Tips

The Complete Guide to Scout’s tips and advice to FPL Gameweek 23

Welcome to the Fantasy Football Scout Guide to Gameweek 23 ahead of today’s 11:00 GMT deadline.

The big news is the announcement of more Double Gameweeks in 24 and 25. Legomané updated his ticker, which includes non-Premier League matches.

Manchester City, Everton, Burnley, Fulham, Southampton and Leeds are the six teams to benefit from an extra fixture. 

There will also be a double in Gameweek 26, but which teams play twice depends on the FA Cup results in midweek. The winners will have their Gameweek 29 matches shifted to 26.

The other outstanding fixtures yet to be rescheduled are: 

  • Aston Villa vs Tottenham Hotspur
  • Aston Villa vs Everton
  • Manchester City vs Southampton
  • Fulham vs Tottenham

Six and the City

The Man City backline continues to dish out regular six-point returns thanks to their incredible run of clean sheets. Provided, that is, your selected defenders make the starting XI.

John Stones (£5.2m) returned to the starting XI against Burnley but with Aymeric Laporte (£6.0m) fit and available there’s now the risk of a benching, as happened against Sheffield United.

Some on site, such as Camzy, are considering switching to one City defender and two attackers. And, whisper it softly, on the Scoutcast Karam even suggested selling Ilkay Gündogan (£5.9m) for those who want to stick with two at the back.

The reason is Raheem Sterling (£11.6m):

I started to like someone else, he’s not performing at £11.6m just yet, but if I want to move away from defence and I want to stay in attack, then I think I would take a risk on Sterling … his expected goals is 2.31, the most of any City asset over the last four Gameweeks … for me – as someone who is struggling now with the rank – the fixtures are there for scoring goals, I think Sterling is worth a shout. Now I know Gündogan is crazy value, which I agree, but if you need that element of taking a risk – and we know that Sterling is capable of braces, and he looked good against Burnley.

– Karam

Seb added:

The only thing on Gündogan is … he’s created nine chances in the last three but only had three shots – two of those were goals. In the last match he had an xG of 0.03 … I’d just keep an eye on if things are shifting or how City are playing against a deep defence, whether Gündogan is the goalscorer. For me that would just be the difference whether I captain him or not – not whether I have him or not.

– Seb

David noted the impact of Gabriel Jesus (£9.2m) over the last two matches, his presence in the City team does stop Gündogan from shooting as often.

But the former Borussia Dortmund midfielder remained a creative force, fashioning two big chances for Sterling and creating five goal scoring opportunities in total – the most of any player at Turf Moor.

Another factor in the German’s favour is that his ‘expected minutes’, something Career Hall of Fame No 1, Fábio Borges, places great importance on, is high:

Gündogan has less competition to worry about and seems to be in the form of his life so I’m hoping he will play both matches [over the Double Gameweek]. The fact that he could be on penalties and is ridiculously priced at £5.9 million makes him a much better pick than Sterling in my opinion … if I didn’t already have Dias and Gündogan in my squad, they would definitely be my main transfer targets from Guardiola’s team.

– Fábio

Fábio talked through his transfer targets for the upcoming small Double Gameweeks in his latest FFScout contribution. Nick Pope (£5.5m) or a Burnley defender were high on his list of priorities given their favourable fixtures.

While fellow Pro Pundit Lateriser touted Luke Shaw (£4.9m) in his recent article:

With Shaw, you are not just dependent on clean sheet points. He’s become incredibly vital to the Red Devils and is a ball progressor and an attacking outlet on that left-hand side. In the last six Gameweeks, Shaw has created 19 chances, which is top amongst all defenders. Shaw is also top for big chances created (five) in the same period and is on some set pieces and corners.

– Lateriser

And the highest ranked of our elite contributors, Andy, who climbed another 200 places to 479th overall after Gameweek 22, reviewed his season so far, reflecting on what has worked well for him

This year I’ve made a conscious decision to always have who I believe is the best captain each week, even if that means transferring out a big hitter. This sounds simple, but often FPL managers will forgo the best captain because they don’t want to sell a big hitter … I’ve sold Salah, Son, and Kane twice already this season and I’ve found not having value wrapped up in them makes my decisions much easier knowing I can just buy them back as there’s no money “lost”.

