Anna Woodberry

PL Gameweek 27: Rotation & Minute Breakdown

Here is a breakdown of the rotation and minutes from Premier League Gameweek 27.

ASTON VILLA

Steven Gerrard made two changes following his side’s 1-0 loss to Watford. Ezri Konsa was back from suspension and Ollie Watkins was brought back in after his benching, replacing Calum Chambers and Emiliano Buendia respectively.

Emi Martinez, Matty Cash, Tyrone Mings, Lucas Digne, John McGinn, Douglas Luiz, Jacob Ramsey, Danny Ings and Philippe Coutinho all kept their places in the eleven.

There was also a brief substitute appearance for youngster Tim Iroegbunam, coming on in the 86th minute to replace Coutinho.

The rolling average of changes made to Villa’s starting line-up per Premier League game stayed the same at 1.96 changes.

Breakdown of minutes for the past ten games can be found below:

BRENTFORD

Just the one change for Thomas Frank’s side following the 2-1 loss to Arsenal last weekend, with Vitaly Janelt coming in for Sergi Canos.

David Raya, Josh Dasilva, Kristoffer Ajer, Pontus Jansson, Ethan Pinnock, Rico Henry, Christian Norgaard, Mathias Jensen, Bryan Mbeumo and Yoane Wissa remained as starters.

Dasilva was sent off after 11 minutes.

The rolling average of changes made to Brentford’s starting line-up per Premier League game decreased from 1.88 to 1.85 changes.

Breakdown of minutes for the past ten games can be found below:

BRIGHTON

After the 3-0 loss to Burnley last weekend, Graham Potter made three changes. Captain Lewis Dunk was back from suspension to start alongside Solly March and Leandro Trossard, replacing Shane Duffy, Adam Lallana and Danny Welbeck.

Robert Sanchez, Tariq Lamptey, Joel Veltman, Marc Cucurella, Jakub Moder, Yves Bissouma, Alexis Mac Allister and Neal Maupay remained in the starting line-up.

The rolling average of changes made to Brighton’s starting line-up per Premier League game increased from 2.42 to 2.44 changes.

Breakdown of minutes for the past ten games can be found below:

BURNLEY

Sean Dyche decided to stick with the eleven that beat Tottenham 1-0 midweek. Nick Pope, Connor Roberts, James Tarkowski, Ben Mee, Erik Pieters, Aaron Lennon, Jack Cork, Josh Brownhill, Dwight McNeil, Wout Weghorst and Jay Rodriguez kept their places.

But with substitute appearances for Ashley Westwood and Charlie Taylor who are both coming back from illness and injury respectively, there could be some changes coming for Burnley’s next league match against Leicester City midweek.

The rolling average of changes made to Burnley’s starting line-up per Premier League game decreased from 1.77 to 1.70 changes.

Breakdown of minutes for the past ten games can be found below:

CRYSTAL PALACE

Three changes for Palace following their 4-1 win against Watford. Luka Milivojevic, James McArthur and Jeffrey Schlupp came in for Cheikhou Kouyate, Will Hughes and Jean-Philippe Mateta.

Jack Butland, Nathanial Clyne, Joachim Andersen, Marc Guehi, Tyrick Mitchell, Connor Gallagher, Michael Olise and Wilfried Zaha remained in the line-up.

The rolling average of changes made to Palace’s starting line-up per Premier League game increased from 2.00 to 2.04 changes.

Breakdown of minutes for the past ten games can be found below:

EVERTON

Frank Lampard made just the one change to his eleven despite losing 2-0 to Southampton last weekend and it was a forced one with Dominic Calvert-Lewin picking up an injury. He was replaced by Abdoulaye Doucoure.

It meant Jordan Pickford, Seamus Coleman, Mason Holgate, Michael Keane, Jonjoe Kenny, Allan, Alex Iwobi, Donny van de Beek, Anthony Gordon and Richarlison kept their starting places.

The rolling average of changes made to Everton’s starting line-up per Premier League game decreased from 2.68 to 2.61 changes.

Breakdown of minutes for the past ten games can be found below:

LEEDS

Marcelo Bielsa made two changes following the 6-0 loss to Liverpool midweek. Diego Llorente and Robin Koch returned to the side after recovering from their respective knocks to replace Mateusz Klich and Rodrigo.

Illan Meslier, Luke Ayling, Pascal Struijk, Junior Firpo, Raphinha, Stuart Dallas, Adam Forshaw, Jack Harrison and Daniel James kept their starting places.

The rolling average of changes made to Leeds’s starting line-up per Premier League game increased from 1.75 to 1.76 changes.

Breakdown of minutes for the past ten games can be found below:

MANCHESTER CITY

Despite the 3-2 loss to Tottenham, Pep Guardiola kept almost the same starting line-up, with the only change coming from John Stones replacing Kyle Walker at right-back.

It meant Ederson, Ruben Dias, Aymeric Laporte, Joao Cancelo, Kevin de Bruyne, Rodri, Ilkay Gundogan, Phil Foden, Bernardo Silva and Raheem Sterling remained in the eleven.

The rolling average of changes made to City’s starting line-up per Premier League game decreased from 2.88 to 2.81 changes.

Breakdown of minutes for the past ten games can be found below:

MANCHESTER UNITED

There were four changes for United this gameweek as Ralf Rangnick used the game to rest some of his starters. Harry Maguire, Luke Shaw, Marcus Rashford and Jadon Sancho all dropped to the bench to be replaced by Aaron Wan-Bissaka, Alex Telles, Nemanja Matic and Anthony Elanga.

David De Gea, Victor Lindelof, Raphael Varane, Fred, Paul Pogba, Bruno Fernandes and Cristiano Ronaldo kept their starting places.

The rolling average of changes made to United’s starting line-up per Premier League game increased from 2.56 to 2.65 changes.

Breakdown of minutes for the past ten games can be found below:

NEWCASTLE

The Magpies remained unchanged from the line-up that drew 1-1 with West Ham last weekend, with Martin Dubravka, Matt Targett, Dan Burn, Fabian Schar, Emile Krafth, Joe Willock, Jonjo Shelvey, Joelinton, Ryan Fraser, Chris Wood and Jacob Murphy all starting again.

The rolling average of changes made to Newcastle’s starting line-up per Premier League game decreased from 2.26 to 2.17 changes.

Breakdown of minutes for the past ten games can be found below:

NORWICH

Dean Smith also made no changes following their 3-1 loss to Liverpool in GW26 – Angus Gunn, Max Aarons, Grant Hanley, Ben Gibson, Brandon Williams, Billy Gilmour, Mathias Normann, Kenny McLean, Josh Sargent, Teemu Pukki and Milot Rashica kept their places.

The rolling average of changes made to Norwich’s starting line-up per Premier League game decreased from 2.58 to 2.48 changes.

Breakdown of minutes for the past ten games can be found below:

SOUTHAMPTON

Southampton were also unchanged from last weekend, when they beat Everton 2-0. Fraser Forster, Tino Livramento, Jan Bednarek, Mohammed Salisu, Kyle Walker-Peters, Stuart Armstrong, James Ward-Prowse, Oriol Romeu, Mohamed Elyounoussi, Che Adams and Armando Broja all remained.

The rolling average of changes made to Saint’s starting line-up per Premier League game decreased from 2.46 to 2.36 changes.

Breakdown of minutes for the past ten games can be found below:

TOTTENHAM

Despite losing 1-0 to Burnley midweek, Antonio Conte only made two changes. Emerson Royal was benched for Mat Doherty at full-back, while a leg injury to Rodrigo Bentancur gave way for Harry Winks to start.

Hugo Lloris, Cristian Romero, Eric Dier, Ben Davies, Ryan Sessegnon, Pierre-Emile Hojberg, Dejan Kulusevski, Son Heung-Min and Harry Kane all kept their places.

The rolling average of changes made to Spurs’ starting line-up per Premier League game decreased from 2.39 to 2.38 changes.

Breakdown of minutes for the past ten games can be found below:

WATFORD

Despite losing 4-1 to Crystal Palace, Roy Hodgson only felt the need to make one change with Jeremy Ngakia replacing the injured Kiko Femenia.

Ben Foster, Craig Cathcart, Samir, Hassane Kamara, Moussa Sissoko, Irman Louza, Tom Cleverley, Ismaila Sarr, Josh King and Emmanual Dennis avoided the chop.

The rolling average of changes made to Watford’s starting line-up per Premier League game decreased from 2.50 to 2.44 changes.

Breakdown of minutes for the past ten games can be found below:

WEST HAM

Two changes for West Ham. Ben Johnson replaced the injured Ryan Fredericks, while Said Benrahma dropped to the bench to make way for the returning Manual Lanzini.

Lukasz Fabianski, Craig Dawson, Kurt Zouma, Aaron Cresswell, Tomas Soucek, Declan Rice, Jarrod Bowen, Pablo Fornals and Michail Antonio kept their places.

The rolling average of changes made to West Ham’s starting line-up per Premier League game increased from 1.32 to 1.35 changes.

Breakdown of minutes for the past ten games can be found below:

WOLVES

Wolves don’t rotate often but Bruno Lage made an exception for this gameweek, making five changes following the 2-1 midweek loss to Arsenal.

Ki-Jana Hoever, Marcal, Leander Dendoncker, Francisco Trincao and Fabio Silva replaced Nelson Semedo (injured), Rayan Ait Nouri, Joao Moutinho, Raul Jimenez and Daniel Podence.

Only Jose Sa, Max Kilman, Conor Coady, Romain Saiss, Ruben Neves and Hee-Chan Hwang remained.

The rolling average of changes made to Wolves’s starting line-up per Premier League game increased from 1.63 to 1.76 changes.

