There is another quick turnaround in Fantasy Premier League with the Gameweek 20 deadline on Saturday morning.
If your head is spinning at the thought of making more transfers and choosing who to captain for the third time in a little over a week, fear not as things are settling down a bit soon.
The Premier League will pause for the FA Cup 3rd round fixtures on the first weekend of January, while Gameweek 21 will be staggered across two separate weeks, beginning on 13 January and ending nine days later.
FPL managers will have to start making plans to sell their assets involved in either the Africa Cup of Nations or Asian Cup which coincides with Gameweek 21.
Some highly owned players are involved in those tournaments including Mo Salah, Son Heung-min, Mohammed Kudus and Hwang Hee-chan, and each of them represent countries that will be expected to progress deep into those competitions.
Bournemouth, Brentford, Luton and Manchester City all have a game in hand and will therefore have a double gameweek at some point.
That could be particularly important for those looking to use their second Wildcard of the campaign, which is now in play. A reminder that the Wildcard enables you to make unlimited permanent transfers without incurring a points deduction.
Finally, thanks for reading i‘s Fantasy Premier League tips this year and for subscribing to our weekly newsletter if you have done so – we hope they have been useful!
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Gameweek 20 fixtures
Saturday 30 December
*3pm unless otherwise stated
- Luton vs Chelsea (12.30pm)
- Aston Villa vs Burnley
- Crystal Palace vs Brentford
- Man City vs Sheffield Utd
- Wolves vs Everton
- Nottingham Forest vs Man Utd
Sunday 31 December
*Both kick-offs at 2pm
- Fulham vs Arsenal
- Tottenham vs Bournemouth
Monday 1 January
- Liverpool vs Newcastle
Tuesday 2 January
- West Ham vs Brighton
Julian Alvarez (Man City)
Judging by Sheffield United’s attempts at defending during their defeat to Luton, you’re going to want some attacking coverage from Manchester City this gameweek. With Pep Guardiola confirming that Erling Haaland will remain out until the New Year, Julian Alvarez looks like a sensible signing for this one.
“Still he’s not with the team,” Guardiola told Amazon Prime about Haaland before the Everton game. “He feels better with his bone but he hasn’t made one training session with us.
“Unfortunately December is so congested with so many teams. January is so congested. Hopefully in January he can come back with us.”
The Argentine ended an eight-game drought without a league goal during City’s midweek win over Everton and interestingly for FPL managers given Haaland’s absence, that strike came via the penalty spot. His gameweek total of eight points was his best since a nine-point score against Brighton back in Gameweek 9.
That goal should give his confidence in front of goal a boost ahead of a home match against a team battling against relegation. Sheffield United have by far the worst defensive record in the division, conceding 47 goals in 18 games and letting in 2.55 per game away from home.
Price: £6.8m Points: 82 Gameweek 20 fixture: Sheffield Utd (h)
Anthony Elanga (Nottingham Forest)
Newcastle are toiling badly at the moment, but that should take nothing away from Nottingham Forest’s outstanding Boxing Day performance against them. Steve Cooper’s dismissal may have been poorly received by most Forest fans, but Nuno Espirito Santo has earned some credit in the bank for the way he set his stall out at St James’ Park.
Forest defended deep in that game but posed a significant threat on the counter-attack, particularly through the electric Anthony Elanga.
The Swede was predominantly stationed on the right wing but had a license to drift around the pitch, as he did to great effect in the lead up to Chris Wood’s hat-trick clinching goal with a driving run through the centre of the pitch.
Elanga assisted two of Wood’s goals to earn 10 points and on another day could have had an even bigger score after missing a golden chance to score or assist the New Zealander with a shot that was saved.
The summer signing from Manchester United has performed well at the City Ground and will be eager to show that his former club were wrong to let him go when the teams meet this weekend. Here’s a stat that makes for grim reading for United fans: Elanga provided as many assists against Newcastle as Antony has during his entire Premier League career. Ouch.
Price: £5m Points: 71 Gameweek 20 fixture: Man Utd (h)
Gabriel Magalhaes (Arsenal)
After being named on the bench for Arsenal’s first three Premier League games of the season Gabriel Magalhaes has since reclaimed his spot, starting and playing the full 90 minutes in 14 of their last 15 league matches.
Without wishing to tempt fate, his place in Mikel Arteta’s side feels secure, particularly since injuries to Jurrien Timber and Takehiro Tomiyasu restrict the Arsenal manager’s ability to rotate.
The Gunners have been resolute at the back all season. They have the joint best defensive record in the league with Liverpool having conceded 16 goals and have kept the joint most clean sheets with seven.
According to expected data, they have actually conceded more goals than they should have done based on the quality of chances they have given up. Clearly, they are a side to target from a defensive point of view.
William Saliba is the most popular Arsenal defender in FPL with over a third of managers picking him in their squads, but while the Frenchman is a great asset, he is considerably more expensive than his centre-back partner.
A saving of £0.6m goes a long way, particularly for a defender who carries a bigger goal threat. Gabriel’s header at Anfield pre-Christmas means he has scored more league goals (11) than any other defender since September 2020.
Price: £5m Points: 56 Gameweek 20 fixture: Fulham (a)
Jarrod Bowen (West Ham)
Jarrod Bowen is generating plenty of market interest in FPL and with good reason. The West Ham midfielder, who has often played out of position as a forward, is the third highest scoring player in his position in the entire game with only the significantly more expensive duo of Salah and Son bettering his tally.
Both of those players will be unavailable from Gameweek 21 due to international commitments, which raises Bowen’s FPL appeal even more. West Ham have an encouraging fixture run too with Tuesday’s match-up with Brighton followed by fixtures with Sheffield United, Bournemouth and Manchester United.
The England international has only managed one double-digit haul all season (registering 12 points vs Brighton in Gameweek 3) but has been consistently among the points. He has registered attacking returns in five of his previous seven league games.
Bowen has been outperformed by his in-form teammate Mohammed Kudus since Gameweek 11, but like Salah, the Ghanaian will be taking part in the Africa Cup of Nations next month. With Kudus away the onus will be on Bowen to be West Ham’s talisman in the opening weeks of 2024.
Price: £7.9m Points: 102 Gameweek 20 fixture: Brighton (h)
Alex Moreno (Aston Villa)
Lucas Digne’s hamstring injury presents an opportunity for Alex Moreno to regain his place in Unai Emery’s starting line-up after a frustrating season to date. The left-back made a blistering start to his career at Villa Park after signing from Real Betis in January but has suffered an injury-hit second campaign in English football.
It remains to be seen how long Digne is unavailable for – keep an eye out for Emery’s press conference for news on he Frenchman’s condition – but if he is sidelined for the foreseeable future Moreno looks a great option.
The 30-year-old has created 24 chances (yielding three assists) in 25 appearances in the competition and scored on his previous start against Brentford in Gameweek 17. Despite only featuring for 40 minutes at Old Trafford on Boxing Day, Moreno had a high expected goal involvement of 0.33.
Villa’s next opponents Burnley have struggled for goals, managing just eight in nine matches on the road.
Price: £5m Points: 14 Gameweek 20 fixture: Burnley (h)
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