford, where he's grabbed six of his ten clean sheets, and Man U has surrendered less than one goal per game. This weekend's visitor to the Theater of Dreams is West Brom, who have scored the fewest away goals this season and have failed to score in four of their last six trips to United's famed stadium.

Defenders
Nathaniel Clyne
A breakout performer this season, Clyne's 13 clean sheets include one from his previous meeting against Sunderland, when Southampton trashed the Black Cats 8-0 back in October. Now, the teams meet again with Southampton still sporting the Premier League's best defensive record. That standing maintained itself thanks to stellar defensive play on the road, where the Saints have conceded six fewer goals than any other team. No club has tallied fewer goals than Sunderland's attack this term, making Saturday's contest a great clean sheet opportunity for Clyne.

John Terry
The captain of England's best home defense, Terry has secured a clean sheet in three of his last four efforts. The lone time he missed out over that span was in Chelsea's most recent match Wednesday, when Terry scored the game-winning goal at Leicester. Now, Terry returns to Stamford Bridge to face a Crystal Palace team fresh off going scoreless in back-to-back home matches. Additionally, the Eagles have only scored four goals from their last six games against Chelsea, who will have the added motivation of clinching another championship come Sunday.

Aaron Cresswell
Although his team has painstakingly won only once over the last 12 Premier League matches, Cresswell has secured three clean sheets, one goal and one assist over that span. Additionally, he supplied an assist earlier this season against this weekend's opponents, Burnley, who are in even worse form than the Hammers. In fact, the last-place Clarets have failed to win any of their last 10 away matches, and have gone scoreless in their past five Premier League appearances overall. Those futile records bode well for Cresswell ahead of Saturday's home encounter.

Midfielders
Eden Hazard
Following a week in which he was named the PFA Player Of The Season, it's only right that Hazard is named to the Best XI as Chelsea look to win the league this weekend. An understated stat in fantasy circles, Hazard actually leads the Premier League in clean sheets with 18 such performances this season. That extra bonus nicely complements his 13 goals and nine assists on the campaign, which put him two shy in both categories of personal season-highs since arriving in England. No matter, the Belgian has scored in consecutive games at Stamford Bridge, where Chelsea is remarkably undefeated in their last 17 league matches.

Philippe Coutinho
Another member of the PFA Team Of The Season, Coutinho has enjoyed his best campaign in England this term. To that point, the 22-year-old has offered seven goals and four assists for Liverpool across all competitions, and this weekend he plays a welcomed opponent, Queens Park Rangers. Not only do the Rs unwillingly carry the title of the Premiership's worst defense, but Coutinho has scored in both of his last two games against them as well. Additionally, QPR has leaked at least two goals in 13 of their last 16 road matches, so Saturday's trip to Anfield could help Coutinho make it three-in-three versus the Rs.

David Silva
In the midst of his best goal-scoring season in England, Silva now gets to play a team that Manchester City has absolutely devastated offensively in recent years, Tottenham. In their last three respective games against Spurs, Man City has registered four, five and six goals. Even further, the Citizens have tallied 21 goals across their last six contests with Spurs. Although Tottenham ranks sixth in the standings, it's not because of their defense, a unit that has conceded the fifth-most goals in the Premier League this season. So with the matchup heavily favoring a City outburst, Silva's shining season in front of goal could brighten further with a fine display at White Hart Lane.

Alexis Sanchez
Despite being held at bay last weekend at home versus Chelsea, still no Premier League team has scored more goals over their last six games than Arsenal. The Gunners' joint top scorer in league play, Alexis scored twice over that span, and this weekend is another player that gets to go against a team he's made pay in the past. As Arsenal approaches Monday's game at Hull City, a team they've scored 14 goals against in their last six meetings, Alexis holds confidence from having scored in both of his previous career matches versus the Tigers. As a result, he too will be hoping to make it three-in-three at the hands of the same opponent this round.

Forwards
Wayne Rooney
After suffering a knee injury last weekend against his former club Everton, Rooney's status was questionable heading into Saturday's match against West Brom. However, with manager Louis van Gaal declaring Rooney fit on Friday, the Englishman should start versus one of his favorite foes. Rooney has scored in six straight starts against West Brom and he's also notched 15 goals in his last 16 Premier League outings at Old Trafford. That's where he'll try to torment the Baggies once again this weekend, as United look to push their streak of six consecutive home wins in the league as well.

Olivier Giroud
Along with Alexis, Giroud has also netted 14 goals in the Premier League this season. However, unlike his teammate, Giroud has managed to do so in only 17 league starts. Additionally, as Arsenal have currently gone on a nine-match unbeaten streak in England's top-flight, Giroud has recorded seven goals and one assist over his last nine appearances. On the whole, Giroud has been highly effective during an injury-shortened campaign this term, and is now pitted versus a Hull City team that Arsenal has gone six matches unbeaten against.

Sergio Aguero (C)
If his teammate Silva's prospects against Tottenham didn't sound good enough, consider that Aguero is the leading scorer on the Premier League's highest scoring team. Moreover, no player has found the back of the net more than Aguero's 21 times this season. That record was boosted by Aguero scoring all four of Man City's goals earlier this season against Tottenham, but the Argentine has also scored eight goals in his past five matches versus Spurs overall. Similarly, Aguero is currently on a three-match Premiership scoring streak that includes four goals overall. With fantastic form and an incredible knack for scoring against Spurs, Aguero earns the Best XI captain's armband for Gameweek 35.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Nick Pitner
Nick Pitner writes about fantasy sports for RotoWire. He supports Arsenal FC, the Green Bay Packers and the New York Knicks, while specializing in those respective sports in his coverage for the site.
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