Fantasy Football

CRYSTAL PALACE’S 3-1 victory over Brentford on Saturday ended a run of eight games without a win and Roy Hodgson was happy to herald Michael Olise (£3.7m) as the difference-maker after the final whistle.The 22-year-old scored a brace against the Bees to continue his fantastic form.
In fact, Olise has scored five goals in his last seven starts to become Dream Team’s most in-form player.

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Different gravyCredit: Dream Team
But goals are only one aspect of his rise to prominence.
Much like his team-mate Eberechi Eze (£3.3m), Olise’s play style allows him to hoard bonus points at a rapid rate.
The Eagles’ No7 has earned 23 bonus points across his last eight appearances, including a maximum of five from one fixture against Bournemouth in Gameweek 14.
Olise, who currently features in just 1% of teams, completes plenty of successful dribbles, provides accurate crosses, and wins more than his fair share of free-kicks.
The Palace winger has amassed 52 points since the start of Gameweek 16 across four fixtures, making him statistically Dream Team’s most productive player in that time frame.
Additionally, Olise has earned 84 points in just nine games since making his first appearance of the season in Gameweek 12.
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That works out at an average of 9.3 points-per-game, the best rate among players in his position and second only to Erling Haaland (£7.9m) among all assets.
Olise has been in excellent form of lateCredit: Getty
Simply put, he’s one of 2023/24’s absolute best Dream Team players so long as he’s available.
Many Dream Team managers will be eager to recruit Olise after his 18-point haul at Brentford’s expense but there are a couple of interfering factors to consider.
Firstly, he was seen limping at the very end of Saturday’s game and gestured to the bench that he needed to be removed.
Speaking after the game, Hodgson said: “I spoke to him and he didn’t seem overly concerned. We don’t know until he gets back into training and we assess it. It would be really unlucky.
“I don’t think it was a major snap of a muscle, but unfortunately, we’re in that period of football life where… people are going to pick up muscle injuries.”
Thankfully, this uncertainty will be cleared up this Gameweek as Palace are due to face Everton in the FA Cup third round on Thursday night.
Should Olise play and thrive once again, Dream Team gaffers would still do well to remain patient as the Eagles and the Toffees are the only two Premier League clubs without a fixture in Gameweek 19 (because of their early FA Cup meeting).

Olise is the joint-top performer in Gameweek 18Credit: Reuters
In theory, gaffers could bring Olise in as soon as possible to avoid an inevitable price increase but that would mean accepting a blank from him in Gameweek 19 – not ideal.
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Assuming he’s fit, he would next be in action against Arsenal at the Emirates in Gameweek 20 – a difficult fixture on paper but perhaps nicely timed as the Gunners have stumbled lately.
In summary, Olise is a great option because he’s scoring regular goals and collecting bucket-loads of bonus points but it’s best to delay a transfer if you are interested because Palace don’t play in the upcoming Gameweek – clarification is also needed on his fitness.

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DREAM TEAM managers have a couple of sizeable hurdles to negotiate this month in the form of the Asian Cup and Africa Cup of Nations.Dozens of Premier League stars will miss domestic fixtures while they represent their countries in the prestigious international tournaments, including some of Dream Team’s most-popular assets.

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Some key absentees!Credit: Dream Team
AFCON runs from January 13th until February 11th while the Asian Cup begins January 12th and concludes on February 10th.
Naturally, players eliminated at the group stage will be available earlier than those who qualify for the knockout stages but plenty of Dream Team bosses will need to find temporary replacements this week with many players set to join up with their international team-mates in the coming days.
Some squads are yet to be finalised but here’s a breakdown of which players are set to participate in the Asian Cup/AFCON.
Arsenal

Mohamed Elneny (£1.3m) – Egypt
Takehiro Tomiyasu (£2.8m) – Japan

Thomas Partey (£2.6m) was named in Ghana’s provisional squad but the midfielder will remain in England this month, meaning the Gunners will only lose two players to the international tournaments.
Aston Villa
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Bertrand Traore (£1.2m) – Burkina Faso

Just one inconsequential absentee for Unai Emery – Traore has only played ten minutes of Premier League football this season.
Bournemouth

