Why West Brom keeper Sam Johnstone and winger Matt Phillips will miss DGW19
Last Updated: January 16, 2021 6:26 pm
Johnstone and Phillips positive
The all-important double-Gameweek 19 will kick off today and there has already been some controversy regarding West Bromwich Albion’s players. The threats of the Covid-19 pandemic was always going to cause disruption into Fantasy manager’s choices.
West Brom goalkeeper Sam Johnstone has been confirmed to miss their match today against Wolves. However, due to the self-isolation period established by the Government for all those who test positive for the virus, the keeper will miss the match against West Ham and also the following Gameweek’s clash with Manchester City.
Johnstone was not the only player to be found to have tested positive, winger Matt Philips will also miss the key clashes as Sam Allardyce’s side fight to remain in the Premier League.
Sam Allardyce has confirmed Sam Johnstone and Matt Phillips will miss today’s game after testing positive for COVID-19, while Grady Diangana is sidelined through injury.#WOLWBA | #WBA pic.twitter.com/2rXKbDq1p0
— West Bromwich Albion (@WBA) January 16, 2021
There was also confirmation that Grady Diangana was missing for the West Midlands Derby due to injury but it was unclear whether or not he would be fit to face his former side West Ham.
Allardyce’s derby cry
Sam Allardyce has led a rallying cry ahead of West Brom’s derby match with Wolves this weekend in an attempt to rile up his players and get them to fight for the desperate points that they so badly crave and need.
“The derbies are what you look forward to as a player, every time they’re there you have that extra feeling of how much more important it is to you, to the club, more importantly to the fans to have the bragging rights,” Allardyce said.
“Even though they’re not perhaps going to work as they would normally at the moment, the reaction on social media is probably enough if you can be the team that gets the win.”
WEST BROMWICH, ENGLAND – DECEMBER 29: Raphinha and Stuart Dallas of Leeds United celebrate their team’s first goal, an own goal by Romaine Sawyers of West Bromwich Albion during the Premier League match between West Bromwich Albion and Leeds United at The Hawthorns on December 29, 2020 in West Bromwich, England. The match will be played without fans, behind closed doors as a Covid-19 precaution. (Photo by David Rogers/Getty Images)
“We want to try and give the West Brom fans a nice weekend. We want them to sit back and say ‘wow, thanks very much lads for getting us a win, for making us feel a bit better amid what we’re all suffering at the moment.”
“That’s the responsibility for me, to try and get a little bit of joy for a short period of time with West Brom trying to win at Wolves. It’ll give them a bit more joy because it’s a local derby.”
A win for the Baggies would take them just 3 points away from Brighton and possible safety in the Premier League. Wolves have been suffering of late and present an opportunity for West Brom to punish them further for a string of poor performances which has seen them struggle without striker Raul Jimenez.
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This article was edited by Josh Barker.
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| # | Team | MP | D | P |
| Player | Team | Goals |
|---|---|---|
| Salah, Mohamed | Liverpool FC | 17 |
| Kane, Harry | Tottenham Hotspur FC | 16 |
| Fernandes, Bruno | Manchester United FC | 16 |
| Son, Heung Min | Tottenham Hotspur FC | 13 |
| Bamford, Patrick | Leeds United | 13 |
| Calvert-Lewin, Dominic | Everton FC | 13 |
| Vardy, Jamie | Leicester City FC | 12 |
| Gundogan, Ilkay | Manchester City FC | 11 |
| Wilson, Callum | Newcastle United FC | 10 |
| Watkins, Ollie | Aston Villa FC | 10 |
| Rashford, Marcus | Manchester United FC | 9 |
| Sterling, Raheem | Manchester City FC | 9 |
| Barnes, Harvey | Leicester City FC | 9 |
| Zaha, Wilfried | Crystal Palace FC | 9 |
| Lacazette, Alexandre | Arsenal FC | 9 |
| Aubameyang, Pierre-Emerick | Arsenal FC | 9 |
| Maddison, James | Leicester City FC | 8 |
| Ings, Danny | Southampton FC | 8 |
| Soucek, Tomas | West Ham United FC | 8 |
| Mahrez, Riyad | Manchester City FC | 7 |
| Player | Team | Red Cards | Yellow Cards |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gallagher, Conor | West Bromwich Albion | 0 | 8 |
| Maguire, Harry | Manchester United FC | 0 | 8 |
| Bellerin, Hector | Arsenal FC | 0 | 8 |
| Milivojevic, Luka | Crystal Palace FC | 1 | 7 |
| Hayden, Isaac | Newcastle United FC | 0 | 8 |
| Lundstram, John | Sheffield United FC | 1 | 6 |
| Evans, Jonny | Leicester City FC | 0 | 7 |
| Egan, John | Sheffield United FC | 1 | 6 |
| Bissouma, Yves | Brighton & Hove Albion FC | 1 | 6 |
| Grealish, Jack | Aston Villa FC | 0 | 6 |
| Tielemans, Youri | Leicester City FC | 0 | 6 |
| Shaw, Luke | Manchester United FC | 0 | 6 |
| Klich, Mateusz | Leeds United | 0 | 6 |
| Doucoure, Abdoulaye | Everton FC | 0 | 6 |
| Hojbjerg, Pierre | Tottenham Hotspur FC | 0 | 6 |
| Xhaka, Granit | Arsenal FC | 1 | 5 |
| Romeu, Oriol | Southampton FC | 0 | 6 |
| Kante, N`Golo | Chelsea FC | 0 | 6 |
| Luiz, Douglas | Aston Villa FC | 0 | 5 |
| Fernandes, Bruno | Manchester United FC | 0 | 5 |
| Player | Team | Assists |
|---|---|---|
| Kane, Harry | Tottenham Hotspur FC | 13 |
| Fernandes, Bruno | Manchester United FC | 10 |
| Grealish, Jack | Aston Villa FC | 10 |
| De Bruyne, Kevin | Manchester City FC | 10 |
| Son, Heung Min | Tottenham Hotspur FC | 9 |
| Rashford, Marcus | Manchester United FC | 7 |
| Cresswell, Aaron | West Ham United FC | 6 |
| Digne, Lucas | Everton FC | 6 |
| Sterling, Raheem | Manchester City FC | 5 |
| Maddison, James | Leicester City FC | 5 |
| Firmino, Roberto | Liverpool FC | 5 |
| Ward-Prowse, James | Southampton FC | 5 |
| Werner, Timo | Chelsea FC | 5 |
| Raphinha | Leeds United | 5 |
| Neto, Pedro | Wolverhampton Wanderers FC | 5 |
| Shaw, Luke | Manchester United FC | 5 |
| Robertson, Andrew | Liverpool FC | 5 |
| Willian | Arsenal FC | 5 |
| Bamford, Patrick | Leeds United | 4 |
| Vardy, Jamie | Leicester City FC | 4 |
