Brighton FPL Gameweek 12: O’Riley unleashed on Premier League
It was said in our FPL Gameweek 11 preview that Brighton had nothing to fear facing Manchester City – and so it proved as goals from Joao Pedro and Matt O’Riley saw the Albion come from behind to secure a famous 2-1 win over the champions.
Gameweek 12 takes the Albion to Bournemouth, who themselves have recent victories over City and Arsenal to their name.
It means a real corker could be instore between Seagulls and Cherries at the Vitality Stadium – but which Brighton players should FPL managers be considering?
Joao Pedro – (£5.4 million)
Pedro returned from injury against Man City and that has sparked a rush on the 23-year-old’s ownership with him being in the top eight most-brought players over the international break.
This has presumably been influenced by lots of Wildcard users. With now being arguably the best time to activate the chip before its Gameweek 19 expiration, many FPL managers want attacking coverage of Brighton’s upcoming fixtures.
Pedro has not started since Gameweek 3 because of back-to-back injuries, He transformed the City game, however, following his introduction around the hour mark.
In 32 minutes on the pitch, Pedro was able to equalise in a goalmouth scramble. He then played the through ball which put O’Riley in for the winner.
One goal and one assist in such a short time against opponents as good as City highlights Pedro’s talent. No wonder Fabian Hurzeler singled him out for praise as “one player who makes the special things.”
What is particularly interesting is that in the 292 minutes Pedro has shared a pitch with Danny Welbeck (£5.9 million), both players have netted twice and had three shots on target.
For any FPL managers trying to decide between Pedro and Welbeck, the Brazilian has registered more attempts, is likely to take penalties and is cheaper.
Prospective buyers will also be pleased that Pedro was not called up to the Brazil squad on this occasion, allowing him to concentrate on club duties.
Matt O’Riley (£5.5 million)
Midfield O’Riley produced his own glorious FPL Gameweek 11 cameo by marking his first appearance in the Premier League with the winning Brighton goal.
The English-born Dane joined the Albion in late August for £25 million from Celtic. He received an ankle injury which required surgery just nine minutes into his debut, an EFL Cup tie with Crawley Town.
O’Riley managed to return in less than three months. And what a way to announce yourself, slipping the ball past Ederson to snatch all three points.
A very good passer of the ball, O’Riley netted 18 league goals for Celtic in 2023-24 as an attack-minded midfielder.
His formidable scoring record could add some huge differential appeal for FPL managers as he is currently only in 0.1 percent of squads.
Like with Pedro though, there might be a rotation problem for O’Riley through a chaotic December. Brighton boost a large collection of attacking talents and whilst such depth is good for Hurzeler in avoiding the problems which plagued Roberto De Zerbi last season, it is bad from an FPL perspective.
Captaincy
Two candidates stand out for the Gameweek 12 armband and neither of them are Erling Haaland (£15.2 million). For the sixth successive time, Haaland was outscored by Mohamed Salah (£12.9 million)in Gamweweek 11 as Liverpool beat Aston Villa 2-0 at Anfield.
Table-topping Liverpool now get to visit last-placed Southampton. The prospect of Salah getting his eighth double-digit score from 12 outings is very real.
Another strong captaincy option is Cole Palmer (£10.9 million). Last season’s best FPL player has shown in Gameweek 2 and 6 of the current campaign how explosive he can be.
Palmer is currently ranked fourth for goal attempts (36) and third for chances created (29). Third place Chelsea will be expected to win away at relegation threated Leicester City.
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