With just nine Gameweeks to go now, it’s time to make that final push up the mini-leagues and overall rankings.
A huge amount of ground can be made up and lost in the ‘30s’ with careful planning and a bit of luck (or bad luck).
Gameweeks 31 to 35, in particular, are going to be fun with two Blanks and two Doubles. Periods like this are why we play FPL.
There is always hope even for those who are enduring a frustrating campaign.
Staying the course and playing the chips and/or Wildcard smartly can reap huge benefits, leaving the current leader of your mini-league in shock come Gameweek 38 when they find themselves slipping to second place having led for most of the season.
Bournemouth are attracting a lot of attention this week ahead of a kind run of fixtures which will see them face Huddersfield (away), Newcastle (home), Leicester (away) and Burnley (home) over the next four.
We don’t usually look to the Cherries for defensive assets but after they restricted Manchester City to just one goal in Gameweek 29, managers are considering if the likes of Arthur Boruc (£4.0m), Adam Smith (£4.3m) and Nathan Aké (£5.0m) are worth investment.
Only Liverpool (nine), Chelsea (seven) and Man City (six) have registered more clean sheets at home than Bournemouth (five) this season.
In their last four games at the Vitality Stadium, Boruc has been beaten on just two occasions.
A Gameweek 30 trip to goal-shy Huddersfield and home ties in 31 and 33 looks good on paper for clean sheets. The question is, will they deliver?
There are plenty of attacking options to consider as well with cases to be made for all four of David Brooks (£5.0m), Ryan Fraser (£6.1m), Josh King (£6.5m) and Callum Wilson (£6.3m).
West Ham midfielder Felipe Anderson (£7.2m) has now blanked in nine of his last 10 appearances, so why keep him just because he plays in the blanks?
I’ve only had him in my side for three weeks and already want to dump him.
Keeping the Brazilian would allow me to field XI players in Gameweek 31 without hits, but selling him could get me Sadio Mané (£9.8m).
The way I’m looking at it is I’d rather own Mané for Liverpool’s Fulham fixture and field ten rather than keep Anderson and play eleven. Food for thought.
Another player who has been disappointing his owners recently is Mohamed Salah (£13.4m). Five blanks in his last six games have managers asking the same question again, is he worth the money?
Selling him ahead of a home game against Burnley and then Fulham away feels like a very dangerous time to ship the Egyptian. He hasn’t been playing badly, he just hasn’t been clinical enough in front of goal.
The chances are falling his way, he’s just hasn’t been putting them away!
It will come as no surprise if he bangs three or four goals in over these next two fixtures. Sell him at your peril.
Romelu Lukaku (£10.7m) scored another brace in Manchester United’s impressive 3-1 win over PSG on Wednesday night to bring his tally to six goals in his last three starts.
He’s making a strong case for inclusion in our squads for Double Gameweek 32 where United will face Watford (home) and Wolves (away). Is he worth the £3.0m more than Marcus Rashford (£7.7m) though? Could a double-up be on the cards?
Former United attacker Wilfried Zaha (£6.9m) is another who is set to be a popular pick for Gameweek 32 if he continues in his rich vein of form.
The Ivorian international has returned attacking points in five of his last six appearances (five goals, one assist).
His partner is crime Michy Batshuayi (£6.5m) is starting to deliver as well, scoring two in his last three.
Captaincy for this weekend seems to be a straight shootout between the Manchester City and Liverpool assets.
Will Salah get back amongst the goals or will Mané outscore him again?
Raheem Sterling (£11.4m) looks good for the armband again this week despite blanking against the Cherries.
For me though, I can’t look past Sergio Aguero (£11.8m) this week with seven goals in his last three home matches. A hat-trick against Watford please, Sergio.
Jamie Vardy (£8.9m) at home to Fulham and Harry Kane (£12.4m) away at Southampton are worth considering as well.
Good luck for the Gameweek folks.
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