Weekly Wildcards: Gameweek Twenty-Six

Every week The Hype Train analyses the best wildcard options for your Fantasy Premier League teams. Historically weekly dream team’s comprise of mostly wildcard players whose selection falls under 5% of overall players, to which there is no doubt that their influence cannot be ignored. With such an abundance of points coming from the FPL’s hidden gems The Hype Train selects one player from each match in the upcoming gameweek to decide who could be the differential for your teams.

LAST WEEKS PERFORMANCE (GW 25)

Another big week for the wildcards in gameweek twenty five, six successes out of ten was good. There were disappointing fixtures such as the fightback from Sunderland at Anfield which saw Liverpool’s Sakho only picking up one point, meanwhile strugglers Villa proved too much for Norwich’s Mbokani and Arsenal stopped former striker Afobe from getting through. Lots of gambles paid off, such as Fuchs against Manchester City as he assisted one of Robert Huth’s two goals and Spurs keeping another clean sheet against the potent Odion Ighalo. There were a huge amount of differentials lurking about which could have helped raised the average for all teams, and one player who we think may be dropping off soon is Gylfi Sigurdsson who has some tough fixtures upcoming. Sometimes people ride the end of the wave, once it has crashed. That is wildcards 101, as soon as a player rises in form they can become nothing again in one week. Gylfi is still currently an option but at one point he will have a nothing week and everyone will realise their foolishness once the party has stopped. The same could be said for Fraser Forster…at one point he will concede and everyone will be annoyed and claim it will be unfair that he conceded when they rode the bandwagon towards the end of its journey. Wildcards are about picking your moment perfectly.

Christian Fuchs: 6pts Dieumerci Mbokani: 2pts

Mamadou Sakho: 1pt

Andros Townsend: 3pts

Kevin Wimmer: 7pts Aaron Lennon: 8pts Gylfi Sigurdsson: 10pts

Fraser Forster: 6pts

Benik Afobe: 2pts Oscar: 1pt

Gameweek 25 Average Points: 55pts Gameweek 25 Wildcard Points: 46pts

TEAM OF THE WEEK WILDCARDS

More wildcards than established FPL essentials in the dream team again? No surprise to The Hype Train. Wildcard players dominate the dream team and with another ratio of six to five they eek out another victory on points for the best players of the week. And once again, with no surprises, most of those points come in the form of the defence. Four of the five defensive players were wildcards in origin, only Everton’s Seamus Coleman was the exception, and in many respects he is nearly a wildcard as he isn’t owned by over seven percent of players. The midfielders and attack are normally where consistency in the dream team is found, Mahrez continued to feature, and so does Lukaku, but otherwise there are solid choices such as Sigurdsson which are normally overlooked.

All in all it is another stellar week from wildcard performers who showed that there is value in taking risks in your FPL team. There was even one crazy FPL manager who triple captain Huth as a joke in last week’s fixtures, the wildcard king has blessed this soul, and he is the only one laughing now.

Wildcards: Huth, Yoshida, Lescott, Trippier, Cleverley, Sigurdsson (6)

Non-Wildcards: Cech, Coleman, Mahrez, Firmino, Lukaku (5)

Points achieved by wildcards: 83pts

Points achieved by non-wildcards: 59pts

THIS WEEKS WILDCARDS

For Gameweek Twenty-Six we are once again selecting ten wildcards, one for each game. Same rules apply: the players we choose must not be selected by more than five percent of the games players. We start in order of the games listed on the official Fantasy Premier League site.

The wildcard options selection percentage is accurate as of Tuesday 09/02/2016.

