In the latest article from our team of Hall of Famers and guest contributors, reigning worldwide champion Ali (FPL Gunz) assesses the best players from two teams with a confirmed Double Gameweek 25 and another who could join them.
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The business end of the FPL season is approaching fast and it is time to think about strategies to navigate the Double and Blank Gameweeks ahead.
So far, the confirmed teams to have two fixtures in Gameweek 25 are Manchester City and Brentford. Those two sides will face each other after playing Chelsea (H) and Liverpool (H) respectively.
Others could follow, such as Liverpool and Luton Town, but it remains speculation at this stage.
MANCHESTER CITY
The return of Kevin De Bruyne (£10.6m) and Erling Haaland (£13.9m) is only part of the story. After a wobble in November, Manchester City are, almost inevitably, again the bookies’ favorites to win the league. They have shown in recent seasons that they can easily have a run of 10 consecutive wins after a poor start and this is traditionally the time of the year in which the momentum snowballs. They are already on a run of eight successive victories in all competitions.
Having a double in Gameweek 25 is the cherry on the cake and City triple-ups will be popular amongst the FPL community. The only question is: who to recruit out of so many options?
Haaland is, obviously, the main man to have ahead of good fixtures, as and when he is back to match fitness. He is yet to play a minute since he got injured in early December but he is back in full training and the first cameo could come as early as the Burnley fixture in Gameweek 22. De Bruyne is another returnee from a long-term absence and he has already shown what he is capable of in a 22-minute cameo against Newcastle United.
In the absence of Son Heung-min (£9.7m) and Mohamed Salah (£13.1m), budget is not an issue and getting the Belgian should not be too hard. His minutes are admittedly still uncertain and his ability to start both matches in Double Gameweek 25 is questionable at this early stage. However, he came off the bench to seal an assist for the City winner in a cup tie against Spurs on Friday, which proves, once again, that he does not need 90 minutes to deliver points for his owners.
Phil Foden (£8.0m) is also a popular option and arguably, at this moment in time, is the most reliable out of the City assets in terms of expected minutes. He has lasted the full 90 minutes in four of the last five games, with the exception of the cup tie against Huddersfield Town when he was subbed off in the 75th minute. Even in the last two matches, when De Bruyne took over from Foden in the ‘hole’, the England international has remained on the field on the right flank or up front. While we’d love to see him in his preferred number 10 role, that versatility at least boosts his game-time prospects.
Julian Alvarez (£7.0m), who remarkably is still an ever-present starter this season, has also proven to be a reliable asset but going forward, he takes up a valuable striker position in our teams. His run of starts owes much to injury elsewhere so now, with the variety of options available to Guardiola in attack, the Argentinian’s minutes could be a real risk, especially given how many games he has played this season already.
Jeremy Doku (£6.5m) and Bernardo Silva (£6.5m) are nice little differentials if you are on the hunt for some. Occasional benchings for both are to be expected, of course, knowing City are approaching this period with almost a fully fit squad.
In defence, it’s hard to pick a player with secured minutes – and even if we could, City have kept a clean sheet in just one game out of the last six. Kyle Walker (£5.4m) is the only defender who a) looks relatively assured of starting most games and b) poses any kind of attacking threat. Guardiola has gone back to more orthodox, attacking fullbacks recently, allowing Walker plenty of license to get forward.
In conclusion, my three players of choice would be Haaland, De Bruyne and Foden.
BRENTFORD
Brentford’s recent form has been poor, with only one win out of 10 games in all competitions. But the comeback of their main talisman and captain, Ivan Toney (£8.0m), is a boost. The English striker marked his return with a great goal against Nottingham Forest and has already risen in price.
The fixtures are not great for Brentford, so Toney and only Toney would be the way to go if we are considering the Bees’ assets.
LIVERPOOL
Due to the domestic cup involvement of Liverpool, there is a high chance of doubles and blanks for the Reds. Gameweek 26 is already assured of being a blank, while Gameweek 29 will likely follow, but we could get a Double Gameweek 25 before that.
The league leaders are having a great season and the absence of Salah doesn’t seem to have affected them adversely, with Diogo Jota (£7.9m), Darwin Nunez (£7.4m), Luis Diaz (£7.4m) and Cody Gakpo (£7.2m) all providing goals and assists in his stead. The 19-point mega haul from Jota has reminded seasoned FPL managers what he is capable of. Coupled with Darwin, the attacking pair had a great game against Bournemouth and will be targeted by many. Going for any of the Gameweek 21 front three would not be a mistake, in my opinion.
The injured Salah could miss another two to three weeks of action, meaning it’ll be a race against time for Double Gameweek 25 if it gets confirmed soon. But Trent Alexander-Arnold (£8.5m) is back fit, returning as a substitute in the FA Cup on Sunday. Having a contingency plan to get them both back is recommended, Wildcard or otherwise, but gambling on a Salah absence would make it easier in terms of the budgetary constraints, especially with Haaland and De Bruyne demanding attention.
The only downside for the Reds’ FPL assets is the confirmed blank that would follow the prospective double, so Fantasy managers should have a plan in place in order to navigate the tricky schedule.
The trio I would go for, if Salah is not back sooner than estimated, is Darwin, Jota and Alexander-Arnold.
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