I’m in a slight rush this week, and don’t have as luxuriously long as I usually like for my articles. Don’t worry the quality of the actual analysis will still be good – it’s just the quality of the writing that will be rubbish.
(How would we tell the difference, Joe? Yes, har har).
Without further ado, here’s your quick and easy batch of Fantasy Premier League tips for Gameweek 23.
Which Fixtures to Target
The double gameweek fun never seems to end, and we get another healthy dollop of it in Gameweek 23. At least we only have two DGW teams this time, and… they’re both playing each other, so it’s pretty hard to keep track of!
Here are our double gameweek fixtures:
- Arsenal vs Brentford (H)
- Arsenal vs Man City (H)
- Man City vs Aston Villa (H)
- Man City vs Arsenal (A)
My expert analysis: if you haven’t got three Arsenal players in your squad already… firstly, we’re top of the league, where’s the respect? (Also we never rotate, which helps in FPL terms). But secondly, it’s time to fix that. We’ll look at who you should actually pick in the next section.
Man City feel like a stay-away right now. Obviously you’re keeping Haaland, but – even with the double – I’m not sure I’d rush to get anyone in.
Four of City’s last five games have been against Spurs, Arsenal (FA Cup), Spurs, and Man U. They’ve lost two of those, narrowly beat Arsenal, and were terrible in the first half of their 4-2 win against Spurs. Also, being rumoured to get expelled from the Premier League and have all your titles stripped probably doesn’t put you in the best mindset, as a player.
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I actually like a lot of fixtures from a defensive perspective this week. Spurs against Leicester, Wolves against Southampton, Newcastle against Bournemouth, Forest against Fulham… all those feel like they could be cleans.
(To extend this logic, it doesn’t feel like this will be a very high-scoring gameweek. So if you’re not smashing out 100pts, don’t panic).
On the Watchlist
It’s always interesting to cast an eye down the ‘Transfers In’ page on the official FPL website, and see in which direction the masses are moving. Here are the top 15 or so the night before the deadline:
Let’s check out a few of the more interesting names, and bundle a few of the others together.
Mitoma
Yup. Nobody had heard of this guy pre-World Cup, and now he’s suddenly 12.3% owned. Mitoma (5.2) has returned in five games in a row – four goals, one assist – and is basically nailed to play 90mins every week.
Personally, I’m still not getting him. That’s mostly because he’s a midfielder though, and there are already so many good midfield options out there. I’m not dismissing him as a flash in the pan either, though. That kind of thinking would have seen you miss out on someone like Almiron already this season.
Arsenal Assets
As noted, you definitely want three Arsenal players right now.
Saka (8.3) and Odegaard (7.0) should be top of your list. I actually opted for Saka recently, even though he was more expensive. His returns simply seem more attainable, while Odegaard has gotten lucky with a couple of his goals and assists. Either or both are fine choices, though.
Martinelli (6.6) is bang out of form. He’s blanked in four games in a row, isn’t passing the eye test either, and I wouldn’t be surprised if he was dropped for Trossard. Odegaard is a much better choice right now.
Nketiah (6.8) has been good since Jesus got injured, but he’s a bit up and down. I’d rather have Mitrovic (yes, still) or Toney over him right now, especially when he has three good defences (Brentford, City, Villa) in a row now.
They’re not on this list, but I’d definitely recommend an Arsenal defender for one of your three spots. White remains the cheapest option, at 4.7. Arsenal remain an excellent defensive team, and they have a brilliant run of defensive fixtures coming up.
Man City Assets
I don’t want any of the defenders, even if their fixtures are fine. They’re not that cheap, and aren’t keeping consistent cleans.
