FPL wildcard tips: Gameweek 23 Premier League fantasy football picks

Manchester United welcome Everton to Old Trafford in Gameweek 23 after running riot against Southampton in midweek.

Bruno Fernandes and Aaron Wan-Bissaka were among the big scorers on FPL and we’re tipping Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s men to pick up another three points this weekend.

Elsewhere, Liverpool welcome Manchester City to Anfield it what is indisputably the headline fixture of the weekend. The Reds will be desperate to get their title defence back on track and know they can close the gap to leaders City to just three points with victory.

Whether you’re weighing up using your Wildcard, Free Hit, or simply want to take the odd nugget from our tips, we’ve pulled together a full 15-man squad of players you should be considering for Gameweek 23.

Opta’s stats power the FPL game and help steer the Sky Bet market so what better way to figure out how to build your squad this week? Be warned, Saturday’s deadline is at 11:00 ahead of Arsenal’s trip to Aston Villa (12:30 kick-off).

Emiliano Martinez: Only Ederson has kept more clean sheets than the Aston Villa goalkeeper this season and we’d advise using your Manchester City quota further up the field. Martinez, who has picked up 14 bonus points this season, represents a steal at 5.2 and averages 3.6 saves per 90 minutes. No-brainer. Villa to keep a clean sheet against Arsenal 100/30. 

Nick Pope: It’s always worth having a decent deputy goalkeeper and Pope (seven clean sheets) certainly ticks that box. Burnley face Brighton, Palace and West Brom in their next three and Pope ranks second among goalkeepers for saves (84) and FPL points (100) this season.

James Justin: We told you to bring in Justin ahead of his 15-point haul in Gameweek 22 and the message stays the same. He has played every minute of their campaign, providing four key passes and scoring twice from defence. The 22-year-old also has more clean sheets than any of his Leicester colleagues this season. Justin to score any time is 14/1. 

Ruben Dias: It’s definitely worth sticking a couple of Manchester City defenders in your team as Pep Guardiola’s men continue to clock up clean sheets. That’s now 14 shutouts in all competitions for City since the start of December and Dias has not fallen victim to Pep’s rotation in the Premier League yet. He’s had 10 shots on goal and has an xG of 1.6 so it is surely only a matter of time before he breaks his duck in the final third.

Joao Cancelo: But Cancelo is probably your safest bet if you’re looking for attacking returns from one of Guardiola’s defenders. He has created 30 chances this term, which is 25 more than the next-best City defender. The 26-year-old also has more assists (2) and has taken more shots (20) than any of his colleagues in the City back line. Cancelo to score any time at Anfield is 12/1. 

Lewis Dunk: Brighton have taken a giant stride towards Premier League safety with back-to-back wins. More significantly (in FPL terms) they recorded successive clean sheets against Tottenham then Liverpool and now head into a nice run of fixtures stretching to Gameweek 26. Dunk has more goals (2) and more shots on target (9) than any of his defensive colleagues this season.

Aaron Wan-Bissaka: Manchester United play Everton, West Brom and Newcastle in their next three so you should definitely consider a United defender for your back line. Wan-Bissaka has two goals and an assist this term and has created the same number of chances as both Paul Pogba and Fred. Aaron Wan-Bissaka to assist 1+ goals against Everton is 11/1. 

James Maddison: The Leicester man is on red-hot form with four goals and four assists in his seven games since the turn of the year. Maddison has registered at least a goal or an assist in five of the last six FPL Gameweeks, with a 17-point haul in DGW19. Maddison to score first is 13/2. 

Bruno Fernandes: Fernandes is on spot-kicks and United have the second-most penalties this season (7) and a decent run of fixtures (see Shaw). He is also fresh from a 17-point haul in Gameweek 22 and has now picked up 52 FPL points across his last five home games. He leads the Premier League for shots (74) and big chances created (15). No-brainer. Fernandes to score from outside the box against Everton is 6/1.

Eberechi Eze: Eze averages nine FPL points across his last two Gameweeks and Palace will be looking to him for more attacking returns with Wilfried Zaha out injured. The Eagles play Leeds, Burnley, Brighton and Fulham in their next four and Eze has created more chances (24) than anyone in their squad this term. Eze to score from outside the box 25/1. 

Ilkay Gundogan: Another assist in the 2-0 win at Burnley means Gundogan has now scored eight or more FPL points in six of the last nine Gameweeks. No City player has scored more goals (7) while only Kevin De Bruyne and Raheem Sterling have a higher xG. Gundogan also assumed penalty duties against Aston Villa after Sterling’s miss against Brighton in January. Gundogan to score first at Anfield is 9/2. 

Jesse Lingard: A brace on his Hammers debut will cerainly have prompted FPL managers to sit up and take notice. The 28-year-old scored two goals and created a further two chances as West Ham closed the gap to the top four with a 3-1 win at Aston Villa. It’s relegation-threatened Fulham and Sheffield United up next for David Moyes’s side.

Ollie Watkins: Aston Villa will almost certainly have a Double Gameweek this month and Watkins is firing. He’s scored more goals (9), had more shots on target (26) and converted more big chances (8) than anyone else in the Villa squad this term. Of their next seven opponents, only Leicester are higher than 10th in the Premier League table. Watkins to score first against Arsenal is 6/1.

Michail Antonio: The West Ham frontman has scored two and assisted three in the last four Gameweeks. He averages more shots on target per 90 (1.53) than any of his West Ham team-mates bar Lingard and is looking ahead to a decent pair of fixtures against sides in the bottom three.

Alexandre Lacazette: The Arsenal man is one of the most accurate marksmen in the Premier League with 21 of his 29 shots hitting the target (72%). That is the highest shot accuracy of any top flight player to have scored more than one goal (Lacazette has eight). He also has five goals and two assists in his last eight Gameweeks and has 52 more FPL points than the next best Gunners forward. Lacazette to score and Arsenal to win is 11/4.

Odds correct at the time of writing. 18+ Only. UK only. Terms and Conditions Apply. GambleAware.