– Andy

Captaincy Debate

The armband for Andy this week is firmly on Son Heung-min (£9.7m) ahead of an encounter against West Brom’s obliging defence. 

However, Captain Sensible writer, Jan, does not necessarily agree:

Despite receiving plenty of attention in the captaincy debate for Gameweek 22, I do not think Son is necessarily as strong a candidate as some might think.

– Jan

Jan notes the slump in form for Tottenham Hotspur along with the poor underlying statistics for Son in particular – his total of 15 touches in the box over his last four matches is bettered by 33 Premier League players.

So while West Brom have conceded two goals in each of their last seven matches, could a defensive approach from Sam Allardyce frustrate an off-colour Spurs?

Bruno Fernandes (£11.5m) and Marcus Rashford (£9.6m) are alternatives from a buoyant Manchester United side, and West Ham’s Michail Antonio (£6.7m) could prosper against Fulham. 

Fernandes is my top captaincy pick for Gameweek 23. Given that his underlying statistics are continuously impressive and his Manchester United colleagues are back in their groove, he could easily repeat the haul he achieved the last time Manchester United faced Everton.

– Jan

However for David – who enjoyed a successful 17-Gameweek captain run back in 2018/19 – Antonio is his favoured armband selection from this week’s Scout Picks.

The in-form West Ham striker has hit attacking returns in four of his five last games. With the highest expected goals rating of any forward in the last six Gameweeks, we are backing Antonio to continue his impressive form against a Fulham side whose recent defensive improvements have stuttered.

– Scout Picks

Team News

In the Team News, Jamie Vardy (£10.0m) is set to return following his hernia operation, while Ricardo Pereira (£5.9m) could be a useful asset in the absence of Timothy Castagne (£5.7m) over the coming weeks.

And Wilfried Zaha (£7.2m) has been ruled out with a hamstring injury.

While from Pep Guardiola’s Friday press conference, we received confirmation that Sergio Aguero (£10.3m), Kevin De Bruyne (£11.8m) and Nathan Aké (£5.4m) are still on the sidelines with their respective issues.

Community Competitions and Head-to-Head Fixtures

RedLightning rounded-up the latest Community mini-leagues and competitions

Pro Pundit Andy’s youtube.com/letstalkfpl mini-league is currently the Best League in FPL based on the average score of the top five teams, taking over from our Community Members League, which slips to third.

For those participating in the Head-to-Head Leagues, the main page can be linked to here. The fixtures for Gameweek 23 can be found below:

Use the drop-down menus to show your league and division. To find out which league and division you are in, follow the instructions on the main Head-to-Head page.

Once the Gameweek starts, if you click on your opponent’s name you will be linked to their team on the FPL website.

May your arrows be green!

TopMarx Fan of Fantasy Football and Monty Python. "Archimedes out to Socrates, Socrates back to Archimedes, Archimedes out to Heraclitus, he beats Hegel. Heraclitus a little flick, here he comes on the far post, Socrates is there, Socrates heads it in! Socrates has scored! The Greeks are going mad, the Greeks are going mad! Socrates scores, got a beautiful cross from Archimedes. The Germans are disputing it. Hegel is arguing that the reality is merely an a priori adjunct of non-naturalistic ethics, Kant via the categorical imperative is holding that ontologically it exists only in the imagination, and Marx is claiming it was offside. Follow them on Twitter

2,746 Comments Post a Comment
  1. Fudgy
    • 4 Years
    3 years, 1 month ago

    Im on Antonio captain, I advise everyone who has done the same to change it. My captain luck has been horrendous this season.

    1. Ibralicious
      • 9 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      Thanks for the heads up

    2. Magic Zico
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 5 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      This week is your breakthrough so no harm

    3. Nomar
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 14 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      I've had 11 cap blanks in a row. I'm capping Bamford, so you may want to avoid him too.