Breakdown of minutes for the past ten games can be found below:

Note1. This update does not include the midweek game between Burnley and Leicester City.

Note2. Arsenal, Chelsea, Leicester City and Liverpool did not play a Premier League game this weekend due to Chelsea and Liverpool’s involvement in the League Cup Final.

PL Gameweek 26: Rotation & Minute Breakdown

Here is a breakdown of the rotation and minutes from Premier League Gameweek 26.

ARSENAL

Just the one change from the team that beat Wolves 1-0 with Emile Smith Rowe replacing the suspended Gabriel Martinelli.

It means Aaron Ramsdale, Cedric Soares, Ben White, Gabriel, Kieran Tierney, Martin Odegaard, Thomas Partey, Granit Xhaka, Bukayo Saka and Alexandre Lacazette all kept their positions in the starting eleven.

The rolling average of changes made to Arsenal’s starting line-up per Premier League game decreased from 1.76 to 1.73 changes.

Breakdown of minutes for the past ten games can be found below:

ASTON VILLA

Despite a shock 1-0 loss to Newcastle last weekend, Steven Gerrard made just one change with Ollie Watkins dropping to the bench for Danny Ings.

Emi Martinez, Matty Cash, Calum Chambers, Tyrone Mings, Lucas Digne, John McGinn, Douglas Luiz, Jacob Ramsey, Emiliano Buendia and Philippe Coutinho all remained.

The rolling average of changes made to Villa’s starting line-up per Premier League game decreased from 2.00 to 1.96 changes.

Breakdown of minutes for the past ten games can be found below:

BRENTFORD

Only the one change following their 0-0 draw with Crystal Palace – Josh Dasilva got his first start of the season in place of Vitaly Janelt.

Meanwhile, David Raya, Sergi Canos, Kristoffer Ajer, Pontus Jansson, Ethan Pinnock, Rico Henry, Mathias Jensen, Christian Norgaard, Bryan Mbeuma and Yoane Wissa stayed in the starting eleven.

The rolling average of changes made to Brentford’s starting line-up per Premier League game decreased from 1.92 to 1.88 changes.

Breakdown of minutes for the past ten games can be found below:

BRIGHTON

Graham Potter made four changes to the side that lost 3-0 to Manchester United. Two were enforced with Tariq Lamptey and Shane Duffy replacing the suspended Lewis Dunk and injured Adam Webster. Whereas, Adam Lallana and Danny Welbeck were brought in to replace Pascal Gross and Leandro Trossard.

It meant Robert Sanchez, Joel Veltman, Marc Cucurella, Jakub Moder, Yves Bissouma, Alexis Mac Allister and Neal Maupay kept their starting places.

And there was also minutes for youth player, Evan Ferguson, who replaced Danny Welbeck halfway through the second half.

The rolling average of changes made to Brighton’s starting line-up per Premier League game increased from 2.35 to 2.42 changes.

Breakdown of minutes for the past ten games can be found below:

BURNLEY

Sean Dyche was forced into making three changes to his side following the 1-0 loss to Liverpool. With both James Tarkowski and Ashley Westwood missing with covid, there were starts for Nathan Collins and Jack Cork. While Dwight McNeil returned to the eleven in place of Jay Rodriguez.

Nick Pope, Connor Roberts, Ben Mee, Erik Pieters, Aaron Lennon, Josh Brownhill, Maxwel Cornet and Wout Weghorst remained.

The rolling average of changes made to Burnley’s starting line-up per Premier League game increased from 1.70 to 1.76 changes.

Breakdown of minutes for the past ten games can be found below:

CHELSEA

There were four changes to the eleven that beat Palmeiras in the Club World Cup with Malang Sarr, Jorginho, Christian Pulisic and Hakim Ziyech coming in for Cesar Azpilicueta (knock), Callum Hudson-Odoi (knock), Mateo Kovacic and Mason Mount (injured).

Edouard Mendy, Andreas Christensen, Thiago Silva, Antonio Rudiger, N’Golo Kante, Romelu Lukaku and Kai Havertz kept their places.

The rolling average of changes made to Chelsea’s starting line-up per Premier League game increased from 3.52 to 3.58 changes.

Breakdown of minutes for the past ten games can be found below:

CRYSTAL PALACE

Patrick Veira made four changes to the side that drew 0-0 with Brentford. Nathanial Clyne, Kouyate, James McArthur and Michael Olise replaced Joel Ward, Conor Gallagher (ineligible), Will Hughes and Odsonne Edouard.

Meanwhile, Vicente Guaita, Joachim Andersen, Marc Guehi, Tyrick Mitchell, Jordan Ayew, Jeffrey Schlupp and Wilfried Zaha remained in the eleven.

The rolling average of changes made to Palace’s starting line-up per Premier League game increased from 1.83 to 1.92 changes.

Breakdown of minutes for the past ten games can be found below:

EVERTON

Frank Lampard named an unchanged eleven to face Southampton, with Jordan Pickford, Seamus Coleman, Mason Holgate, Michael Keane, Jonjo Kenny, Alex Iwobi, Allan, Donny van de Beek, Dominic Calvert-Lewin and Richarlison keeping their starting places.

Therefore, the rolling average of changes made to Everton starting line-up per Premier League game decreased from 2.81 to 2.68 changes.

Breakdown of minutes for the past ten games can be found below:

LEEDS

After naming an unchanged eleven for the past two league games, Marcelo Bielsa finally made a change following the 3-0 loss to Everton with Raphinha being surprisingly benched for Adam Forshaw.

Illan Meslier, Luke Ayling, Diego Llorente, Robin Koch, Pascal Struijk, Stuart Dallas, Rodrigo, Mateusz Klich, Jack Harrison and Dan James remained as starters.

The rolling average of changes made to Leeds’s starting line-up per Premier League game decreased from 1.77 to 1.74 changes.

Breakdown of minutes for the past ten games can be found below:

LEICESTER CITY

Despite playing on Thursday night, Brendan Rodgers only made two changes to his starting line-up. Rested full-backs Ricardo Pereira and Luke Thomas returned to replace Jannik Vestergaard and the injured Harvey Barnes.

Kasper Schmeichel, Daniel AMartey, Caglar Soyuncu, Youri Tielemans, Wilfred Ndidi, Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall, Ademola Lookman, Patson Daka and Marc Albrighton remain.

The rolling average of changes made to Leicester’s starting line-up per Premier League game increased from 2.57 to 2.59 changes.

Breakdown of minutes for the past ten games can be found below:

LIVERPOOL

Jurgen Klopp used the Norwich game to mass rotate following their 2-0 win over Inter Milan in the Champions League midweek. Joe Gomez, Joel Matip, Kostas Tsimikas, Jordan Henderson, Naby Keita, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Luis Diaz replaced Trent Alexander-Arnold, Ibrahim Konate, Andy Robertson, Fabinho, Thiago, Harvey Elliott and Diogo Jota (injured).

Only Alisson, Virgil van Dijk, Sadio Mane and Mohamed Salah kept their position in the starting eleven.

The rolling average of changes made to Liverpool’s starting line-up per Premier League game increased from 2.65 to 2.71 changes.

Breakdown of minutes for the past ten games can be found below:

MANCHESTER CITY

Alternatively, Pep Guardiola made just the two changes following his team’s 5-0 win over Sporting Lisbon, with Kyle Walker (returning from suspension) and Ilkay Gundogan replacing John Stones and Riyad Mahrez.

Ederson, Ruben Dias, Ayermic Laporte, Joao Cancelo, Kevin de Bruyne, Rodri, Bernardo Silva, Phil Foden and Raheem Sterling remained in the eleven.

The rolling average of changes made to City’s starting line-up per Premier League game decreased from 2.92 to 2.88 changes.

Breakdown of minutes for the past ten games can be found below:

MANCHESTER UNITED

Three changes to the side that beat Brighton 2-0 midweek, with Aaron Wan-Bissaka, Paul Pogba and Jesse Lingard coming in for Diogo Dalot, Fred and Anthony Elanga.

David Dea Gea, Victor Lindelof, Harry Maguire, Luke Shaw, Scott McTominay, Bruno Fernandes, Jadon Sancho and Cristiano Ronaldo kept their places.

The rolling average of changes made to United’s starting line-up per Premier League game increased from 2.54 to 2.56 changes.

Breakdown of minutes for the past ten games can be found below:

NEWCASTLE

Eddie Howe was forced to make three changes to the starting eleven that beat Aston Villa 1-0 last weekend. Kieran Trippier, Javier Manquillo and Allan Saint-Maximin all picked up injuries and were replaced by Emile Krafth, Matt Targett and Jacob Murphy.

Martin Dubravka, Fabian Schar, Dan Burn, Joe Willock, Jonjo Shelvey, Joelinton, Ryan Fraser and Chris Wood all kept their places.

The rolling average of changes made to Newcastle’s starting line-up per Premier League game increased from 2.23 to 2.26 changes.

Breakdown of minutes for the past ten games can be found below:

NORWICH

Just the one change for Norwich following the 4-0 loss to Man City last weekend. Pierre Lees Melou dropped to the bench to make way for Mathias Normann.

Meanwhile, Angus Gunn, Max Aarons, Grant Hanley, Ben Gibson, Brandon Williams, Billy Gilmour, Kenny McLean, Josh Sargent, Teemu Pukki and Milot Rashica all started again.

There was also another late substitute appearance for youngster Jonathan Rowe, replacing Rashica in the 86th minute.

The rolling average of changes made to their starting line-up per Premier League game increased from 2.23 to 2.26 changes.

Breakdown of minutes for the past ten games can be found below:

SOUTHAMPTON

Ralph Hasenhuttl only made one change to the eleven that drew 1-1 with Manchester United – Tino Livramento replacing Romain Perraud at right-back.

