Tips

The Complete Guide to Scout’s tips and advice to Double Gameweek 25

Welcome to the Fantasy Football Scout Guide to Double Gameweek 25 ahead of today’s 18:30 GMT deadline.

Leeds United and Southampton are the two teams with the extra fixture – the Saints travel to Elland Road on Tuesday evening.

The other main talking point as we plot our moves for the current round of fixtures and beyond, is the potential of more Double Gameweeks in the near future. Pep Guardiola hinted that Gameweeks 26 and 27 will be Doubles for his side but at the time of writing, we await confirmation from the Premier League.

Captain Candidates

Patrick Bamford (£6.9), Raphinha (£5.4m) and Danny Ings (£8.5m) are the leading trio in the captain poll, with the highly-owned Bamford the popular choice.

The best-value forward in FPL, returning over 19.1 points per million spent, Bamford has garnered over 50 per cent of the vote. This in itself poses Fantasy managers an intriguing shield/sword dilemma:

[Bamford]’s currently in just over 53 per cent of teams, the bulk of those will captain him so if you don’t captain Bamford you will probably get pretty much no ranking gain from him, [and] you could possibly get a red arrow if there’s a surge of support in people drafting him in. Whereas Raphinha was in under three per cent of teams [so] if you captain him the gains could be absolutely huge.

– Joe, Captaincy Video

The potential for either Leeds player to do well is there, especially in that Tuesday fixture. As Jan pointed out in his Captain Sensible article, Southampton have given up 11 big chances in the last four matches, the joint-most in the Premier League, while only Liverpool have a worse expected goals conceded (xGC) figure.

Encouraging stuff. But two bits of team news could influence our decisions.

Marcelo Bielsa confirmed that Kalvin Phillips (£4.9m) will miss the first match against Wolves and could possibly sit out the Southampton game too. While Ralph Hasenhüttl revealed that Southampton will be without Kyle Walker-Peters (£4.7m) for a few weeks. 

Without Kalvin Phillips they are really not the same team, he is the guy that holds the whole thing together both defensively and going forward … he’s missed five games this year and … Bamford’s blanked in three of those five games so it makes me a bit worried about him.

– David, Captaincy Video

Speaking on the Scoutcast, “professor of LeedsSeb, as he was dubbed by Joe, conceded that Phillips offers more than Pascal Struijk (£3.9m) in an attacking sense. But, nonetheless, his optimal Leeds trio for the Double would be Bamford, Raphinha and Jack Harrison (£5.5m).

The absence of Walker-Peters is good news for Harrison in particular. The Saints have conceded 17 chances down their right flank over their last four matches and with Walker-Peters missing out, it means we could see one of the centre-backs filling in.

Although, Brazilian Raphinha could also benefit:

Harrison and Raphinha have swapped sides a couple of times in the last few matches … Harrison was obviously subbed off last match … but Raphinha actually moved to the left with Hélder Costa coming on the right, so there is a chance you’ll see Raphinha on the left.

And on Harrison himself, his last two goals I believe, certainly his last goal, came straight down the middle. So if he’s up against the weak full-back that might be more for the assist [but] for the actual goals we might see him making those runs through the middle.

So I think realistically, what’s the crux of this conversation, it’s all quite close. Get the three attackers if you can, if you can’t get Bamford and Raphinha.

– Seb

Raphinha and Harrison touch heatmap last four matches

When it comes to deciding who to captain, it’s worth noting that Raphinha takes corners while Bamford is expected to stay on penalty duties.

No Premier League team has conceded more spot-kicks this season than Wolves (seven). And Southampton are not doing particularly well in that department, either, having given up four penalties  in 2020/21.

But Danny Ings should not be discounted, the Saints talisman has recorded six attempts on goal in his last two Premier League fixtures, including three big chances. And Southampton’s high-press could prove effective against Leeds, as Arsenal discovered in Gameweek 24 scoring four goals. 

