Dream Team

NO team has returned from the winter break as invigorated as Arsenal.The Gunners have now won five consecutive games in a fruitful streak that has featured a huge win against title rivals Liverpool and crushing victories over Crystal Palace, West Ham and Burnley.
From a Dream Team perspective, there’s been no shortage of benefactors from this dramatic upturn.

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Dream Team’s outright leaderCredit: Getty
Bukayo Saka (£5.7m) is the outright top scorer in the game with a whopping 257 points his name while Martin Odegaard (£4.1m) has re-entered the top ten midfielders having rediscovered his stylish mojo.
Back-to-back clean sheets have pushed both Gabriel (£3.9m) and William Saliba (£3.3m) into the top five defenders with Ben White (£3.4m) not far behind in joint-sixth.
Declan Rice (£3.6m) and Gabriel Martinelli (£3.9m) owners will also have been relatively satisfied with their returns of late.
Perhaps the most interesting element of Arsenal’s purple patch has been the form of Kai Havertz (£2.8m) and Leandro Trossard (£2.8m).
The pair are very affordable and both are categorised as midfielders despite the fact they predominately operate in the final third.
In fact, Arteta has used both as false nines with great effect while Gabriel Jesus (£4.8m) has been sidelined with injury.
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Arsenal stars have shared the points around recentlyCredit: Dream Team
Generally, the Belgium international has played up front with the 24-year-old German as an advanced midfielder.
What really matters is that both players scored and assisted against the Clarets on Saturday, banking ten points each in the process.
Havertz has produced 19 points in his last three outings while Trossard has earned 28 in the same frame via three goals.
The latter has now scored nine goals in all competitions, a tally bettered only by Saka among his team-mates.
Clearly, there’s considerable potential for Dream Team bosses to exploit here, especially with Arsenal in such great form.
However, how will Trossard and Havertz fit in once Jesus is available for selection again?
Jesus may return against Porto in the Champions LeagueCredit: Rex

The Brazilian striker may even feature against Porto on Wednesday night if rumours are to be believed.
Arteta is fiercely loyal to his first-choice XI but there must be a temptation to retain Trossard in the starting line-up in some capacity given his recent performances.
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It could be argued that the Gunners have played their best football of the Arteta reign while Jesus has been unavailable.
Dream Team gaffers should keep an eye on this situation closely because Trossard in particular has offered excellent value for money in recent weeks.

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THE upcoming FA Cup fifth round fixtures present tuned-in Dream Team managers with an opportunity to improve their ranking.Ten Premier League clubs remain active in the prestigious competition and therefore have an additional midweek fixture in Gameweek 25.
However, it’s worth noting that one of those clubs, Luton, don’t have a league game this weekend as they were due to face Liverpool, who are set to face Chelsea in the Carabao Cup final at Wembley instead.
On a similar theme, Tottenham don’t have a single fixture in Gameweek 25!

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Ditch your Spurs assets for Gameweek 25!Credit: PA
While rotation is more common in the domestic cups, Dream Team bosses will ideally have plenty of active players on Tuesday and Wednesday in hope of bumper points.
TEAMS WITH TWO FIXTURES IN GAMEWEEK 25:

Manchester City (Bournemouth, Luton)
Manchester United (Fulham, Nottingham Forest)
Liverpool (Chelsea, Southampton)
Chelsea (Liverpool, Leeds)
Wolves (Sheffield United, Brighton)
Newcastle (Arsenal, Blackpool)
Brighton (Everton, Wolves)
Nottingham Forest (Aston Villa, Man United)
Bournemouth (Man City, Leicester)

Naturally, the eye is drawn to City and Liverpool but there’s little value in tipping glaring obvious stars such as Erling Haaland (£7.3m) and Mohamed Salah (£6.7m).
We feel it’s worth flagging Wolves’ double header as a potentially productive endeavour.
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Gary O’Neil’s side have lost just twice in 11 games (seven wins) since Christmas Eve in all competitions.
This coming weekend, they have the luxury of a home game against Sheffield United which has to be considered the most-favourable match-up possible in the top flight at present.
The Blades are rooted to the bottom of the table with just 13 points to show for their efforts since promotion and were comprehensively beaten by Brighton last time out.
An exciting short-term optionCredit: Dream Team
Wolves will then host the Seagulls in the cup in what should be an entertaining contest.
These two teams played out an uncharacteristic 0-0 in January but their respective styles should deliver goals this time around.
With this in mind, how about Pedro Neto (£3.4m) as a short-term punt?
The 23-year-old winger is one of the most exciting players in the Premier League and the thought of him running at Chris Wilder’s beleaguered troops should have gaffers licking their lips.
His assist against Spurs last weekend was his 13th of the season – only Ollie Watkins (£4.4m) and Darwin Nunez (£4.5m) have set up more goals at this stage.
However, Neto is the undisputed assist king when we boil it down to efficiency.
The Portugal international has been restricted to just 19 appearances this season because of injury, which makes his assist tally truly remarkable – Watkins and Nunez have played 33 and 37 games respectively, for comparison.
In fact, Neto is averaging an assist every 116 minutes in 2023/24!
And his total of 25 bonus points is mightily impressive too given his two-month lay-off.
16 goal involvements in 19 appearances this seasonCredit: Getty