CAMERON BORTHWICK-JACKSON, SUNDERLAND VS MANCHESTER UNITED

Name: Cameron Borthwick-Jackson

Club: Manchester United

Position: Defender Price: £4.0mil Ownership: 1.1%

Luis Van Gaal has been forced into making some unorthodox changes to his team-sheet but one that looks to have provided a measure of dividends is at left-back with the constantly-startled looking Cameron Borthwick-Jackson getting a chance from the academy. A Man United defender at a bargain price of £4.0mil is unheard of, and even as a cheap fifth defender option offers a lot of rotation opportunities in your FPL squad. There would be no need to play him every game where United are prone to leaking a few goals, but in this fixture against a bottom half team that the Red Devils should get the three points you would play Cameron. This transfer could help sort out many defences that are fixture-tied with attackers, and he can also play in the shorter gameweek twenty seven.

Last Three 23 – SOU (H) – 6pts

24 – STK (H) – 11pts

25 – CHE (A) – 2pts Next Three

26 – SUN (A) – 13th February, 12:45pm

27 – ARS (H) – 28th February, 14:05pm

28 – WAT (H) – 2nd March, 20:00pm

In contrast you might consider this man in the fixture as wildcard, goal scorer through and through...

CHARLIE DANIELS, BOURNEMOUTH VS STOKE CITY

Name: Charlie Daniels

Club: AFC Bournemouth

Position: Defender Price: £4.6mil Ownership: 4.6%

Stoke City have lost all goal threat, and more worryingly they have lost all defensive clout since Ryan Shawcross has been injured. Both of these factors will make Charlie Daniels smile as he has been potent at both ends of the pitch in 2016 and will be looking for another positive Bournemouth performance at home when they face the struggling Potters. The Fantasy Football Fix also consider Charlie Daniels to be one of the best upcoming FPL options for defenders in the next give gameweeks, predicted to outscore most defenders in the FPL. His status as penalty-taker is a big reason behind this, and there are other good reasons too. Bournemouth story from zeros to heroes has been down to the way Bournemouth play which involved full-backs using the width of the pitch to create chances. Daniels has tactical value and is a magnet for bonus points, he is currently worth the money you’d invest in this fixture.

Last Three 23 – SUN (A) – 2pts

24 – CRY (A) – 8pts

25 – ARS (H) – 1pt Next Three

26 – STK (H) – 13th February, 15:00pm

27 – WAT (A) – 27th February, 15:00pm

28 – SOU (H) – 1st March, 19:45pm

The Hype Train also did this handy graphic questioning the Stoke defence, also found on our weekly hype page.

EMMANUEL ADEBAYOR, CRYSTAL PALACE VS WATFORD

Name: Emmanuel Adebayor

Club: Crystal Palace

Position: Forward Price: £5.8mil Ownership: 0.4%

Troy Deeney was dropped in the last match and with some new additions to the Watford line-up the wildcard kings place in the weekly wildcards is at risk, this week we opt for a new Crystal Palace striker, and former FPL option Emmanuel Adebayor. Watford may tinker for a while, and whilst they have Odion Ighalo playing it means they aren’t guaranteed of anything against Crystal Palace who has proved defensively viable this season. Adebayor is a goal scorer to some degree, he can command a penalty area and be good with both feet and head, so chances could be created from either approach; factor in his guarantee of playing time might mean he changes the fortunes of the goal-shy Crystal Palace. The Eagles also have a good run of fixtures and when Bolasie returns to the fold then Adebayor might be even more potent with some extra firepower on the wing.

Last Three 23 – CRY (A) – 0pts

24 – BOU (H) – 0pts

25 – SWA (A) – 0pts Next Three

26 – WAT (H) – 13th February, 15:00pm

27 – WBA (A) – 27th February, 17:30pm

28 – SUN (A) – 1st March, 19:45pm

Speaking of strikers who haven't been up to the mark in recent weeks...

AARON LENNON, EVERTON VS WEST BROM

Name: Aaron Lennon

Club: Everton

Position: Midfielder Price: £5.6mil Ownership: 0.3%

Gerard Deulofeu must be asking himself serious questions to be currently overlooked in the Toffee’s squad at this moment in time; Aaron Lennon has done a fantastic job at keeping the Spaniard on the bench. The Englishman has been in great form and could make it three returns in his last three if he delivers on points this gameweek. Visiting this week are West Brom who look a shade of the team that has previously been spotted keeping clean sheets every week in scrappy draws, especially because Goodison Park has become known as a goal machine. Lennon retains his place in the wildcards because there is nothing wrong with his inclusion when he is getting into good scoring positions every game.