It meant Fraser Forster, Jan Bednarek, Mohammed Salisu, Kyle Walker-Peters, Stuart Armstrong, James Ward-Prowse, Oriol Romeu, Mohamed Elyounoussi, Armando Broja and Che Adams remained.

The rolling average of changes made to Saints’ starting line-up per Premier League game decreased from 2.52 to 2.46 changes.

Breakdown of minutes for the past ten games can be found below:

TOTTENHAM

Antonio Conte made four changes to the side that lost 2-0 to Wolves. Emerson Royal, Eric Dier (back from injury), Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg and new signing Dejan Kulusevski replaced Mat Doherty, Davinson Sanchez, Harry Winks and Lucas Moura.

Hugo Lloris, Cristian Romero, Ben Davies, Ryan Sessegnon, Rodrigo Bentancur, Son Heung-Min and Harry Kane remained in the eleven.

The rolling average of changes made to Spurs’ starting line-up per Premier League game increased from 2.43 to 2.50 changes.

Breakdown of minutes for the past ten games can be found below:

WATFORD

Two changes following the 2-0 loss to Brighton with Ismaila Sarr and Imran Louza replacing Juraj Kucka and Edo Kayembe.

Ben Foster, Kiko Feminia, Craig Cathcart, Samir, Hassane Kamara, Moussa Sissoko, Tom Cleverley, Josh King and Emmanual Dennis kept their places.

The rolling average of changes made to Watford’s starting line-up per Premier League game decreased from 2.64 to 2.61 changes.

Breakdown of minutes for the past ten games can be found below:

WEST HAM

Three changes following their 2-2 draw to Leicester City last weekend. Two were enforced with Vladimir Coufal and Manuel Lanzini picking up injuries, which saw them replaced with Ryan Fredericks and Said Benrahma. Meanwhile, Kurt Zouma returned to the side after illness, relegating Issa Diop to the bench.

Lukasz Fabianski, Craig Dawson, Aaron Cresswell, Tomas Soucek, Declan Rice, Jarrod Bowen, Pablo Fornals and Michail Antonio kept their positions in the starting eleven.

The rolling average of changes made to West Ham’s starting line-up per Premier League game increased from 1.25 to 1.32 changes.

Breakdown of minutes for the past ten games can be found below:

WOLVES

Just the one change for Wolves following their 2-0 win over Tottenham with Joao Moutinho returning to the side to replace Luke Cundle.

Jose Sa, Nelson Semedo, Max Kilman, Conor Coady, Romain Saiss, Rayan Ait Nouri, Ruben Neves, Leander Dendoncker, Raul Jimenez and Daniel Podence kept their places in the eleven.

The rolling average of changes made to Wolves’s starting line-up per Premier League game decreased from 1.68 to 1.65 changes.

Breakdown of minutes for the past ten games can be found below:

Note. This update does not include second Gameweek 26 fixtures set to take place 23-24 February.

PL Gameweek 25: Rotation & Minutes Breakdown

Here is a breakdown of the rotation and minutes from Premier League Gameweek 25.

ASTON VILLA

Just the one change for Villa following their 3-3 draw with Leeds, Calum Chambers replacing the suspended Ezri Konsa. That means Emi Martinez, Matty Cash, Tyrone Mings, Lucas Digne, John McGinn, Douglas Luiz, Jacob Ramsey, Emiliano Buendia, Ollie Watkins and Philippe Coutinho maintained their positions in the starting line-up.

The rolling average of changes made to their starting line-up per Premier League game decreased from 2.05 to 2.00 changes.

Breakdown of minutes for the past ten games can be found below:

BRENTFORD

Three changes for Brentford following their 2-0 defeat to Manchester City. Vitaly Janelt, Bryan Mbeumo and Yoane Wissa replaced Mads Roerslev, Frank Onyeka and Saman Ghoddos.

David Raya, Kristoffer Ajer, Pontus Jansson, Ethan Pinnock, Sergi Canos, Christian Norgaard, Mathias Jensen and Rico Henry all kept their starting places.

The rolling average of changes made to their starting line-up per Premier League game increased from 1.87 to 1.92 changes.

Breakdown of minutes for the past ten games can be found below:

BRIGHTON

Graham Potter made two changes to his starting line-up after the FA Cup defeat to Tottenham. Joel Veltman and Danny Welbeck came in for Solly March and Yves Bissouma.

Robert Sanchez, Tariq Lamptey, Adam Webster, Lewis Dunk, Marc Cucurella, Pascal Gross, Adam Lallana, Jakub Moder and Neal Maupay all remained in the eleven.

The rolling average of changes made to their starting line-up per Premier League game increased from 2.33 to 2.41 changes.

Breakdown of minutes for the past ten games can be found below:

BURNLEY

Just the one change for Burnley following their 1-1 draw with Manchester United: Dwight McNeil making way for Aaron Lennon. This meant Nick Pope, Connor Roberts, James Tarkowski, Ben Mee, Erik Pieters, Ashley Westwood, Josh Brownhill, Maxwel Cornet, Jay Rodriguez and Wout Weghorst remained in the eleven.

The rolling average of changes made to their starting line-up per Premier League game decreased from 1.74 to 1.70 changes.

Breakdown of minutes for the past ten games can be found below:

CRYSTAL PALACE

Two changes from the 1-1 draw to Norwich: Jordan Ayew and Odsonne Edouard took Michael Olise’s and Jean-Philippe Mateta’s starting places, while Vicente Guaita, Joel Ward, Joachim Andersen, Marc Guehi, Tyrick Mitchell, Conor Gallagher, Will Hughes, Jeffrey Schlupp and Wilfried Zaha kept theirs.

The rolling average of changes made to their starting line-up per Premier League game increased from 1.82 to 1.83 changes.

Breakdown of minutes for the past ten games can be found below:

EVERTON

Frank Lampard made four changes following the 3-1 loss to Newcastle. Jonjoe Kenny, Donny van de Beek, Alex Iwobi and Dominic Calvert-Lewin were brought in for Yerry Mina, Andros Townsend, Andre Gomes and Demarai Gray.

Jordan Pickford, Seamus Coleman, Mason Holgate, Michael Keane, Anthony Gordon, Allan and Richarlison remained in the starting eleven.

The rolling average of changes made to their starting line-up per Premier League game increased from 2.75 to 2.81 changes.

Breakdown of minutes for the past ten games can be found below:

LEEDS

Marcelo Bielsa named another unchanged eleven with Illan Meslier, Luke Ayling, Diego Llorente, Pascal Struijk, Stuart Dallas, Mateusz Klich, Robin Koch, Raphinha, Rodrigo, Jack Harrison and Dan James all keeping their places in the starting line-up.

Youth player minutes: Leo Fuhr Hjelde (81′)

The rolling average of changes made to their starting line-up per Premier League game decreased from 1.86 to 1.77 changes.

Breakdown of minutes for the past ten games can be found below:

LEICESTER CITY

Four changes to the team that lost 2-0 to Liverpool on Thursday. Caglar Soyuncu, Ricardo Pereira, Youri Tielemans and Harvey Barnes replaced Luke Thomas, Boubakary Soumare, Marc Albrighton and Ademola Lookman.

Kasper Schmeichel, James Justin, Daniel Amartey, Wilfred Ndidi, Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall, James Maddison and Patson Daka kept their places in the starting eleven.

The rolling average of changes made to their starting line-up per Premier League game increased from 1.87 to 1.92 changes.

Breakdown of minutes for the past ten games can be found below:

LIVERPOOL

Four changes to the side that beat Leicester 2-0 midweek. Jordan Henderson, Naby Keita, Sadio Mane and Mohamed Salah came in for Thiago, Curtis Jones, Diogo Jota and Luis Diaz.

Alisson, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Joel Matip, Virgil van Dijk, Andy Robertson, Fabinho and Roberto Firmino kept their starting positions.

The rolling average of changes made to their starting line-up per Premier League game increased from 2.59 to 2.65 changes.

Breakdown of minutes for the past ten games can be found below:

MANCHESTER CITY

With their UCL Round of 16 first leg against Sporting on Tuesday, Pep Guardiola made five changes to his starting eleven. John Stones, Aymeric Laporte, Joao Cancelo, Kevin De Bruyne and Rodri made way for Kyle Walker, Nathan Ake, Oleksandr Zinchenko, Ilkay Gundogan and Fernandinho.

Only Ederson, Ruben Dias, Bernardo Silva, Riyad Mahrez, Phil Foden and Raheem Sterling remained.

Youth player minutes: James McAtee (15′) and Kayky (6′)

The rolling average of changes made to their starting line-up per Premier League game increased from 2.83 to 2.92 changes.

Breakdown of minutes for the past ten games can be found below:

MANCHESTER UNITED

Just one change from the United side that drew 1-1 with Burnley midweek, Cristiano Ronaldo coming in for the injured Edinson Cavani (groin).

David De Gea, Diogo Dalot, Raphael Varane, Harry Maguire, Luke Shaw, Paul Pogba, Scott McTominay, Marcus Rashford, Bruno Fernandes and Jadon Sancho kept their places in the starting line-up.

The rolling average of changes made to their starting line-up per Premier League game decreased from 2.59 to 2.52 changes.

Breakdown of minutes for the past ten games can be found below:

NEWCASTLE

Two enforced changes for Newcastle following their 3-1 win over Everton. Dan Burn and Javier Manquillo replaced the ineligible Matt Targett and ill Jamaal Lascelles.

Martin Dubravka, Kieran Trippier, Fabian Schar, Jonjo Shelvey, Joelinton, Ryan Fraser, Chris Wood and Allan Saint-Maximin remained in the eleven.

The rolling average of changes made to their starting line-up per Premier League game decreased from 2.24 to 2.23 changes.

