Brighton FPL Gameweek 35: Estupinan escapes Albion rotation
Two wins for Brighton in FPL double gameweek 35 left Albion supporters very happy but fantasy managers less so after Roberto De Zerbi opted to rotate his squad, with only a handful of players including Pervis Estupinan playing both matches.
The resting of Kaoru Mitoma (£5.6 million) in the 6-0 victory over Wolves caused the biggest issue. The Japanese international is the most heavily owned Albion asset in the game, lining up in 27.8 percent of teams.
It was the first time Mitoma had failed to start in the Premier League since gameweek 16. Likewise, Alexis Mac Allister (£5.5 million) missed out before returning to score that dramatic winning penalty against Manchester United.
Both players came on towards the end of the Wolves hammering, but were were only able to end the day on one point each.
Such a disappointing experience for FPL managers, who can now only dream of the havoc and points returns Mitoma and Mac Allister could have enjoyed had they started against such sorry opposition.
With a busy final three weeks of the season to come and De Zerbi now having greater confidence in his back up players, Brighton may see further rotation going forward.
This leaves FPL managers in a bit of a quandary. The Albion are flying and their assets well worth having, especially with two more double gameweeks before the end of the campaign.
But who can be trusted to start every game? The answer to that question for FPL mangers looking for Brighton players lies with Pervis Estupinan (£4.8 million).
Whilst De Zerbi has rested his midfield and forward players, he has tried to leave the defence as settled as possible.
Estupinan also benefits from there being no other natural left back in the Albion squad. Levi Colwill or Solly March could potentially do a job there, but they would be very much square peg in round hole solutions.
Against Wolves, Estupinan registered nine points because of his clean sheet and assist. Having not recorded a shutout since gameweek 29 against Bournemouth, Estupinan and the Brighton back line repeated the trick five days later when United visited the Amex.
A home meeting with Everton awaits in gameweek 35. The Toffees have scored only 16 times since the World Cup, worsened only by Southampton and Chelsea.
FPL managers should therefore be reasonably confident of good defensive returns for Brighton assets against Everton.
Estupinan also comes with a good attacking upside as his underlying stats showing he has a second route to points that FPL managers could benefit from.
Since gameweek 17, Estupinan has had 15 attempts on goal. Only six defenders have bettered this and five of them have played more often.
Estupinan has also created 23 chances for teammates in this period. The three defenders who have exceeded that number are all at least £1.3m more expensive.
With a good defensive fixture plus plenty of attacking potential, Estupinan would be a great buy ahead of the run in for those FPL managers who do not yet own him.
Captain Fantastic
Erling Haaland (£12.4 million) has now returned in all seven Premier League appearances since gameweek 25, breaking the Premier League scoring record in the process. The forward is next against a Leeds United side that has conceded 23 goals in their last seven outings.
Meanwhile, Harry Kane (£11.4 million) was a popular sell for managers ahead of Gameweek 34 as Spurs only had one fixture.
However, he has returned 62 points in eight outings, only failing to register on one occasion. Kane looks a good option to not only return to FPL sides but also assume the captaincy with Spurs facing Crystal Palace.
The England captain earned 16 points against the Eagles in gameweek 19 thanks to two goals, one assist and all three bonus points.
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