A favourable weekend fixture couple with an additional midweek outing makes Neto an immensely tempting option for Gameweek 25 but Dream Team bosses should be aware that this is likely to be a short-sighted strategy.
Wolves have just two fixtures to fulfil across Gameweeks 26 and 27 while Liverpool, Aston Villa, Brighton and West Ham will play FOUR games in that time because of their European commitments.
Man City, Arsenal, Luton and Bournemouth also have three fixtures each in the same time frame.
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Still, gaffers with relatively settled line-ups should have enough flexibility to recruit Neto for Gameweek 25 before swapping him out for a busier asset the following week.
Wolves’ No7 currently features in just 1% of teams.

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ARE you languishing in your Dream Team Mini League?Do you feel the need to do something different in order to gain ground on your rivals?
In that case, you could do a lot worse than backing Pascal Gross (£4.4m) and Simon Adingra (£3.2m) across the next three Gameweeks.
Dream Team ownership: 0.1%Credit: Dream Team
We’re not proposing this recommendation simply because the pair combined for 27 points during Brighton’s win over Sheffield United on Saturday, although of course recent form is an important factor.
The German midfielder provided his 12th assist of the season amid a fantastic all-round display against the Blades.
In fact, Gross earned five bonus points when all was done and dusted to bank 12 points in total, his third consecutive double-digit haul.
The Seagulls’ No13 has pocketed 35 points across his last three outings, making him statistically Dream Team’s second-most in-form player right now.
More broadly, Gross is currently level with Cole Palmer (£4.4m) overall, joint-fourth in the midfield rankings.
An underrated gemCredit: Reuters
As for Adingra, he bagged 15 points via two goals as Roberto De Zerbi’s men ran riot at Bramall Lane.
The 22-year-old was instrumental in Ivory Coast’s Africa Cup of Nations victory and he carried over his impressive international form to club level with a 15-point return.
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From a Dream Team perspective, the most exciting thing about the skilful winger is that he features in just 0.1% of teams, making him a massive differential option.
Similarly, Gross only appears in 2.7% of teams despite the fact he’s six points shy of a double century.
Hence why the pair are potential game-changers if you’re in need of a nuclear option as it’s unlikely your rivals will also benefit from their returns.
Brighton’s schedule looks appealing in the coming weeksCredit: Getty
Additionally, the schedule suggest this is potentially a great time to employ such a strategy as Brighton are one of just two teams with two fixtures in each of the next three Gameweeks.
BRIGHTON FIXTURES:

Gameweek 25: Everton (Premier League) & Wolves (FA Cup)
Gameweek 26: Fulham (Premier League) & TBC (Europa League)
Gameweek 27: Nottingham Forest (Premier League) & TBC (Europa League)

Very few gaffers will opt to double up on Brighton midfielders during this favourable run but it’s a perfectly viable strategy on paper.
Gross in particular should be considered a savvy option as he averages 6.3 points-per-game in 2023/24.

