Eight-time top 10k finisher Zophar hosts his weekly Q&A, answering your questions about Free Hit punts, the Gameweek 33 doublers and a certain injured Manchester City defender.
You can find his Gameweek 33 Free Hit team reveal here.
Q: A cheeky differential on a Free Hit? Is going all ‘doublers’ the best strategy when trying to climb up the ladder?
(via Ajax Amsterdam)
A: Going all Double Gameweek players would, on paper, be the best strategy but because of the limited teams in this double, and some of the obvious best picks within those teams like Joao Pedro (£7.7m), Cole Palmer (£10.5m), Marcus Tavernier (£5.4m), Erling Haaland (£14.5m), Dominic Calvert-Lewin (£5.6m) etc, I don’t think there’s as much scope to gain rank.
But you could go for a Danny Welbeck (£6.3m) instead of a Calvert-Lewin. You could go for treble Bournemouth or treble Leeds defence instead of picking one of their attackers. There’s the option to go for double City defence instead of double attack. Things like that. Will there be single Gameweek players that outscore these doublers? There always are. Igor Thiago (£7.3m) against Fulham, and Forest players at home to Burnley, could all do well. But to put it simply, 180 minutes offer more chances of points than 90 minutes.
Some differentials I like that could set you apart from the Gameweek 32 Wildcarders are Diego Gomez (£4.9m), Enzo Fernandez (£6.5m) and Rayan Cherki (£6.3m).
Gomez is no longer at risk of suspension after escaping a yellow card last weekend and he looks the most nailed winger currently in the Brighton team. He’s also a DefCon monster, which is great in a Double Gameweek.
Nobody picked Enzo in Gameweek 32 because he was on the naughty step but he’s going to be straight back in the Chelsea team and may have a point to prove. He has good underlying data over the season and could do well with the Blues likely needing to score multiple goals to cope with their porous defence.
Cherki, you don’t need me to tell you much about. I think he will be quite popular in Free Hits but not so much amongst Gameweek 32 Wildcarders, who will likely make the switch to Marc Guehi (£5.1m) or Matheus Nunes (£5.3m) if Nico O’Reilly (£5.0m) is indeed ruled out or doubtful.
You could even take a punt on Welbeck if you fancy him to play both games.
Q: The initial plan was to do Jarrod Bowen to Dominic Calvert-Lewin or Joao Pedro for the Double Gameweek, but the Nico O’Reilly issue has got me thinking of doing O’Reilly to Marc Guehi. Do I make just one move with a free transfer (and which of the two?) or take a hit to do both moves? I’m Bench Boosting this Gameweek.
Q. What to do with Nico O’Reilly and Bench Boosting?
(via The Philosopher and SIMBOBIANTHEIII)
A: At the time of writing, we have yet to hear from Pep Guardiola about O’Reilly’s availability after the England international was substituted due to injury last weekend. He has been pictured around the training complex but I have not seen any images of him actually training with the ball. I’m hoping Pep is vague about his availability, which would make things interesting both from a league and FPL perspective.
Now, if he is vague, I think you hold him. If he is ruled out, you make the move to Guehi or Nunes with a view to bringing him back when he is fit. I would take a hit to do both moves if he is indeed ruled out.
Q: Who are the best Chelsea and Leeds players on a Free Hit?
(via FPL Virgin)
A: The first two Chelsea picks are fairly obvious – Joao Pedro and Cole Palmer. I wouldn’t touch their defence with a bargepole; it’s unsettled and lacking any sort of cohesion or structure. So, the third pick there would be Enzo Fernandez. If you’re feeling puntier, you could look at Pedro Neto (£7.0m), as I think his expected minutes are better than Estevao (£6.4m). Liam Rosenior likely puts Enzo back in at no 10 and Palmer on the right.
With Leeds, they have multiple good picks, none of which are in midfield. Calvert-Lewin has missed 10 of his 11 big chances but is the clear focal point in that team, so he would still be my top pick, despite his woeful finishing abilities.
