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Welcome to Gameweek 33, RotoBallers! Like the previous campaign, we are continuing our soccer coverage to include the great game of the Fantasy Premier League. So even if you are a seasoned veteran or a rookie navigating your first 38 gameweeks, we will set you straight. We're here to provide advice to help you snag those weekend-making green arrows and avoid the doom and gloom of a red arrow.
Gameweek 32 ended less than 24 hours ago, but another FPL week is on the horizon. It's a single gameweek for all 20 teams, but FPL managers must consider the upcoming Double Gameweek 34. With such a tight turnaround, we may not get all the manager news we want. So FPL managers must do their best and try to navigate this problematic midweek slate.
The Gameweek 33 deadline is 1:00 pm Eastern on Tuesday, April 25. Also, check out the rest of our excellent soccer coverage as the team gets you all set for every English Premier League and UEFA Champions League slate from a DFS and betting perspective.
And of course, #FPL can translate into #DFS, all of which we have plenty of at @RotoBaller https://t.co/U9pKeHkJYv pic.twitter.com/z2ubf1KeKj
— Jamie Steed (@Baseball_Jimbo) February 4, 2023
RotoBaller FPL Staff Roundtable - Gameweek 33
The Staff Roundtable is an attempt to get you inside the mind of our FPL staff. Our top soccer writers will answer questions each gameweek to give you an idea of how they view the games. So without further ado, let's kick off Blank Gameweek 33!
It’s a quick turnaround from GW32. Do you have any rotation concerns for the FPL stars?
- Euan Leith: The only one I will highlight is Brighton. They played 120 minutes and suffered an emotional FA Cup loss to Manchester United on Sunday. They play again on Wednesday. Meanwhile, United gets to play on Thursday. A Sunday-Wednesday turnaround isn't unusual in Premier League circles, but Roberto De Zerbi may be inclined to rotate his starting XI a tad against Nottingham Forest.
- Jamie Steed: Not really, as they are used to this. It's unlikely many players are 100% at this stage of the season. Unless someone picked up a knock over the weekend, I’m not worried about whether someone plays or not.
The rest of the schedule is finally set. Brighton has three double gameweeks. Is a Seagulls triple-up in the cards for the season's final stretch?
- Euan Leith: It will be for my squad. Currently, I'm rolling with Pervis Estupinan, Solly March, and Kaoru Mitoma. However, if Evan Ferguson is declared fit, I plan to swap the Irishman for Harry Kane to boost my budget and bring in a particular Liverpool duo.
- Jamie Steed: I’ve been rolling with three Brighton players for several weeks, as they have plenty of fantasy-friendly options. They have tricky fixtures, but I’m not shying away from having a trio of them on my teams.
Both Manchester clubs have two double gameweeks between now and the end of the year. So how many Manchester lads do you want in your squad?
- Euan Leith: Marcus Rashford, Bruno Fernandes, Jack Grealish, and Erling Haaland are the quartet of Manchester players on my side at the moment. I want to bring in more, but I don't think I'll do it by the Gameweek 34 deadline. Ederson would be a good shout in goal, but he's had inconsistent performances. So for now, I'll stick with four with a view to having six by Gameweek 37.
- Jamie Steed: Ideally, I’d want six, but how many City players can you trust to play every game? And how many United players do you really want? Haaland is still a must for me and Rashford is still the leading man at United, so I’m rocking with that pair with Fernandes as another option. Then it’s a case of filling in the holes on my team with whoever seems the best option positionally.
On the other side of the coin, are there any popular players you’ll be avoiding for the rest of the campaign who do NOT have a double gameweek?
- Euan Leith: I wouldn't avoid Harry Kane, but he will be a popular cash cow to get in some of the higher-priced players with double gameweeks. He keeps returning despite Spurs' dreadful overall play. It may make him a fantastic differential toward the end of the year, but the extra fixtures are too tempting to pass up.
- Jamie Steed: I’m out on James Maddison for the remainder of the season. As much as I like Ivan Toney, I’m not sure he’s a top-three striker throughout the remaining fixtures. He’s someone I’m probably keeping away from.
Gameweek 34 has six teams with a double. Will your GW33 transfer set up a GW34 move?