Breakdown of minutes for the past ten games can be found below:

NORWICH

Dean Smith made two changes from the 1-1 draw to Crystal Palace. Billy Gilmour and Josh Sargent came in for Przemyslaw Placheta and Adam Idah (injured).

Meanwhile, Angus Gunn, Max Aarons, Ben Gibson, Grant Hanley, Brandon Williams, Pierre Lees Melou, Kenny McLean, Milot Rashica and Teemu Pukki kept their places.

The rolling average of changes made to their starting line-up per Premier League game decreased from 2.68 to 2.65 changes.

Breakdown of minutes for the past ten games can be found below:

SOUTHAMPTON

Ralph Hasenhuttl named an unchanged XI from Saints’ 3-2 win over Tottenham. Fraser Forster, Kyle Walker-Peters, Jan Bednarek, Mohammed Salisu, Romain Perraid, Stuart Armstrong, James Ward-Prowse, Oriol Romeu, Mohamed Elyounoussi, Armando Brojo and Che Adams all started again.

The rolling average of changes made to their starting line-up per Premier League game decreased from 2.64 to 2.52 changes.

Breakdown of minutes for the past ten games can be found below:

TOTTENHAM

Antonio Conte made three changes to the team that lost 3-2 to Southampton. Mat Doherty, Ryan Sessegnon and Rodrigo Bentancur were brought in for Emerson Royal, Sergio Reguilon and Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg.

Hugo Lloris, Cristian Romero, Davinson Sanchez, Ben Davies, Harry Winks, Lucas Moura, Harry Kane and Son Heung-Min survived.

The rolling average of changes made to their starting line-up per Premier League game increased from 2.40 to 2.43 changes.

Breakdown of minutes for the past ten games can be found below:

WATFORD

Roy Hodgson decided to name the same starting eleven that lost 1-0 to West Ham midweek. Ben Foster, Kiko Femenia, Craig Cathcart, Samir, Hassane Kamara, Juraj Kucka, Moussa Sissoko, Edo Kayembe, Josh King and Emmanuel Dennis all remained.

The rolling average of changes made to their starting line-up per Premier League game decreased from 2.76 to 2.64 changes.

Breakdown of minutes for the past ten games can be found below:

WEST HAM

Just the two changes for the Hammers: Manuel Lanzini and Issa Diop replacing Said Benrahma and Kurt Zouma respectively, which means Lukasz Fabianski, Vladimir Coufal, Craig Dawson, Aaron Cresswell, Tomas Soucek, Declan Rice, Jarred Bowen, Pablo Fornals and Michail Antonio remained in the eleven.

The rolling average of changes made to their starting line-up per Premier League game increased from 1.87 to 1.92 changes.

Breakdown of minutes for the past ten games can be found below:

WOLVES

Two changes for Bruno Lage’s side: Rayan Ait Nouri and Luke Cundle replaced Marcal and Francisco Trincao. Meanwhile, Jose Sa, Nelson Semedo, Max Kilman, Conor Coady, Romain Saiss, Leander Dendoncker, Ruben Neves, Raul Jimenez and Daniel Podence stayed in the starting eleven.

The rolling average of changes made to their starting line-up per Premier League game increased from 1.67 to 1.68 changes.

Breakdown of minutes for the past ten games can be found below:

Note. Arsenal and Chelsea did not play a Premier League match this gameweek due to the latter’s involvement in the Club World Cup.

PL Gameweek 24: Rotation & Minute Breakdown

Here is a breakdown of the rotation and minutes from Premier League Gameweek 24.

ARSENAL

Mikel Arteta made three changes to his Arsenal team that drew 0-0 with Burnley before the international break. Cedric Soares, Thomas Partey and Granit Xhaka came in for Rob Holding, Albert Lokonga and Emile Smith-Rowe.

Aaron Ramsdale, Ben White, Gabriel, Kieran Tierney, Bukayo Saka, Martin Odegaard, Gabriel Martinelli and Alexandre Lacazette all kept their places.

However, Martinelli was sent off in the 69th minute for a second bookable offence.

The rolling average of changes made to their starting line-up per Premier League game increased from 1.70 to 1.76 changes.

Breakdown of minutes for the past ten games can be found below:

ASTON VILLA

Villa were unchanged from the team that beat Everton 1-0 before the international break. Emi Martinez, Matty Cash, Ezri Konsa, Tyrone Mings, Lucas Digne, John McGinn, Douglas Luiz, Jacob Ramsey, Emiliano Buendia, Ollie Watkins and Philippe Countinho all started again.

Konsa saw red in the 87th minute though and will now be suspended for their next league match against Newcastle at the weekend.

The rolling average of changes made to their starting line-up per Premier League game decreased from 2.15 to 2.05 changes.

Breakdown of minutes for the past ten games can be found below:

BRENTFORD

Despite the 4-1 loss to Everton in the FA Cup, Thomas Frank did not make many changes to his starting line-up. Ethan Pinnock, Frank Onyeka and Saman Ghoddos returned in place of Mads Bech Sorensen, Vitaly Janelt and Ivan Toney.

David Raya, Mads Roerslev, Kristoffer Ajer, Pontus Jansson, Rico Henry, Christian Norgaard, Mathias Jensen & Sergi Canos all remained.

The rolling average of changes made to their starting line-up per Premier League game increased from 1.77 to 1.87 changes.

Breakdown of minutes for the past ten games can be found below:

BURNLEY

Two changes from the team that drew 0-0 to Watford at the weekend. Josh Brownhill (back from suspension) and Jay Rodriguez come in for Dale Stephens and Aaron Lennon.

Nick Pope, Connor Roberts, James Tarkowski, Ben Mee, Erik Pieters, Dwight McNeil, Ashley Westwood, Maxwel Cornet and Wout Weghorst keep their places in the starting line-up.

The rolling average of changes made to their starting line-up per Premier League game increases from 1.72 to 1.74 changes.

Breakdown of minutes for the past ten games can be found below:

CRYSTAL PALACE

4 changes to the XI that beat Hartlepool in the FA Cup fourth round with Vicente Guaita, Joachim Andersen, Will Hughes and Wilfried Zaha coming in for Jack Butland, Martin Kelly, Luka Milivojevic and Eberechi Eze.

Joel Ward, Marc Guehi, Tyrick Mitchell, Conor Gallaghar, Jeffrey Schlupp, Michael Olise and Jean-Philippe Mateta all kept their positions.

The rolling average of changes made to their starting line-up per Premier League game increases from 1.72 to 1.74 changes.

Breakdown of minutes for the past ten games can be found below:

EVERTON

Lampard made two changes from the side that beat Brentford 4-1 in the FA Cup fourth round in his first game in charge. Yerry Mina and Andros Townsend were brought in for Ben Godfrey and Vitaly Mykolenko (both injured).

Jordan Pickford, Seamus Coleman, Michael Keane, Mason Holgate, Allan, Andre Gomes, Anthony Gordon, Demarai Gray and Richarlison remained in the Toffees’ starting XI.

The rolling average of changes made to their starting line-up per Premier League game increases from 2.68 to 2.75 changes.

Breakdown of minutes for the past ten games can be found below:

LEEDS

In their first game back after the international break, Marcelo Bielsa named an unchanged starting eleven. Illan Meslier, Luke Ayling, Diego Llorente, Pascal Struijk, Stuart Dallas, Robin Koch, Mateusz Klich, Raphinha, Rodrigo, Jack Harrison and Daniel James all started.

The rolling average of changes made to their starting line-up per Premier League game decreased from 1.95 to 1.86 changes.

Breakdown of minutes for the past ten games can be found below:

LEICESTER CITY

In response to their shocking 4-1 loss to Nottingham Forest at the weekend, Brendan Rodgers made five changes. Kasper Schmeichel, Boubakary Soumare, Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall, Marc Albrighton and Patson Daka were brought in for Danny Ward, Caglar Soyuncu, Youri Tielemans, Harvey Barnes and Kelechi Iheanacho.

James Justin, Daniel Amartey, Wilfred Ndidi, Luke Thomas, James Maddison and Ademola Lookman avoided the chop.

The rolling average of changes made to their starting line-up per Premier League game increased from 2.47 to 2.50 changes.

Breakdown of minutes for the past ten games can be found below:

LIVERPOOL

Luis Diaz made his league debut for the Reds as one of their six changes to the team that beat Cardiff in the FA Cup. Alisson, Joel Matip, Andy Robertson, Thiago and Fabinho also came in for Caoimhin Kelleher, Ibrahima Konate, Kostas Tsimikas, Jordan Henderson, Naby Keita and Takumi Minamino.

Trent Alexander-Arnold, Virgil van Dijk, Curtis Jones, Diogo Jota and Roberto Firmino kept their places in the starting line-up.

The rolling average of changes made to their starting line-up per Premier League game decreased from 2.62 to 2.59 changes.

Breakdown of minutes for the past ten games can be found below:

MANCHESTER CITY

There were six changes for City from the side that beat Fulham in the FA Cup. Ederson, Ruben Dias, Aymeric Laporte, Rodri, Bernardo Silva and Raheem Sterling came in for Zack Steffen, Kyle Walker, Nathan Ake, Fernandinho, Ilkay Gundogan and Jack Grealish.

John Stones, Joao Cancelo, Kevin de Bruyne, Riyad Mahrez and Phil Foden remained in the starting line-up.

The rolling average of changes made to their starting line-up per Premier League game decreased from 2.86 to 2.83 changes.

Breakdown of minutes for the past ten games can be found below:

MANCHESTER UNITED

David De Gea and Edinson Cavani were the only two changes from United’s shock defeat to Middlesbrough in the fourth round of the FA Cup. They replaced Dean Henderson and Cristiano Ronaldo – much to the latter’s displeasure.