Speaking on FPL Black Box, Pro Pundit Mark revealed that he is contemplating buying Ings with one of his two free transfers, factoring in that Southampton may have three Double Gameweeks in the next four. Although, as Greyhead noted in the 100th edition of The Great and The Good, how many of us will trust Danny Ings’ fragile hamstring to manage two games in quick succession?

And, as Jamie pointed out in his Members-only analysis of Southampton, if Ralph Hasenhüttl’s side are to get the best out of Ings, then they will need to create more chances, with the Saints creation ranking near the bottom in their last six matches.

Nonetheless, Ings is the only Southampton player included in the Scout Picks starting XI alongside a triple up of Bamford, Raphinha and Stuart Dallas (£5.0m) from Marcelo Bielsa’s troops.

Pro Pundit Plans

Along with Jack Harrison, the other players who could exploit the weakness down Southampton’s right side are Timo Werner (£9.2m) and Marcos Alonso (£5.7m).

I get the feeling that [Alonso] could drop a 15-pointer in any game if he continues in the same attacking vein. It looks like Tuchel is going to persist with the 3-4-3 formation and his comments with regards to Alonso seems particularly encouraging.

– Lateriser

As high-flying Pro Pundit Andy mentioned, the Spaniard offers massive potential at both ends of the pitch if you can cope with him missing the odd game.

Chelsea were picked out by both Andy and Lateriser due to their appealing fixtures, despite a difficult-looking Gameweek 26.

West Brom, Leeds and Palace are all in the bottom three for expected goals conceded this season, with Everton the seventh-worst team in the league. The fixtures from Gameweek 27 look prime for goals.

– Andy

Werner, who has started Chelsea’s last four matches under new boss Thomas Tuchel, has accumulated the joint-highest number of big chances (five) over the last four Gameweeks. 

Lateriser also noted that for those who are not Wildcarding in Gameweeks 25/26, there is a decent fixture swing in Gameweek 31, and it could be a good time to Wildcard. Something fellow Pro Pundit Az is planning to do, his thinking no doubt supported by some colourful spreadsheets!

Meanwhile, Werner was not one of the forward options being considered by Hall of Fame No 1 Fábio Borges.

The consistent top 10,000 manager is looking to replace the injured Michail Antonio (£6.6m) in his side and, after running the rule over several candidates, it boiled down to getting Danny Ings now or benching Antonio before buying Dominic Calvert-Lewin (£7.7m) for Double Gameweek 26.

Community Competitions and Head-to-Head Fixtures

This is your last chance to enter the open-to-all Fantasy Football Scout Cup with qualifying for the first round taking place in Gameweek 25. Qualifying for the Members Cup – entry for Premium Members only – gets underway in Gameweek 26.

A total of £300 in prizes is available across the two tournaments.

RedLightning rounded-up the latest Community mini-leagues and competitions.

Impressively, the two main FFScout mini-leagues are the top two Leagues in FPL, followed by Andy’s own mini-league. Well done to the top five managers in each of those mini-leagues.

There’s been another small tweak this week by Mat (aka matzi11a) to the fixtures and results displayed on the Head-to-Head Leagues main page.

From now on the scores and tables will update each night, so managers can see how they are getting on as the Gameweek unfolds.

The fixtures for Gameweek 25 can be found below:

Use the drop-down menus to show your league and division. To find out which league and division you are in, follow the instructions on the main Head-to-Head page.

Once the Gameweek starts, if you click on your opponent’s name you will be linked to their team on the FPL website.

May your arrows be green!

TopMarx Fan of Fantasy Football and Monty Python. "Archimedes out to Socrates, Socrates back to Archimedes, Archimedes out to Heraclitus, he beats Hegel. Heraclitus a little flick, here he comes on the far post, Socrates is there, Socrates heads it in! Socrates has scored! The Greeks are going mad, the Greeks are going mad! Socrates scores, got a beautiful cross from Archimedes. The Germans are disputing it. Hegel is arguing that the reality is merely an a priori adjunct of non-naturalistic ethics, Kant via the categorical imperative is holding that ontologically it exists only in the imagination, and Marx is claiming it was offside. Follow them on Twitter

2,870 Comments Post a Comment
  1. AD105
    • 7 Years
    3 years, 28 days ago

    Play Mee or Dias this week?