Dango Ouattara (£1.3m) – Burkina Faso
Antoine Semenyo (£2.4m) – Ghana

The Cherries will be a touch light in attack without this pair but as long as Dominic Solanke (£3.8m) remains fit and in-form they shouldn’t suffer too badly.
Semenyo has chipped in with three goals and three assists this campaign.
Brentford will be without Wissa in the coming weeksCredit: Reuters
Brentford

Saman Ghoddos – Iran
Kim Ji-soo – South Korea
Frank Onyeka (£1.4m) – Nigeria
Yoane Wissa (£2.4m) – DR Congo

The Bees have been in free-fall of late and the departure of Wissa in particular will only make Thomas Frank’s job harder.
Bryan Mbeumo (£3.8m) would have been a key player for Cameroon had he not picked up a significant injury.
Ivan Toney’s (£5m) return from suspension can’t come soon enough.
Brighton

Kaoru Mitoma (£3.4m) – Japan
Simon Adingra (£3.2m) – Ivory Coast

Two big losses for the Seagulls, especially with Ansu Fati (£3.5m) also sidelined with injury.
Mitoma and Adingra have combined for 201 Dream Team points this term via eight goals and nine assists.
Burnley
No Burnley players are set to take part in AFCON/Asian Cup.
Chelsea

Nicolas Jackson (£3.1m) – Senegal

The 22-year-old has frustrated fans at times this season but his tally of eight goals is perfectly respectable.
For just an additional £0.3m, Jackson’s owners could switch to Cole Palmer (£3.4m) if the change of formation is feasible.
Jackson could have scored even more goals this seasonCredit: Alamy
Crystal Palace

Jordan Ayew (£3.1m) – Ghana

Michael Olise (£3.7m) and Eberechi Eze (£3.3m) may be the headline grabbers among the Eagles but Ayew actually leads the way in terms of total points (111).
The 32-year-old has earned 22 bonus points, the most among all strikers at this stage.
Everton

Idrissa Gueye (£1.9m) – Senegal

James Garner (£2.9m) and Amadou Onana (£2.8m) have proved to be relatively reliable performers for Sean Dyche in the middle of the park so Gueye’s absence shouldn’t be all that disruptive.
Saying that, the ex-PSG midfielder has started 13 of the Toffees’ 20 league games this term.
Fulham

Calvin Bassey (£1.9m) – Nigeria
Alex Iwobi (£2.8m) – NIgeria
Fode Ballo-Toure (£1.8m) – Senegal

The Craven Cottage faithful will be hoping for an early exit from Nigeria at AFCON as Iwobi and Bassey are both regulars – the former produced arguably his best performance for the club at the weekend in Fulham’s win over Arsenal.
Liverpool

Mohamed Salah (£6.5m) – Egypt
Wataru Endo (£2.3m) – Japan

Salah’s absence will be the biggest change to the Dream Team landscape this month.
The prolific Egyptian is currently the game’s top scorer and only double centurion having reached 212 against Newcastle on Monday night.
How gaffers react to his departure will be crucial in determining the overall leaderboard, not to mention thousands of Mini Leagues worldwide!
Don’t stay away for long!Credit: AFP
Luton

Issa Kabore (£1.6m) – Burkina Faso

Just the one absentee for the Hatters but an annoying one as Kabore is his side’s first-choice right-back.
Manchester City
No Man City players are set to take part in AFCON/Asian Cup.
Manchester United

Sofyan Amrabat (£2.7m) – Morocco
Andre Onana (£3.8m) – Cameroon
Amad Diallo (£2m) – Ivory Coast

Believe it or not, Onana is currently Dream Team’s best goalkeeper having mustered 112 points by the way of eight clean sheets.
He’s also the third most-selected asset in his position with an ownership of 10.6%.
Newcastle
No Newcastle players are set to take part in AFCON/Asian Cup.
Nottingham Forest

Ola Aina (£1.7m) – Nigeria
Serge Aurier (£1.7m) – Ivory Coast
Willy Boly (£1.8m) – Ivory Coast
Cheikhou Kouyate (£1.2m) – Senegal
Moussa Niakhate (£1m) – Senegal
Ibrahim Sangare (£2m) – Ivory Coast

In terms of sheer volume of tournament absentees, Nuno Espirito Santo is the most-hampered Premier League manager this month.