Diogo Dalot, Raphael Varane, Harry Maguire, Luke Shaw, Paul Pogba, Scott McTominay, Marcus Rashford, Bruno Fernandes and Jadon Sancho all kept their positions in Ragnick’s starting line-up.

The rolling average of changes made to their starting line-up per Premier League game increased from 2.48 to 2.59 changes.

Breakdown of minutes for the past ten games can be found below:

NEWCASTLE

In their first game back after the international break, Eddie Howe made just one change, bringing in Matt Targett for Paul Dummett (injured) at left-back.

Martin Dubravka, Kieran Trippier, Jamaal Lascelles, Fabian Schar, Joe Willock, Jonjo Shelvey, Joelinton, Ryan Fraser, Chris Wood and Allan Saint-Maximin featured in the XI.

The rolling average of changes made to their starting line-up per Premier League game decreased from 2.30 to 2.24 changes.

Breakdown of minutes for the past ten games can be found below:

NORWICH

Dean Smith made three changes to the team that beat Wolves in the FA Cup, bringing in Angus Gunn, Max Aarons and Teemu Pukki for Michael McGovern, Sam Byram and Billy Gilmour.

Grant Hanley, Ben Gibson, Brandon Williams, Przemyslaw Placheta, Pierre Lees Melou, Kenny McLean, Milot Rashica and Adam Idah remained in the starting line-up.

The rolling average of changes made to their starting line-up per Premier League game decreased from 2.71 to 2.68 changes.

Breakdown of minutes for the past ten games can be found below:

SOUTHAMPTON

Ralph Hasenhuttl names ten changes to his FA Cup winning side, with Fraser Forster, Kyle Walker-Peters, Jan Bednarek, Mohammed Salisu, Romain Perraud, Stuart Armstrong, Oriol Romeu, Mohamed Elyounoussi, Armando Broja and Che Adamas all returning.

Only James Ward-Prowse kept his place.

The rolling average of changes made to their starting line-up per Premier League game decreased from 2.71 to 2.68 changes.

Breakdown of minutes for the past ten games can be found below:

TOTTENHAM

In contrast, Conte named an unchanged starting line-up for their league match against Southampton, with Hugo Lloris, Emerson Royal, Davinson Sanchez, Cristian Romero, Ben Davies, Sergio Reguilon, Harry Winks, Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg, Lucas Moura, Son Heung-Min and Harry Kane all featuring from the start.

The rolling average of changes made to their starting line-up per Premier League game increased from 2.26 to 2.40 changes.

Breakdown of minutes for the past ten games can be found below:

WATFORD

Roy Hodgson made two changes from the team that drew to Burnley at the weekend, bringing in Tom Cleverley and Emmanual Dennis for Ken Sema and Joao Pedro.

Ben Foster, Kiko Femenia, Craig Cathcart, Samir, Hassane Kamara, Juraj Kucka, Moussa Sissoko, Edo Kayembe and Josh King kept their positions in the starting line-up.

The rolling average of changes made to their starting line-up per Premier League game decreased from 2.80 to 2.76 changes.

Breakdown of minutes for the past ten games can be found below:

WEST HAM

Hammers fans saw mass changes to the XI that needed extra-time to beat Kidderminister in the FA Cup at the weekend. Lukasz Fabianski, Vladimir Coufal, Craig Dawson, Aaron Cresswell, Tomas Soucek, Declan Rice, Pablo Fornals and Michail Antonio returned in the eight changes.

Only Kurt Zouma – controversially – Jared Bowen and Said Benrahma kept their places in the starting line-up.

The rolling average of changes made to their starting line-up per Premier League game increased from 1.18 to 1.22 changes.

Breakdown of minutes for the past ten games can be found below:

WOLVES

5 changes to the side that lost to Norwich in the FA Cup fourth round. Jose Sa, Romain Saiss, Marcal, Francisco Trinaco and Raul Jimenez replaced John Ruddy, Toti Gomes, Rayan Ait Nouri, Joao Moutinho and Fabio Silva.

Nelsen Semedo, Max Kilman, Conor Coady, Ruben Neves, Leander Dendoncker and Daniel Podence kept their places in the starting eleven.

The rolling average of changes made to their starting line-up per Premier League game increased from 1.55 to 1.67 changes.

Breakdown of minutes for the past ten games can be found below:

Note. Brighton and Chelsea did not play a Premier League match this gameweek due to the latter being involved in the Club World Cup.

FA Cup Fourth Round: Rotation & Minutes

After an agonisingly long international break, top-tier football is back. Here are the rotation and minute breakdowns for the 14 Premier League teams involved in the fourth round of the FA Cup:

BRENTFORD

3 changes from PL GW23 XI:

IN = Raya, Roerslev & Bech Sorensen

OUT = Lossl, Pinnock & Mbeumo

KEPT PLACES = Ajer, Jansson, Henry, Jensen, Norgaard, Janelt, Toney & Canos

Youth Player Minutes: Finley Stevens (7′)

Rolling Average of Number of Changes Made to XI per Game (All Comps): 3.64 (-0.03)

BRIGHTON

5 changes from PL GW23 XI:

IN = Lamptey, Dunk, March, Lallana & Bissouma

OUT = Veltman, Burn, Alzate, Mac Allister & Trossard

KEPT PLACES = Sanchez, Webster, Cucurella, Gross, Moder & Maupay

Rolling Average of Number of Changes Made to XI per Game (All Comps): 4.58 (+0.02)

CHELSEA

1 change from PL GW23 XI:

IN = Christensen

OUT = Thiago Silva

KEPT PLACES = Kepa, Azpilicueta, Rudiger, Sarr, Mount, Jorginho, Kovacic, Ziyech, Lukaku & Hudson-Odoi

Rolling Average of Number of Changes Made to XI per Game (All Comps): 4.64 (-0.10)

CRYSTAL PALACE

4 changes from PL GW23 XI:

IN = Butland, Kelly, Milivojevic & Eze

OUT = Guaita, Andersen, Hughes & Edouard

KEPT PLACES = Ward, Guehi, Mitchell, Gallagher, Schlupp, Olise & Mateta

Youth Player Minutes: Tayo Adaramola (4′)

Rolling Average of Number of Changes Made to XI per Game (All Comps): 2.17 (+0.08)

EVERTON

5 changes from PL GW23 XI:

IN = Coleman, Keane, Mykolenko, Allan & Gordon

OUT = Kenny, Mina, Townsend, Doucoure & Calvert-Lewin

KEPT PLACES = Pickford, Holgate, Godfrey, Gomes, Richarlison & Gray

Rolling Average of Number of Changes Made to XI per Game (All Comps): 3.70 (+0.06)

LEICESTER CITY

3 changes from PL GW23 XI:

IN = Ward, Ndidi & Iheanacho

OUT = Schmeichel, Dewsbury-Hall & Daka

KEPT PLACES = Justin, Amartey, Soyuncu, Thomas, Tielemans, Lookman, Maddison & Barnes

Rolling Average of Number of Changes Made to XI per Game (All Comps): 4.20 (-0.04)

LIVERPOOL

5 changes from PL GW23 XI:

IN = Kelleher, Konate, Tsimikas, Keita & Minamino

OUT = Alisson, Matip, Robertson, Fabinho & Oxlade-Chamberlain

KEPT PLACES = Trent, van Dijk, Henderson, Jones, Firmino & Jota

Rolling Average of Number of Changes Made to XI per Game (All Comps): 4.44 (+0.02)

MANCHESTER CITY

6 changes from PL GW23 XI:

IN = Steffen, Stones, Ake, Fernandinho, Gundogan & Mahrez

OUT = Ederson, Dias, Laporte, Bernardo, Rodri & Sterling

KEPT PLACES = Walker, Cancelo, De Bruyne, Foden & Grealish

Rolling Average of Number of Changes Made to XI per Game (All Comps): 4.25 (+0.06)

MANCHESTER UNITED

5 changes from PL GW23 XI:

IN = Henderson, Shaw, Pogba, Rashford & Sancho

OUT = De Gea, Telles, Fred, Greenwood & Elanga

KEPT PLACES = Dalot, Varane, Maguire, McTominay, Fernandes & Ronaldo

Rolling Average of Number of Changes Made to XI per Game (All Comps): 4.10 (+0.03)

NORWICH

5 changes from PL GW23 XI:

IN = McGovern, Byram, Gilmour, McLean & Placheta

OUT = Gunn, Aarons, Sorensen, Sargent & Pukki

KEPT PLACES = Hanley, Gibson, Williams, Lees Melou, Idah & Rashica

Rolling Average of Number of Changes Made to XI per Game (All Comps): 3.96 (+0.04)

SOUTHAMPTON

10 changes from PL GW23 XI:

IN = Caballero, Livramento, Valery, Lyanco, Stephens, Small, Diallo, Walcott, Long & A.Armstrong

OUT = Forster, Walker-Peters, Bednarek, Salisu, Perraid, Redmond, Romeu, S.Armstrong, Broja & Adams

KEPT PLACE = Ward-Prowse

Youth Player Minutes: Thierry Small (45′)

Rolling Average of Number of Changes Made to XI per Game (All Comps): 3.96 (+0.04)

TOTTENHAM

5 changes from PL GW23 XI:

IN = Royal, Romero, Reguilon, Moura & Son

OUT = Tanganga, Dier, Doherty, Sessegnon & Bergwijn

KEPT PLACES = Lloris, Sanchez, Davies, Winks, Hojbjerg & Kane

Rolling Average of Number of Changes Made to XI per Game (All Comps): 5.82 (-0.02)

WEST HAM

8 changes from PL GW23 XI:

IN = Fredericks, Diop, Johnson, Kral, Noble, Yarmolenko, Benrahma & Vlasic

OUT = Coufal, Dawson, Cresswell, Soucek, Rice, Lanzini, Fornals & Antonio

KEPT PLACES = Areola, Zouma & Bowen

Rolling Average of Number of Changes Made to XI per Game (All Comps): 4.91 (+0.10)

WOLVES

1 change from PL GW23 XI:

IN = Ruddy

OUT = Sa

KEPT PLACES = Semedo, Kilman, Coady, Gomes, Ait Nouri, Dendoncker, Neves, Moutinho, Silva & Podence

Rolling Average of Number of Changes Made to XI per Game (All Comps): 2.75 (-0.08)

In total, there were 66 changes made to starting line-ups, averaging 4.71 per team.