Last Three 23 – SWA (H) – 0pts

24 – NEW (H) – 13pts

25 – STK (A) – 8pts Next Three

26 – WBA (H) – 13th February, 19:45pm

27 – N/A – Not playing in this gameweek.

28 – AVL (A) – 1st March, 19:45pm

ADRIAN, NORWICH VS WEST HAM

Name: Adrian

Club: West Ham

Position: Goalkeeper Price: £5.0mil Ownership: 3.0%

The Hammers impressive form has made them surprising wildcards, they are consistently picking up results, and the better thing is that they aren’t losing too many matches. Adrian has been overlooked because better options have formed (Cech, Butland etc.) which means that he won’t be trusted. West Ham have some promising games and with Payet back in the team they look more secure as they spend more time attacking, and when he wants to Adrian is one of the best shot stoppers in the league and can rack up the save points. He is a great differential against two of the worst teams in the Premier League currently for the coming weeks.

Last Three 23 – MCI (H) – 1pt

24 – AVL (H) – 6pts

25 – SOU (A) – 2pts Next Three

26 – NOR (A) – 13th February, 15:00pm

27 – SUN (H) – 27th February, 12:45pm

28 – TOT (H) – 2nd March, 19:45pm

ALBERTO PALOSCHI, SWANSEA VS SOUTHAMPTON

Name: Alberto Paloschi

Club: Swansea

Position: Forward Price: £6.0mil Ownership: 0.1%

Southampton come to town with one of the best defensive records on show, their unbelievable form has gone greatly underplayed because FPL managers are getting stuck in their ways with rigid defences (normally Spurs, Arsenal, Stoke, Manchester United, and Man City combinations) reigning supreme in the community. One club also under the radar is Swansea who is starting to look back to their best, and one player who is making all the difference is Alberto Paloschi who looks to be a great purchase by the Swans. Southampton fans will tell you that playing Swansea comes with great vein as they don’t have a stellar record against the Swans. This is a very extreme wildcard option but it will come as no surprise to see Swansea fair well against Southampton for the home supporters, this could be an epic fixture with lots going for it so The Hype Train is changing things up and banking on the Italian to score his first Premier League goal in this match.

Last Three

24 – WBA (A) – 1pt

25 – CRY (H) – 2pts Next Three

26 – SOU (H) – 13th February, 15:00pm

27 – TOT (A) – 28th February, 14:05pm

28 – ARS (A) – 2nd March, 19:45pm

Then again, you could think that Southampton could be value for money with their defence.

JOHN TERRY, CHELSEA VS NEWCASTLE

Name: John Terry

Club: Chelsea

Position: Defender Price: £6.6mil Ownership: 3.1%

Since Jose Mourinho was sacked by Chelsea and replaced the Dutchman Hiddink they have become masters in the art of the draw. No other team in the last ten gameweeks has drawn as many games as the Blues have, in fact Chelsea haven’t actually improved their winning record since the new manager came in. They may be drawing their way out of the relegation scrap and towards the top half but their newfound ‘revival’ has come because they have tightened up at the back. John Terry, their resilient and heroic captain, has made all the difference in this department and when they do keep clean sheets is usually the one picking up the bonus points to tell the story of the game. In his last three outings the skipper has obtained eighteen points which is good returns considering they could barely hold it together whilst the Portuguese still managed the club. Newcastle visit which should be easy work for Chelsea, their defence should stay unchallenged for large parts of the fixture so Terry is a solid shout for keeping a clean sheet in this fixture clashed gameweek.

