Brighton stars to shine in Gameweek 21 ahead of favourable fixtures – only Kevin De Bruyne more popular than Joao Pedro

DREAM TEAM gaffers should seriously be considering Brighton assets ahead of Gameweek 21.

Evidence suggests many are doing just that as Joao Pedro (£3.8m) is currently the second-most popular recruit ahead of the deadline, behind only Kevin De Bruyne (£6.4m).

The Seagulls are due to face Sheffield United in the FA Cup before Tuesday night’s Premier League meeting with Luton.

Their 22-year-old Brazilian warmed up for this juicy double header with a seven-point return against Wolves on Monday night despite the fact Roberto De Zerbi’s side were unable to find the net.

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The 0-0 result at the Amex was thoroughly unexpected as Brighton had previously only kept one domestic clean sheet in 2023/24 – they had also scored in every single home fixture.

While the lack of goals came as a surprise, fans are all too familiar with draws as De Zerbi’s side have registered eight stalemates in the top flight alone – only two other teams have drawn more than five times this term.

Pedro earned three bonus points and notched two shots on target to satisfy his backers and his haul will only increase his popularity further.

The ex-Watford forward is currently the third-best performer in his position, behind only Mohamed Salah (£6.7m) and Erling Haaland (£7.9m).

He’s racked up 176 points in total, putting him just above the likes of Julian Alvarez (£4.3m), Darwin Nunez (£4.2m), Son Heung-min (£4.8m) and Ollie Watkins (£4.2m) in the rankings.

Pedro has scored 15 goals in all competitions, a tally built on foundation of converted penalties, and he ranks third among strikers for bonus points.

But Pedro isn’t the only Brighton asset to evaluate ahead of Gameweek 21.

Pervis Estupinan (£3.2m) has returned from injury in fine form.

The Ecuador international has produced 36 points in four outings since his comeback with ten of those coming at Wolves’ expense last time out.

Naturally, he has benefited from some rare clean sheets but no Dream Team gaffer picks Estupinan for defensive returns, it’s his attacking contributions that make him such an appealing prospect.

Since the start of Gameweek 17, he’s scored twice and earned six bonus points.

Estupinan is the joint-top goalscorer among Dream Team defenders and he ranks in the top five in his position for shots in target and big chances created.

This is particularly impressive given he was sidelined for 15 fixtures with injury.

Pascal Gross (£4.2m) is also worth a mention.

The experienced German averages 5.8 points-per-game this season, a better rate than Martin Odegaard (£4.6m), Anthony Gordon (£3.8m), Bruno Fernandes (£4.9m) and several other popular midfielders.

Brighton players aren’t just viable for Gameweek 21 either, their fixtures appear favourable for the next few weeks.

After Sheffield United and Luton, they face an out-of-form Crystal Palace before a harder test away to Tottenham.

Their next four league games after that read: Sheffield United, Everton, Fulham, Nottingham Forest.

They may also have additional FA Cup fixtures if they progress past the fourth round and it won’t be long before they resume their Europe League campaign having topped a tricky group on paper.

Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk