We ain’t afraid of no ghosts. In fact, we seek them – ghost points, that is. Ghost points are fantasy points that do not come from attacking returns or clean sheets. These can come in the form of key passes, shots on target, successful dribbles, interceptions, and tackles, among others. Identifying these points is essential for your Fantasy EPL prospects, and our Gameweek 11 Ghost Point Hunters article is here to help!
This Ghost Point Hunters article is based on the Fantrax Scoring System. Check out our Ghost Point Tracker page for the full list of Fantasy EPL players and their respective Ghost Point capabilities!
Gameweek 11 Ghost Point Hunters
Double digit gameweeks are now under our belt and the cream is slowly rising to the top (or the stones are sinking to the bottom). We're almost always glass completely empty guys but let's keep it optimistic for now. On to the big board! Joao Palhinha, Nelson Semedo, & Joelinton get some love this week. Honorable Mention includes a new entrant (Kyle Walker), a pat on the back (Dara O'Shea), a full throated response from Matheus Cunha to our slight skepticism from last week, and one to target in the near future (Nayef Aguerd). Finally, here's a bit more cheer for Everton fans after their big win over the weekend: Anthony Gordon gets hit with Dr. Peter Venkman status after his GW10 stinker against the mighty Wolves.
Joao Palhinha
Position: Midfielder
Team: Fulham
Rostered: 46%
Ghost Points Per Start: 7.1
Ghost Points Last GW: 14.5
Prospects: Despite nearly moving to Bayern Munich, he stayed at the Cottage and is a fixture in the engine room, arguably serving as the most important player for Marco Silva. And as you'll see below, he can do everything. Normally we'd advise against rostering a "CDM" but he is on fire and it's a ride it until the wheels fall off situation here.
Verdict: Pick him up!
An under the radar transfer ended up being the bargain of the century. Fulham scooped up Joao Palhinha from the Portuguese league for a cool 20 million pounds in the summer of 2022. He's now likely worth triple that. He's been a colossus in their midfield - his debut season in the EPL was enough to get Bayern Munich's lederhosen all in a twist this past summer. The Germans couldn't get the deal done and Palhinha ended up extending his deal in West London.
For fantasy purposes, he has had his moments but has yet to consistently do the business. After all, he is a "CDM", and we all know their limitations in Fantrax default scoring. He could only muster 5.8 GPPS last season. However, the tide could be turning. Here are Palhinha's ghosties over the last 3 games: 7, 10.5, &14.5. Most recently, on top of a thunderbastard goal, he nicked 1 Key Pass, 5 Tackles Won, 1 Shot on Target, 5 Interceptions, 3 Clearances, 1 Successful Dribble, &1 Aerial. He tied the EPL record for most tackles with 10. Despite the CDM vulnerabilities, sometimes one has to go with the hot hand, especially when they have mid-table Man United up next. This is one of those situations - we're pulling for you, Joao.
Nelson Semedo
Position: Defender
Team: Wolves
Rostered: 16%
Ghost Points Per Start: 7.75
Ghost Points Last GW: 12.75
Prospects: He's historically pretty hit or miss, emphasis on the latter. But he has been scoring well of late. Nailed on and has the gift that keeps on giving (Sheffield United) this weekend.
Verdict: Pick him up!
We had so much hope for Nelson Semedo when he rocked up on Blighty's shores before the 2020/2021 season. Coming from Barcelona, expectations were high. A swashbuckling right back in the Wolves system - what could go wrong? Unfortunately, he's been the epitome of inconsistency - both in real life and in Fantrax. His best season, oddly enough, was his debut in 20/21, delivering a decent 8.6 GPPS. He then dropped to 6.7 in 21/22 and 5.8 GPPS last season. A glimmer of hope has since emerged. He is currently boasting a GPPS of just under 8.
Thankfully, like almost everyone on the roster, Semedo's been much better than he was under Lopetegui, who was a ghost point murderer. He is fresh off a performance against Newcastle in which he dropped over a dozen ghosties, stemming from 1 Key Pass, 3 Tackles Won, 2 Interceptions, 3 Clearances, & 2 Aerials. Next up is Sheffield United, a godsend for opposition defenders. While Semedo hasn't yet reached long term hold status for us, he is a must stream this weekend.
