Fantasy Premier League Tips Gameweek 23 Part Two
Welcome to Fantasy Premier League Tips Gameweek 23. Ah, Back to the Future – what a series of films. We may not have hover boards (well, not real ones anyway – any with wheels don’t count), but other aspects have come to fruition like video calling and voice control and then there’s the question asked in disbelief: “Then tell me, future boy, who’s the President of the United States?”. I won’t go further there.
Of course, if we had our own time machine (I’m still happy with a DeLorean!), we could go back to 11:00am UK time on 21st January and change around our teams to get the best possible scores, not to mention the betting possibilities with an accumulator including Swansea winning 3-2 at Liverpool! Andy Carroll could even have been my captain! Great Scott, it’s a weird state of affairs when you wish for that.
So, why am I rambling on about time travel? Well, this article will see me pick players among those with the best form over the past five games, whilst also looking ahead to their next three all-important upcoming fixtures, with a rating out of 10. The observant folk out there will have noticed that part one (Goalkeepers and Defenders) was published a couple of days ago. Today we focus on Midfielders and Forwards.
Midfielders
Bamidele Alli Form: 11.2 Fixtures: 7/10
[three_fifth padding=”0 20px 0 0″]
[/three_fifth]On the subject of time travel, I appear to have repeated exactly what I did last year and been late to the Alli party after six incredible gameweeks. He’s in my team now, anyway. Better late than never, I suppose.
This guy’s form at the moment is unreal, having earned himself an incredible 56 points over the past five games, scoring seven goals and an assist in that time. Will this form last? Well, he’s the most transferred in midfielder so far this gameweek which is usually a good omen and then you look at who is unfortunate to play against him next – Sunderland. The Black Cats have only kept two clean sheets so far this season and, languishing at the bottom of the table, they also have the third highest amount of goals scored against them. After that, Middlesbrough visit White Hart Lane and you have to fancy the home team to do well in that one as well. Liverpool, who have conceded seven in the last five, are then on Alli’s radar.
Alexis Sanchez Form: 7.0 Fixtures: 7/10
Talking of better late than never, I’m sure a lot of fantasy managers were relieved to see Sanchez score his late, late penalty and get some good captain points in the process. The Chilean has 35 points to his name from the last five gameweeks, including three goals and one tantrum under his coat. Oh, and don’t forget the banners paying homage to Sanchez and his two dogs, Atom and Humber. Met with howls of derision (sorry) on Twitter, no doubt. He’s now joint top of the goal scoring charts with Diego Costa, fifth on the amount of assists, first on the amount of through balls and boasts the third highest amount of shots. Who’s a good boy?!
On the back of such impressive stats (and dog-related banners, of course), I wouldn’t be surprised to see a lot of managers keep the captain’s armband on Sanchez when Watford make the short trip to visit. There is the solid defence of Chelsea he’ll need to break through after that, but then Hull – who have the dubious honour of the worst goal difference in the league – come to the Emirates in what could be a very one-sided game. He is well worth the £11.9m price tag.
Matt Philips Form: 5.8 Fixtures: 8/10
Whilst Brunt and Fletcher managed to find the back of the net in West Brom’s match against Sunderland, many fantasy managers who have invested in the super cheap Matt Philips were left frustrated as he couldn’t find the back of the net in that match, as much as he tried. So far, the best part of 20,000 people have brought him into their teams this gameweek, buoyed on by the hope the £5.9m player can put in the kind of points scoring he did against Hull and Southampton. Middlesbrough, Stoke and West Ham present good goal scoring opportunities, with the Hammers the leakiest of the three at the back, having conceded 36 goals in 22 matches.
Paul Pogba Form: 4.8 Fixtures: 9/10
[three_fifth padding=”0 20px 0 0″]
[/three_fifth]When I was researching who to include in this article – a very painstaking process, I hasten to add – the form of Pogba was quite a surprise to me. I’ll be honest, I thought it would be lower than the 4.8 but, scratch under the surface and you’ll see he scored seven points at home to Sunderland and 10 against Middlesbrough when he scored his most recent goal.
Since then, he’s of course had his own emoji and given away a penalty to Liverpool with a mid-air dab. Oh and he is joint top with Victor Wanyama on the fouls committed chart. So why am I picking him? Well, he’s actually completed the second highest amount of passes, is ranked fifth on the amount of shots, second on the amount of through balls and, interestingly, has hit the woodwork five times this season. So, you could say there is a degree of unluckiness in a few of his games! With Hull – a team who have conceded 47 in 22 games, an average of 2.13 per game – coming to Old Trafford this gameweek, I wouldn’t be at all surprised to see the £8.5m midfielder get in and amongst the points.