    4. Peter Ouch
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 5 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      Me too
      But this is the time to change

  2. Gandalf
    • Fantasy Football Scout Member
    • 13 Years
    3 years, 1 month ago

    Any actual sources for Antonio being rested?

    Planning to do Watkins > Antonio to hedge against a strong performance over next 2

    1. Hazz
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 6 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      There's not.

  3. CheesyZoot
    • 4 Years
    3 years, 1 month ago

    Would you rather have grealish or son this week?

    Thinking of doing grealish > son and captain him, otherwise I’ll captain Bruno

  4. KayArch
    • 9 Years
    3 years, 1 month ago

    ANTONIO
    BANFORD
    WILSON

    WILL you ditch one for "MEE" 😉

    1. Rupert The Horse
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 11 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      Easy. Antonio

      1. KayArch
        • 9 Years
        3 years, 1 month ago

        Seriously,

    2. Magic Zico
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 5 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      No 100%

      1. KayArch
        • 9 Years
        3 years, 1 month ago

        Who is your pick !

        1. Magic Zico
          • Fantasy Football Scout Member
          • 5 Years
          3 years, 1 month ago

          Wilson

          1. KayArch
            • 9 Years
            3 years, 1 month ago

  5. Weeb Kakashi
    • 8 Years
    3 years, 1 month ago

    Salah(C). GL all.

    1. Magic Zico
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 5 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      Seriously, GL!

  6. _Gunner
    • 9 Years
    3 years, 1 month ago

    Start Stones or Lowton?

    1. OverTinker
      • 5 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      Lowton

  7. Plagued by indecision
    • 13 Years
    3 years, 1 month ago

    Gone back to Bruno(c). Whomever I pick they will blank!

  8. aborg
    • 6 Years
    3 years, 1 month ago

    Not sure if to play Admas or Salah JUST for this GW. Salah very low chance to get returns and Adams plays against a very weak defensive Newcastle.

    Thoughts?

    1. Warby84
      • 8 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      Salah

  9. Tsparkes10
    • 5 Years
    3 years, 1 month ago

    Gut says Raph or Dallas but head says Bruno due to ownership... risky or safe?

    1. Cojones of Destiny
      • 6 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      risky have fun !

      1. Cojones of Destiny
        • 6 Years
        3 years, 1 month ago

        mind answering mine below mate

  10. Cojones of Destiny
    • 6 Years
    3 years, 1 month ago

    play;
    a. DCL
    b. Dallas

    1. Tsparkes10
      • 5 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      B easy

  11. Ibralicious
    • 9 Years
    3 years, 1 month ago

    Who’s switching from Antonio (C) -> Bruno (C) after the resting rumour mill buzzing?

    1. Cojones of Destiny
      • 6 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      keeping i guess

  12. fr3d
    • 6 Years
    3 years, 1 month ago

    Please help this page fly by faster

    1. iL PiStOlErO
      • 4 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      Weeeeeeeeeeeee

  13. Warby84
    • 8 Years
    3 years, 1 month ago

    Salah (c) anyone??

    1. iL PiStOlErO
      • 4 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      No

    2. fr3d
      • 6 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      1st on my bench

  14. Joyce1998
    • 8 Years
    3 years, 1 month ago

    Who to bench, pick 1

    A- Justin
    B- Robertson
    C- Dallas
    D- DCL

    1. Gandalf
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 13 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      B

    2. JamieC180
      • 5 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      b

  15. iL PiStOlErO
    • 4 Years
    3 years, 1 month ago

    Go with Bruno or risk wirh BamBam for cpt?

    1. Nomar
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 14 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      I've gone Bamford, but I've had 11 cap blanks in a row so I have no confidence that anyone I cap will ever get returns again.

