In the latest article from our team of Hall of Famers and guest writers, Fantasy all-rounder Obay Eid/FPL Milanista – who has risen to 18th in our Live Hall of Fame – recommends Gameweek 22 transfer targets and discusses his own plans.
So, after a very busy period, Fantasy managers had to endure a very slow Gameweek 21 and are now eager to face two successive Gameweeks over the next week.
Beyond that are the approaching doubles and blanks, so a lot of planning ahead must be discussed – despite the uncertainty over the readiness of some top FPL options.
DE BRUYNE OR SALAH?
Let’s start this by discussing the confirmed double of Manchester City and Brentford in Gameweek 26 and the options that may be considered from either side.
The Cityzens are in good form, possess lots of explosive options, and in fact, have great fixtures around their double – something that cannot be said about Brentford. To get the Bees out of the discussion, it’s only the returning Ivan Toney (£8.0m) who is on my radar. He currently sits fourth for expected points among forwards over the next six Gameweeks according to the FFScout Rate My Team tool, just behind Erling Haaland (£13.9m), Ollie Watkins (£8.9m) and Julian Alvarez (£7.0m):
As for Manchester City, ideally, I’d want to have Haaland (as soon as he is fit) and Phil Foden (£8.0m) for the double. The third pick is not as straightforward and could very well depend on whether Liverpool and Luton get their Gameweek 26 match rescheduled in Gameweek 25 or not. In case it does, then Mohamed Salah (£13.1m), if fit, becomes an obvious target and that makes Kevin De Bruyne (£10.6m) less appealing for his team’s double due to budgetary constraints – if anyone can find a way to fit them all in, then why not!
Alvarez and Kyle Walker (£5.4m) are the other two options that can be considered but the former’s minutes need to be monitored over the next few weeks as a returning Haaland and a fully fit De Bruyne could very well reduce the Argentinian’s gametime going forward.
DO WE NEED A THIRD LIVERPOOL PLAYER?
Moving onto Liverpool, and as already mentioned, the Reds could be another side that doubles in Gameweek 25, facing Brentford and Luton in the same round. Trent Alexander-Arnold (£8.5m) is a player who has been delivering consistently excellent numbers and with his league return imminent, he must be on everyone’s watchlist – if not in their teams already.
With Egypt out of this year’s AFCON, Salah’s sole focus is now on recovering from a hamstring injury and getting back to action with Liverpool. The Egyptian is still the highest-scoring player in FPL this season and a couple of enticing fixtures in Gameweek 25 could sway a lot of managers to captain (or even Triple Captain) him if he is fit by then.
But the need for a third Liverpool asset is questionable, considering that Liverpool will blank in the following week. And so, having three of their players may force some managers into taking hits just to get XI out in Gameweek 26, particularly those who also possess Spurs and Chelsea assets.
It goes without saying that Diogo Jota (£7.9m) and Darwin Nunez are great options to own in the double, especially if Salah fails to recover from his injury.
DON’T OVERLOOK THE SINGLE GAMEWEEKERS
Although the chance to maximize Double Gameweek benefits is always tempting, there are certain teams that still have excellent fixtures and must not be ignored.
Brighton and Hove Albion, for instance, are sitting on top of the Scout’s Season Ticker in Gameweeks 22-28, all the more impressive given that they rank ahead of two sides with an extra fixture during that spell. The Seagulls are facing clubs who currently sit in the bottom eight in six out of their next seven fixtures, so players like Pervis Estupinan (£5.1m), Pascal Gross (£6.5m) and Joao Pedro (£5.5m) could all prosper during this period.
Aston Villa and Crystal Palace are also sides with good short-term fixtures and could be targeted as well, although their underlying attacking numbers have been far from ideal over the last six matches. Palace, indeed, are ranked 18th for non-penalty expected goals (NPxG) per match during that spell.
BARGAIN BUYS
The last topic that I’d like to discuss before jumping into my team for Gameweek 22 and my transfer thoughts, is low-priced bargain attackers. These budget gems could prove beneficial for Fantasy managers who are looking to fund multiple moves to Haaland, Salah, De Bruyne, Trent, etc.
The first name that comes into my mind here is Matheus Cunha (£5.8m), who has been passing the eye test over the last few months and who has managed to record 0.66 non-penalty expected goals involvements (NPxGI) per 90 minutes over the last six matches, which is quite impressive for a £5.8m attacker. The Brazilian has delivered eight attacking returns over Gameweeks 12-21, which is an indication that he is capable of converting as well.
Chris Wood (£5.0m) comes at almost a million cheaper and has similar expected goal involvement data but some may argue that his numbers are skewed by that Newcastle hat-trick in Gameweek 19. Taiwo Awoniyi (£6.3m) is also on the cusp of a return, just as a further caveat.
Raul Jimenez (£5.2m), who has shown signs of his previous mastery, completes the trio of cheap attackers and a lot may want to consider him given that Fulham fixtures are slightly better than those of Wolves and Nottingham Forest.
The Cottagers are also one of just four teams so far who are guaranteed a fixture in Blank Gameweek 29.
READ MORE: FPL Gameweek 22 differentials: Barkley, Brereton Diaz + Jimenez
GAMEWEEK 22 PLANS AND TRANSFERS
Thank you all for reading, and I wish you all the best over the next week!
