Eight-time top 10k finisher Zophar hosts his weekly Q&A, giving his opinion on the best Viktor Gyokeres (£9.0m) replacements, Chelsea assets and mid-price midfielders.
You can find his Gameweek 11 team reveal here.
Q: Why are the best Viktor Gyokeres replacements, assuming many have Erling Haaland and Jean-Philippe Mateta? Do we downgrade Gyokeres to Joao Pedro/Igor Thiago or go for a bench fodder forward with a view to ploughing funds into defence/midfield? This may mean a slightly weaker team this week.
(via Flynny)
A: Like your question mentions, Jean-Philippe Mateta (£7.9m) is the obvious move, but let’s discuss the other options.
I think it’s a great opportunity for managers to restructure their squads, especially if they have two free transfers available. From what we have seen this season, defenders and, to a lesser extent, midfielders are outscoring their forward counterparts. Moving to a 3-5-2 or a 4-4-2 just makes sense given the options we have right now.
Eli Kroupi Junior’s (£4.6m) minutes do look doubtful going forward with Evanilson (£7.0m) back now, so he is not a reliable starter going forward. You could save the £0.4m and go with Marc Guiu (£4.2m) but you have to be wary of locking yourself out of a Chelsea triple-up, especially if you’re planning on keeping someone like Enzo Fernandez (£6.7m) or Joao Pedro (£7.4m) long term. So, this spot will essentially be a ‘dead spot’, which is a bit of a problem if you still have your Bench Boost to play.
If you want a playable forward, then Igor Thiago (£6.2m) is the best bet. Danny Welbeck (£6.5m) has been prolific of late, with six goals in as many Gameweeks, but with the fixtures piling up in December, I have a problem trusting his minutes, especially with Fabian Hurzeler’s lack of injury updates.
Joao Pedro’s minutes will also likely be managed with Liam Delap (£6.2m) now back and Cole Palmer (£10.3m) also in the equation after the international break, so despite the next two fixtures being great, I would avoid him. Nick Woltemade (£7.5m) should continue to be Newcastle’s starting forward but again, this does not seem like a reliable pick, given Sunday’s 45th-minute substitution.
But I still think moving to a structure with more investment in defence is the way.
Q: Is Mikel Merino an option now at £5.9m? Or Declan Rice, with Viktor Gyokeres out? There’s a rush for Ismaila Sarr but looking at his performance to date, is he overrated and not consistent enough? Is a goal or assist every 3-4 games worth it?
(via GCHILD2K16)
A: Mikel Merino’s (£5.9m) stint as Arsenal’s centre-forward is likely to be limited, with Viktor Gyokeres (£9.0m) targeting a return for the north London derby immediately after the international break. So no, he is not an option.
Declan Rice (£6.8m) is a great pick, though. It is unfair to lump him in the same discussion as a Moises Caicedo (£6.0m) or a Ryan Gravenberch (£5.6m), as he is genuinely a great FPL option with many routes to points.
The problem with Rice, of course, is the alternatives at Arsenal. There are great options in defence and in midfield who are arguably better. I think you struggle to match the output of an Arsenal defender with any other asset, but you can match Rice with somebody like Ismaila Sarr (£6.6m).
With Sarr, you have to be patient. It’s often feast or famine with him as he doesn’t have the route to points such as set pieces, defensive contributions (DefCon) and penalties. But he is constantly playing as the second striker for Palace and is in great goalscoring positions constantly.
Q: How much of an imperative is it to bring in a Chelsea player for this Gameweek? And who is the best player to bring in?
(via FPL Virgin)
A: Chelsea have often raised their game against the big sides this season and struggled to beat the teams at the lower end of the table. I don’t think there is a clear talisman there at the moment, either.
Enzo Fernandez has had just seven shots in the box over the last six Gameweeks but four of these have been big chances. Palmer is expected back after the international break, with the Arsenal fixture in Gameweek 13 one of the targets. Then Enzo will lose penalties, having already lost set-piece duties to Reece James (£5.5m) and Pedro Neto (£7.1m). So, as an Enzo owner, I am looking to sell soon, perhaps after Gameweek 12.
Joao Pedro’s viability was also discussed in the earlier question. I think if you don’t own a Chelsea player this week, you just let it go.
If you do want to bring a player in, I’d go for James in defence – although there is some trepidation given that it would be his third game this week. In attack, it would still be Enzo, despite the caveats above.
Q: Best Anthony Gordon replacements?
(via LV1PER)
A: The bracket between £6.0m-£7.0m is interesting now. There are several viable picks – Enzo, Dominik Szoboszlai (£6.6m), Sarr, Iliman Ndiaye (£6.5m), Lucas Paqueta (£5.9m), to name a few.
I like Sarr the most amongst those. No midfielder has registered a higher non-penalty xG (3.59) than the Senegalese international this season, and this Brighton fixture is a great entry point; it’s a fixture where he has thrived before.
Ndiaye has the routes to points but the fixtures toughen for Everton a bit now. He’s still a good pick, though. Paqueta, I’m still not there yet, and West Ham’s fixtures turn sour soon.
Szoboszlai is interesting. I’m not expecting him to play many minutes at right-back going forward and while he is unlikely to get DefCon points playing in the number 10, he is on some set-pieces and taking a lot of shots. At £6.6m, he’s an intriguing pick given Liverpool’s fixture run from Gameweek 12.
