Brighton FPL Gameweek 16: Estupinan looks a Christmas banker
The hectic festive period is almost upon us, meaning FPL managers will be looking for assets who appear immune to rotation – like Brighton left back Pervis Estupinan.
Injuries to Ferdi Kadioglu and Jack Hinshelwood mean Estupinan is currently the only match fit left back available to Fabian Hurzeler.
At the same time, the Ecuadorian is also beginning to hit a little bit of form. He set up Tariq Lamptey £4.4 million) for the opening Albion goal at Leicester City on Sunday.
When Yankubu Minteh (£5.1 million) doubled the advantage with just 11 minutes left to play, that should have been Brighton home and dry.
But they were pegged back by the Foxes, conceding twice right at the end as it finished 2-2. Estupinan and his fellow defenders were denied a clean sheet in the process.
Brighton now sit seventh in the Premier League table. Gameweek 16 brings a home clash with arch rivals Crystal Palace. What better way for the Albion to bounce back?
Taking all this into account, here are a couple of interesting Brighton players for FPL managers to consider.
Pervis Estupinan (£5.1 million)
Recent underlying stats suggested that Estupinan was overdue his first FPL attacking return of the season.
Despite being injured for the beginning of the campaign and starting only nine of 15 league matches, Estupinan is the best Seagull after Kaoru Mitoma (£6.6 million) for creating chances (14) and big attempts (three).
His 37th minute switch flew from left flank to right at the King Power Stadium with a little help from the wind. Lamptey picked it up, cut inside and dipped a stunning left-footed shot over Mads Hermansen.
The assist earned Estupinan a FPL bonus point. However, he’s still without a goal this season despite having six shots in his latest three outings, two of which were on target.
This suggests Estupinan may not be far away from breaking his duck. Games against Palace, West Ham and Brentford provide an opportunity for the Ecuadorian to replicate his start to last season
He delivered one goal, three assists and 27 points throughout the first five matches of 2023-24. It made him a hugely popular FPL asset, ownership peaking at over 6.2 million before a series of injuries ruined his season.
Estpuinan currently finds himself in under 200,000 squads, meaning he provides good differential potential for FPL managers.
Danny Welbeck (£5.8 million)
Danny Welbeck meanwhile could be a festive bargain. He has dropped in price twice recently due to the ankle injury from which he returned with an 18 minute cameo off the bench at Leicester.
Brighton have not won a game without Welbeck in the starting XI this season, meaning he is certain to come back into the side as soon as Hurzeler feels he is ready.
No Albion player has recorded more attempts (35), shots on target (13) or big chances (nine) than the 34-year-old. He netted six times in this season’s first nine games along the way.
A seventh would make 2024-25 Welbeck’s mist prolific campaign since 2013-14 – and we have not even reached the halfway stage yet.
Captaincy
The ludicrous form of Mohamed Salah (£13.3 million) meant he was tipped for Gameweek 15 captaincy, only to see the Merseyside derby postponed because of extreme weather.
Well done to those who reacted in time to armband Cole Palmer (£11.1 million). The Chelsea attacker racked up two goals and an assist as the Blues won an exciting clash 4-3 away at Spurs.
Palmer earned 18 points in the process, doubled to 36 for those who made him their captain.
Salah and Palmer are arguably the two strongest contenders for Gameweek 16 too. It is hard to go against the Egyptian, but Palmer faces a Brentford side that struggles on the road and has conceded the most shots on target (97).
Other shouts include Bukayo Saka (£10.5 million), Matheus Cunha (£7.1 million) and Alexander Isak (£8.6 million) – at home to Everton, Ipswich Town and Leicester respectively.