Sheffield United

Yasser Larouci (£1.5m) – Algeria
Anis Ben Slimane (£1.1m) – Tunisia

This will barely make a ripple in the world of Dream Team as no Bramall Lane resident features in more than 0.1% of teams at the time of writing – ouch.
Tottenham

Yves Bissouma (£2.5m) – Mali
Son Heung-min (£4.7m) – South Korea
Pape Matar Sarr (£2m) – Senegal

Son has registered 12 goals and five assists already this season and so it goes without saying he will be a huge miss for a side already riddled with injuries.
Spurs’ No7 currently features in just under a quarter of Dream Teams.
Ange Postecoglou started the season with a first-choice midfield of Bissouma, Sarr and James Maddison (£4.2m) – with the latter injured and the former duo off to AFCON, he’ll have to make full use of his squad in the coming weeks.
Only Salah and Haaland have scored more league goals this seasonCredit: Reuters
West Ham

Mohammed Kudus (£4.9m) – Ghana
Nayef Aguerd (£2.8m) – Morocco

AFCON comes at a bad time for David Moyes too given Kudus’ recent form.
The ex-Ajax midfielder has banked 49 points since the start of Gameweek 15 but Dream Team bosses will have to wait until Ghana’s business is over before they can enjoy his plentiful returns once again.
Aguerd is also a significant loss for the Hammers as first-choice centre-back.
Wolves

Hwang Hee-chan (£3.2m) – South Korea
Justin Hubner – Indonesia
Rayan Ait-Nouri (£2.2m) – Algeria
Boubacar Traore (£1.3m) – Mali

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Hwang is one of just six players to have scored ten Premier League goals so far this season while Ait-Nouri is an underrated member of Gary O’Neil’s squad.
It will be interesting to see if Wolves’ results suffer in the absence of their top scorer.

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DREAM TEAM brings you all the latest injury, suspension and availability news ahead of Gameweek 18 in one easily digestible dose.Erling Haaland (£7.9m) will remain sidelined for Manchester City’s clash with Sheffield United on Saturday.
The centre-forward, 23, has missed City’s last six matches in all competitions. He’s joined on the sidelines by John Stones (£3.8m) and Kevin De Bruyne (£6.7m), who is close to a comeback but is unlikely to be risked.
“Nothing changed from the last games, we have the same injuries plus John Stones,” Pep Guardiola told reporters on Friday.

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Tottenham’s Cristian Romero will be unavailable for the foreseeable futureCredit: getty
Anel Ahmedhodzic (£1.3m) and Gustavo Hamer (£2.1m) are both suspended for Sheffield United, while James McAtee (£2m) is ineligible to face his parent club.
Kai Havertz (£3.4m) will return after serving a one-match ban during the defeat to West Ham, while Takehiro Tomiyasu (£2.8m), Fabio Vieira (£2.4m), Thomas Partey (£2.6m) and Jurrien Timber (£3.3m) remain out.
Unai Emery has a few issues as Aston Villa host Burnley. Boubacar Kamara (£2.2m) is suspended, while Youri Tielemans (£2.7m) and Lucas Digne (£3m) are absent through injury. Pau Torres (£3.1m) could return to the starting XI.
The injury crisis at Tottenham continues with Cristian Romero (£3.2m) now for up to five weeks with a hamstring strain. Dejan Kulusevski (£3.4m) will also miss the visit of Bournemouth after collecting his fifth booking of the season.
“It’s a short turnaround for us. Hopefully we might get Oliver Skipp (£1.4m) back, which are probably the only fresh legs we’ll have to contribute to what we’re doing, said Ange Postecoglou.
Mauricio Pochettino confirmed that Chelsea duo Romeo Lavia (£2.5m) and Mykhailo Mudryk (£2.5m) would need to be evaluated after picking up knocks against Crystal Palace.
Erling Haaland will not feature against Sheffield UnitedCredit: getty
Midfielder Alexis Mac Allister (£3.2m) will be assessed in training on Friday to see if he can make a return against Newcastle on New Year’s Day. Diogo Jota (£4m) also returned from injury to score against Burnley on Boxing Day.
There’s little change for Eddie Howe as he prepares his side for a visit to Anfield to take on Liverpool, but Joelinton (£3.6m) returned from a hamstring injury as a substitute against Nottingham Forest and should be pushing for a start.
Hwang Hee-chan (£3m) could be available despite coming off during the win over Brentford with a back spasm. Sean Dyche is also optimistic of Abdoulaye Doucoure’s (£3m) chances after a spell out with a thigh injury.
James Tarkowski (£3m) and striker Dominic Calvert-Lewin (£2.7m) didn’t train on Thursday, but should be fit and available for the showdown at Molineux.
Defender Willy Boly (£2m) returns from a ban while midfielder Ibrahim Sangare (£2.1m) serves his ban as Nuno Espirito Santo prepares to host Manchester United on Saturday.
Luke Shaw (£4.2m), Sofyan Amrabat (£2.7m) and Anthony Martial (£2.3m) are unlikely to have recovered after missing United’s dramatic comeback against Villa on Boxing Day.
Kurt Zouma (£1.9m) missed West Ham’s win over Arsenal through injury and will be assessed, it’s a similar story for Lucas Paqueta (£4.2m) who reported discomfort in his knee before his withdrawal on Thursday.
The Hammers still haven’t had confirmation on when Mohammed Kudus (£4.7m) will leave for the Africa Cup of Nations and could possibly miss out.