Junior Stanislas Form: 4.2 Fixtures: 6/10
Climbing back into the DeLorean and entering 20th January 2009 would take you to Barack Obama’s inauguration. On that date, Bournemouth were 23rd in League 2. Now look at them, 12th in the Premier League. Junior Stanislas is currently on some good form after returning from his ankle injury, having scored once and assisted twice in the last five games.
Looking ahead, The Cherries welcome Crystal Palace to the Vitality Stadium. The Eagles have slipped into the relegation zone after four straight defeats and I wouldn’t be surprised to see the home team benefit in this fixture. At £5.3m, he’s a great fourth or even fifth midfielder in your team.
Dusan Tadic Form: 4.2 Fixtures: 9/10
Is Tadic about to rediscover the kind of form he’s had in sections of other seasons? Well, with 21 points in the last five gameweeks, of which nine were in the game against Leicester when he scored, it may be a bit too early to tell. That said, the £7.0m player is away to Swansea this gameweek which will most probably be The Saints’ fourth win in a row as they play a team that has conceded a whopping 51 goals so far this season. West Ham and then Sunderland are next in the firing line for Tadic, also presenting great points potential. Owned by just 1.3 per cent of managers, he presents great differential too.
Forwards
Harry Kane Form: 8.8 Fixtures: 7/10
[three_fifth padding=”0 20px 0 0″]
[/three_fifth]Like his teammate Alli, Kane is enjoying a fantastic run of form at the moment, with 44 points collected in the last five matches. Highlights include his hat trick against West Brom and the two goals and an assist in their 4-1 win over Watford. He’s now the third highest goalscorer, incredible considering he’s missed five matches, though I distinctly remember he couldn’t find the back of the net in the matches at home to Burnley and Hull. Not that I’m still bitter about that, or anything.
It’s fair to say he’s indispensable to Spurs, though. In the five games he was out, they only scored an average of 1.2 goals per game. Since he came back, Spurs have found the back of the net 31 times, giving an average of 2.58 goals per game.
Kane is the third most transferred-in player this gameweek and I wouldn’t be surprised to see his price rise even higher than the £11.1m it is at the time of writing. And, of course, there’s those three fixtures coming up that present some good goalscoring opportunities.
Olivier Giroud Form: 7.4 Fixtures: 7/10
A good few managers would have screamed “Sacre Bleu!” (or something more blue, of course) when they had a look at their fantasy team on Saturday night to see Arsenal had scored twice and yet Giroud only came away with two points. The four games prior to the Burnley match saw the Frenchman get 35 points, having scored in each fixture.
Never mind, I’ve still included him in my picks as I believe the form of four of the past five games will continue to shine through in at least two of the three fixtures coming up. Indeed, he certainly had potential to get on the scoresheet against Burnley, with Ramsey’s rabona cross that got rudely interrupted by a defender particularly springing to mind. At £8.7m, you could do a lot worse than have Giroud as your third forward.
Zlatan Ibrahimovic Form: 7.4 Fixtures: 9/10
Like with Giroud, a great run also came to an end for Zlatan. Having scored five or more points in six consecutive games, there was disappointment as he didn’t find the back of the net in the 1-1 draw away at Stoke. I feel, though, that the match at the bet365 Stadium was just a blip – he apparently couldn’t do it on a cold Sunday afternoon at Stoke. Now the third highest goalscorer, Zlatan is additionally the most selected forward in fantasy football (43.3 per cent of managers own him now). He could also boast – naturally, it is Zlatan after all – that he has the highest amount of shots (90 in 21 games), a very impressive statistic. Interestingly, he’s been caught offside the most of any player in the Premier League, too, having wondered 28 times.
And then there’s the Hull match coming up. You’ll have read the statistics about them when I’ve written about Pogba and others who have them coming up (The Tigers really do have some horrific fixtures) and so I won’t bore you with them again. One thing, however, that I will say is that Zlatan – who costs £11.7m – is essential for this coming gameweek.
Andre Gray Form: 7.0 Fixtures: 7/10
Andre Gray has hit a great bit of form recently, rewarding the 5.1 per cent of fantasy managers who own him. As previously mentioned, he scored the penalty against Arsenal and, of course, there was the hat trick at home to Sunderland, along with the winning goal when Middlesbrough came to Turf Moor.
