After a grueling international break, the Premier League resumes action for round 12 of its fixtures this season.
The early kick-off on Saturday is the headline act with a faltering Manchester United side looking to build on last gameweek’s performance as they play host to high-flying Arsenal.
Elsewhere, Manchester City are handed a tricky away match against Crystal Palace while Tottenham Hotspur will be hoping to return to winning ways against West Ham in a London derby.
Top two sides Liverpool and Chelsea are both in challenging away games against Southampton and Middlesbrough respectively, and the results there could change the outcome of the entire league table, which is too close to call at the moment.
Take a look at The Hard Tackle’s Fantasy Premier League tips for Gameweek 12:
Hazard, De Bruyne can be brought in given Sanchez’s uncertainty
November is generally a voodoo period for Arsenal as this is the time of the season when they begin to lose the momentum they have garnered over the course of the season. A probable case of complacency coupled with injuries to star players has often resulted in the Gunners’ downfall.
This season, Alexis Sanchez (£11.3m) seems to be facing the brunt of this evil enchantment. After emerging reports of a probable hamstring injury, the Chilean laughed it off by scoring two goals for his nation in a World Cup qualifier. However, he did not look his potent best, and Wenger may not want to risk playing his top attacker for the full ninety minutes.
This will come as a blow to 23.1 percent managers who have the Arsenal star in their team. Instead, they can use that money to buy a midfielder of the same standing as Sanchez, and continue to invest heavily in that department.
Eden Hazard (£10.1m) and Kevin de Bruyne (£10.8m) are two possible options to rope in. The pair have a decent run of games ahead of them, and bringing them into your team could prove to be a dexterous move.
Ilkay Gundogan or Nemanja Matic: Which central midfielder is the preferred option?
At the start of the season, very few managers considered Gundogan (£5.8m) and Matic (£5.1m) as regular point-scoring midfielders, but the duo have defied all odds and are the leaders in the under £6.0m category.
The Manchester City midfielder fought off an injury concern to be a regular feature in Pep Guardiola’s plans. The former Borussia Dortmund star has hit the ground running in the league notching up three goals and an assist – making him City’s third best midfield option.
Matic, too, has enjoyed a similar run, providing six assists and keeping as many shutouts, thus adding an additiona; point to his tally. He has been involved on the attacking end far more than last term.
However, Chelsea have a considerably tougher run of games, and Gundogan should be the preferred option among the two.
Defoe could be a useful addition at £7.4m
Sunderland have been overly reliant on Jermaine Defoe for goals, but the English forward has often found himself isolated in the final third this season. However, with the inclusion of Victor Anichebe (£5.4m) in the game against Bournemouth, Defoe looked a tad sharper. He got more involved with the play, dropped deep on occasions and was in good nick.
Also, given an easy looking home game against Hull City, the Sunderland striker may have a glorious day in front of goal.
Chelsea defenders continue to increase in value and are the hottest prospects in FPL
With five consecutive clean sheets, it comes as no surprise that Chelsea defenders are in demand on the FPL front. Cesar Azpilicueta (£6.1m), Gary Cahill (£6.1m) and Marcos Alonso (£6.0m) have all seen their value go up during the international break and could see it go up further if the Blues continue their fine run of shutouts.
However, with games against Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester City on the horizon, it might be ill advised to hop onto the bandwagon and sign a Blues defender. Their run of clean sheets could be snapped up in any of those games, and it would be ideal to bring either Alonso or David Luiz (£6.0m) in after Chelsea are done with their tough run of games.
Liverpool’s Samba boys along with their Senegalese talisman give FPL managers a plethora of options
Philippe Coutinho (£8.7m), Roberto Firmino (£8.7m) and Sadio Mane (£9.0m) have all been been in sublime form for the Reds this season and they seem to be showing no signs of slowing down as Liverpool look to consolidate their position at the top of the league table.
While Coutinho has been the pick of the bunch, he finds himself in a bit of a predicament going into the weekend’s game against Southampton. The Brazilian has a slight hamstring concern, and may not play the entire game. That should not worry FPL managers too much as Firmino and Mane are available in the same bracket as Coutinho and have been equally prolific in the final third as the 24-year-old.
Avoid Rooney despite his exploits last gameweek against Swansea
It’s been a topsy-turvy season for the Manchester United captain, which is why bringing him in may not be the best of decisions. After a good performance against Swansea where Rooney (£8.6m) provided two assists and with Zlatan Ibrahimovic (£11.5m) suspended for the game against Arsenal, many managers may consider getting in the English forward given his tendency to score against the Gunners.
That being said, Jose Mourinho isn’t one to rest on past laurels and may chose to omit his captain from the starting eleven as he has done this season. Rooney is also an injury doubt for the game and has only a 75 percent chance to feature in Saturday’s game against the Gunners.
Time to rope in Kane or Lukaku for Costa?
Chelsea forward Diego Costa (£10.5m) is flirting with a possible suspension as he already has four yellow cards to his name this season. Given the Brazilian born Spain international’s errant nature, it is only a matter of time before he finds himself in trouble. Thus, with his value at an all-time high, it might be ideal to offload him.
Tottenham striker Harry Kane (£10.7m) and Everton attacker Romelu Lukaku (£9.9m) present themselves as two suitable candidates to replace the Spaniard. The former returned from injury to find the back of the net against Arsenal and is likely to play the full game against West Ham on the weekend while the latter has six goals and three assists to his name and has an easy fixture against Swansea on Saturday.
