We look to the waiver wire and free agent pool each week to highlight some under-the-radar players who could be a short-term or even long-term solution for your Fantrax EPL fantasy teams. Our Sleepers XI provides fantasy managers with a full squad of differential picks, and some high upside options to plug in if they are in the starting lineup. Don't sleep on these underappreciated gems as you put together your roster for Gameweek 37!
We'll be focusing on players that will bring us not only attacking returns or clean sheets, but also those players that score Ghost Points in the sophisticated and statistics based Fantrax Scoring System!
Fantasy EPL Gameweek 37 Sleepers XI
For this article, we use the % rostered from Fantrax. Our only rule is that each player we highlight is required to be rostered in 60% of leagues or less at the time of writing. Therefore there's a good chance some of these players will be free agents in your Fantrax Draft League! As always, we'll take form, fixtures, projected points, and a healthy dose of intuition into account to make our selections. Additionally, I've included the rostership percentage from the "Big 3" -- the twenty 12-team divisions that comprise the ultra-competitive DraftPL Community League and International Genie League, as well as the eight equally competitive 10-team divisions in the Discord Super League -- to provide some additional context for who is likely to be available and where you might want to follow the wisdom of the crowd.
Let's see how we did last week! Six of the players included in last weekend's XI reached double digit scores, with Madueke (40), Munoz (30) and Murphy (28) reaching dizzying heights of being in the top 10 overall points scorers of the GW with CHO (27) just missing out in 12th spot. It seemed to be a great week for low rostered assets as besides the 4 players mentioned, Elliot and Mitchell also managed top15 scores and would have qualified for our Sleepers XI. Our weekly score of 189.5 surely is close to a high score for a SGW, but I'll let Gavin do the maths on that for his final Sleepers XI for the final gameweek. Our rolling total after GW36 stands at 2687.25 which rounds out the weekly average to 74.65. mightily close to the 75 point/week target set at the beginning of the season. We need to hit 82 points per week for the final 2 weeks to reach that target, which is gonna be a great challenge.
The Sleepers XI table below includes a full team of Starters, as well as 5 Reserves -- high-upside players with some question marks around whether or not they'll start in Gameweek 35. Keep an eye out when lineups drop and pick them up if you see them starting and need to fill a spot on your roster. Read on below for the rationale behind each of the Starter selections.
Djordje Petkovic (G, Chelsea @ Nott Forest, @ Burnley)
Choosing a GK is always a gamble in Fantrax Default Scoring. This week Petkovic seems to be the obvious choice, though as he is one of few who has a double gameweek with semi-decent matchups. Although The Todd has released a statement declaring the Chelsea have turned a corner, I am less convinced. That said Forest and Brighton are not famous for their attacking prowess nowadays, so at least one of those matches has a good chance of a clean sheet which would result in an above average score for Petkovic.
Ben Godfrey (D, Everton v Sheff United)
"Lads, it's the Blades.' This is essentially the basis of my recommendation of Godfrey. As much as Ben Brereton Diaz and Hamer pose a decent attacking threat, Everton should have enough to keep a clean sheet in this one. Godfrey is a decent enough ghoster too, so a double digit score is likely for him. Fun fact, although none have hit the target, he attempted 5 shots in the last 3 games, so even attacking points could be up his sleeve.
Marcos Senesi (D, Bournemouth vs Brentford)
Since his return to the starting lineup, the free-scoring Argentinian has managed 18, 20 and 21.75 when not up against top 4 opponents, and even against Arsenal, he got 8.75 ghosts. Likely the only reason he is available for selection in this Sleepers XI is his long injury layoff and facing Arsenal last week, but rest assured, he should be an every week starter in even 10-team leagues. Brentford are actually the third best matchup for defenders in all the land, so look out for a big Senesi score.
Vladimir Coufal (D, West Ham vs Luton)
The Czech former fantasy surprise package has only had one positive score since 18th March, so I am sure that he is languishing in free agency in some of the leagues. There has been a fair bit of turmoil around West Ham lately, but the dust has finally settled and Lopetegui has been announced as the new manager for next season. Whether the players want to give Moyes a decent sendoff or are just relieved that he will be gone next season, I expect the team to put in a performance against lowly Luton and push them a step closer to relegation in the process. West Ham have a 24% chance chance of a clean sheet according to bookies, but Coufal should provide decent DEF3 value even if Luton manage to nick one.
Harvey Elliott (M, Liverpool @ Aston Villa)
Man of the Match in the statement win against Spurs last weekend, the English youngster has surely done enough to keep his place in the team for the Monday night kickoff. Elliott seems to do great performances in streaks, so here is hoping he can replicate vs a deflated Villa side, who crashed out of Europe in very lacklustre fashion. It is highly unlikely Klopp changes things around after such an emphatic win after weeks of depressive performances, so despite it being a late game, I would be pretty confident of an Elliott start.
Jack Harrison (M, Everton v Sheff United)
The former Leeds man had become pretty much droppable for a long time this season and he even lost his starting spot at one point, but he is firmly back in the lineup and performing well lately to warrant an inclusion despite being on a Single in this Double Gameweek. As I mentioned when talking about Godfrey, the Blades are there for the taking for Everton to finish on a high after some commanding performances to secure their stay in the Premier League. Interesting fact: without the points deductions, Everton would be able to have a shot at a top half finish come the end of the season.
Joelinton (M, Newcastle v Brighton, @ Manchester United)
The Brazilian forward-turned-midfielder is back from injury and has a new contract to boost his morale. His 12 minute cameo against Burnley got him a very nice 5 points which makes me hope, that even if he does not start either of the games in this double, he can get enough bench points to not be an absolute dud in this XI.
Thomas Partey (M, Arsenal @ Manchester United)
Partey is coming of a couple of great fantasy performances with 8.5 against Chelsea and 9.5 against Bournemouth to warrant me going against me gut and selecting a defensive midfielder for this XI. His usually serviceable ghost point performances are propped up by some attacking numbers lately: He has 5 shots (1 on target), 3 key passes and 3 successful dribbles in the last 3 games. Solidify your midfield with a Partey pickup, who I prefer every day to the potential trap of DGW DMs on City, United, Newcastle.
Elijah Adebayo (F, Luton @ West Ham)
Adebayo celebrated his return to the starting lineup, having been out since 10th February, last week by scoring against Everton in a hard fought draw. Luton need to win and hope Forest lose to Chelsea to have a chance of survival on the final day of the season. Their dip in form has somewhat coincided with Adebayo's absence, so if you are looking for streaming FWD pickups, Adebayo might be your best bet right now.
Julio Enciso (F, Brighton @ Newcastle, v Chelsea)
What a season it could have been for the Brighton youngster. A draft day darling for many of us, he has been out injured for most of the season only starting 3 games. His is a very similar situation to Joelinton's as he has clearly done enough off the bench to warrant a start in one of the games in this double, but the 8 pointer in 28 minutes vs Villa has me confident in starting him and hoping that even if he doesn't start either game, he will get enough garbage time points to warrant inclusion.
Callum Hudson-Odoi (F, Nott Forest vs Chelsea)
CHO remains in the XI from last week as managers seem to be apprehensive of his prospects against Chelsea. Well all I can say to the doubters is: Benoit Badiashile, Axel Disasi and Revenge. Just like last week, CHO is continuing to play for his future and he has taken a great step last week with 2 goals and he will look to continue his form against his former employers.
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