Joao Cancelo celebrates his goal against RB Leipzig

Our fantasy football picks, transfers, advice and more for Gameweek 12

Fantasy Football tips and advice: Gameweek 12 transfers, selections and captain choices

By Tom Carnduff

Football

Thu December 02, 2021 · 3y ago

The final international break of the calendar year is over and it is (almost) non-stop league action until March.

That's good news for fantasy football managers, who don't have to worry about international injuries or fixture congestion when it comes to selecting their teams.

The Premier League returns with Leicester hosting Chelsea while Liverpool v Arsenal and Tottenham v Leeds are the highlighted TV picks. There are points on offer across the fixtures though.

Whether it's going with the big-hitters or trying to find points others won't have, we are only a quarter(ish) way through the current campaign and mini-league positions are far from set at this stage.

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Who has the best fixtures in Gameweek 12?

It's actually quite a tricky looking gameweek with no fixtures standing out in an obvious way for fantasy football points.

Chelsea face a trip to Leicester while Liverpool host Arsenal in Saturday's two televised kick-offs. Super Sunday sees Manchester City welcome Everton while Leeds go to Tottenham.

Saturday's 3pm games may provide some joy though with BRIGHTON travelling to Aston Villa. Villa's form means that Dean Smith was sacked following their recent defeat to Southampton and Steven Gerrard is now in charge.

Smith is now with Norwich and faces SOUTHAMPTON once again. The Saints are unbeaten in their last four Premier League contests with games against Leeds, Watford and Villa all ending in victory.

The in-form WEST HAM go to Wolves where they will fancy their chances of goals - the hosts have conceded in each of their last five games.

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What are the best transfers to make for Gameweek 12?

Based on statistics, form and fixtures, we pick out three players worth considering for Gameweek 12.

Harry Kane

Position: FWD
FPL price: £12.2m
Sky price: £12m

Harry Kane has been one of the biggest fantasy football disappointments this season but a new head coach in Antonio Conte - combined with his good form over the international break - means he could now be worth the hefty investment.

He's only netted once with another assist but Tottenham should be on the up and back-to-back hat-tricks - albeit against Albania and San Marino - put him in a good place as they face Leeds.

Marcelo Bielsa's side have conceded the sixth-highest amount of goals this season with 18 while their expected goals against (xGA) of 18.2 leaves them seventh.

There is also the short-term future potential with Kane. Spurs next four games - including Gameweek 12 - come against teams marked as '2' on FPL's Fixture Difficulty Rating.

Diogo Jota

Position: MID
FPL price: £7.5m
Sky price: £9.4m

A great option for Liverpool currently and what makes Diogo Jota even more appealing on FPL is that he's listed as a midfielder - so you can have all three Liverpool forwards in the midfield line.

Roberto Firmino's hamstring injury is set to keep him sidelined meaning Jota will come in as a centre forward and for FPL managers that makes him a bargain price at a cost of just £7.5m.

He's also a decent differential option given that he isn't in 87.3% of teams at the time of writing. Despite Firmino's presence so far, he's still delivered 46 points.

Jota's four goals have come from 4.12 expected goals (xG) while he's also registered an assist - although his expected assists (xA) figure sitting at 2.36 shows that he should have had more.

Joao Cancelo

Position: DEF
FPL price: £6.5m
Sky price: £9.5m

It's a huge surprise to see that over 70% of FPL teams do not have Joao Cancelo. He is a starter for Manchester City, less vulnerable to 'Pep roulette', while also delivering plenty of points.

His huge haul of 14 FPL points against Manchester United moved him to 67 for the season and, despite being a full-back, he possesses a huge attacking threat for City. He's taken 26 shots in 11 Premier League outings so far.

Cancelo is waiting for that first league goal of the campaign but 1.65 xG highlights that he has been unlucky not to have a couple on his tally at this stage.

City welcome Everton on Sunday before contests against West Ham, Aston Villa, Watford, Wolves, Leeds and Newcastle prior to Christmas. Cancelo remains a great option in defence.

Who is the best captain for Gameweek 11?

Mohamed Salah celebrates one of his goals against Manchester United

Regardless of the opposition, we know that MOHAMED SALAH is likely to be the most popular captaincy choice. This gameweek is no different with the visit of Arsenal.

The Liverpool man has been in great form and has posted five or more points in 10 of his 11 games this season. It's a choice of going with the pack or trying to stand out - the first option is the safest at this stage of the season.

Others will look to CRISTIANO RONALDO as Manchester United go to Watford. He remains a well-selected forward in 31.6% of FPL teams despite his hefty £12.4m price tag.

Differential options include CANCELO given his form for City. While he may post attacking returns again, a home fixture means that Guardiola's side will be hoping for a clean sheet.

Southampton's trip to struggling Norwich could make ADAM ARMSTRONG a tempting option. Only Tino Livramento has scored more points among Saints players and the forward will be hoping to make it back-to-back goals against a Smith-managed side.