Joelinton
Position: Midfielder
Team: Newcastle United
Rostered: 82%
Ghost Points Per Start: 6.7
Ghost Points Last GW: 12.5
Prospects: Back fit and Newcastle's midfield is riddled with injuries. He should be relatively nailed at this point, and may have more responsibility to get involved in the attack given the injuries. We know from last season he can ghost; this GW could be a sign of things to come.
Verdict: Pick him up if someone got sick of holding in your league. If not, wait for another off performance or test the waters now with something like a Pereira or Billing straight up, or an overperforming FWD3 like Hwang.
What a strange and beautiful ride it's been for big Joelinton. Brought over to Newcastle as a target man, he has been masterfully transformed into a midfielder by Eddie Howe. This steadily resulted in fantasy production for the monstrous Brazilian. He reached 8.5 GPPS last season - same as Foden.
He built a reputation as a "Steady Eddie" last campaign and that led many to reach for him in the draft around the 5th Round. But this season hasn't gone to plan thus far. He has picked up some knocks and has yet to reach the ghost point heights of last season - his GPPS hovers under 7. But that is changing. Joelinton is back fit and firing - posting 12.5 scary scores at Wolves in an all action performance: 3 Key Passes, 1 Shot on Target, 2 Interceptions, 1 Clearance, 2 Successful Dribbles, 1 Blocked Shot, & 1 Aerial. Some in your league may have lost the faith in Joelinton. He earned our trust last season - we advise sticking with him, there should be light at the end of this tunnel.
Honorable Mention:
Matheus Cunha (Wolves FWD; 14.5 ghosts): Featured on the big board for his exploits last week. We asked for some consistency and we'll be damned if he didn't up and do it, dropping another ghosty performance. He has solidified himself as a solid FWD3. Let's see how he performs without Pedro Neto - his role/points may shift. Stay tuned.
Dara O'Shea (Burnley DEF; 13.5 ghosts): Our out of left field waiver wire shout last week had the luck of the Irish last weekend. He tacked on an assist to go with these tasty ghosts. He's a top DEF streamer this week with a good matchup on paper v toothless Palace at home.
Kyle Walker (Manchester City DEF; 12.25 ghosts): This one made us do a double take. The anti-Casper that is Kyle Walker actually delivered double digit ghosts. This is a collector's item - hope you enjoyed it while you can. His GPPS, unsurprisingly, remains under 6; trade high, but wait until after the tasty fixture at home to Bournemouth.
Nayef Aguerd (West Ham United DEF; 11 ghosts): The lanky Moroccan has it in his locker to post some ghosts. This was a decent outing against Everton. He may be one to stash for the nice run of fixtures after BRF this GW - Forest, Burnley, & Palace.
Category Killers:
Key Passes: Mahmoud Dahoud (4)
Successful Dribbles: Matheus Cunha (7)
Aerials: Serge Aurier (7)
Accurate Crosses Not Corners (ACNCs): Lucas Digne (3)
Tackles Won: Max Kilman (5)
Interceptions: Tim Ream (6)
Dr. Peter Venkman Award:
Anthony Gordon (Newcastle United MID; 1 ghost): The acrimonious exit from boyhood Evertonian, Anthony Gordon, wasn't really worth it...until this season. The blonde cartoonish winger seems to be coming into his own in his new digs at Newcastle, bagging 3 goals and 2 assists in 8 starts (more attacking returns than his full 22/23 campaign with both Everton & Newcastle). Fantasy-wise, this has made Gordo largely a steal in the draft (most punters passed on him given his growing pains on Tyneside and the competition, largely in the form of new signing Harvey Barnes. It has not been all puppy dogs and ice cream, though, as the Liverpudlian continues to be boom or bust. This past GW is further evidence of that. His single solitary ghost came from 2 Successful Dribbles, some of which was drowned out by 2 Dispossessions. Otherwise, he did absolutely nothing. But this should come as no surprise. Excluding his purple patch at Everton in 21/22, where Gordon was the main man and was able to muster a much more impressive 7.4 GPPS, he has struggled for ghosts. He delivered 5.4 per start last season and is hovering around 4.8 GPPS so far this season. If he chips in with goals and assists, all is forgiven. If he doesn't, he'll blank. That's just who he is; act accordingly.
***Click here to view the full Ghost Point Tracker table!***
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