In the latest article from our team of Hall of Famers and guest writers, Fantasy all-rounder Obay Eid/FPL Milanista recommends Gameweek 11 transfer targets and discusses his own plans.
After a very slow start to my Fantasy Premier League (FPL) season, things are looking more positive right now, thanks to the 91 points and 67 points achieved in Gameweeks 6 and 8. It allowed me to move from an overall 1.8m Gameweek 6 rank to my current standing at 86k.
This massive improvement shows that we’re still early in the season, where only a few points lead to big rises. With approximately three-quarters of the campaign left, all our focus must be on future plans instead of regretting moves that didn’t pay off or picks that were left out wrongfully.
I don’t want to go into the psychological impact of how a bad outcome can lead to rushed decisions that will most likely lead to further frustrations but, if I were to deliver a message here, it’s that any FPL manager must accept that not all decisions will go his or her way.
For instance, my Gameweek 6 transfer was used to remove Ollie Watkins (£8.4m), who I started the season with. He’s turned into prime Ronaldo since then by scoring and assisting for fun but my overall rank was only getting better and better, which confirms that there are multiple ways to play and succeed in FPL.
EAGLES AND SEAGULLS
Given the fact that most of us have already Wildcarded, our next moves must be targeted towards teams that have favourable fixtures over the upcoming period.
For me, I tend to look six Gameweeks ahead and, if we check the Season Ticker, it’s Brighton and Hove Albion and Crystal Palace topping the charts. The Seagulls have been playing attractive football under Roberto De Zerbi but are yet to register a clean sheet so, unless Pervis Estupinan (£5.0m) is declared fit, I don’t think their defence is worth investing in.
However, their attackers are very appealing going forward – especially Kaoru Mitoma (£6.5m), who I still believe is their best asset to own. Simon Adingra (£5.0m) is someone I’d also consider if on a tight budget.
By shortening the period to five Gameweeks rather than six, Palace are on top as they face Burnley, Everton, Luton Town, West Ham United and Bournemouth – a dreamy fixture run that is probably worth looking at.
With Eberechi Eze (£6.1m) still injured, creativity in attack is somehow limited but such fixtures could be a turning point for them. For those still stuck with Carlton Morris (£5.4m), like me, Odsonne Edouard (£5.5m) could be worth a punt.
Defensively, these fixtures scream clean sheets, so someone like Marc Guehi (£4.5m) needs considering.
OTHER PLAYERS TO TARGET
Are we going to fill our squad with Brighton and Crystal Palace players? Definitely not. I think Arsenal assets are very tempting to get, especially once the Gameweek 11 trip to Newcastle United is out of the way. Bukayo Saka (£8.6m) and Gabriel Martinelli (£7.7m) are great picks and should be prioritised. At the back, I still think Gabriel Magalhaes (£4.8m) is a good pick despite his benching at the weekend.
Manchester City have mixed fixtures but this probably doesn’t matter for a team with such calibre. It’s 50/50 here but, to give an honest opinion, I still believe those who removed Erling Haaland (£14.0m) need to reconsider their decision. The damage he could do at home to Bournemouth is huge. The champions keep rotating a lot – especially in defence – but those with Phil Foden (£7.5m) and Julian Alvarez (£7.2m) should probably stick for the time being.
Liverpool are hitting some good form and their fixtures remain strong, despite Gameweek 13’s trip to Man City. As well as Mohamed Salah (£12.8m), there is the insane value of starting full-back Kostas Tsimikas (£4.6m) and the explosive potential of Darwin Nunez (£7.5m). The Uruguayan ranks joint-fourth for FPL points amongst forwards despite playing only 416 minutes from a possible 900. He isn’t completely nailed to start (especially in Gameweek 13, immediately after the international break) but I think the quality of Liverpool fixtures has to guarantee some Nunez points, even when coming off the bench.
£6.0m TO £7.0m MIDFIELDERS
Mid-priced midfielders is the next topic I’d like to give an opinion on, as the quantity of options is huge. I still think Moussa Diaby (£6.8m) is my preferred option, especially if a manager doesn’t own Watkins. Aston Villa have been registering astonishing attacking numbers and will face Nottingham Forest, Fulham and Bournemouth over the next four Gameweeks.
What I like about Diaby is that he is an easy switch to Bryan Mbeumo (£6.7m) when Brentford’s fixtures improve in Gameweek 14. At that point, the Bees’ penalty taker becomes my preferred mid-priced midfielder and I look forward to owning him for the first time this season during that enticing schedule.
My third pick in that price range is Mitoma who, despite playing a less attacking role in his most recent match, managed to register 0.42 expected goal involvement (xGI) and is likely to excel over his team’s nice fixture run. The Japanese winger is explosive and safest for minutes from the Brighton names.
MY GAMEWEEK 11 TEAM
Jumping into my own team, the current thoughts are to either sell Morris for another cheap forward like Edouard, Eddie Nketiah (£5.6m), Lyle Foster (£5.0m) or Matheus Cunha (£5.5m), with Luton having the worst fixtures and offering little in attack, or to get myself a Palace defender in place of Destiny Udogie (£4.8m).
I’m currently leaning towards the first option as it allows me to replace Udogie with an Arsenal defender for Gameweek 12.
Thank you all for reading and I hope you all smash it in Gameweek 11!
