This week’s FPL Challenge allows managers to once again use the Assistant Manager chip, alongside a team of 10 players. However, unlike in previous weeks, there are DOUBLE points on offer for your Assistant Manager. This makes the selection all the more intriguing. A tough choice between targeting a low-ceiling favourable fixture or chasing table bonus.
Here, FPL expert (@Elfozzie) reveals how he’s approaching Gameweek 28.
Pick your Fantasy Challenge team NOW!
We’re into the final week of the Assistant Manager series, and it’s the biggest yet, with the Assistant Managers earning double points. For those like me who’ve already used the chip in the main FPL game, you'll know there’s a wager to be made between backing the managers of clubs towards the top of the league table who are more likely to record wins and and extra points for goals scored, and taking the riskier, but potentially far more rewarding option of trying to scoop table bonus (10 points for a win, five for a draw against teams five places or more higher in the league table at the start of the Gameweek).
In my three-Gameweek stint using the Assistant Manager chip in FPL, I did a little of both, starting out with David Moyes (£0.5m) for Double Gameweek 24 and scooping a sizeable 22 points from the 4-0 win over Leicester City and last-gasp 2-2 draw against Liverpool (including a five-point table bonus), then transferring in Arne Slot (£1.5m) for Double Gameweek 25, where he produced eight points from the narrow win over Wolves and five for the 2-2 draw at Aston Villa. I then stuck with Slot (largely to use my free transfer on a player) for his 10-point return in Gameweek 26.
I’ve included this detail not just to celebrate my good fortune or torture myself for bad decisions, but as a clear example of the rewards (and potential point swings) on offer for taking a risk. Of course, for every Moyes, Oliver Glasner (£0.8m), Vitor Pereira (£0.5m) or Graham Potter (£0.5m) success story, there are also more unfortunate tales from those who have backed the likes of Kieran McKenna (£0.5m), Ruud van Nistelrooy (£0.5m), Ivan Juric (£0.5m) and even Ruben Amorim (£0.8m).
Who’s my Assistant Manager pick?
So how does this apply to Gameweek 28?
The following managers will be eligible for table bonus in the event of a win or draw:
- Kieran McKenna (£0.5m) - Crystal Palace v Ipswich
- Ivan Juric (£0.5m) - Liverpool v Southampton
- Ruud van Nistelrooy (£0.5m) - Chelsea v Leicester
- Ange Postecoglou (£1.1m) - Spurs v Bournemouth
- Ruben Amorim (£0.8m) - Man Utd v Arsenal
- Graham Potter (£0.5m) - West Ham v Newcastle
For me, there are two options that stand out.
Postecoglou’s Tottenham Hotspur side have the capability to beat anyone on their day, particularly with some key players returning to fitness and following three wins from their last four league matches. By contrast, AFC Bournemouth have lost three of their last four. With this in mind, and the potential of even a 1-0 win for Spurs netting Postecoglou 19 points (doubled to 38), the Spurs boss is my favoured pick for targeting table bonus.
The other alternative is Potter. Although a fully-fit Newcastle United side chasing a UEFA Champions League spot might be expected to do well against the inconsistent Hammers, the absence of the suspended Anthony Gordon (£7.4m) and injured defenders Lewis Hall (£5.0m) and Sven Botman (£4.4m), plus the possible distraction of an impending EFL Cup final, does perhaps increased the chances of the Hammers causing an upset.
Now the question is whether the potential upside of Postecoglou or Potter is rivalled by a "safer" choice. On this front, I think there are two or three standout picks. Both Enzo Maresca (£1.5m), at home to Leicester, and Glasner, at home to Ipswich, could be expected to win and potentially win well, earning extra points for goals scored. However, it’s hard to see why you’d look to either of these when you have Slot’s Liverpool at home to bottom side Southampton and up against the worst defence in the league. While the Reds perhaps aren’t perceived to be quite as high scoring as they were under Klopp, they have scored four goals against Ipswich, five versus West Ham and six against Spurs, so it’s not hard to imagine a similar scoreline. A healthy 4-0 or 5-0 Liverpool win would mean a 12 or 13-point return (doubled to 24 or 26).
Of course, part of the whole premise of FPL Challenge is to have fun and take risks you might shy away from in the main FPL game, so I still think the allure of the potential table bonus means I’m plumping for Postecoglou!
My squad
A Liverpool trio is an absolute no-brainer, so Mohamed Salah (£13.8m) - chasing the record points tally in FPL - and Trent Alexander-Arnold (£7.4m), who will surely have a clean sheet and a chance of some attacking returns, are in, leaving one more Liverpool spot. While Darwin Nunez (£7.0m) and Dominik Szoboszlai (£6.4m) are both interesting punts and there’s a good shout for any of the other defenders. I’ve been off-and-on Luis Diaz (£7.5m) in FPL throughout the season, and given his recent form, I’m going to back him here.
A Chelsea double up against struggling Leicester side also seems like an obvious move, and I’m backing Cole Palmer (£11.1m) to end his barren spell, although if I’d been able to select more midfielders, Christopher Nkunku (£5.7m) and Pedro Neto (£6.3m) would also be under consideration! As I want to pick a 3-3-3 formation, the second Chelsea pick is at the back, with the hope that Marc Cucurella (£5.1m) can contribute going forward and keep a clean sheet.
Elsewhere at the back, it seems pretty logical to back the meanest defence, choosing at least one Arsenal player for their trip to Manchester United, with David Raya (£5.5m) and Gabriel (£6.3m) duking it out for a place. In the end, I’m opting for the goalkeeper as I need to keep one defensive slot open. It’s not impossible that I’ll change this before kick-off and ditch Cucurella for Gabriel, and maybe switching to Jordan Pickford (£5.1m) in goal instead against a Wolves side missing the suspended Matheus Cunha (£7.0m).
I’m also very conscious of Crystal Palace’s favourable fixture and as such I’ve just got to find a space for Daniel Munoz (£5.0m), who’s the hottest defender in the game right now, delivering two double-digit hauls and four goal contributions across his last five outings, as well as four clean sheets over his last seven matches. I desperately want him in my FPL side, but with the impending Blank Gameweek 29, I'll have to settle for owning him in Challenge this week!
The forwards are a little trickier. I fancy Nottingham Forest v Manchester City to be a tight game, which makes me less keen on Erling Haaland (£14.7m) or Chris Wood (£7.2m). I am going to go with Newcastle’s Alexander Isak (£9.4m) on the basis I think he’ll start and play at least 60 minutes. If he’s on the bench, I’ll switch him out before kick-off.
I will also include Brentford’s Yoane Wissa (£6.4m), with the Bees hosting Villa this weekend.
For the final spot, I’m looking at taking more of a punt. Everton’s Beto (5.1m) may have blanked (despite having three very good chances) at Brentford last time out, but he still has five goals in as many games and I fancy him to get more chances at Wolves. Likewise, Brighton duo Joao Pedro (£5.4m) and Danny Wellbeck (£5.5m) are also in a decent run of form, with three attacking returns each across their last three games. I do also have an eye on Palace’s frontline against Ipswich.
If Jean-Philippe Mateta (£7.5m) was definitely playing, he’d be in my side. But if Eddie Nketiah (£5.9m) is named in the starting XI, he could be a nice punt after looking very sharp when he came on and scored in the FA Cup against Millwall last weekend.
At the point of writing though, I’m going to follow my heart and go for a player from my own club - who I wish I could fit into my FPL side - in Beto!
