Brighton FPL Gameweek 9: Relish the return of Lewis Dunk
Graham Potter’s announcement during Thursday’s pre-Aston Villa press conference regarding Brighton & Hove Albion captain Lewis Dunk (£4.8 million) – who is available this weekend following a three-match ban – is something that we as FPL Managers should relish.
“Lewis is our captain, a fantastic player, we have missed him. He is a big miss for us in terms of communication and understanding he brings of what we are trying to do. He goes straight back into the team.”
Unless Potter is playing evil genius level mind games, Dunk’s 2.8% Fantasy Premier League ownership should be safe to assume their man will start away at Aston Villa on Saturday.
The question then moves onto a thornier issue – do you actually want a Brighton defender in your fantasy team this weekend, given that every shot on target seems to be flying in at the moment?
The answer is a resounding…maybe.
The case for
Brighton have performed pretty well on the road this season, with the 3-0 win at Newcastle United the obvious stand-out.
There was also a good performance in the 1-1 draw at Crystal Palace and a half decent showing against Tottenham Hotspur which are worth a mention.
Defensive wise, Brighton have conceded the fewest attempts (23) of any team in the league over the past four gameweeks. The eight shots on target they’ve allowed is joint-lowest with Manchester United. For context, Villa have conceded 60 and 20 respectively.
So the Albion’s back three have generally been working well. The return of Dunk from suspension should make the Brighton defence even stronger for FPL gameweek 9.
As for high-flying Villa, much of their best work has come on the road and they’re currently on a two-game losing streak at home during which they have shipped seven goals.
The case against
The Villans did put seven of their own past Liverpool earlier this season, however, and in Jack Grealish (£7.5 million) they have a man with three goals and six assists to his name over the last five gameweeks. And we all know how much Grealish loves a goal against the Albion, having scored in his past four games against Brighton.
Villa also have Ollie Watkins (£6.1 million), a player who plenty of Seagulls supporters felt Brighton should have made a move for in the summer. He has six goals and an assist from the same time frame.
Investing in any Brighton player is further complicated by a short-term schedule involving sixth placed Villa and then Liverpool, Southampton and Leicester – a group also known as ‘three of the current top four’. Ouch.
If Dunk and the Albion can find a way to keep Grealish and Watkins quiet, then the returning Brighton captain might be a shrewd FPL pick for the Villa game. What comes after the trip to the Second City is however a bit of a concern.
The White Stuff
Whilst Tariq Lamptey is the most well owned of the Seagulls defence, there are other options in that Brighton back line, so why not take a differential approach and look at investing in Ben White (£4.5 million)?
He has started every single league match this season and with Dunk back off the naughty step, Potter might even play centre back White in midfield again.
That boosts his chances of attacking returns against a Villa side that hasn’t kept a home clean sheet since the first game of the campaign.
Captaincy Corner
FPL’s most popular buy this week has been Manchester United midfielder Bruno Fernandes (£10.6 million). Many will also captain him on the back of both his 17-point haul at Everton last time out and this week’s visit from West Bromwich Albion.
But United have been truly awful at home this season – one draw, three defeats – and only one of Fernandes’ five goals (and none of his three assists) have come at Old Trafford. It should also be noted that the goal he did score at Old Trafford came from a penalty as opposed from open play.
Chelsea striker Timo Werner (£9.4 million) looks a better bet. He’s scored in back-to-back games and has four goals and an assist from his last four starts.
He will be travelling to face a Newcastle team that has the joint-worst total of shots allowed at home (63) and has kept zero clean sheets at St James’ Park.
And there is always Jamie Vardy (£10.1 million). The Leicester frontman has scored in three straight matches and found the net in every single away match this season.
The Foxes will be at Anfield to face an injury-ravaged Liverpool defence that has kept only one clean sheet so far this season and has let in 16 goals – only The Leeds United and West Brom have allowed more.
Vardy also has a well-documented taste for scoring against the ‘big six’, with four goals already in the bag from fixtures with Manchester City and Arsenal this term.
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