    Already have Pope and Cancelo starting so would be doubling up on City vs Arsenal or Burnley vs WBA

    1. dbeck
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 6 Years
      3 years, 28 days ago

      dias,

      1. mikess
        • Fantasy Football Scout Member
        • 13 Years
        3 years, 28 days ago

        This

    2. mash
      • 11 Years
      3 years, 28 days ago

      I'd start Dias

  2. mash
    • 11 Years
    3 years, 28 days ago

    Happy Mad Friday everyone!

    Pope
    Cancelo Dias Dallas
    Salah Bruno Gundogan Soucek Anguissa
    Bamford(c) DCL

    McCarthy Antonio Robertson Coufal

    2FT, 3.8 in the bank. WC and TC available.

    Planning to dead-end GW29, so prefer to roll an FT for next week, but tempted to use two now. Looking for a sense check on my plan:

    - Anguissa to Raphinha now, and bench Antonio
    - For GW26 do Robertson & Soucek to Targett & Son

    This means I have 9 players with 2 fixtures in GW26 (assuming Ben's predictions are correct), and 7 with fixtures in GW29 plus 3FTs before then.

    Anything I've overlooked? Good luck to all 🙂

    1. mikess
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 13 Years
      3 years, 28 days ago

      Your suggested transfer looks solid

      1. mash
        • 11 Years
        3 years, 28 days ago

        Cheers!

  3. mikess
    • Fantasy Football Scout Member
    • 13 Years
    3 years, 28 days ago

    Start Grealish or DCL?

    1. mash
      • 11 Years
      3 years, 28 days ago

      DCL

      1. mikess
        • Fantasy Football Scout Member
        • 13 Years
        3 years, 28 days ago

        Cheers

    2. RAFA THE GAFFA
      • 7 Years
      3 years, 28 days ago

      Dom

      1. mikess
        • Fantasy Football Scout Member
        • 13 Years
        3 years, 28 days ago

        Thanks

  4. marcos11
    • 3 Years
    3 years, 28 days ago

    Start Gundo or Barnes?

    1. mash
      • 11 Years
      3 years, 28 days ago

      Harvey or Ashley Barnes? In either case I think I'd start Gundo anyway.

      1. marcos11
        • 3 Years
        3 years, 28 days ago

        Harvey

    2. mikess
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 13 Years
      3 years, 28 days ago

      Gundo

  5. lelou881
    • Fantasy Football Scout Member
    • 4 Years
    3 years, 28 days ago

    Play McCarthy or Martinez?

    1. marcos11
      • 3 Years
      3 years, 28 days ago

      McCarthy

      1. lelou881
        • Fantasy Football Scout Member
        • 4 Years
        3 years, 28 days ago

        Thanks

    2. dansully3
      • 7 Years
      3 years, 28 days ago

      Mart. Mac could be dropped

  6. HonestBlatter
    • 13 Years
    3 years, 28 days ago

    Give those f*** fixtures now

    1. RAFA THE GAFFA
      • 7 Years
      3 years, 28 days ago

      Future?

    2. Bury94
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 6 Years
      3 years, 28 days ago

      Fish?

  7. Baron Penguin
    • Fantasy Football Scout Member
    • 3 Years
    3 years, 28 days ago

    Chasing so my 2FT are Antonio/Soucek to Bamford/Harrison to go with Raphinha (C). Could go wrong but worth a try! Good luck all.

    1. RAFA THE GAFFA
      • 7 Years
      3 years, 28 days ago

      Good moves as long as you have a WC to get out of it

  8. Catastrophe
    • 13 Years
    3 years, 28 days ago

    With all the uncertainty and shenanigans, what's best!?