Those stuck between Gray and Carroll for a £6.2m forward would probably be best picking the Burnley forward, thanks to more favourable fixtures. First up is a visit by Leicester, who have conceded six goals in the last two games, followed by Watford away which could also present a goalscoring opportunity. Admittedly their game after that is against Chelsea, however playing at home does make the match slightly less predictable than if it was to be played at Stamford Bridge.
Romelu Lukaku Form: 5.6 Fixtures: 8/10
Lukaku has had a bit of a mixed bag the last five matches. Unfortunately, it was a Blankaku result in gameweeks 19 and 22, however he managed to score against Leicester, Southampton and Man City. Pretty unpredictable, you’d think. Well, believe it or not, there is a bit of a pattern to Lukaku’s scoring. Since his hat trick away at Sunderland in September, gameweeks five, 10, 15 and 20 have been the only gameweeks he has scored 10 or more points. So, looking at that pattern, who is he facing for gameweek 25? Middlesbrough away. Of course, it is pure coincidence and it would be great if he could break with this pattern and score loads in his games against Stoke and Bournemouth in gameweeks 23 and 24 respectively!
The £9.6m player is fourth on the goalscorer charts, now, having overtaken the likes of Hazard and Aguero.
Diego Costa Form 2.8 Fixtures: 5/10
[three_fifth padding=”0 20px 0 0″]
[/three_fifth]Here’s a query for you. If you were to hop into the DeLorean and go forward or backwards 10 years, would Diego Costa still look 57? Either way, it looks like he’s not leaving Chelsea. The goal celebration in his 100th match for the club very much suggested the media should shut up (whatever that means). He also made sure to acknowledge Conte and each member of staff as he was substituted off in the 86th minute.
Now the most transferred-in forward this gameweek, Costa has some tricky fixtures coming up. Liverpool are, quite frankly, rubbish in defence at the moment and I wouldn’t be surprised to see Costa score one or two. The lads in blue do, however, then face Arsenal (which may be a test on his discipline, if history is anything to go by). Following that, it’s an away day in Burnley which probably won’t be as straightforward as you may think.
Sergio Aguero Form: 2.6 Fixtures: 9/10
“Why on earth are you including this clown as your final pick?!”, I’m sure a few of you are muttering, especially as more people have sold him this gameweek than have bought him. That and the fact he’s £12.8m and has accrued just 13 points in the four games he has played since his suspension, very sloppy for his standards.
Well, through playing fantasy football for a good few years, I’ve learned to follow the odd gut feeling. I don’t know why, but I have a sneaky feeling that Aguero is going to have a brilliant game at West Ham. A repeat of Man City’s 5-0 rout in the FA Cup on 6th January? Probably not, but a game nonetheless that could well springboard Aguero’s attention from a ‘keep an eye on’ to ‘essential’. After the trip to London, he’s up against the hopeless defence of Swansea at the Etihad, followed by Bournemouth away. Not bad fixtures at all.
Thanks for reading Fantasy Premier League Tips Gameweek 23 (Part 2). This article was written by The Swirly
Vote on our Captain Poll Now
We are running the main public FF247 League which anyone is welcome to join by using the following code 1147-701 (auto-link below). This one has a prize pool of £250 which is sponsored by @FootballFanager and will be paid into your account on their website. The top 5 places are paid out.
Join Our League – Quick Link
League Code: 1147-701
View league standings
New for the 2016/17 we are delighted to announce we are running a Regulars League which has a cash prize pool of £300 paid directly to the winners from the FF247 management team.
To enter this one you need to be an active and recognised site member and you need to e-mail us for the league code – Elleffcee@fantasyfootball247.co.uk *terms and conditions apply and are available upon request. Management reserve the right to review membership of this league on an ongoing basis.
And just for reference over the weekend here is how GW28 is shaping up with the games on so far, the games at risk and who each team is playing in the cup so you can judge the likelihood of each game going ahead…
0.1 itb. Do I save my Ft this gw or should I use it ?? Gentlemen, I would really like some views and suggestions. Thank you all.
Save it IMO.
I think I would save that also, unless someone gets injured this weekend, I reconsider then.
Thank you Smithy and Mito… Here’s to a good gw for you guys.. Cheers?
Hi guys
I have 2 FTs and 1.9m in the bank
Any suggestions please?
@Smithy, think you are fine this GW, problem is, you have two freebies and I wouldn’t want to lose one and pass up an opportunity to be better set for the double blank in 26 and 28. So my inclination is to make one transfer in the direction of the teams who play both GWs. We know of four as of this moment, but we will know the rest by Monday if there is to be any more teams that play both. I would say one Arsenal guy to an Everton player makes sense long term, but it is hard to pass up that Watford fixture. Maybe Capoue to Lanzini could be a consideration if you want to keep all 3 Arsenal for this GW. Or Amat to a Baggie or Toffee defender. Swansea might play in both GWs by the way, but one, who cares and two, he is currently not starting anyway.