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DREAM TEAM managers have wasted no time in recruiting Mohamed Salah (£6.7m).The Egyptian superstar returned to action a little sooner than expected when he replaced the injured Diogo Jota (£4.3m) against Brentford just before half time on Saturday.
And he was on the pitch just over ten minutes before he provided an assist for Alexis Mac Allister (£3.2m) with an incisive pass into the Bees’ penalty area.
Then just after the hour-mark, Salah latched onto a flick-on and bamboozled Nathan Collins (£2m) to score the Reds’ third goal in what was ultimately a 4-1 win in West London.
A statement performanceCredit: Dream Team
Having missed eight games through international duty and injury, the 31-year-old needed just 50-odd minutes upon his comeback to deliver two goal involvements and ten Dream Team points.
Naturally, this statement performance has prompted an early tidal wave of transfers among Dream Team gaffers.
In fact, only four players were transferred into more teams prior to Gameweek 24 than Salah for Gameweek 25… and there’s still five days until the deadline.
It’s early days but the recruitment of Salah ahead of Gameweek 25 is likely to be one of the most-popular transfers of 2023/24, especially with Jota now facing a spell on the sidelines.
Jurgen Klopp’s side have another another fixture to fulfil before this Gameweek is done and dusted – a home game against Luton on Wednesday night.
In the likely scenario Salah starts and hauls against the Hatters, his ownership will only spike further.
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Salah was back among the goals in the blink of an eyeCredit: Getty
Liverpool’s No11 now has 222 points to his name this season, a tally only bettered by Erling Haaland (£7.3m) among forwards.
It’s remarkable that the familiar duo are once again on top in their position give both recently missed a substantial number of fixtures, such is their pedigree.
In the same way most right-thinking gaffers immediately brought Manchester City’s No9 back into their XI the moment he was available for selection, Salah’s showing against Brentford is seemingly all many will need to centre their strategy around him ahead of Gameweek 25.
His goal against Thomas Frank’s troops was his 19th of the campaign in all competitions – only Haaland (21) has more at the time of writing.
However, ten assists makes it 29 goal involvements for Salah this term – the joint-best tally alongside Ollie Watkins (£4.4m).
Dream Team bosses should target Liverpool fixtures in the coming weeksCredit: AP
Liverpool face Chelsea (Carabao Cup final) and Southampton (FA Cup fifth round) in Gameweek 25 and they’re one of just four clubs with two fixtures each in Gameweeks 26 and 27 because of their Europa League commitments.
Injury concerns may give Klopp sleepless nights but the fact remains his side are top of the Premier League and favourites to lift the trophy at Wembley next weekend.
Dream Team bosses should keep an eye on proceedings at Anfield on Wednesday night but all signs points towards Salah at this stage.

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DREAM TEAM brings you all the latest injury, suspension and availability news ahead of Gameweek 24 in one easily digestible dose.Trent Alexander-Arnold (£5.2m) is expected to miss Liverpool’s next three games at least following the recurrence of a previous injury.
At the time of writing, the Reds’ right-back still appears in 14.5% of teams.
Jurgen Klopp will be able to call upon Alisson (£3.4m), Conor Bradley (£3m) and Ibrahima Konate (£2.9m) away at the Brentford on Saturday – the latter returns from suspension.
The German tactician also revealed that Mohamed Salah (£6.7m) is “automatically in contention” having returned to full training this week.

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Trent Alexander-Arnold is unlikely to return before the Carabao Cup finalCredit: Dream Team
Malo Gusto (£2.5m) and Levi Colwill (£3.1m) are available for Chelsea again after midweek concerns but Thiago Silva (£3.1m) will not feature at the Etihad having sustained a minor injury.
Jack Grealish (£3.3m) has joined Josko Gvardiol (£3.3m) on the sidelines after the midfielder was prematurely substituted against Copenhagen.
Pep Guardiola also said that Bernardo Silva (£3.8m) will be assessed before a final decision is made on his involvement.

