Prepare yourself for a deluge of Premier League football over the next six weeks now that those irksome international get-togethers have ended for a few months. Hopefully, you used the break to recharge your Fantasy Premier League batteries.
From Saturday 25 November until Saturday 30 December, there are eight gameweeks to strategically prepare for, which as the mathematicians among you will have already calculated, means an FPL deadline every 4.5 days. Better start setting some reminders on your calendars.
This is the time of the year when real-life managers’ rotation policies become as frenzied as your last-minute present buying, so it is imperative that you make sure your squad is as well-stocked as your parent’s Christmas fridge to avoid any nasty selection surprises.
The key here is to identify cheap, in-form players who can be used either as starters or as a super-sub should you need them. Luckily, there are quite a few assets that fit the bill right now, including all five of the players picked in this article. The most expensive player selected this week costs just £6.4m.
i‘s top scorers in Gameweek 12
- Mo Salah – 16 points vs Brentford: Liverpool’s Egyptian King continued his sublime form at Anfield with another two goals in a comfortable win over Brentford. Salah has scored eight goals and taken 62 points and nine bonus points in only six home matches this season.
- Ollie Watkins – 6 points vs Fulham: Six points is better than nothing but Watkins swerved a double-digit score after scoring just once from an xG of 1.91. Watkins’ point-blank miss late on will have given FPL managers nightmares.
- Harry Maguire – 6 points vs Luton: Massively outscored by Victor Lindelof (15 points) but a clean sheet is not to be sniffed at this season given the general paucity of them. United have kept back-to-back clean sheets in the league. Time to invest in their defence?
If you would like to see i‘s full starting XI for Gameweek 13, make sure to subscribe to our Fantasy Football newsletter which is released before every single deadline. Don’t worry, we’ll have you covered over the hectic winter season.
The Gameweek 13 deadline is at 11am on Saturday 25 November:
This is an extract of i’s Fantasy Premier League tips. Sign up here to receive the newsletter every week this season for our full 11-player team, advice on the best captain and more!
Gameweek 13 fixtures
Saturday 25 November
3pm kick-off unless otherwise stated
- Man City vs Liverpool (12.30pm)
- Burnley vs West Ham
- Luton vs Crystal Palace
- Newcastle vs Chelsea
- Nottingham Forest vs Brighton
- Sheffield United vs Bournemouth
- Brentford vs Arsenal (5.30pm)
Sunday 26 November
- Spurs vs Aston Villa (2pm)
- Everton vs Man Utd (4.30pm)
Monday 27 November
- Fulham vs Wolves
Reece James (Chelsea)
You might be questioning the wisdom in selecting Reece James given his notorious injury history and Chelsea’s tricky Gameweek 13 fixture away to Newcastle, but hear us out.
Addressing the first point, it is a risk, but one worth taking given there is a shallow pool of in-form defenders to pick from and his historical form as an FPL asset. In 2021-22, James provided 14 attacking returns (five goals, nine assists) in only 26 games. On the second point, Newcastle are severely depleted due to injuries, which could work in Chelsea’s favour.
Mauricio Pochettino is understandably managing James’ minutes carefully, but he has surpassed the hour mark in his last two league games. Chelsea’s fixtures noticeably pick up from Gameweek 16 onwards, but moving early on James could reap some rewards.
Price: £5.3m Points: 20 Gameweek 13 fixture: Newcastle (a)
Tomas Soucek (West Ham)
Now before you automatically play the Spider-Man “what year is it?” meme in your head consider the following: Tomas Soucek is playing as a No 10 for West Ham and may push up even higher with Michail Antonio and potentially Jarrod Bowen returning to east London from international duty with new injuries.
The budget-friendly Czech midfielder has scored three times in his last six appearances, including the winner against Nottingham Forest in Gameweek 12. In that period he has registered six shots on target (only one fewer than Bowen) and has a slightly superior xG to his popular – and much more expensive – teammate too.
Soucek has a strong FPL pedigree when playing in an advanced position, scoring 10 goals in 2020-21. Keep an eye out for David Moyes’ pre-match press conference before snapping Soucek up, though, as he received a nasty blow to the head while playing for Czechia last week.
Price: £4.9m Points: 40 Gameweek 13 fixture: Burnley (a)
Cole Palmer (Chelsea)
Here’s a stat that might surprise you. Since Cole Palmer‘s first Premier League start for Chelsea (against Fulham in Gameweek 7) he has earned the fourth-highest number of points in FPL, behind only heavyweights Mo Salah, Ollie Watkins and Erling Haaland. That is some going for a sub £5.5m midfielder.
Palmer has scored four goals and provided three assists in his last six games, averaging 7.1 points per game during that run. The obvious caveat to those numbers is that all four of Palmer’s goals have come via the penalty spot, but having converted all of his attempts there’s no chance of him losing his status as Chelsea’s first-choice taker.
The 21-year-old’s underlying numbers suggest that he can maintain this purple patch. Over the past six gameweeks he is top in Chelsea’s squad for shots (with 16) and second for chances created (10).
Price: £5.2m Points: 47 Gameweek 13 fixture: Newcastle (a)
Eberechi Eze (Crystal Palace)
As much as Roy Hodgson is renowned for being a defence-first coach, he has unlocked Eberechi Eze‘s attacking potential since returning to Crystal Palace in April. Eze has managed 12 goal contributions (eight goals, four assists) in 19 games under Hodgson and now seems to be the club’s designated penalty taker since Wilfried Zaha’s departure.
The Eagles have a nightmarish fixture run over the festive period with games against Liverpool (h), Man City (a), Chelsea (a) and Arsenal (a) falling between gameweeks 17 and 21. However, their short-term schedule is kinder with Luton (a) next followed by West Ham (h) and Bournemouth (a).
Luton are yet to keep a clean sheet in the top-flight and have allowed the third-highest number of shots (197) on their goal.
Price: £6.1m Points: 35 Gameweek 13 fixture: Luton (a)
Dominic Solanke (Bournemouth)
Dominic Solanke’s double against Newcastle before the international break took him to six goals for the season and propelled the Bournemouth striker into fourth in the FPL standings among forwards. Erling Haaland, Ollie Watkins and Julian Alvarez are the only players to have amassed more points than Solanke in that position.
It is surprising therefore that Solanke’s current ownership stands at less than five per cent. That may change soon with Bournemouth brimming with confidence after earning their first two wins under Andoni Iraola in the last three gameweeks.
The Cherries play only two top half clubs in their next five matches, with that run starting at Sheffield United this weekend.
Price: £6.4m Points: 64 Gameweek 13 fixture: Sheffield United (a)
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