How has Tottenham’s squad utilisation changed from Nuno to Conte?

Premier League winning manager Antonio Conte replaced Nuno Espirito Santo at the beginning of November to rejuvenate a lethargic Tottenham side that had lost four of their six league games and were in danger of going out of the European Conference League. As the Italian has now been in charge for 12 games, it is worth investigating the similarities and differences in squad utilisation between the two managers. What – if anything – has changed?

More European and Cup rotation by Nuno; more League rotation by Conte

The first part to consider is whether the two managers have approached rotation differently, as this affects players’ utility and minutes. The number of changes made to Tottenham’s starting line-up in all competitions this season is detailed below:

Note. Matches up to, but not including, 3rd round of FA Cup

Overall, Spurs have averaged 5.96 changes to the starting line-up each game so far – the highest out of all Premier League teams in 2021-22. However, this has largely been driven by Nuno rather than Conte, who had an average of 7.81 changes per XI per match compared to his successor’s 3.73 changes.

This is also supported by looking at the above graph. There are 13 matches under Nuno that are above the black average line, which works out as 76.5% of the games he took charge. Alternatively, there are just 3 matches under Conte that are above average – a mere 25% of his 12 games as manager. This is why the three-game average line (red) is consistently below the black average line for Conte.

Yet are there extenuating factors that could explain this divergence in changes made between the two managers?

Yes. The make up of their fixtures has played a huge role.

Nuno had Conference League qualifiers and early group matches to navigate between Premier League games, as well as the early rounds of the League Cup. These are games that managers tend to view as good opportunities to rest key players so that they are fresh for the league.

In comparison, Conte’s fixtures have been more league dominated, as well as having the latter rounds of the League Cup to consider. This means he has had less rotation-heavy games during his tenure, which would explain why his rotation across all competitions is significantly lower than Nuno’s.

Instead, Conte has had to use league games to rotate players. We can see this more clearly in the below graph, which details the changes made to Tottenham’s starting line-up this season, but for Premier League matches only:

Note. Matches up to and including Gameweek 21

Overall, Tottenham has made an average of 2.18 changes to its starting line-up so far, placing them 12th out of the 20 competitors. Yet in a reverse of roles, Conte has a higher average than Nuno, making 2.86 changes per XI per match compared to his predecessor’s 1.78 changes.

Though it is important to note that this is a smaller sample size than all competition matches, which does make it more volatile, especially as we typically see less rotation in the league than elsewhere anyway.

The other factor to note is the role postponements have played on Conte’s numbers. They have given Spurs a longer break than they would have had over what is a notoriously difficult festive period to navigate. This makes it difficult to ascertain how much of the observations are due to Conte’s style or contextual factors.

Nonetheless, we can still draw tentative observations about the similarities and differences of squad utilisation by the two managers.

Nuno utilised two different XIs; Conte prefers more concentration

This is best demonstrated by plotting the percentage of minutes played by Tottenham under Nuno and Conte, shown in the scatter graph below:

Here, we can see which players played more for which manager. Those under the black line had a higher percentage of minutes under Nuno, whereas those above the black line have had a higher percentage under Conte. For example, Dele Alli (#14) has seen his minutes drop from ~50% to ~20% under the Italian, finding himself far below the black line.

We can also see which players have been used a similar amount, by looking at those very close to the black line. Oliver Skipp (#18) and Sergio Reguilon (#5) are two players who have been used a lot by both managers, meanwhile Japhat Tanganga (#11) and Matt Doherty (#8) have consistently been seen as rotation options.

There are lots of other observations we can pick up from the above graph, of which I have highlighted the three most important:

Observation #1 – Nuno preferred to share minutes out:

The first interesting observation is that no player under Nuno had a minute percentage higher than 75%. The three most-used were: Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg (72.2%), Skipp (70.9%) and Harry Kane (70.3%). Though it is reasonable to assume that Kane’s percentage would have easily surpassed 75% if not for the transfer saga during the summer which plagued his preseason preparations.

Why this observation is important is because it points to a recurring theme under Nuno which saw two different teams used for different competitions. The best players were kept for the league, whereas the second string were relied upon for Europe and the early rounds of the League Cup.

Whilst this was a great strategy for lessening the burden on your stars, it had the consequence of destroying squad harmony, which exacerbated with poor results.

Observation #2 – Clear separation between Conte’s starters and squad players:

In stark contrast, Conte has preferred to concentrate his minutes in his starters. In the above variation of the scatter plot, we can see that no players under the Italian have a minute percentage between 40-60%. This indicates a clear separation between the starters and the squad players.

In fact, seven players have minutes above 75%, including six that are above 80%. Conte’s three most-used are Kane (97.6%), Hugo Lloris (91.7%) and then Ben Davies (86.7%) / Eric Dier (86.6%).

Observation #3 – Conte concentrates his minutes in key players:

What this means is that we can clearly see who are Conte’s key players, circled in red in the above variation. They are: Lloris, Sanchez, Reguilon, Dier, Royal, Davies, Hojbjerg, Skipp, Kane, Son and Moura.

This core will likely remain as the season progresses as long as the eleven players remain fit. However, there are two exceptions that might bring some changes on the horizon.

The first is Cristian Romero (#3), who has been injured throughout Conte’s time as manager. His minute percentage has understandably plummeted but that will change when he returns in late January / early February, threatening the minutes of Sanchez, Dier or Davies.

The other exception depends on whether Conte is able to bring in some players more akin to his style and demands during the January transfer window. If he is, then this will impact the utility of some currently in the squad. We will be able to make better predictions on who once the window closes.

Observation #4 – The winners and losers in the managerial change:

So who are the winners and losers of Conte’s arrival? The final variation highlights these two groups within the red circles.

Whilst every starter has benefitted as their percentage share of minutes has increased, there are three players who have risen significantly: Emerson Royal (#7), Davinson Sanchez (#4) and Davies (#9). The fact all three are defenders is interesting and perhaps not surprising given Conte has shifted to a consistent three at the back, increasing their likelihood of getting a decent amount of minutes.

This is supported when looking at the losers of Conte’s arrival: Romero (#3 – who has been injured), Alli (#14), Lo Celso (#15), Tanguy Ndombele (#12), Pierluigi Gollini (#2), Bryan Gil (#21) and Steven Bergwijn (#23). The majority are midfielders and attackers, who are shedding minutes due to the switch in formation, fixture make-up and Conte’s total reliance on his starters.

Apart from Romero, it is difficult to see where these players will increase their minute load going forward, especially if the Italian brings in new arrivals in January. They may have to rely on injuries to Tottenham’s starters to have any chance of being included more.

So to summarise, there has not been too much difference in squad utilisation between the two managers. Fixture make-up meant more rotation in Europe and the Cups by Nuno whilst we are seeing more in the league with Conte. Yet key players remain largely the same, they are just playing a higher percentage of minutes under the Italian than they were with his predecessor. Whether that is sustainable during the second half of the season remains to be seen. The ones benefitting most from Conte’s arrival are due to the switch to three at the back and Romero’s injury. But this could all change depending on what transfers – if any – are made by Daniel Levy in the January window.

Breakdown of the Safety Car Fiasco in Abu Dhabi: what happened, why it was controversial and why the FIA’s ruling is unsatisfactory

An already-bonkers F1 season reached new heights in Sunday’s finale as the driver’s championship was decided by the Race Director exploiting ambiguous sporting regulations to ensure the most dramatic conclusion to the race.

To take both casual and hardcore fans through the key point of controversy – the safety car fiasco – I have broken this piece into three parts:

What happened with the safety car during the race
Mercedes’ protest and FIA ruling after the race
Analysis of arguments

If you are already clued up on what happened, then I recommend skimming through to the analysis part, where I attempt to make sense of the arguments offered by the FIA and Red Bull in response to Mercedes.

WHAT HAPPENED WITH THE SAFETY CAR DURING THE RACE?

Controversial Point #1 – Lapped Cars:

On Lap 53, Nicholas Latifi crashed his car into the wall at Turn 14, causing a safety car to be deployed. This gave the rest of the cars on track an opportunity to pit without losing significant time to their rivals. Some cars could take advantage of this without losing their track position -e.g. Max Verstappen – while other cars could not – e.g. Lewis Hamilton.

After such time, the cars then bunched up behind the safety car in the following order:

Hamilton (P1)
Norris (P7 – lapped by Hamilton)
Alonso (P8 – lapped by Hamilton)
Ocon (P9 – lapped by Hamilton)
Leclerc (P10 – lapped by Hamilton)
Vettel (P11 – lapped by Hamilton)
Verstappen (P2)
Ricciardo (P12 – lapped by Hamilton and Verstappen)
Stroll (P13 – lapped by Hamilton and Verstappen)
Sainz (P3)
Bottas (P4)
Schumacher (P14 – lapped by Hamilton, Verstappen, Sainz & Bottas)
Tsunoda (P5)
Gasly (P6)

Note: Cars which had NOT been lapped are in bold.

