This article is part of our Fantasy Premier League Rankings series.
The highlight match this weekend figures to be the first one played, with Arsenal traveling to Anfield to take on a powerful Liverpool attack. While that figures to be a great game (then again, we said that about Manchester City vs. Chelsea on Monday), there are a few lopsided matchups that could be fantasy gold. Manchester City, coming off their first home loss of the season, travels to face Norwich City, a side that lost at the Etihad 7-0 earlier this season. Other enticing matchups include Southampton hosting Stoke City, Chelsea welcoming Newcastle to Stamford Bridge, and Manchester United against Fulham at Old Trafford. These games are all one-sided on paper, which is why you'll see a number of players from those games on the lists below.As a reminder, Chris and I will be drafting against each other to formulate the rankings. A starting XI, plus seven bench spots (two strikers, two midfielders, two defenders, one goalkeeper). Chris had the first pick this week, I had two and three, he took four, and then we alternated after that. The overall rankings below will show how the draft played out, and then we break down each position, in case you're looking for that too.
If you have any feedback, whether on the format of the rankings, where certain players are ranked, or if you think we left someone out who should be on there, please feel free to post that in the comments section below.
Overall Rankings for Gameweek 25
1. Edin Dzeko at Norwich City
2. Robin van Persie vs. Fulham
3. Wayne Rooney vs. Fulham
4. David Silva at Norwich City
5. Eden Hazard vs. Newcastle
6. Juan Mata vs. Fulham
7. Yaya Toure at Norwich City
8. Adam Johnson vs. Hull City
9. Jay Rodriguez vs. Stoke City
10. Wilfried Bony vs. Cardiff City
11. Mesut Ozil at Liverpool
12. Luis Suarez vs. Arsenal
13. Petr Cech vs. Newcastle
14. Branislav Ivanovic vs. Newcastle
15. Patrice Evra vs. Fulham
16. Adam Lallana vs. Stoke City
17. Daniel Sturridge vs. Arsenal
18. Vincent Kompany at Norwich City
19. Pablo Zabaleta at Norwich City
20. Vito Mannone vs. Hull City
21. Phil Bardsley vs. Hull City
22. Jose Fonte vs. Stoke City
23. Santi Cazorla at Liverpool
24. Alvaro Negredo at Norwich City
25. Christian Benteke vs. West Ham
26. Jonathan de Guzman vs. Cardiff City
27. David Luiz vs. Newcastle
28. Christian Eriksen vs. Everton
29. Ross Barkley at Tottenham
30. Aleksander Kolarov at Norwich City
31. Rickie Lambert vs. Stoke City
32. Olivier Giroud at Liverpool
33. David de Gea vs. Fulham
34. Artur Boruc vs. Stoke City
35. Chico Flores vs. Cardiff City
36. Luke Shaw vs. Stoke City
Why is Edin Dzeko No. 1 overall?
Mosinski: The choice for me was either Dzeko or Negredo, given the matchup against Norwich. City are going to score, we know that. But Dzeko outshot Negredo on Monday [against Chelsea], and Negredo still doesn't look 100 percent. City are 4-0 following a Premier League loss this season, outscoring their opponents 18-1 in those matches. I repeat: they're going to score. They have 25 goals in their last four matches against Norwich, including 10 goals in their last two matches AT Norwich.
Why are Luis Suarez and Daniel Sturridge so low?
Laird: It's all about the matchup. Do we think they'll score? Probably. But that doesn't mean they'll outperform the guys we listed in front of them.
On Jonathan de Guzman making his weekly rankings debut:
Mosinski: De Guzman has been pretty hot with his helpers, and he filled Jonjo Shelvey's role nicely during his last injury [Shelvey is an injury doubt this weekend].
Strikers
1. Edin Dzeko at Norwich City
2. Robin van Persie vs. Fulham
3. Wayne Rooney vs. Fulham
4. Jay Rodriguez vs. Stoke City
5. Wilfried Bony vs. Cardiff City
6. Luis Suarez vs. Arsenal
7. Daniel Sturridge vs. Arsenal
8. Alvaro Negredo at Norwich City
9. Christian Benteke vs. West Ham
10. Olivier Giroud at Liverpool
Midfielders
1. David Silva at Norwich City
2. Eden Hazard vs. Newcastle
3. Juan Mata vs. Fulham
4. Yaya Toure at Norwich City
5. Adam Johnson vs. Hull City
6. Mesut Ozil at Liverpool
7. Adam Lallana vs. Stoke City
8. Santi Cazorla at Liverpool
9. Jonathan de Guzman vs. Cardiff City
10. Christian Eriksen vs. Everton
11. Ross Barkley at Tottenham
12. Rickie Lambert vs. Stoke City
Defenders
1. Branislav Ivanovic vs. Newcastle
2. Patrice Evra vs. Fulham
3. Vincent Kompany at Norwich City
4 Pablo Zabaleta at Norwich City
5. Phil Bardsley vs. Hull City
6. Jose Fonte vs. Stoke City
7. David Luiz vs. Newcastle
8. Aleksander Kolarov at Norwich City
9. Chico Flores vs. Cardiff City
10. Luke Shaw vs. Stoke City
Goalkeepers
1. Petr Cech vs. Newcastle
2. Vito Mannone vs. Hull City
3. David de Gea vs. Fulham
4. Artur Boruc vs. Stoke City
And if you're curious how our teams line up against each other, here you go:
| POS | Mosinski | Laird |
| GK | Vito Mannone | Petr Cech |
| D | Branislav Ivanovic | Patrice Evra |
| D | Vincent Kompany | Pablo Zabaleta |
| D | Jose Fonte | Phil Bardsley |
| M | David Silva | Eden Hazard |
| M | Juan Mata | Yaya Toure |
| M | Adam Johnson | Mesut Ozil |
| M | Adam Lallana | Santi Cazorla |
| F | Edin Dzeko | Robin van Persie |
| F | Wilfried Bony | Wayne Rooney |
| F | Luis Suarez | Jay Rodriguez |
| BG | Artur Boruc | David de Gea |
| BD | Aleksander Kolarov | David Luiz |
| BD | Luke Shaw | Chico Flores |
| BM | Jonathan de Guzman | Ross Barkley |
| BM | Christian Eriksen | Rickie Lambert |
| BF | Alvaro Negredo | Daniel Sturridge |
| BF | Olivier Giroud | Christian Benteke |
