Throughout the 2022/23 Fantasy Premier League (FPL) season, our stellar team of Pro Pundits, Hall of Famers and guest contributors will be sharing their thoughts and own transfer plans.
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Here, seven-time top 10k finisher Zophar answers some of the week’s most-asked questions and reveals his team plans for Gameweek 15.
Q: Under what circumstances (if any) would you sell Haaland?
(via @FPLClaret)
A: At the time of writing, we are yet to hear anything further from Pep Guardiola on Erling Haaland’s (£12.1m) availability for the weekend. The Norwegian international had yet to train with the team as of Tuesday but has been training individually, which is promising. This would indicate to me that he might miss Gameweek 15 but should be back for the Gameweek 16 fixture against Brentford.
The only situation I can see myself selling him is if Guardiola rules him out of the next two Gameweeks and says he won’t play again till after the World Cup. Even if he is ruled out this weekend, I know I would want him back next week to captain, so I would keep him.
However, there is a case to be made to switch him to Kevin De Bruyne (£12.5m) and just captain the Belgian in the next two Gameweeks. We are struggling for a good captaincy option this week and that could be the way to go. The value loss should not be a consideration in this decision; it’s more about the damage Haaland could do against Brentford in Gameweek 16.
Q: What should we do with Phil Foden after he played 90 minutes in the Champions League in midweek?
(via @dmlkeys)
A: Phil Foden (£8.5m) started and played 90 minutes of Manchester City’s dead-rubber game against Sevilla on Wednesday, which has understandably sent a lot of his owners into panic mode and made them fret about his starting prospects against Fulham.
This is further exacerbated by Pep Guardiola saying that he wants Jack Grealish (£6.8m) for the next game, so it is essentially just the right-wing spot that is open for Foden – where he has to compete with Bernardo Silva (£6.9m), Riyad Mahrez (£7.5m) and perhaps even Julian Alvarez (£6.0m).
In my opinion, the Champions League minutes have no impact on Foden starting or not against Fulham. Previous game-time is of little use when predicting Guardiola and it’s not like Foden played 90 minutes against Leicester and is fatigued, so he can easily manage back-to-back starts.
Guardiola picks his team based on the opposition so there is the usual risk of rotation that is attached with his front three players. It is worth mentioning, though, that they play Chelsea in the Carabao Cup next midweek, so that could possibly be on his mind when picking his team against Fulham. If you own him, I’d just stick and hope for the best. If he does start, the haul potential against the Cottagers is very high.
Q: Who is the best West Ham attacker for the last two fixtures?
(via @SakaforPain)
A: West Ham have taken more shots (101) than any team over the last six Gameweeks so it is understandable that managers want to target their next two home fixtures. Gianluca Scamacca (£6.7m) would probably have been more popular had he scored in their last two games but he is still a good option. That being said, I don’t like that he is often being subbed early and it is often for Michail Antonio (£7.0m).
I still think Jarrod Bowen (£8.1m) is the one to go for, even though he doesn’t have penalties anymore. He is nailed for 90 minutes and is still the talisman of that team.
Q: For those looking at mid-price midfielders, who is the best option? Leandro Trossard, Marcus Rashford and Miguel Almiron are among the names under consideration.
(via @FplRichard)
A: Let’s talk about Leandro Trossard (£6.9m) first. The ultimate big-game player, I don’t know what kind of space he will get against Unai Emery’s Aston Villa or a conservative Wolves. We are likely going to see Danny Welbeck (£6.5m) back in the team, as well, so he might not be playing the striker role again.
Marcus Rashford (£6.7m) has been posting great numbers but I don’t like the fact that Bruno Fernandes (£9.8m) is suspended for their game against Villa. The Fulham fixture does look a great one though so I really like him as a pick.
With Miguel Almiron (£5.6m), you can’t really go wrong at the moment. He averages over nine points per game over the last six Gameweeks and he would be the one I would go for.
My team – and what I plan to do with Haaland
Thanks for reading, see you next week!
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