You can see this detailed in the driver tracker below:

According to Article 48.12 of the 2021 Formula One Sporting Regulations, “…any cars that have been lapped by the leader will be required to pass the cars on the lead lap and the safety car”.

This is standard procedure under a safety car, allowing lapped cars not to interfere in battles when the race restarts.

However, in Abu Dhabi, we saw the unprecedented situation where the five lapped cars in between Hamilton and Verstappen – Norris, Alonso, Ocon, Leclerc and Vettel – were ordered to overtake the safety car, while the other three lapped drivers – Ricciardo, Stroll and Schumacher – were told to remain where they were.

This created the following order behind the safety car:

Hamilton (P1)
Verstappen (P2)
Ricciardo (P12 – lapped by Hamilton and Verstappen)
Stroll (P13 – lapped by Hamilton and Verstappen)
Sainz (P3)
Bottas (P4)
Schumacher (P14 – lapped by Hamilton, Verstappen, Sainz & Bottas)
Tsunoda (P5)
Gasly (P6)
Norris (P7 – unlapped themselves, making way around track)
Alonso (P8 – unlapped themselves, making way around track)
Ocon (P9 – unlapped themselves, making way around track)
Leclerc (P10 – unlapped themselves, making way around track)
Vettel (P11 – unlapped themselves, making way around track)

Again, you can see this in the detailed driver tracker below:

This meant Verstappen was now clear behind Hamilton without any lapped cars in between them, while the former still had the luxury of two lapped cars in between himself and Sainz in P3. Bottas in P4 also had an advantage over Tsunoda in P5 thanks to the lapped Mick Schumacher in between them.

So you can already see how an unequal field was created whereby a driver was given a clear route of attack at a car in front of him, while others were not afforded the same generosity.

Controversial Point #2 – Timing of the Safety Car Ending:

Also within Article 48.12 it states that “unless the clerk of the course considers the presence of the safety car is still necessary, once the last lapped car has passed the leader the safety car will return to the pits at the end of the following lap“.

Now, this is when the second unprecedented decision happened. Instead of waiting for the end of the following lap, the safety car was told to enter the pit lane at the end of the lap that the unlapped cars had overtaken it (one lap earlier than 48.12 stipulates).

This allowed there to be one final lap under racing conditions before the chequered flag, which is when we saw Verstappen – on a fresh set of soft tyres – overtake Hamilton – on 40-lap hard tyres – to win the race and the Driver Championship.

MERCEDES PROTEST & FIA RULING AFTER THE RACE

Understandably, Mercedes were furious that Article 48.12 was not followed fully, resulting in their driver losing the world championship. So they protested the decision, claiming two breaches of the Sporting Regulations (as detailed above).

As an interested party, Red Bull was allowed to attend the protest discussions and argued the following five points in defence of the decisions:

“Any” does not mean “all”
Article 48.13 of the Sporting Regulations states that the message “Safety Car in this lap” is the signal that it will enter the pit lane at the end of the lap
That, therefore, Article 48.13 “overrides” Article 48.12
That Article 15.3 gives the Race Director “overriding authority” over “the use of the safety car”
That even if all cars had been lapped (8 in total, of which 5 were allowed to overtake the safety car), it would not have changed the outcome of the race

Race Director Michael Masi – who made the decision regarding the unlapping of cars and when the safety car came in – also provided evidence in the protest discussions:

The purpose of the Article 48.12 was to remove those lapped cars that would “interfere” in the racing line between the leaders and that in his view Article 48.13 was the one that applied in this case
It had long been agreed by all the Teams that, where possible, it was highly desirable for the race to end in a “green” condition

After several hours of deliberation, the FIA stewards offered their conclusion, dismissing Mercedes’ protest. They ruled:

That Article 15.3 allows the Race Director to control the use of the safety car, which in their determination includes its deployment and withdrawal
That although Article 48.12 may not have been applied fully, in relation to the safety car returning to the pits at the end of the following lap, Article 48.13 overrides that and once the message “Safety Car in this lap” has been displayed, it is mandatory to withdraw the safety car at the end of that lap
That notwithstanding Mercedes’ request that stewards remediate the matter by amending the classification to reflect the positions at the end of the penultimate lap, this is a step that the Stewards believe is effectively shortening the race retrospectively, and hence not appropriate
Accordingly, the Protest is dismissed; the Protest Deposit is not refunded

Case sorted right? Wrong. Mercedes immediately lodged their intent to appeal the decision (giving them 96 hours to decide whether to proceed).

So, to understand why we have arrived at this point it is necessary to untangle which justifications fit which alleged rule breach.

ANALYSIS OF THE PRESENTED ARGUMENTS

Unlapping of Cars:

In defence of the unlapping decision, Red Bull argued that “‘any’ does not mean ‘all'” while the Race Director stated that the purpose of Article 48.12 was to remove those lapped cars that would “interfere” in the racing line between the leaders.

But the problem with their argument is that it is completely unprecedented to only allow some of the lapped cars to unlap themselves. All eight relevant cars had only been lapped once and it would have added mere seconds to the wait to allow the three other cars to overtake the safety car.

So when Masi, the Race Director, says that the purpose of unlapping cars is for the benefit of the leaders, where does this come from? It certainly isn’t explicitly stated in the rules (nor is it, may I add). And is it common knowledge between teams? Because it isn’t just the leaders who are fighting for track position.

Here is where some previous comments made by Masi regarding these regulations could come back to haunt him and the FIA. Explaining why the safety car took so long at the Eifel GP in October 2020, Masi said: “There’s a requirement in the sporting regulations, to wave all lapped cars past“.

Note the use of “all” there. It certainly raises questions as to the interpretation of Article 48.12. Essentially, if X amount of safety cars have been deployed while Masi has been Race Director and in all X amount of cases, all of the lapped cars have been able to unlap themselves, why should X+1 be any different?

Timing of the Safety Car Ending:

Meanwhile, in defence of the safety car ending decision, Red Bull argued that “Article 48.13 of the Sporting Regulations states that the message ‘Safety Car in this lap’ is the signal that it will enter the pit lane at the end of that lap”.

Why that message was signalled one lap early was due to Article 15.3, which gives the Race Director “overriding authority” over “the use of the safety car”.

Why did Masi decide to override Article 48.12? His argument hinges on the fact that “it had long been agreed by all the Teams that where possible it was highly desirable for the race to end in a ‘green’ condition“.

This means that unlike in other races, where a safety car finish would have happened, it had been agreed by all teams that it would not happen in this circumstance. Why? We can only guess, but the reasonable assumption is because there was a championship on the line and it would look bad to have it decided under safety car.

Now, I feel most people would agree that it is reasonable request. Any F1 fan wants to see the championship decided on a racing lap rather than a safety car lap. The only way to ensure this happened was to call the safety car in a lap earlier than Article 48.12 stipulated.

So while the reasoning for ending the safety car seems justifiable, it leaves us returning to the unlapping issue as the main sticking point.

Returning to the Unlapped Car Issue:

Above, I highlighted how the arguments put forward by Red Bull and Masi over why the decision was taken to only let the lapped cars between Hamilton and Verstappen through were unsatisfactory because it has never happened before.

However, the one argument I did not present for it was the same argument used to justify ending the safety car early: Article 15.3 – the Race Director has “overriding authority” over “the use of the safety car”.

The reason I did this was to show how both decisions are firmly rooted in this sporting regulation (despite arguments otherwise). And this is where the FIA ruling leaves more questions than answers.

To have such a stipulation where the rules and regulations can be changed at the discretion of the Race Director seems difficult to comprehend. Yet there is a clear purpose for its inclusion.

Safety.

In a sport as dangerous as F1, there needs to be a lever to circumvent rules and regulations if it were to prevent a disaster from occurring.

However, should that overriding authority be used for any other reason? That is where many people feel uncomfortable.

Sure, finish the race on a racing lap. There is no problem there. But why let only the five lapped cars between Hamilton and Verstappen through?

I struggle to find a satisfactory answer to that question. It is not provided in the FIA ruling on Mercedes’ protest. And that is the part that feels most engineered. It was set up to create a last-lap showdown between Lewis and Max for entertainment purposes.

Yet Lewis and Max were not the only two drivers racing. Why was Sainz in P3 not allowed a clear route of attack on Verstappen in P2? Why were Ricciardo and Stroll in P12 and P13 cast so far away from the P7-11 drivers who were allowed to unlap themselves?

Red Bull argue “that even if all cars had been lapped (8 in total, of which 5 were allowed to overtake the safety car), it would not have changed the outcome of the race”. But that is pure speculation. And it should have been up to the drivers on track to determine whether that was the case, not the Race Director.

In that one decision, Masi set a precedent that it is only the drivers at the front that matter. And they only matter when they can provide entertainment to people watching. That is a very dangerous precedent to set.

So while I don’t think the result will – or should – change as there is enough ambiguity in the sporting regulations to cover Masi’s decision-making, I hope Mercedes do appeal the decision, to provide impetus to change Article 15.3 so that a Race Director can never use it for entertainment purposes again.

Premier League Teams and Rotation: GW1-7

With the second international break well underway, we are now at a point where we have a big enough sample of games for the 2021-22 season that we can start highlighting early trends. Below is a scatter graph detailing the average number of changes made to the starting line-up per game for Premier League teams so far this season. On the x-axis is the average number based on all competitions, while the y-axis has the average number for league games only.

What is shows is the differing approach of teams to rotation early on in a season. For example, Tottenham have comfortably made the highest number of changes to their XI in all competitions, while Crystal Palace have made the least. Alternatively, Thomas Tuchel’s Chelsea has changed its starting line-up the most in the league so far, while David Moyes’s West Ham has remained practically unchanged.

