Fantasy Football Tips Game-week 13

Fantasy Football Tips Game-week 13

Welcome to this week’s Tips as we attempt to identify those players that FPL managers should be looking to acquire to improve their rankings and push their season on as we return after the International break. There are tips for each position and at a range of prices, some have been widely spoken about over the last fortnight or so, while a few have that surprise element. All have decent fixtures this week and therefore give the opportunity for instant returns and while we cannot tip everyone we hope we have covered most of the bases. Of course there are players we haven’t tipped – that doesn’t mean they should be ignored, there are more available and in-form players available than at any point this season and coupled with some decent fixtures and injuries to other players there is a real chance now to go against the template and choose some differentials.

GOALKEEPERS
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[/three_fourth]David de Gea is certainly making up for lost time after he missed the first four game-weeks of the season due to his “on/off” transfer pantomime to Real Madrid was being played out and LVG decided the keeper wasn’t in the right frame of mind to play. Upon his return to the team in GW5 de Gea conceded three goals in two games but since then has kept an impressive five clean sheets in six matches and has looked back to his best as he claims he is very happy at United. So would I be after signing that new contract. United has a lovely set of fixtures coming up starting with a trip to Watford this weekend and this is followed by matches vs West Ham, Leicester, Bournemouth, Norwich and Stoke. De Gea is priced at 5.6mln and comes at a significant discount to Chris Smalling, United’s most reliable defender.

Like de Gea, Wayne Hennessey began the season watching someone else between the sticks as Alex McCarthy was preferred by Palace chief Alan Pardew. However, Hennessey was given a chance in GW7 and has kept the jersey ever since, keeping three clean sheets in six matches. Pardew has hinted that Hennessey must play well to keep his place with Julian Speroni now fit, so it may not be wise to have Hennessey as your only playing keeper. However, he is perfect as a rotator as he only costs 4mln and has two consecutive home games vs Sunderland and Newcastle and a trip to Bournemouth on the horizon.

The more Chelsea struggle, the more absurd looks the decision to allow Petr Cech to join Arsenal in the summer. The ex-Chelsea keeper has kept six clean sheets already this term and has instilled some confidence in the other Gonner’s defenders, which has finally seen them show some decent defensive returns as an overall unit. A trip to West Brom this weekend is hardly likely to phase Arsenal as the Baggies have struggled somewhat at home. Fixtures also look good for some clean sheets with Arsenal facing Norwich, Sunderland and Villa in consecutive weeks.

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DEFENDERS

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[/three_fourth]As we have mentioned in the keeper section, Arsenal have a pretty decent run of fixtures coming up, so if Cech is not to your liking or you fancy doubling up then Laurent Koscielny could be worth the investment of 6mln. With Hector Bellerin struggling with fitness, Kieran Gibbs proving he can be reliable back up for Nacho Monreal and Per Mertesacker not a guaranteed starter anymore, Koscielny appears to be the safest route into the Gooner defence. If the clean sheets were not enough, then bear in mind the Frenchman has already contributed two goals this season and is proving to be a constant threat from set pieces.

Our next tip may surprise you bearing in mind the start that Chelsea have made this season. However, one look at the fixtures suggests that if the Blues are going to turn their season round then the revival will start sooner rather than later. Cesar Azpilicueta has started every match for Chelsea this season, a stat that none of their other defenders can claim – although Kurt Zouma comes close. With the experts predicting that Jose will begin by tightening up at the back then it feels safer to invest in a defender and the Spaniard fits the bill perfectly. He is liked and trusted by Jose, is a solid defender, can be a threat going forward highlighted by his goal and two assists so far and is cheaper than Terry, Cahill and Ivanovic, who have all fallen out of favour with the manager so far.