    A) Ings & Konsa (Son on bench). Ings & Raphinha -> Watkins & Barnes (-4) in GW26
    B) Son & Targett (Watkins on bench). Raphinha -> Barnes in GW26

    Cheers

  9. Vlekz
      3 years, 28 days ago

      Bench 2
      A)Dias(have ederson)
      B)Watkins
      C)barnes
      D)TAA
      E) R pereira(lei defender)

    • RAFA THE GAFFA
      • 7 Years
      3 years, 28 days ago

      Guys, not happy with my starting 11. Got 1FT and 8.5m ITB. Thinking one of these, but which?

      A. Antonio >> Ings(x2)
      B. Antonio >> Kane
      C. Soucek >> Salah
      D. Antonio+Son >> Kane+Salah (-4)

      McCarthy
      Dallas, Cancelo, Tarko
      Son, Bruno, Gündo*, Raphina
      Bamford, Antonio*, DCL
      (Pope, Dias, Coufal, Soucek)

      1. FPL Alaska
        • Fantasy Football Scout Member
        • 9 Years
        3 years, 28 days ago

        B

        1. RAFA THE GAFFA
          • 7 Years
          3 years, 28 days ago

          Cheers hard to get any response now

    • Firmino
      • 8 Years
      3 years, 28 days ago

      Which goalkeeper to get on WC for BB26?

      A) Areola
      B) McCarthy
      C) Johnstone

    • Brimble82
      • 5 Years
      3 years, 28 days ago

      FORMAL STATEMENT:
      “All business has been concluded at this club during this window. There will be no further signings.
      We are happy with the business we have done in this window”
      Manager 890

    • French Gooner
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 11 Years
      3 years, 28 days ago

      When the DGW 26 fixtures will be announced, my defence will be composed of:
      Holding - Mee - Long - White - Koch

    • S.Kuqi
      • 11 Years
      3 years, 28 days ago

      Grealish not pictured in training. Rumors circulaiting on twitter...

      1. TheDragon
        • 5 Years
        3 years, 28 days ago

        There was a press conference and manager didn’t mention any issues literally this morning!

    • Miguel Sanchez
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 7 Years
      3 years, 28 days ago

      Bamford EO in top 1m this GW?

      140%

    • Taegugk Warrior
      • 5 Years
      3 years, 28 days ago

      to bench
      A. Stones
      B. Mee
      C. Watkins

      1. Abusive_Sgt_Daelrhos
        • Fantasy Football Scout Member
        • 9 Years
        3 years, 28 days ago

        Is mee fit?

        1. FPL Alaska
          • Fantasy Football Scout Member
          • 9 Years
          3 years, 28 days ago

          Yes

    • JONALDINHO
      • 6 Years
      3 years, 28 days ago

      Is it worth keeping a City slot open for Bruno to KDB next week? Back to back doubles and he always plays. Bruno only has 3 games and 2 are away to Chelsea and City which are obvious blanks

    • Fudgy
      • 4 Years
      3 years, 28 days ago

      God rest my soul I've just wildcarded on the Grealish rumours

      1. Saka Punch
        • 5 Years
        3 years, 28 days ago

        What are the rumours?

        1. Fudgy
          • 4 Years
          3 years, 28 days ago

          He's out for 3 months

      2. JONALDINHO
        • 6 Years
        3 years, 28 days ago

        Why do you always have to copy me?

        1. Fudgy
          • 4 Years
          3 years, 28 days ago

          Because we are both getting another top 10k 🙂

      3. jsookwa
        • 12 Years
        3 years, 28 days ago

        Something about shin fracture, yet to be confirmed. Maybe out 3-4 weeks, but don't quote me.