    2. DycheDycheBaby
      • 8 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      BamBam. Bruno is a boring pick

  16. ⭐ Bemba_Da ⭐
    • 13 Years
    3 years, 1 month ago

    west brom defender for a 1 week punt? playing against one of the worst attacks in the league recent weeks

    1. Maddamotha
      • 7 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      Yes

  17. brixtonBob
    • 10 Years
    3 years, 1 month ago

    Bench one of these :
    Grealish
    Salah
    Sterling
    Soucek
    Wilson
    Bamford
    Calvert lewin

    1. RomeluStormzy
      • 7 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      DCL seems to be the go to on here.

    2. Nolberto Solano
      • 12 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      DCL

    3. Nomar
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 14 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      DCL

  18. Nolberto Solano
    • 12 Years
    3 years, 1 month ago

    Play one:

    A) Dias
    B) Mee
    C) Coufal

    1. iL PiStOlErO
      • 4 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      C

  19. Slitherene
    • 6 Years
    3 years, 1 month ago

    Barnes Bruno Rashford Grealish
    Jesus Ings Wilson

    Who to put the armband on??

    1. iL PiStOlErO
      • 4 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      Rash

  20. FPL AXE
    • Fantasy Football Scout Member
    • 9 Years
    3 years, 1 month ago

    Play Raphina against Palace
    Or
    Gundogan against Liverpool?

    1. Sean
      • 14 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      Raph

    2. Nomar
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 14 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      Gundogan

  21. Maddamotha
    • 7 Years
    3 years, 1 month ago

    Play Mee instead of Cancelo? Have Ederson and Salah.

    1. royals forever
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 14 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      Yes

    2. iL PiStOlErO
      • 4 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      No

    3. sunzip14
      • 7 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      No

    4. Nolberto Solano
      • 12 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      Never bench Cancelo

  22. royals forever
    • Fantasy Football Scout Member
    • 14 Years
    3 years, 1 month ago

    Pick one to play this GW

    Dallas
    Coufal

    Any ideas would be welcomed

    1. iL PiStOlErO
      • 4 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      Dallas

  23. Bakerman
    • Fantasy Football Scout Member
    • 9 Years
    3 years, 1 month ago

    Sell Dier or Chilwell?

  24. Cookie Kid
    • Fantasy Football Scout Member
    • 7 Years
    3 years, 1 month ago

    LOUD NOISES

    Start:
    A) Chilwell shu
    B) Coufal ful

    1. RomeluStormzy
      • 7 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      B

    2. JamieC180
      • 5 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      Toss up. Betting odds say 2% more likely for chelsea clean sheet

    3. Squib
      • 6 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      B

    4. Nomar
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 14 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      A

      Either he plays or stays on bench so you'll get Coufal points.

      1. Cookie Kid
        • Fantasy Football Scout Member
        • 7 Years
        3 years, 1 month ago

        2-2

        I’ll toss a coin I think

        Thanks all 🙂

  25. waltzingmatildas
    • 13 Years
    3 years, 1 month ago

    Bench one of
    A) mee
    B) coufal
    C) dallas
    D) cancelo

    1. Nomar
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 14 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      B

  26. Azerbaijan Shopping Centre
    • Fantasy Football Scout Member
    • 11 Years
    3 years, 1 month ago

    Play 1 if the following
    Dias, Cancelo or Gundogan

  27. bring_on _the_fantasy
    • 13 Years
    3 years, 1 month ago

    Soucek or Lingard this week?

    1. iL PiStOlErO
      • 4 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      Antonio

      1. bring_on _the_fantasy
        • 13 Years
        3 years, 1 month ago

        can you read?

  28. Il Capitano
    • 3 Years
    3 years, 1 month ago

    1FT 4.5m ITB

    McCarthy
    Coufal Cancelo Justin
    Soucek Salah Son (VC) Gundogan Bruno (C)
    Bamford Antonio

    Johnstone - Adams Lowton Stones

    A) Time to stop tinkering
    B) Switch captain umpteen times before deadline

    1. Sean
      • 14 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      B

  29. Sean
    • 14 Years
    3 years, 1 month ago

    It’s becoming hard not to do Soucek to Son

    1. bring_on _the_fantasy
      • 13 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      Son is Dogshit without Kane this season

    2. Nomar
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 14 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      Look at their last 4 returns.

      May change your mind.

  30. Warby84
    • 8 Years
    3 years, 1 month ago

    Play Martinez or DDG(dbl up)

    1. iL PiStOlErO
      • 4 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      Martinez