ARSENAL
Injuries: Jurrien Timber, Thomas Partey, Fabio Vieira, Takehiro Tomiyasu
Suspensions: None
ASTON VILLA
Injuries: Emiliano Buendia, Tyrone Mings, Lucas Digne, Youri Tielemans, Boubacar Kamara, Bertrand Traore
Suspensions: None
BOURNEMOUTH
Injuries: Hamed Traore, Tyler Adams, Milos Kerkez, Lewis Cook, Lloyd Kelly, Ryan Fredericks, Emiliano Marcondes
Suspensions: None
BRENTFORD
Injuries: Rico Henry, Bryan Mbeumo, Aaron Hickey, Kevin Schade, Kristoffer Ajer, Joshua Dasilva
Suspensions: Ivan Toney, Ben Mee
BRIGHTON
Injuries: Ansu Fati, Julio Enciso, Joel Veltman, Kaoru Mitoma, Simon Adingra, Adam Webster, Tariq Lamptey, Solly March
Suspensions: None
BURNLEY
Injuries: Luca Koleosho, Jack Cork, Hjalmar Ekdal
Suspensions: None
CHELSEA
Injuries: Wesley Fofana, Reece James, Marc Cucurella, Robert Sanchez, Ben Chilwell, Mykhailo Mudryk (doubt), Enzo Fernandez, Romeo Lavia, Trevoh Chalobah, Carney Chukwuemeka
Suspensions: None
CRYSTAL PALACE
Injuries: Jesurun Rak-Sakyi, Cheick Doucoure, Joel Ward, Rob Holding, Sam Johnstone, Odsonne Edouard
Suspensions: None
EVERTON
Injuries: Idrissa Gana Gueye, Ashley Young, Abdoulaye Doucoure
Suspensions: None
FULHAM
Injuries: Adama Traore, Tim Ream, Willian (doubt)
Suspensions: None
LIVERPOOL
Injuries: Joel Matip, Stefan Bajcetic, Andrew Robertson, Thiago Alcantara, Alexis Mac Allister (doubt)
Suspensions: None
LUTON
Injuries: Issa Kabore, Marvelous Nakamba, Reece Burke, Dan Potts, Jordan Clark, Thomas Lockyer
Suspensions: None
MANCHESTER CITY
Injuries: John Stones, Erling Haaland, Kevin De Bruyne, Jeremy Doku, Ruben Dias (doubt)
Suspensions: None
MANCHESTER UNITED
Injuries: Luke Shaw, Sofyan Amrabat, Tyrell Malacia, Lisandro Martinez, Mason Mount, Victor Lindelof, Carlos Casemiro, Amad Diallo, Harry Maguire, Anthony Martial, Jadon Sancho
Suspensions: None
NEWCASTLE
Injuries: Nick Pope, Jacob Murphy, Harvey Barnes, Jamaal Lascelles, Joseph Willock, Elliot Anderson, Javier Manquillo, Matt Targett
Suspensions: Sandro Tonali
NOTTINGHAM FOREST
Injuries: Taiwo Awoniyi, Serge Aurier, Felipe
Suspensions: Ibrahim Sangare
SHEFFIELD UNITED
Injuries: Chris Basham, John Egan, Tom Davies, Daniel Jebbison
Suspensions: Anel Ahmedhodzic, Gustavo Hamer, James McAtee (unavailable against parent club)
TOTTENHAM
Injuries: Ivan Perisic, Cristian Romero, Rodrigo Bentancur, Micky van de Ven, James Maddison, Ryan Sessegnon, Manor Solomon
Suspensions: Yves Bissouma
WEST HAM
Injuries: Lucas Paqueta, Michail Antonio, Nayef Aguerd (doubt), Kurt Zouma (doubt), Mohammed Kudus (doubt)
Suspensions: None
WOLVES
Injuries: Jonny Otto, Mario Lemina
Suspensions: None