Seamus Coleman hasn’t enjoyed the best of season’s so far – we are used to him bombing down the right flank and being a constant menace to the opposition defence. Just one assist in the opening twelve matches is scant reward for any FPL managers who paid 6mln for the Irishman in August. However, Everton’s fixtures have begun to turn and we’d be surprised if Coleman’s stats didn’t improve over the next few weeks. Villa are the visitors this weekend and that’s just the start of a glorious run for the Toffees. What is also important is the imminent return of Leighton Baines on the left – so many times it has been Baines’s runs and crosses from the left that has presented Coleman with the space and opportunity to shoot or assist and we feel the return of Baines could mean Coleman, now at 5.9mln, may fill his boots going forward, starting this weekend.

Now, we’ll get laughed at for this tip, but let us explain our rationale behind recommending him and if you’re playing your wildcard then this might be just waht you’re looking for. Most FPL managers are desperate for that little saving, the extra bit of cash, possibly to enable the re-purchase of Aguero. Therefore somewhere we need some ‘fillers’ or ‘enablers’ as some like to call them. A cheap defender who plays is ideal – someone who you don’t necessarily have to play, but in the event of injuries can come in and contribute something. Anything. Leicester’s Danny Simpson is just that. Granted, the Foxes have been rubbish at the back – with just one clean sheet all season, resulting in a Pizza Express profit warning hitting the locality. Simpson had his legal issues early season which resulted in him not playing until GW8, but he has been an ever present since then and has actually contributed two assists. Now, we’re not saying you should all go and buy a Leicester defender as we’ve already said, but if you need that extra 1mln or so and need to downgrade someone then Simpson may just enable you to raise that extra portion of cash that is needed elsewhere.

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MIDFIELDERS

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[/three_fourth]Much has been written of late of Gerard Deulofeu as he is finally realising his potential at Everton. Another late starter this season, the young Spaniard is now showing the form that many knew was always there but was riddled with inconsistency, injury and lack of game time and a regular place in the side. He has now pushed himself ahead of Kevin Mirallas in the eyes of Roberto Martinez and has been described by one Naismith-loving Everton fan as “the man Roberto can finally build his team around”. His form is red hot – one goal and six assists in six matches for the Toffees and five goals in two matches in this last international break for the Spanish U21’s. His price is lovely – just 6.2mln (a perfect replacement for the injured Dimitri Payet). And his fixtures are sublime – Villa, Bournemouth, Palace, Norwich, Leicester, Newcastle, Stoke. What more do you want??

Like Deulofeu, Mesut Ozil is outperforming his more expensive colleagues. “He is the Assist King”, we were told when Wenger brought him over from Madrid, yet it’s only really now, two seasons later, that we are seeing signs of consistency that many rightly argued should have been evident before. However, we can only deal with the here and now – and this season speaks for itself – 10 assists already, including 8 in his last six matches, add to that a goal as well and those who jumped on early have seen their trust beautifully rewarded. Just imagine those stats if the Gooners actually had a half decent striker. Ozil is available at 8.9mln – whether it’s right or not to downgrade Alexis is for you to decide. But bear in mind Wenger’s recent reported comments that Alexis will be given a mid-season break soon and that Ozil didn’t travel with the German squad this international break. It’s a pretty compelling case.

We are now going to mention Chelsea again, purely on the strength of their upcoming fixtures. We know selecting any Chelsea attacker right now is a huge leap of faith and should probably only be reserved for the ultimate gambler. However, there is a school of thought that a team that won the league just last season and is full of international players cannot be this bad forever. Well, we could argue that all day. If you are in the camp that believes that things will improve then surely this is your moment – the good run starts now with Norwich coming to the Bridge on Saturday. That is followed up with home matches vs Bournemouth, Sunderland and Watford all in the next 6 game-weeks. If they don’t improve now, then they never will. But who should we buy? That of course, is the million dollar question. The most likely names are Willian and Eden Hazard. Willian because he has at least shown glimpses of form – two goals and two assists in the league this season, goals and assists in the Champions League and for Brazil also. Hardly stats that scream, “I’m the man” but it’s some form nonetheless. And he’s not expensive. For just 6.9mln you get the best performing Chelsea midfielder, so he’s not going to break your bank and give you some Chelsea coverage through this run of fixtures. Hazard of course, should be, and normally is, the player every FPL manager is chasing and trying to raise the funds for. However, his form has been atrocious, with just one goal and three assists so far. Compare that to 14 goals and 10 assists in each of the previous two seasons. So, we know he can do it and we know he can be so explosive when on form – jeez he was on most Captain articles last season. If you’re tempted then understand it’s a punt – it could go horribly wrong, yet it could, if it works, propel you up the rankings. Bear in mind that earlier this week he was suffering from illness and had been ruled of Belgium’s friendly with Spain, before the match was cancelled – so wait for news from Friday’s presser before taking the jump into the unknown.