& he scores 0 when he does play.
Amat -> Holgate, job done.
Cheers, I am concerned about not having Sanchez as I got burnt last week but it is wise to plan for the future
@Smithy, I be concerned about not having Sanchez either. Ideally you would have him, but in the captaincy article coming out, read the Giroud part and see if that helps a bit to lower your fears. But as I said in a perfect fpl world he be on your team, but perhaps he won’t eat you alive? To be continued….
When considering who to keep from Arsenal, Southampton, City or United, we must factor in not only their blank in 26, but the very good possibility of a blank in 28 for all 4 teams. Also if you plan to bench them, you must also consider their fixture in 27 and 29 to see if they really do seem worth sitting on the bench.
If we assume the most likely scenario and these 4 have a blank in 26 and 28 then we should be looking at it this way.
Arsenal:
Gw26> Blank
GW27> LFC away
GW28> Blank
GW29> West Brom away
City:
Gw26> Blank
GW27> Sunderland away
GW28> Blank
GW29> LFC home
Saints:
Gw26> Blank
GW27> Watford away
GW28> Blank
GW29> Spurs away
United:
Gw26> Blank
GW27> Bournemouth home
GW28> Blank
GW29> Boro away
Think will have to do away with Sanchez! Have built up on his price but people will sell him like crazy so that won’t be a problem
@Snookie, that is my read also, guessing he will be the most sold player right after GW25 starts if they have a double blank. I bought Sanchez for 11.3 and can sell him for 11.6, so just need for him to drop .3 over that span and I won’t lose money, just a bit of value.
Mito, thanks for the update. It shows that we might hold on to the players from Utd and City as they have relatively easier fixtures in GW27-29.. But, that would depend on every individual’s team. I e.g. have Ibra , Valencia, Sterling, Sanchez and Giroud for the mentioned 4 teams. Will definitety hold on to SAnchez as I’ve had him since GW1 and we might even see his price grow to 12m by the weekend. Giroud can definitely become Lukaku after this week. Will need to monitor Sterling’s returns in the next 3 GWs and Ibra/Valencia are totally price fluctuations based. May be I’ll do Giroud to Lukaku this week itself.
constantine– you don’t fancy Giroud at home to Watford? I can’t reach Kane without weakening my midfield, so am also thinking of Lukaku as Giroud’s replacement… Was going to wait one more week though especially as it’d be for a hit.
Pippin..Giroud was my first priority, hence took a -4 hit for him 2 weeks ago. But, did you see his play against Burnley.. Minimal participation. And the team seems to not passing to him much. Secondly, Walcott is fine now and Welbeck too. That will hamper his gametime?
Good thinking. I am somewhat on the fence re when to get him out. Going to see how they line up in the cup games, I think, and hold the transfer a couple more days.
Ok -a small brainstorming session now things are a bit more clearer :
-Getting Ibra in for Hull – does not seem like a good idea at all now
-Actually none of the UTD team does (Pogba/Jones etc)
-Owning 3 Spurs players is not a must anymore
-2 blanks for Kun – so maybe it is really time to let go ?
-ARS – > is Sanchez the only player worth keeping till the end of the season ?
-Time to get the “king of despair” Lukaku ?
-Time to switch Walker to one of Coleman/Baines (longterm) ?
Our teams will suffer big changes and we will probably see a lot of price changes and crazy panic sales in the following weeks.
This will be the “make or break” moment of the season – me thinks!
Time to get back to our drawing boards and get ready for the hectic period ahead.
I wouldnt bring Utd players in at this stage due to the blank in gw26 and more than likely blank in gw28 but i wouldnt stop anybody bringing in Spurs or tripling up on them.They only potentialy blank in gw28 which is 5 gameweeks off ! If i had a spurs defender or mid i would probably just bench them,maybe even Kane too.Out of the 4 teams that deffo play gw28 ask yourself which players you would actually be happy to have and is having a full starting 11 that important at the cost of ripping your team up just for one gameweek ? Dont forget most people are in the same boat and a lot of players wont even be aware of the blanks or do any planning.I’m pretty lucky in that i already have 6 players for gw28 and will probably have 10 starters by the time the gameweek comes round barring injuries.
I actually love this part of the season,sorts the wheat from the chaff !!
“sorts the wheat from the chaff ” – love it
!
