The Perfect XI format of Fantasy EPL on Fantrax is going to take the community by storm. Fact. Our good friends at DPLCommLeague have brought the concept over to Fantrax, and it is sensational. We're here to provide Draft Premier League managers with our very own Perfect XI tips for each gameweek. Details of the concept and rules can be found here!
Check out DPLCommLeague for further information on the format, regular updates on the latest standings, as well as information on how you can enter.
Fantasy EPL Gameweek 3 Perfect XI
So, what is Perfect XI? Similar to Official Fantasy Premier League game, all managers have full access to the entire player pool each week, meaning multiple teams within the league could be completely identical. The main departures from OFPL are the Fantrax Default Scoring, unlimited transfers each week, no budget/salary cap, and live lineup changes available. This means that each week you can select a dream team of Fantrax assets who you think will score the most points on a given gameweek, and have the added bonus of being able to see the real life lineups before your players lock in. Magic.
Check out our Gameweek 3 Perfect XI tips below. These are our recommendations for the best eleven players this weekend! Picks are now accompanied by our weekly projections, which our Inner Circle members can exclusively access.
GK: Hugo Lloris
Team: Tottenham
Opponent: Watford (Home)
Projected Fantasy Points: ~8.5 (GK projections coming soon)
The Thought: Lloris is the highest scoring goalkeeper so far this season, averaging over 20 fantasy points per game. More importantly though, he's got another great matchup this week against Watord at home. Tottenham are expected to keep a clean sheet 50% of the time and let in 0.55 goals (according to the oddsmakers). Watford's offense hasn't been entirely invisible either, so Lloris should be good for at least a couple saves in this one as well.
Pivot: Kasper Schmeichel
DEF: Ricardo Pereira
Team: Leicester
Opponent: Norwich (Away)
Projected Fantasy Points: 9.4
The Thought: Playing Norwich is the dream fantasy matchup for just about any EPL player. They've conceded 8 and scored 0 in the first 2 weeks of the season, albeit against Liverpool and Manchester City. Leicester should win this one and have a 36% chance of keeping a clean sheet. On top of that, I expect Ricardo to have some serious offensive production. Due to Ayoze Perez's red card there's a good chance Ricardo either plays OOP at RW in a 4231 or at RWB in a 352. Either way, he'll be in a more attacking position than normal, and I expect him to take full advantage of that against Norwich. Pivot: Vladimir Coufal
DEF: Joao Cancelo
Team: Manchester City
Opponent: Arsenal (Home)
Projected Fantasy Points: 12.2
The Thought: Cancelo at home to an under-performing Arsenal is hard to ignore. His offensive upside as a defender is undeniable in any matchup, and with City given a 55% chance of keeping a clean sheet against Arsenal, there should be plenty of points for Cancelo in this one. Alternative Pivot: Oleksandr Zinchenko
DEF: Trent Alexander Arnold
Team: Liverpool
Opponent: Chelsea (Home)
Projected Fantasy Points: 9.2
The Thought: Benching Trent in any matchup is a tricky choice to make. Even against a very hot Chelsea and new signing Romelu Lukaku, I'm not making that choice. Trent has a whopping averaging of 26 fantasy points this season and you just cannot ignore that upside or pick against it in Perfect XI. Liverpool have decent clean sheet odds of 30% against Chelsea, but we're mostly picking Trent for his offensive contributions. He should be up against the equally impressive (and highest scoring defender this year) Marcos Alonso, but Alonso's defensive deficiencies may help Trent further.
Pivot: Marcos Alonso
MID: Bruno Fernandes
Team: Manchester United
Opponent: Wolves (Away)
Projected Fantasy Points: 15.4
The Thought: Bruno is pretty much a lock in every gameweek of Perfect XI when he starts for United, and this week is no exception against an attacking Wolves side prone to counter attacks (where United and Bruno shine). He has a 38% chance of scoring and a similarly high chance of assisting, so no reason to overthink this one. Bruno didn't score particularly well last week but I'd let others overthink this one and stick with one of the best scoring midfielders in the game.
Pivot: Paul Pogba
MID: Raphinha
Team: Leeds
Opponent: Burnley (Away)
Projected Fantasy Points: 15.9
The Thought: The ghost point forward powerhouse from last season continues his run this year as a midfielder. Raphinha should create plenty of offense against the low block Burnley side. He has a 25% chance of scoring, but more importantly has a 12.1 ghost point projection, the highest of any midfielder this week. There are higher upside plays you can make this week, but Raphinha continues to have a great floor. Pivot: Lucas Moura
MID: Jack Grealish
Team: Manchester City
Opponent: Arsenal (Home)
Projected Fantasy Points: 14.2
The Thought: Another player with a great floor, Jack Grealish, is averaging 10 ghost points per start this season, and he should keep that up against a poor defending Arsenal team. Without KDB in the lineup, Grealish will once again be tasked with creating from midfield. He also has a 50% chance of getting a goal or assist against Arsenal so plenty of upside as well. Pivot: Ilkay Gundogan
MID: Allan Saint-Maximin
Team: Newcastle
Opponent: Southampton(Home)
Projected Fantasy Points: 14.2
The Thought: The mercurial Newcastle dribbler, Saint-Maximin has a great matchup at home against Southampton in what should be a high-scoring affair. After a fantastic GW1, ASM had a quiet showing against Villa in GW2, but I expect him to rack up the dribbles and points in GW3. His ghost point projection of 10+ suggests the floor is more than there this week.
Pivot: Jadon Sancho
FWD: Harry Kane
Team: Tottenham
Opponent: Watford (Home)
Projected Fantasy Points: 16.1
The Thought: After committing to staying at Spurs this season, Kane should come back into the side firing and ready to score goals in bunches, just as he did in the Europa Conference league this midweek. He has just the matchup to do that against the recently promoted Watford. Kane has the highest goal scoring odds for the gameweek at 52%, Even if you choose to avoid Kane this week, I'd highly suggest having some exposure to Spurs this week, most likely Heung-Min Son, but also potentially Lucas Moura. Playing a Kane and Son stack this week is another viable strategy, with a Traore or Sancho pivot possible in the case either don't start. Pivot: Heung-Min Son
FWD: Jamie Vardy
Team: Leicester City
Opponent: Norwich (Away)
Projected Fantasy Points: 13.4
The Thought: It's an EPL striker's dream matchup at home against Norwich City, a promoted side that's let in 9 goals already this season. Leicester is favored to win by at least 2 goals so I see Vardy likely getting on the scoresheet (40% according to bookies). I should say, I actually prefer Iheanacho in this one, as do the projections, but I worry he doesn't start and Leicester stick with a 4 at the back due to Vestergaard's injury troubles. If he does in fact start, I will likely start him over Vardy. The same could be said for Patson Daka. Pivot: Kelechi Iheanacho, Patson Daka
FWD: Michail Antonio
Team: West Ham
Opponent: Crystal Palace (Home)
Projected Fantasy Points: 14.5
The Thought: The man in form, and highest Fantrax scorer so far this season, Antonio has a great matchup vs a Palace side that hasn't quite gelled yet. He's on a goal scoring tear and I expect it to continue this week, with the bookies giving him a 46% chance of scoring (best after Son & Kane). Now's the time to plug in one of the most entertaining figures in the EPL to your Perfect XI. Pivot: Riyad Mahrez
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