Matheus Cunha (£4.3m), who has been one of the best surprise packages in Dream Team this season, is set for a relatively lengthy spell on the sidelines having incurred what Gary O’Neil described as a “fairly significant” hamstring injury.
In brighter news for Wolves, Hwang Hee-chan (£3.3m) is available again and is expected to feature against Tottenham in some capacity on Saturday.
As for Spurs, Ange Postecoglou told reporters that first-choice full-backs Destiny Udogie (£2.8m) and Pedro Porro (£3.7m) will not be among the matchday squad.
The latter is currently Dream Team’s third-best defender and the fifth-most selected asset in his position.
“Pedro picked up a sort of strain in training,” Postecoglou said. “And it’s fair to say he’ll miss tomorrow, maybe a couple of weeks for him.”
Pedro Porro will be a big miss for SpursCredit: Getty
Eddie Howe told journalists that Alexander Isak (£4.4m) will “probably not” be among Newcastle’s squad this weekend although he said something similar about Anthony Gordon (£3.7m) prior to the Magpies’ No10 playing 89 minutes against Nottingham Forest.
Dream Team bosses have learned to take Howe’s comments regarding availability with a pinch of salt.
Aston Villa midfielder Boubacar Kamara (£2.3m) has been ruled out for the remainder of the season having been diagnosed with a ruptured ACL.
He joins team-mates Tyrone Mings (£2.8m) and Emi Buendia (£2.5m) among the Villains’ long-term absentees.
Diego Carlos (£2.1m) is expected to miss the next three or four weeks with a hamstring issue.
At West Ham, David Moyes told reporters: “Lucas Paqueta is not fit for tomorrow. He’s been on the grass for a couple of days, but he’s not ready yet.
“Kurt Zouma is fine. The bigger issue was Edson Alvarez, who came off with illness last time out, but he’s fine as well.”
Boubacar Kamara will not play again this seasonCredit: Getty
ARSENAL
Injuries: Jurrien Timber, Thomas Partey, Fabio Vieira (doubt), Gabriel Jesus (doubt), Oleksandr Zinchenko (doubt), Emile Smith Rowe (doubt), Takehiro Tomiyasu (doubt)
Suspensions: None
ASTON VILLA
Injuries: Tyrone Mings, Emi Buendia, Jhon Duran, Ezri Konsa, Boubacar Kamara, Diego Carlos
Suspensions: None
BOURNEMOUTH
Injuries: Ryan Fredericks, Tyler Adams, James Hill, Max Aarons, Romain Faivre (doubt)
Suspensions: Philip Billing
BRENTFORD
Injuries: Aaron Hickey, Rico Henry, Kevin Schade, Bryan Mbeumo, Josh Dasilva
Suspensions: None
BRIGHTON
Injuries: Julio Enciso, Solly March, Joao Pedro, James Milner, Jack Hinshelwood
Suspensions: None
BURNLEY
Injuries: Luka Koleosho, Jordan Beyer, Charlie Taylor (doubt), Nathan Redmond, Lyle Foster
Suspensions: None
CHELSEA
Injuries: Trevoh Chalobah (doubt), Wesley Fofana, Romeo Lavia, Lesley Ugochukwo, Reece James, Marc Cucurella, Beniot Badashile, Carney Chukwuemeka, Thiago Silva
Suspensions: None
CRYSTAL PALACE
Injuries: Cheick Doucoure, Will Hughes (doubt), Rob Holding, Michael Olise, Eberechi Eze, Marc Guehi, Jesurun Rak-Sakyi
Suspensions: None
EVERTON
Injuries: Dele Alli, Abdoulaye Doucoure, (doubt) Andre Gomes, Arnaut Danjuma, Ben Godfrey (doubt)
Suspensions: None
FULHAM
Injuries: Raul Jimenez
Suspensions: None
LIVERPOOL
Injuries: Thiago Alcantara, Stefan Bajcetic, Joel Matip, Dominik Szoboszlai, Trent Alexander-Arnold
Suspensions: None
LUTON
Injuries: Tom Lockyer, Marvelous Nakamba, Mads Juel Andersen, Daiki Hashioka
Suspensions: None
MANCHESTER CITY
Injuries: Josko Gvardiol, Jack Grealish, Bernardo Silva (doubt)
Suspensions: None
MANCHESTER UNITED
Injuries: Tyrell Malacia, Mason Mount, Anthony Martial, Aaron Wan-Bissaka, Lisandro Martinez, Luke Shaw (doubt)
Suspensions: None
NEWCASTLE
Injuries: Elliot Anderson, Matt Targett, Joe Willock (doubt), Nick Pope, Joelinton, Alexander Isak (doubt), Callum Wilson, Jacob Murphy (doubt)
Suspensions: Sandro Tonali
NOTTINGHAM FOREST
Injuries: Chris Wood, Ibrahim Sangare, Gonzalo Montiel, Willy Boly, Ola Aina
Suspensions: None
SHEFFIELD UNITED
Injuries: Daniel Jebbison, John Egan, Chris Basham, George Baldock (doubt), Oli McBurnie (doubt), Ben Brereton Diaz, Gustavo Hamer (doubt), Rhys Norrington-Davies
Suspensions: None
TOTTENHAM
Injuries: Ryan Sessegnon, Manor Solomon, Fraser Forster, Destiny Udogie, Pedro Porro
Suspensions: None
WEST HAM
Injuries: Lucas Paqueta, Michail Antonio (doubt)
Suspensions: None
WOLVES
Injuries: Matheus Cunha
Suspensions: None

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