Eight-time top 10k player Zophar hosts his weekly Q&A, giving his views on when to use Wildcard, the five midfielders he would buy now, and whether to keep or sell Hugo Ekitike (£9.0m), Phil Foden (£8.8m) and Robert Sanchez (£4.9m).
You can read his Gameweek 21 team reveal here.
Question: If you play with two players up front and are not limited by budget, who is the best striker to partner Erling Haaland over the next five gameweeks?
(via Sheffield Wednesday)
Answer: I think it would be Ollie Watkins (£8.7 million). Villa have shown remarkable consistency in recent months and Watkins is looking back to his best after a long, long slump. The statistics have also risen: he is alone in second place Hugo Ekitike (£9.0m) for Expected Goal Involvement (NPxGI) over the last six gameweeks. He also has decent equipment.
Question: What to do with Hugo Ekitike? Should we move for Igor Thiago or keep him because of Burnley?
(via OverTinker)
A: As the image below shows, and despite missing one game, Ekitike is the best of all players for NPxGI over the last six gameweeks:
I’d like to keep Ekitike for the Burnley and Bournemouth games before moving him on to Gameweek 24, but if you have some extra transfers or need money to upgrade your midfield I think it’s perfectly reasonable to sell him for too Igor Thiago (£7.0 million). He could easily be the budget striker for the season.
However, it is worth noting that Ekitike could be a captaincy option in Gameweek 22 against Burnley. Erling Haaland (£15.1m) travel to Manchester United in what is likely to be their first match under a new manager.
Q: Who are your top five midfielders you own at the moment?
(via OverTinker)
A: It’s difficult to answer this now because I would build this midfield not only for the change of fixtures in Gameweek 24, but also for the good short-term matches for someone like Phil Foden (£8.8m), who face Brighton and Hove Albion and Wolverhampton Wanderers. In the same way, I wouldn’t necessarily want that either Bruno Fernandes (£9.1m) now that he has Manchester City and Arsenal in matchweeks 22 and 23.
That’s how it would be Declan Rice (£7.2 million), Cole Palmer (£10.4m), Fernandes, Foden and Bruno Guimaraes (£7.1m), I think. Palmer that could be Enzo Fernandez (£6.4m) depending on budget, but I think you’d want Palmer from Gameweek 24. Fernandes should also be fit and available for Burnley.
Q: What are your future plans for Cole Palmer and Bruno Fernandes and what to do with Hugo Ekitike and Bukayo Saka?
(via BR510)
A: At the time of writing, neither Manchester United nor Chelsea have appointed a replacement for their sacked managers (Ed: Liam Rosenior has now been confirmed as head coach!). Gameweek 24 is when the games really swing for the two aforementioned teams and my plan is to bring in both big hitters around that time. We should have a decent sample size of games and information by then to be able to make an informed decision on the new managers’ playing style, where Palmer/Bruno will play in the system etc.
I think Bukayo Saka (£10.2 million) got its rest this weekend and Call Maduyke (£6.8m) will mainly play cup/Champions League matches from now on, but if you want to sell Saka to Rice to raise money for a big hitter then I can get behind that too.
With Ekitike I think holding until the Bournemouth game in Gameweek 23 is something I’m considering, after which I’ll assess in Gameweek 24 if I need the money.
Q: What to do with Phil Foden? My plan was to keep him and then sell him to Bruno Fernandes when he gets back. I’m not sure if I should stick to that plan or sell him now.
(via FPL Sanky)
A: I think the ideal starting point for Foden is Gameweek 24, when Man City play Spurs and Liverpool. I would especially like to have Foden for the next games against Brighton and Wolves.
Q: Chelsea time! Keep Robert Sanchez or move to a cheaper ‘keeper? Are there any mid-range attacking players you think we need for Chelsea’s good games? Finally, Cole Palmer is a great player, but I’m not convinced he’s even a good (valuable) FPL player. No double digits this season (even when healthy) and his second half last year was downright bad. Will everyone get him on their team just by taking crazy pills?
(via FP Olifant)
A: I would keep it Robert Sanchez (£4.9 million). The games are good and I think he will also be the first goalkeeper under the new manager.
I’ll keep an eye on where Enzo and Palmer play in the next few games. If Enzo plays more forward Andrej Santos (£4.5 million) and Moses Caicedo (£5.7m) as a pivot he could be much better value than Palmer. Marc Cucurella (£6.1m) is also on my radar if the Blues switch to a back three.
Q: Who are the best non-Arsenal Virgil van Dijk replacements?
(via IAWC (It’s a great Cruyff))
A: I think Malick Thiaw (£5.1 million) and James Tarkowski (£5.7m) are good. Both offer goal threat and DefCon potential with decent fixtures in the coming weeks. I would prefer Thiaw of the two, with Newcastle’s excellent defensive figures shown below:
Question: Time for Wildcard?
(via @LedleyDaKing)
A: I think you should wait until Gameweek 24 with Wildcard unless your team is absolutely ravaged by injuries.
Several teams play great games that week – Chelsea, Manchester United, Crystal Palace – and by then the transfer window has closed, we’ve had a couple of games from the new managers at Chelsea and Man Utd, and all the AFCON players are back.
#FPL #GW21 #Ekitike #Foden #sell #top #midfielders