Mahrez is great, is cheap for his production at 7.7, and has seven returns in his last seven games. Personally, I’m still not interested. I never want to trust a City midfielder again, after the Foden fiasco earlier this season, and the fact that not even…
De Bruyne can get a guaranteed place. James and I both brought him in post-World Cup, for City’s multiple double gameweeks. He has not repaid our faith. In the last nine games he has two assists and no goals. He didn’t even start away at Spurs, proving – for the millionth time – that nobody is immune to Pep Roulette. I’d much rather get Bruno right now, even with Kev’s double. If you’ve got him, hold him this week then swap to Penandes.
Man U Assets
I’m assuming you’ve got Rashford already. If you were smart, unlike me, you’d have triple captained him last gameweek too.
Bruno (9.9) has predictably gone straight back to being great as soon as Ronaldo headed east. In his last nine EPL games he’s got three goals and four assists. Oh how I wish I’d taken him over Kev. He’s got a blank coming up in GW25… but he’s got Leicester at home before that, so I’ll probably get him anyway.
Shaw (5.3) has been extremely disappointing. No cleans in his last five games, and just one assist. I’m holding, because he has Leeds, Leicester, Liverpool and Southampton coming up, none of whom score many goals. I wouldn’t bring him in now, though.
Kane
Get him if you haven’t got him already. He’s a super-consistent, set and forget forward who’s honestly a joy to own.
Ben Mee
And here we have our comedy inclusion of the week. Basically, if you score a goal in FPL, your price is going to rise. Brentford are great, and they’ve gotten four cleans in their last five… but don’t bring him in just before an away game against the league leaders… obviously.
Should I Sell?
We’ve run through our knee-jerk buys. Now it’s time for our panic sells! Here’s who the wider public is bailing on right now:
Yup – 527,542 active FPL players still had Cancelo in their teams, it turns out.
Almiron – Yes
Fun while it lasted, but this train’s run out of steam. He hasn’t been the same since the World Cup.
Martinelli – Not Yet
If you’re moving him to Saka or Odegaard, that’s fine. I wouldn’t bin him entirely just before a double gameweek, though. Arsenal also have another DGW coming up in week 25.
Toney – No
This is a strange one. All these FPL players were willing to gamble on someone who might be getting suspended for ages… he plays really well for them… then they bail on him after two blanks? Before that, he’d scored in four games in a row. No need to sell him just because he has one bad matchup this week.
Bruno – Obviously Not
Another absolutely bizarre one. I wish I could bring him in right now, never mind selling him.
Salah – Yes
It’s actually quite striking to see Mo Salah’s ownership down at 22.2%. If you’ve been holding on, it’s time to finally let go.
Mitrovic – Sigh
I got Mitro in post-World Cup, and have continued to hold him. He’s had some penalty-related misfortune, but – one way or another – he’s got three blanks in a row. He also has Forest, Brighton, Wolves, Brentford, and Arsenal coming up, all of whom are good defensively.
The only saving grace is that he’s still quite cheap, and there’s nobody else I want more around his price point except Nketiah (and I’d prefer two mids and a defender at Arsenal). I’m increasingly tempted to bin him anyway though, and go for five starting midfielders.
De Bruyne – No
You can’t sell him before a double gameweek (however much we might want to).
Mudryk – Lol
Our comedy inclusion in this category. Apparently enough people bought in… having seen absolutely nothing from him, for him to make this list a couple of weeks later… when we still haven’t seen anything from him.
My Gameweek 23 Plans
Here’s my current team:
And my setup for Gameweek 23:
I’m relatively happy with my matchups for this week, so I’m not going to make any further moves. I want to save up two transfers anyway, to likely bin De Bruyne, and probably Mitrovic or Martinelli. I feel worst about Martinelli, from those three, but Arsenal do have another double coming up. If Trossard starts this gameweek, and plays well, that will make the decision for me. Shaw is also on the chopping block, especially with his blank gameweek 25 coming up.
Haaland is a pretty easy choice as captain this week, over Saka (or Odegaard, if you have him). I’ve got serious FOMO after not triple-captaining Rashford last gameweek, so I might overreact and give it straight to Haaland this week. His potential to hattie in any given gameweek makes it extremely tempting.