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DREAM TEAM brings you all the latest injury, suspension and availability news ahead of Gameweek 17 in one easily digestible dose.As always, Eddie Howe kept his cards close to his chest in regards to Newcastle’s availability doubts.
A late decision is to be made on Joelinton (£3.7m), Fabian Schar (£3.9m) and Anthony Gordon (£4m).
Speaking about the latter, the Magpies’ boss said: “Anthony was sore. It was a horrible challenge on him, I am really disappointed with the tackle – we will see how he is today.”
Alexander Isak (£4.1m) is deemed “50/50” for Newcastle’s trip to Luton on Saturday.

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Dream Team bosses once again have a decision to make on GordonCredit: Reuters
This weekend comes too soon for Thomas Partey (£2.6m) who is “still finalising his rehab” and Arsenal are generally light in midfield with Mohamed Elneny (£1.3m) and Fabio Vieira (£2.4m) also sidelined – Jorginho (£2.1m) is a doubt too.
Seamus Coleman (£2.1m) is “touch and go” for Everton’s trip to Tottenham this weekend but Sean Dyche confirmed that Vitaliy Mykolenko (£3.4m) is in contention having returned to training this week.
Abdoulaye Doucoure (£3.2m) won’t feature for the Toffees on Saturday but his injury is a minor one and the club are hopeful of a quick return.
As for Spurs, Yves Bissouma (£2.6m) and Destiny Udogie (£2.5m) are both suspended, though the latter will be available in midweek.
James Ward-Prowse (£4.4m) and Lucas Paqueta (£4.1m) were named on West Ham’s bench in midweek but David Moyes expressed the need for rotation – both midfielders are likely to start at home to Manchester United.
Villa will be without their in-form centre-back tonightCredit: Dream Team
Unai Emery revealed to reporters that he’ll be without both Youri Tielemans (£2.7m) and Pau Torres (£3.1m) this evening.
Boubacar Kamara (£2.2m) is also suspended for Sheffield United’s visit to Villa Park following his red card last time out but both Douglas Luiz (£3.7m) and Lucas Digne (£3m) are available again.
The Villains’ tactician suggested Clement Lenglet (£2.3m) would play at centre-back in Torres’ absence.
Pedro Neto (£3.2m) may be included in Wolves’ Christmas Eve squad for the first time since pulling up with a hamstring injury.
The Portuguese winger has participated in full training all week with the rest of the squad.
Reece James (£3.5m) is set to undergo surgery in Finland and is expected to be sidelined until at least March.
Kaoru Mitoma (£3.5m) was seen leaving Selhurst Park on crutches on Thursday night – he is therefore a doubt to face Spurs later in Gameweek 17.