Well, if we haven’t sold you on those two punts, strap yourself in for another. This one you’ll like, we hope. But we need your honesty here. Who wasn’t gutted when they didn’t invest in Deulofeu, Lukaku or even Kone when Sunderland came to Goodison in GW11? The fixture was well flagged, everyone predicted goals. Well played if you selected carefully and were rewarded. Ok, part two. Who wasn’t gutted when they didn’t invest and captain Aguero for the visit of Newcastle in GW8? Moving forward, what could be better than a punt on a player who has consecutive home matches vs Sunderland and Newcastle coming up? Yannick Bolasie is just that man. The Palace midfielder scored up at Anfield in the Eagles’ victory over Liverpool in GW12 and also scored twice for Congo in two internationals over the last fortnight. Priced at just 6.1mln, Bolaise is bang in form, gives you a couple of lovely fixtures and this week the bonus of maintaining some Monday night interest. Oh… he also scored a hat-trick vs Sunderland last season.

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FORWARDS

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[/three_fourth]The forward on most people’s lips right now is Romelu Lukaku and we certainly wouldn’t dissuade you from buying him. Everton’s favourable run of fixtures we have already highlighted in the article and for those fixtures you can pick up Lukaku for just 8.6mln. The Belgian has already scored seven goals this season and has scored in each of his previous two games. Four assists add to his season’s tally and if you are looking for a new striker and have the cash, he seems a bit of a no-brainer to be quite honest. You may of course be saving your cash for a certain City forward, so if you’re looking for a cheaper option but with the same fixture coverage then Arouna Kone could work well for you. Kone costs just 4.8mln… 4.8mln!!!! With that price comes of course risk – that risk is reduced game time as Kone has only completed 90mins once this season – that was in GW11 when he scored a hatty vs Sunderland. Oh and assisted once for a 20pt return. That week was of course the exception rather than the rule but it shows what Kone can do when given the opportunity, given the weaker opposition and given the chances. Will he be given those chances over the next few weeks? Yes, probably.

Many of us were suspicious after Harry Kane’s hat-trick vs Bournemouth in GW10 – after all Artur Boruc was the major assister in Kane’s haul. Some managers however jumped on the bandwagon – “Kane is back”, they cried. And we all remember the Kane of last season, scoring vs everyone and as cheap as chips in FPL. A goal in each of his last two subsequent games confirms that Kane is indeed back and although he’s not anywhere near as cheap as he was last season, goals are goals and points are points at the end of the day. Kane will cost you 9.4mln right now and Spurs have a decent run of fixtures now – only Chelsea in GW14 looks tough….but does it really??!! Like Lukaku, you have a striker in form with a decent run of matches coming up. Who you choose depends on your personal preference and maybe budget too.

Olivier Giroud is difficult to ignore. For a variety of reasons. His dashing looks. His perfectly manicured hair. The continuous missing of gilt-edged chances. The fact that he is Arsenal’s only fit striker. His goal record. Let’s concentrate on that last point for now. Six goals already this season, includes four in his last six league matches. That’s pretty good, better than most, not to be sniffed at. Chuck in Walcott’s latest injury and that means Giroud has no real competition for the striking role for a good few weeks and with the next four fixtures vs West Brom, Norwich, Sunderland and Villa, one can realistically expect our French Adonis to be on the end of plenty of chances from his creative midfield – now, if Giroud could only put more of them away then he’d be a must have!

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Thanks for reading Fantasy Football Tips Game-week 13. This article was written by Cookie.

Follow @SteveCook9

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