    • winchester
      • 3 Years
      3 years, 28 days ago

      Hey guys, 2ft and 2.9m itb. wc, bb and tc available. Is it wise to keep double city defenders? Will Adams play lads? cheers lads

      pope
      dias cancelo dallas
      bruno salah gundo son soucek*
      adams bamford

      martinez antonio coufal taylor

      a) soucek -> raphinha
      b) soucek+dias -> raphinha + which defender?
      c) soucek+antonio -> raphinha+dcl

    • wulfrunian
      • 7 Years
      3 years, 28 days ago

      Bench one:
      a)Mee
      b)Dias
      c)Shaw
      d)Dallas

      1. Abusive_Sgt_Daelrhos
        • Fantasy Football Scout Member
        • 9 Years
        3 years, 28 days ago

        Mee ready to play?

        1. wulfrunian
          • 7 Years
          3 years, 28 days ago

          yes

    • Abusive_Sgt_Daelrhos
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 9 Years
      3 years, 28 days ago

      Repost soz

      Clueless what to do. Not gonna WC, what transfers to do here lads? 1FT, 1.6ITB, thx

      Meslier,Button
      Cancelo,Coufal,Mee,Mitchel,KWP*
      Salah,Son,Bruno,Gundo*,Maddison
      Antonio*,Bamford,Cavani

      1. GE
        • 7 Years
        3 years, 28 days ago

        Would save

        1. Abusive_Sgt_Daelrhos
          • Fantasy Football Scout Member
          • 9 Years
          3 years, 28 days ago

          Antonio to Ings maybe?

    • GE
      • 7 Years
      3 years, 28 days ago

      Play 1 of these:

      1) Mee
      2) Dias (already play Cancelo)
      3) Antonio
      4) Soucek

    • Mattious8
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 8 Years
      3 years, 28 days ago

      Saw a rumor on twitter Graelish is out 4-6 with a stress fracture, any truth to this?

      1. Catastrophe
        • 13 Years
        3 years, 28 days ago

        No, it was Grealish

      2. _Ninja_
        • Fantasy Football Scout Member
        • 13 Years
        3 years, 28 days ago

        I'll give Jack a call, hold on.

        1. _Ninja_
          • Fantasy Football Scout Member
          • 13 Years
          3 years, 28 days ago

          He said "well em but you know.......but em, you know..." something like that

      3. Nespinha
        • 8 Years
        3 years, 28 days ago

        I have hard time judging a random twitter post that comes out of nowhere

    • FCSB
      • 8 Years
      3 years, 28 days ago

      Pope
      Cancelo Stones Robertson
      Salah Fernandes Gundogan Raphinha
      Bamford DCL Ings

      Martinez Soucek Coufal Ferguson

      1 FT, 3.5 itb

      1. Use FT ??
      2. Save FT for DGW26

      Thanks

    • Totti
      • 7 Years
      3 years, 28 days ago

      Bench one

      A) stones
      B) mee
      C) taylor
      D) bednarek

      1. Tonyawesome69
        • 5 Years
        3 years, 28 days ago

        Bednarek - max 4 points over 2 games

    • MidTableFantasy
      • 8 Years
      3 years, 28 days ago

      Start DCL or Watkins?

      1. Tonyawesome69
        • 5 Years
        3 years, 28 days ago

        DCL

    • Tonyawesome69
      • 5 Years
      3 years, 28 days ago

      GTG with the correct bench order?

      1FT 3.7itb
      Pope
      Cancelo Stones Cresswell
      Salah Bruno Gundo Raphinha
      Bamford(C) Ings DCL
      (Martinez Soucek Digne Holding)

    • Reeker
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 10 Years
      3 years, 28 days ago

      Grealish not pictured in training? Would you get rid of him on WC over a little rumour if you bought at 7.0?

    • damiang2233
      • 14 Years
      3 years, 28 days ago

      Salah in Son out a good move?

      1. REDNBLU
        • 3 Years
        3 years, 28 days ago

        Son is getting the chop soon in my team. I already own Salah so will upgrade to Auba

    • MMN
      • 10 Years
      3 years, 28 days ago

      G2G?

      Areola
      Dallas, Mee, Cancelo
      Gundo, Salah, Bruno (VC), Raphina, Barnes
      Watkins, Bamford (C)
      Martinez, Stones, DCL, Chilwell