ARSENAL
Injuries: Jurrien Timber, Thomas Partey, Fabio Vieira, Mohamed Elneny, Takehiro Tomiyasu, Jorginho (doubt)
Suspensions: None
ASTON VILLA
Injuries: Tyrone Mings, Emi Buendia, Bertrand Traore, Robin Olsen, Pau Torres, Youri Tielemans
Suspensions: Boubacar Kamara
BOURNEMOUTH
Injuries: Ryan Fredericks, Emiliano Marcondes, Tyler Adams, Max Aarons, Lloyd Kelly, Hamed Traore, Antoine Semenyo (doubt), Milos Kerkez
Suspensions: None
BRENTFORD
Injuries: Aaron Hickey, Josh Dasilva, Rico Henry, Kevin Schade, Nathan Collins, Mathias Jensen, Bryan Mbeumo, Kristoffer Ajer,
Suspensions: Ivan Toney, Frank Onyeka, Ben Mee
BRIGHTON
Injuries: Julio Enciso, Pervis Estupinan, Solly March, Tariq Lamptey, Adam Webster, Ansu Fati, Joel Veltman, Kaoru Mitoma (doubt)
Suspensions: None
BURNLEY
Injuries: Jack Cork (doubt), Luka Koleosho, Aaron Ramsey (doubt), Johan Berg Gudmundsson (doubt)
Suspensions: None
CHELSEA
Injuries: Trevoh Chalobah, Wesley Fofana, Carney Chukwuemeka, Romeo Lavia (doubt), Noni Madueke (doubt), Ben Chilwell, Lesley Ugochukwo, Reece James, Marc Cucurella, Robert Sanchez, Enzo Fernandez (doubt)
Suspensions: None
CRYSTAL PALACE
Injuries: Jesurun Rak-Sakyi, Cheick Doucoure, Joel Ward, Rob Holding, Sam Johnstone, Odsonne Edouard
Suspensions: None
EVERTON
Injuries: Dele Alli, Andre Gomes, Seamus Coleman (doubt), Ashley Young (doubt), Abdoulaye Doucoure
Suspensions: None
FULHAM
Injuries: Adama Traore, Tim Ream
Suspensions: Raul Jimenez
LIVERPOOL
Injuries: Thiago Alcantara, Stefan Bajcetic, Andy Robertson, Diogo Jota, Joel Matip, Alexis Mac Allister, Ryan Gravenberch (doubt)
Suspensions: None
LUTON
Injuries: Dan Potts, Reece Burke, Cauley Woodrow (doubt), Tom Lockyer
Suspensions: Marvelous Nakamba
MANCHESTER CITY
Injuries: Kevin De Bruyne, Jeremy Doku (doubt), Erling Haaland (doubt)
Suspensions: None
MANCHESTER UNITED
Injuries: Amad Diallo, Tyrell Malacia, Lisandro Martinez, Casemiro, Christian Eriksen (doubt), Mason Mount, Harry Maguire, Victor Lindelof, Anthony Martial (doubt)
Suspensions: Diogo Dalot
NEWCASTLE
Injuries: Javier Manquillo, Harvey Barnes, Jacob Murphy, Elliot Anderson, Matt Targett, Joe Willock, Nick Pope, Anthony Gordon (doubt), Joelinton (doubt), Fabian Schar (doubt), Alexander Isak (doubt), Emil Krafth (doubt)
Suspensions: Sandro Tonali
NOTTINGHAM FOREST
Injuries: Taiwo Awoniyi, Felipe (doubt), Serge Aurier (doubt), Ibrahim Sangare (doubt)
Suspensions: None
SHEFFIELD UNITED
Injuries: Rhys Norrington-Davies, Daniel Jebbison, John Egan, Chris Basham, Tom Davies, Rhian Brewster
Suspensions: None
TOTTENHAM
Injuries: Ivan Perisic, Ryan Sessegnon, Alfie Whiteman, Manor Solomon, James Maddison, Micky van de Ven, Rodrigo Bentancur
Suspensions: Yves Bissouma, Destiny Udogie
WEST HAM
Injuries: Maxwel Cornet (doubt), Michail Antonio, Nayef Aguerd (doubt)
Suspensions: None
WOLVES
Injuries: Joe Hodge, Nelson Semedo (doubt), Pedro Neto (doubt)
Suspensions: None

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MAKE sure you confirm your Dream Team transfers before Friday’s 7pm deadline to make the most of the festive period.With almost daily Premier League action from now until the new year, it’s imperative your XI is set up to capture as many points as possible.
Let’s start with transfer suggestions for Gameweek 17, though we’ll spare you the usual names who go without saying: Trent Alexander-Arnold (£5.7m), Son Heung-min (£4.6m), Bukayo Saka (£6.6m), etc.