Hmmm, I was just thinking. I could do a lot of changes to prepare my team for GW26 and GW28 the upcoming weeks. But the past has shown me this not always works out. You make changes and don’t go with your first choices you would have made if those blanks wouldn’t be there. Which means you end up with your 2nd, 3rd or even 4th+ choice. No that by itself is not a real issue if you get 1 or 2 extra games. What we have to take into account is that rarely things go the way we want them to go. So when you decide to go for a 3rd or 4rd choice player, keep in mind that even they can get injured, can get ill or be rested for GW26 or GW28. I see a lot of people mentioning Holgage, dude did very well and I hope he keeps his spot. But there is someone like Jagielke (cappo) sitting on the bench. We don’t know what will happen. Only thing I know is that I will keep my FT’s as long as possible and wait for as much news as I can.
My transfer was going to be Giroud to Kun but with the new updates I actually considered Giroud to Lukaku and he would never be on my list otherwise. Also, considering Amat to Holgate (transfer that really can’t go wrong). Just have 1 ft though> hehe.
Ooh on more thing about the planning. The initial plan was setup a team with Sanchez-Costa-Ibra-Kun. I have to money to get Kun but that plan really hasn’t worked out well, has it? So, end of rant, be careful what you wish for. 😉
Peace and love Raz, that’s all I wish for.
Cookies?
I have enough Cookies thanks
Just chaos and hate Raz, that’s all I wish for. 😉
With your current ranking there is not much else left to wish for. :p
Sanchez Costa Ibra and Kun?? Is that even possible in a team with a full playing 11??
Oh yeah. Raz can do it now. Just click on his name and look at his team. He has quite a bit in the bank and would still have a decent midfield and playing defenders.
Lol @ playing defenders. HAHAHAHA!
Actually, what I did. I got both Stanislas and ummm Phillips just before they became really popular. Especially Stanislas I bought when he just came back from the injury and everybody was calling him a doubt.
Anyway, I did that for freaking Kun whom has been the biggest letdown so far.
Think players like Seamus/Baines, Lukaku, certain Baggies and Antonio possibly even Lanzini or Andy are not bad ideas. Obviously not all of them, but if I had 3 Toffees, 2-3 Baggies and Antonio/Lanzini or Andy along with any Bournemouth player who starts, I be happy with that team and wouldn’t feel compromised going forward. Everton is in good form, Hammers attacking players have looked good, Baggies keep delivering be it Phillips or Brunt/McAuley and the punt could be Stanislas or some other Bournemouth player, but I probably wouldn’t take a hit for a Cherry. Most of these players are defenders or 4th-5th mid types and Lukaku is a 3rd forward type on most teams nowadays. So if you get a couple of these, one might do well and compromise the team too badly. I agree on Holgate, that one looks a bit scary to me.
Hmmm…. Now you’ve gotten me thinking. Considering I’m halfway there with 3 toffees and Phillips. Check out my team in the next comment.
And since you’ve given this so much thought I’d probably get back to you if I do indeed decide to go with it. But for that Kun has to start firing. Else thats just 13 mil down the drain
Hmmm, agree with what was said. You are a pervy man Mito, a real pervert. I mean wise, wisdom. Or something. Hmm. I don’t know. You are a kind soul. No, that’s not true. You are only human afterall? But really, are you? I don’t know.
On a more serious note. Yeah, that was what I was thinking. I was also just thinking to go with players I like now and just take a few hits when the time comes. Hehe. 😉
You find Holgate scary looking? Have you looked in the mirror lately? :p
Hey guys. Been a while since iv commented on here. Kudos on the great job guys. Can’t emphasize how much if a boon your tips and advice are. Especially when it comes to making a decision thats just too hard to make.
Attached below is my team. Iv used up my free transfer and have 0 itb. Any advice on of I should WildCard soon? Or any transfers I need to work on keeping the upcoming game weeks in mind. Need to make up a whopping 100 points in my mini league and the desperation is starting to show.
Thanks in advance guys n keep up the good work
FPL, very good team.. Triple Everton def could pay out well. But, will bite you the same.rest looks gtg
Thanks Constantine. Its all about making up the 100 points in my mini league. And as far as I can tell. 3 Everton defense is the cheapest way to do that without compromising on the attack. Just hope those 3 play each game. Unless they have a bad week. In which case I’m screwed anyway since my sub’s aren’t of much use.
Will my team by affected by any blanks?
Check all the above comments.. 90% on blanks..
Everyone there is likely to have a blank in 28 and 5 of them will definitely have one in 26 as it is.
Rip to me
No, you are fine.