- Euan Leith: With such a quick turnaround, I'm always a manager that prefers more information. In Gameweek 33, I don't see a very obvious transfer that will exponentially improve my team. Therefore, I will probably roll my transfer and take a four or eight-point hit to set myself up for Gameweek 34 and the remainder of the season.
- Jamie Steed: I’m not making a transfer this week, so I have two for GW34 as I have a solid starting XI for the midweek games to try and maximize the double gameweek teams. As things stand, I should be able to field around nine players with two games in GW34.
Who's keeping a clean sheet in Gameweek 33?
- Euan Leith: Newcastle looked dominant on Sunday, and they took their foot off the gas after going up 5-0 on Spurs. However, in a road test versus relegation-battling Everton, I expect the Magpies to batten down the hatches and keep the Toffees stuck at zero goals scored.
- Jamie Steed: There isn’t a standout option, but I’d fancy Aston Villa to get back to keeping clean sheets at home to Fulham. The Wolves and Crystal Palace game has the feel of a 0-0 draw, so I’d also look at that game for a clean sheet.
Which defensive player is providing an attacking return?
- Euan Leith: Liverpool is surging toward the end of the season, and one of the reasons is Trent Alexander-Arnold. The former wingback has taken up a new position in Jurgen Klopp's system and is thriving. He has four assists in his last three games and seems back to his best FPL self.
- Jamie Steed: Trent Alexander-Arnold now has an assist in three consecutive games, and Liverpool has scored 11 goals in their last three games. The fullback has found his attacking form late in the season, and I’ll be backing him to keep the streak going.
Who's a midfielder or forward rostered on less than 10 percent of teams that will grab us those FPL points?
- Euan Leith: Another reason for Liverpool's rise is Diogo Jota. Four goals and an assist in the previous two games gave him 29 of his 57 FPL points on the year. With this sort of form, Klopp cannot drop Jota. He's on 2.5 percent of teams but was very popular on the Free Hit. Plus, managers using the Wildcard in Gameweek 33 will look to bring him in with Liverpool's fantastic schedule and double gameweek in 34.
- Jamie Steed: Jarrod Bowen has a goal involvement in four straight games. While Liverpool has shown their attacking prowess lately, they’ve also conceded five goals in their last three games and nine in their previous five.
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Diogo Jota has five attacking returns in two games, claiming the maximum three bonus on both occasions 🔥#FPL pic.twitter.com/m01kcKwVKQ
— Fantasy Premier League (@OfficialFPL) April 22, 2023
If you could bring in any player you don't have on your team for this gameweek, who would it be and why?
- Euan Leith: The aforementioned Jota deserves a hat tip. Unfortunately, I'm rolling my transfer, and I'm pretty pleased with Ollie Watkins and Erling Haaland leading the front line for the remainder of the year.
- Jamie Steed: Alexander Isak continues to find the net, having now scored seven goals in his last seven games. But I don’t want to use a transfer this week on someone who doesn’t have two games next week, so I’m keeping my existing attacking trio.
Who's getting the Captain's armband?
- Euan Leith: Erling Haaland has 25 goal involvements in 14 Premier League games at home. I can't see another option for a quick turnaround. Plus, it's such an important game versus Arsenal that I can't see the Norwegian coming off before the final whistle.
- Jamie Steed: I’m going with Ollie Watkins this week as he’s got a nice matchup at home with Fulham. After seeing his six-game streak of having goal involvements end over the weekend, I fully expect a new streak to begin on Tuesday.
Finally, what's your bold prediction for this weekend's slate of games?
- Euan Leith: Liverpool shoots up to fifth with a combination of their win over West Ham and Spurs' continued spiral with a defeat to Man United. The do-or-die title fight becomes a bit boring as Arsenal plays for a draw to keep their title hopes alive.
- Jamie Steed: After hyping up the Manchester City versus Arsenal clash as a title decider, the hosts blitz the table-toppers, going 3-0 up after 20 minutes and ending the title race in the blink of an eye. Liverpool is involved in another five-goal thriller, while Tottenham bounces back from their humiliation on Sunday to get a result against Manchester United.
Is there a question you would like to have answered every week? Hit us up on Twitter @RotoBaller. We would love to hear your feedback and ideas!