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Dream Team ownership of 5.7%Credit: Dream Team
Ezri Konsa (£3.3m)
Dream Team bosses should target the first fixture of Gameweek 17 as it’s a big mismatch.
Aston Villa boast the best home record in the Premier League this season (averaging three goals per game) and this Friday they’ll host Sheffield United, the side currently propping up the league table in 20th.
The Blades have conceded the most goals and scored the fewest – it really should be one-way traffic in the hosts’ favour.
Ollie Watkins (£4.6m) is first in line to benefit but he’s in that obvious category.
Backing multiple Villa assets certainly wouldn’t be overkill and Konsa is among those worthy of serious consideration.
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The 26-year-old is one of just seven defenders to have reached 100 points this season and the main reason for that is his ability to earn bonus points.
Villa’s No4 has 29 bonus points to his name, putting him at the top of the podium among defender, just above Trent Alexander-Arnold (£5.7m) and Kieran Trippier (£5.2m).
Friday’s fixture is Konsa’s best chance of a substantial haul but it wouldn’t be a surprise if he added a few more to his tally at Old Trafford on Boxing Day – Manchester United have scored fewer league goals than Bournemouth, Wolves and Everton this term.
Bruno Guimaraes (£3.7m)
Bonus ball!Credit: AFP
Newcastle face Luton and Nottingham Forest in Gameweek 17 – that screams points.
The problem is that there are question marks over usual suspects Kieran Trippier (£5.2m) and Anthony Gordon (£4m).
The former’s form has fallen off a cliff this month while the latter is once again a doubt having taken a “nasty knock” in midweek.
Perhaps Guimaraes is the man for the task?
The Brazil international has earned the most bonus points among all assets this season and he gets through plenty of tackles.
Granted, he’s only scored one goal in all competitions this campaign but he’s amassed 116 points and that’s what ultimately matters.
The main takeaway from this suggestion should be that somewhere in the Magpies’ squad there is a player who will do very, very well against Luton and Forest – it’s just a matter of finding him.

Cole Palmer (£3.2m)
Palmer has hit the ground runningCredit: EPA
Chelsea are not a team to be relied upon this season but four of their players have passed the 100-point mark – the same number as Liverpool, Manchester City and Aston Villa.
Palmer is among that crop having pocketed 17 points in Gameweek 16.
The 21-year-old has quickly become a key player for the Blues with six goals and six assists in his first 17 appearances for the club.
Mauricio Pochettino’s side play Wolves on Christmas Eve before hosting Crystal Palace three days later.
Nottingham Forest are the only side below the Eagles in the form table right now so Chelsea’s double header has to be considered favourable, despite the fact they’re only tenth in the league themselves.
Palmer is the man in form but it may be wise to opt for a defensive asset instead, given Wolves and Palace’s respective struggles in front of goal lately.
Levi Colwill (£2.5m), Thiago Silva (£2.9m) and Axel Disasi (£2.9m) are all coming off double-digit hauls in Gameweek 16 and are very affordable.
Dominic Solanke (£3.6m)
Punching above his weightCredit: EPA
Bournemouth’s No9 appeared to have notched his tenth goal of the season last weekend before the fixture against Luton was rightfully abandoned because of Tom Lockyer’s medical emergency.
Given that only six Dream Team players have reached double figures for goals in all competitions at this stage of the season, Solanke deserves to be thought of as strong option.
The Cherries have been in fine form of late, in stark contrast to Saturday’s opponents, Forest, who were forced to part with Steve Cooper after a dismal run of results.
Barring a sizeable New Manager Bounce, Andoni Iraola’s men should make most of the running this weekend and the stats suggest Solanke is most likely to benefit.
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Bournemouth then host Fulham on Boxing Day, a tougher proposition on paper but hardly a match-up to swerve.
With many gaffers ditching Erling Haaland (£7.9m) and Julian Alvarez (£4.2m) this week, Solanke should be considered a potentially smart option, at least in the short term.