Last Three 23 – ARS (A) – 8pts

24 – WAT (A) – 8pts

25 – MUN (H) – 2pts Next Three

26 – NEW (H) – 13th February, 17:30pm

27 – SOU (A) – 27th February, 15:00pm

28 – NOR (A) – 1st March, 19:45pm

CHRISTIAN FUCHS, ARSENAL VS LEICESTER

Name: Christian Fuchs

Club: Leicester City

Position: Defender Price: £4.8mil Ownership: 2.5%

Another week, another title decider for the Foxes. We are growing into the familiarity that Leicester are going to keep bossing the league, and in doing so we must consider them legitimate options. The Hype Train is opting again to trust the Austrian left-back with wildcard duties this week because he is one of Leicester’s most consistent players. He isn’t just a great attacker, but he is on plenty of set-piece duties with Mahrez, so there is potential for points to come out of anywhere. Whilst many FPL managers will be opting for the cheaper Huth the odds of him continuing his great form in front of goal is still a concern for FPL managers, for all we know this could be a blip in temporary form. Fuchs is the deadliest catch of their defence, and it is surprising the Austrian is a wildcard considering his consistent form.

Last Three 23 – STK (H) – 8pts

24 – LIV (H) – 7pts

25 – MCI (A) – 6pts Next Three

26 – ARS (A) – 14th February, 12:00pm

27 – NOR (H) – 27th February, 15:00pm

28 – WBA (H) – 1st March, 19:45pm

One thing Leicester will have to be cautious on is this man in goal for the Gunners...

JAMES MILNER, ASTON VILLA VS LIVERPOOL

Name: James Milner

Club: Liverpool

Position: Midfielder Price: £6.5mil Ownership: £3.2mil

Liverpool are the definition of wildcard, one week they will blow a team out the water, next they are playing like a League 2 squad, after that it could be an average performance. Whenever you approach the mid-table teams you must look at the people who can normally turn a game on its head, the playmakers and chance creators. Roberto Firmino was a wildcard but after hauling in eighteen points a few weeks ago against Norwich that fairy tale ended. James Milner on the other hand is Liverpool’s overlooked midfielder, currently playing in a forward three he is charged with putting the ball in the box, either from open play or corners. He is also suspected to be Liverpool’s penalty taker (but they haven’t had one in what feels like years), so there is potential value in having the former Villain in your team against his old squad. Be cautious though, he won’t be available in gameweek twenty seven.

Last Three 23 – NOR (A) – 11pts

24 – LEI (A) – 2pts

25 – SUN (H) – 5pts Next Three

26 – AVL (A) – 14th February, 14:05pm

27 – N/A – Playing in League Cup Final

28 – MCI (H) – 2nd March, 20:00pm

One thing that is worth mentioning is the set of fixtures coming up for Liverpool, makes for some interesting consideration.

KIERAN TRIPPIER, MANCHESTER CITY VS SPURS

Name: Kieran Trippier

Club: Spurs

Position: Defender Price: £4.9mil Ownership: 0.6%

Manchester City offers no good wildcard options for this match. Now that is out of the way we can move onto why this is the case, and notably because Spurs have now taken their second place spot, which on paper means at this stage in the season they aren’t the favourites to win this match. The Hype Train smells a trap in this fixture because Spurs are a completely different team compared to the one that get hammered by the Citizens in the last two seasons. The reverse fixture of this game was a four to one victory to Spurs at White Hart Lane…the Londoners know how to beat Man City, convincingly. One player who really shone in the limelight was Trippier who scored the only goal of the match; he looked lethal and was getting into good positions. Spurs defenders have been solid and with attacking returns he could get something even if they fail to keep a clean sheet. This match could also be tight and well fought, so a nothing to nothing score is very feasible.

Last Three 23 – CRY (A) – 1pt

24 – NOR (A) – 0pts

25 – WAT (H) – 15pts Next Three

26 – MCI (A) – 14t February, 16:15pm

27 – SWA (H) – 28th February, 14:05pm

28 – WHU (A) – 2nd March, 19:45pm

For all GW 26 build up, check out the Weekly Hype page now.

All aboard.