With unlimited transfers at their disposal ahead of Gameweek 17, Fantasy Premier League (FPL) managers can completely overhaul their squads.
It’s effectively an extra Wildcard in all but name and it gives us a chance to not just react to the mid-season World Cup and any fresh injuries but also set ourselves up for the coming months.
Here, we go through some of the top targets by position ahead of the Boxing Day deadline.
- READ MORE: Best goalkeepers for unlimited transfers
- READ MORE: Best midfielders for unlimited transfers
- READ MORE: Best forwards for unlimited transfers
KIERAN TRIPPIER + SVEN BOTMAN
- Price: £5.9m/£4.4m
- Ownership: 65.6%/3.4%
The Magpies can’t be beaten for clean sheets or goals conceded this season, while they are third-best in the division for expected goals conceded (xGC).
At home, they are on a remarkable run of nine shut-outs and 10 goals shipped in their last 17 home fixtures, dating back to the beginning of 2022.
In short: they’re up in the top four for a reason.
As for the go-to personnel, you’ll likely not need us to talk too much about Kieran Trippier (£5.9m).
The England international is third among all Fantasy assets (not just defenders!) for chances created and joint-third for big chances created in 2022/23.
No defender can better him for expected assists (xA), either.
If you’re after a double-up on the Newcastle defence, then Nick Pope (£5.3m) might be too rich for your blood – especially as he’s no longer making save afte save.
There still, remarkably, exists a sub-£4.5m route into the Magpies’ backline. Step forward Sven Botman (£4.4m), the classiest defender to pull on a black-and-white jersey since Jonathan Woodgate.
The attacking potential might not too be great (24 penalty area touches isn’t too shabby, mind) but he’s not going to eat into your budget too much, and he is ‘benchable’ at that cost for trickier matches (eg v Arsenal in Gameweek 19) when two Newcastle stoppers seems like overkill.
REECE JAMES
- Price: £5.8m
- Ownership: 14.6%
Chelsea finished the pre-World Cup period in dire form, so ordinarily they’d not be factoring too much into Fantasy managers’ thoughts.
But some excellent upcoming fixtures and at least one Double Gameweek in the near future has many of us trying to forget that the Blues were second-bottom for minutes per non-penalty xGC since Gameweek 11.
The new availability of Reece James (£5.8m) is handily timed.
His attacking pedigree is well documented: despite this not being a stellar season so far for him, James still ranks among the top six defenders for expected goal involvement (xGI).
He was third for that stat in 2021/22, so he’s performed to a high standard over a sustained period.
Rotation is always a worry with him, exacerbated by the appointment of the notoriously unpredictable Graham Potter in the autumn.
A Tuesday-Sunday-Thursday turnaround in Gameweeks 17-19 isn’t too bad, although the trip to Fulham does come less than 72 hours before a Gameweek 20 clash with Crystal Palace.
BEN WHITE
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