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MANCHESTER CITY, Brighton, Crystal Palace and Brentford are the only teams that won’t fulfil two fixtures in Gameweek 18.With the vast majority of teams set to pull double duty, Dream Team managers should be hopeful of a massive score.
Erling Haaland (£7.9m) may well start against Everton on December 27th but it’s almost certainly a better idea to captain a player with two bites at the cherry this coming Gameweek.
Let’s run through the best options…

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Only Salah and Haaland have scored more league goals than Son this seasonCredit: Dream Team
CAPTAINCY OPTIONS
Son Heung-min (£4.6m) has scored ten goals in 17 league appearances this season at a rate of one every 142.9 minutes.
Tottenham host Everton on Saturday before a trip to Brighton next Thursday and while those two opponents don’t necessarily make for the most favourable match-ups, the attacking verve of Ange Postecoglou’s side is the prevailing factor.
Spurs have scored in every game this season and their captain has either scored or assisted 40% of their league goals.
Son averages nine points-per-game across his last three outings.
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Alternatively, Ollie Watkins (£4.6m) may fit the bill.
Any Dream Team gaffer worth their salt is aware of Aston Villa’s imperious home record this year and their top scorer is expected to could feast against Sheffield United at Villa Park on Friday night.
The England international has raced to 20 goal involvements this season and a meeting with the Blades is the most favourable top-flight fixture an asset could ask for right now.
Unai Emery’s side will then travel to Old Trafford on Boxing Day hopeful of a statement win on the road against a Manchester United outfit blighted by injuries and other issues.
Given Villa are four places and ten points ahead of the Red Devils in the table, it wouldn’t be all that surprising if Watkins came to the fore again.
A likely scorer at home to Sheffield United on FridayCredit: Getty
Mohamed Salah (£6.6m) will be most Dream Team bosses’ default captain when Haaland is not viable and with good reason.
Liverpool’s No11 is joint-second in the rankings having plundered 13 points in Gameweek 16 – he now has 15 goals and eight assists to his name this campaign.
However, while the Reds’ trip to Turf Moor on Boxing Day appears ripe for plentiful points, this Saturday’s meeting with Arsenal is a tough match-up on paper.
The Gunners have conceded just 15 league goals so far and their xGA (expected goals allowed) of 12.7 is comfortably the best in the top flight.
Jurgen Klopp’s men usually run riot at Anfield but last weekend’s 0-0 draw with Man United will have given Arsenal hope of a rearguard that may limit Salah’s returns.
The Egyptian superstar remains a strong option, of course, he’s amassed 181 points in total.
Elsewhere, Newcastle have excellent fixtures on paper in the form of Luton (a) and Nottingham Forest (h) in Gameweek 17.
In theory, there must be a smart captaincy choice among their squad somewhere but there are a few factors confusing the matter.

Kieran Trippier (£5.2m) would have been a no-brainer a few weeks ago but his form has fallen off a cliff this month.
Anthony Gordon (£4m) is Dream Team’s fourth-best midfielder but he’s an availability doubt having taken what Eddie Howe described as a “nasty knock” in midweek.
More broadly, the Magpies are in the midst of an elongated injury crisis with a number of key players sidelined or uncertain ahead of the festive period.
Strangely, Bruno Guimaraes (£3.7m) may be the Toon’s best captaincy candidate as he hoards bonus points like nobody else in the game but it would be a bold move given he’s scored just one goal this season.
BOOSTER STRATEGIES
Alexander-Arnold has been in great form of lateCredit: Reuters
The captaincy dilemma could be solved in an instant by activating the Max Captain Booster.
This will ensure whichever one of your players scores the most points in Gameweek 17 will have their score doubled.
With Haaland among the very few players with just one fixture at his disposal (not to mention an injury concern) and Salah facing a tough fixture this weekend, Max Captain is very much on the cards for those who still have access.
Many gaffers will be tempted to play Park the Bus.
The most-powerful Booster in the game doubles the points of all your defenders so you’re best of switching to a formation with five at the back, at least for one Gameweek only.
Combining Trent Alexander-Arnold (£5.7m), Ezri Konsa (£3.3m) and Pedro Porro (£3.4m) with a couple of Newcastle defenders would look good on paper but again, the form and availability question marks over some of the Magpies’ main men has the potential to scupper the best-laid plans.
There’s certainly an effective Park the Bus team to be found in Gameweek 17 but it’s not all that easy to see at this stage.
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If your team is chock full of Man City stars then Gameweek 17 is a good time to activate the 12th Man Booster so you can temporarily recruit a player with two fixtures, compensating for the quirk in the schedule created by the Club World Cup.
Make sure you’ve confirmed all the crucial decisions before Friday’s 7pm deadline.

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