When we break down the axes individually, we can see more clearly: (1) the relative position of teams in comparison to one another; and (2) how far or below the overall average they were. Here is the breakdown for average number of changes per game based on all competitions:

And here is the breakdown of average number of changes per game for league games only:

There are some surprising trends emerging already. The most notable is how middle-of-the-pack Manchester City have been rotation-wise early on. Manager Pep Guardiola is famous for his prolific tinkering, causing much disdain for fantasy footballers attempting to predict who will start each game. However, he has been uncharacteristically restrained in the early period this year, with his team sitting 16th for average in all competitions and 10th for average in the league. This is despite having to negotiate seven games in three weeks during the period between the first and second international break.

In fact, the majority of the teams playing in European competitions this season have comparable averages to those that are not. The exception to this is Tottenham (8.45), who rotated heavily in the early qualifying rounds of the European Conference League. Excluding Nuno Espírito Santo’s side, those teams playing in Europe – Chelsea, Leicester City, Liverpool, Manchester City, Manchester United and West Ham – have made an average of 4.61 changes per game in all competitions, whereas the thirteen teams not in Europe have an average of 4.63. Whether this continues as the gap between the number of games played by the two groups grows is worth keeping an eye on.

But what it does do is highlight how rotation is not solely a concern for the big teams. Every manager has a squad that must be utilised effectively across a season. If you can keep key players fresh and minimise injuries in the first team, you increase your chances of winning games and being successful. This is as relevant for a club aiming for mid-table and a good cup run as it is for a club tipped to win multiple trophies.

Pep Roulette: GW3 v Arsenal (H)

Manchester City rebounded from their opening 1-0 defeat to Tottenham with a comprehensive 5-0 thrashing of Norwich City the following week, moving them up to 9th in the Premier League table. The Citizens’ next opponents are Arsenal, who have lost both of their two games to Brentford and Chelsea respectively. Nonetheless, Mikel Arteta’s side will still present a challenge for City, so who is most likely to feature in their starting line-up?

STARTING LINE-UP VERSUS NORWICH

Pep continued to deploy a 4-3-3 against Norwich, making five changes to the XI that lost to Tottenham. Nathan Aké, Benjamin Mendy, Fernandinho, Riyad Mahrez and Raheem Sterling made way for Aymeric Laporte, Kyle Walker, Rodri, Bernardo Silva and Gabriel Jesus respectively.

Image Taken and Adapted from Google Search.

Though the amount of changes was expected, some of the personnel choices were not. John Stones was a heavy favourite to partner Ruben Dias at centre-back, but his lack of fitness paved the way for Laporte’s inclusion instead, while Bernardo Silva was also a surprise name on the team-sheet after being heavily linked with a move away. It shows the difficulty of predicting line-ups as there is certain information that is not released to the public.

POTENTIAL LINE-UP VERSUS ARSENAL

So what can we expect from City against Arsenal? Well, it is unlikely that Pep will make as many changes as he did last weekend after now integrating the remaining late-returners – bar John Stones. One or two changes have the strongest possibility and these are more likely to come in midfield and attack rather than defence.

Following Belgian head coach Roberto Martinez’s comments and City’s statement yesterday, we know that Kevin De Bruyne (ankle injury) and Benjamin Mendy (suspended by club following police charges) will join Phil Foden (foot injury) as unavailable for the match. This helps us narrow down on the players who are still in contention to start.

Below is a table of City’s first-team squad that includes their minutes for the opening two gameweeks, as well as highlighting who is sidelined against Arsenal.

Defence:

Pep opted for a back four of Walker-Dias-Laporte-Cancelo against Norwich and I would be very surprised if we saw changes to it on Saturday. Dias-Laporte is a superior defensive partnership to Dias-Aké and also offers the added bonus of being more progressive in possession. Though you could make a case for Stone’s inclusion over Laporte, the fact he was unable to be fit in time for the Norwich game now makes it very unlikely that Pep would throw him in against Arsenal (injuries permitting).

Cancelo also looks a safe bet to hold onto the left-back spot after the club suspended Mendy pending the outcome of his police charges. Oleksandr Zinchenko is the only player who could oust the Portuguese full-back, but again his lack of match time – yet to start a game in pre-season or the first two gameweeks – makes his inclusion in the XI unlikely. So if the changes are not coming from defence, where could they come from in midfield and attack?

Midfield:

De Bruyne’s absence this weekend decreases the probability of Pep making a change in midfield. The City manager played Bernardo-Rodri-Gundogan in a three against Norwich, which worked effectively in what was a dominant possession and attacking display from the current league champions.

The only two players who could come into the midfield would be Fernandinho (rested) and Jack Grealish (played left-wing). Both featured there in the 1-0 loss to Tottenham, but City lacked control in that game which could be attributed to the lack of balance in midfield (among other reasons).

For me, this makes it unlikely that Pep will change his midfield against Arsenal, though there is an outside chance of Fernandinho and Rodri playing in a double pivot ahead of a Gundogan/Bernardo to nullify the opposition’s counter-attacking threat. Such tactic was used effectively in City’s 4-1 win over Arsenal in the League Cup last season.

Attack:

If the defence and midfield are unlikely to see any changes, this leaves the attackers more vulnerable. It is the position that typically sees the most rotation and I would be surprised if the front three against Norwich of Jesus-Torres-Grealish all keep their places on Saturday.

Pep was particularly complimentary of Jesus’s performance and post-game analysis seems to suggest that the young Brazilian forward is more effective on the right-wing, which should bode well for keeping his place this weekend.

That leaves Grealish and Torres under the most threat having started two games each. However, City are short of options up front, which is why they are in the market for a striker. This makes Torres’s position more secure than Grealish, who I believe is the most likely player to drop down to the bench against Arsenal.

Raheem Sterling seems like the obvious bet to replace him with the home game presenting an ideal opportunity to bid farewell to the fans if reports of him leaving are to be believed. Sterling also has more experience of City’s system and a higher work-rate, which are useful traits in big games of fine margins.

PREDICTED CITY LINE-UP VERSUS ARSENAL

Therefore, I predict one change for City – Sterling replacing Grealish on the left-wing – to form the following starting XI:

Ederson; Walker; Dias; Laporte; Cancelo; Rodri; Gundogan; Bernardo; Sterling; Torres; Jesus.

How nailed is Reece James?

Chelsea right-back Reece James poses an interesting fantasy conundrum for managers. He is part of a formidable defence that kept 19 clean sheets under Thomas Tuchel in the German’s 30 games (all competitions) in charge during the latter stages of the 2020-21 season. The 21-year-old England national also poses a potent attacking threat as one of Chelsea’s two wing-backs in their 3-4-2-1 formation, offering good assist potential. However, the main sticking point is how much of a hold James has over that right-back spot, with teammates Cesar Azpilicueta and Callum Hudson-Odoi also being deployed there by Tuchel last season. So the pressing question is how nailed is Reece James in Chelsea’s starting XI?

ANALYSIS – 2020/21 SEASON

All Competitions:

Tuchel took charge of 30 games as Chelsea’s manager during the 2020/21 season. 19 of these were Premier League games, 7 in the Champions League and 4 in the FA Cup. That means the maximum amount of minutes one player could have registered under Tuchel was 2,700. Reece James played 1,831 minutes (67.8%) during this period – 1,561 minutes at right wing-back and 270 minutes at right centre-back. The graph below plots the minutes played in each game by James in all competitions.

What the graph shows is that James registered 18 starts (60.0%) and 11 substitute appearances (36.7%) in those 30 games, only being an unused substitute in one match during Tuchel’s spell in charge last season – the German’s first game at Stamford Bridge which saw Chelsea draw 0-0 with Wolves. It highlights how Tuchel viewed James as both a competent starter and a serious bench option.

However, one important trend to note is that as the season came to a close, James became more of a starter and less of a rotation risk. During the first 15 games, the right-back started seven games (46.7%). Yet in the second 15 games, James was named in the starting line-up on 11 occasions (73.3%), representing a 26.6% swing.

This included the FA Cup final, Champions League final and the last five games of the Premier League season (where Chelsea were in a close scrap with Liverpool and Leicester City for top four). Tuchel clearly trusted James in the big games, which cements his place near the top of Chelsea’s hierarchy. This should bode well for 2021-22.

Premier League:

Focusing in particular on the 19 Premier League games (as these are the games that count for fantasy), the percentages slightly increase. James played 1,194 minutes (73.7%) out of a possible 1,620, starting in 12 of the matches (63.2%) and being subbed on in six (31.6%). This meant the right-back’s probability of starting increased slightly for league games, while his chance of being subbed on decreased. Below is a graph detailing the minutes played by James in each league game under Tuchel in 2020-21.

The first significant trend from the graph is that when James started a league game under Tuchel, he stayed on for the full 90 minutes. This means he is not a starter that carries a substitution risk, which could potentially thwart clean sheet points.

The second trend to consider is how much of an option James is off the bench though. This is something worth bearing in mind for fantasy as it would mean accepting points hauls alternating with numerous 1-pointers. He was benched seven times in 19 matches (36.8%), accumulating 114 minutes as a substitute, which works out as an average of 16 minutes per game. Not a massive amount of time to influence the game and get an assist.

LOOKING AHEAD TO 2021-22

So what does this mean for this coming season? Well, if we extrapolate his league percentages across a full 38-game season, James would be playing ~2,520 minutes across ~24 starts and ~12 substitute appearances. This gives a rough estimate of what one could reasonably expect from the 21-year-old (providing he stays fit and Tuchel utilises him similarly to last season).

Therefore, the key to extracting the best out of James as a fantasy asset will come in judging where those substitute appearances might come. If you can pre-empt them to avoid the inevitable 1-pointers and then capitalise on the gains when he starts, he could be a valuable asset to own moving forward.