In defence, it really depends on your playing style. Karl Darlow (£3.9m) looks to be the first choice for now, though my overthinking mind does worry about Lucas Perri (£4.4m) possibly getting a game in the second fixture to prepare for the cup semi-final.
In the backline, Gabriel Gudmundsson (£3.8m), Jayden Bogle (£4.4m), Pascal Struijk (£4.3m) and Jaka Bijol (£3.9m) are all good picks. I am told by multiple Leeds fans that Struijk is the most secure in the backline, so if picking on a Wildcard, that’s where you should probably go. On a Free Hit, I like Bogle and Bijol for the upside they offer – one has attacking threat, the other has set piece threat and is a DefCon monster.
In general, I like the predictability of DefCon for defenders more than attacking potential in a Double Gameweek. They’re basically starting on eight points. So, my favoured three Leeds picks would be Calvert-Lewin, Struijk and Bijol.
Q: For those not on a Free Hit and who didn’t Wildcard last week, are any Double Gameweek players worth a hit?
(via Bod)
A: You haven’t mentioned if you’re looking to Free Hit in Gameweek 34 or have your Wildcard in hand, so this question is a bit more complicated to answer.
In general, I think Palmer and Joao Pedro have the highest ceilings apart from the Man City assets and are also good long-term holds. Getting any Man City players is also a good idea since they have another double at some point.
Q: Price aside, what’s your order of preference for Bournemouth and Leeds defenders?
(via Pompel)
A: I’ve mentioned my Leeds preference already in the earlier question, so I will discuss Bournemouth further here.
As I mentioned, predictability of DefCon trumps attacking potential for me, so I think Marcos Senesi (£5.2m) and James Hill (£4.2m) are clear, with Hill actually doing better than the Argentinian for DefCon since his introduction into the team.
Q: Your top three midfielders for the run-in?
(via The Knights Template)
A: Bruno Fernandes (£10.3m) would remain top, but that seems like an obvious answer, so let’s look at some picks outside that.
Antoine Semenyo (£8.2m) would warrant inclusion with his minutes looking more secure than Cherki’s, and Man City having another double that’s coming.
Despite Chelsea’s recent malaise, I think Palmer would have to be in the conversation as well, with Chelsea having no midweek commitments and a clear motivation to finish in the European positions. It’s unfortunate that Bukayo Saka (£9.8m) is injured, as he would have been someone to consider. I don’t share the same sentiment about Declan Rice (£7.2m).
There’s no clear fourth here that I can think of. You would want to ditch or bench Tavernier after Gameweek 35. Ismaila Sarr (£6.3m) has to be in the conversation but I am worried about potential rotation for Palace now, as we saw last weekend. He’s still a good pick, though, with the likely Gameweek 36 double in mind.
Q: Am I being silly deciding on Wildcard v Free Hit in Gameweek 33 based only on Nico O’Reilly’s availability?
(via @FPLPapa)
A: I am in a similar position, and so is my podcast co-host, Pras. While O’Reilly’s availability is certainly a tilting factor, I wouldn’t let it be the sole one. I think what’s more important is how your team looks in Gameweek 34. If you feel you can field a decent 11 that week, I think there is merit in delaying the Wildcard to Gameweek 35, just in case we get some new information or the league picture changes. As we saw last weekend, one result alone can alter the landscape.
Q: With no chips left other than Triple Captain, would you use it now or in Gameweek 36?
(via @philclayto94671)
A: I think I would save it for Gameweek 36. Arsenal will likely head to the Etihad looking to secure a shutout and they have shown they can do it against the best in Europe. The Burnley fixture is, of course, much more enticing, but I fancy the two home games in Gameweek 36 instead, against Brentford and (likely) Palace.
Q: What to do with Kaoru Mitoma if you went there in Gameweek 32? I’m planning a Bench Boost this week.
(via @FplCrisis)
A: I would most certainly get rid. Enzo is a similar price. If you have more than one transfer, you could even make the switch for O’Reilly to another defender and Kaoru Mitoma (£6.1m) to Cherki.
Friday’s press conference times are here
