Gameweek 7 Sleepers XI: Draft EPL

Bantah Boyz

9 hours ago

9 min read

Our Gameweek 7 Sleepers XI article provides Draft managers with a lineup of Fantasy EPL hidden gems. Our starting eleven of Draft Premier League differential picks will help you find a golden ticket to a big score this weekend! These hints and tips will give you a better chance of picking up an all-important victory, as any one of these under-the-radar picks could make the difference in a head-to-head game!

Michail Antonio shooting the ball for West Ham

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!

Gameweek 7 Sleepers XI

For this article, we use the percentage rostered calculation from Fantrax and Sleeper. Our only rule is that each player we highlight is rostered in 60% of leagues or fewer at the time of writing. Therefore, there's a good chance some of these players will be free agents in your Draft league! As always, we'll take form, fixtures, projected points, and a healthy dose of intuition into account to make our selections.

Any chance of another international break this weekend? Asking for a friend. Just when I didn't think it could get worse, it did. Our Gameweek 6 Sleepers XI put up a measly 46.75 FPts. I knew I was tempting fate when I said it couldn't get worse. Only 1 of our players scored in the double digits and there's a chance he's probably going to get dropped from his own starting XI. So let's start there, with Ainsley Maitland-Niles. The ex-Arsenal asset scored 12.25 FPts with an assist, getting subbed in the 77th minute. Outside of that? Everyone else scored terribly. Staying in our midfield though, Willock got 4.5 FPts in 58 minutes, Bobb put up 5 FPts in 75 minutes, while Chema Andres only managed 3 FPts during the full match. What's funny is that the latter 2 scores also included a single point for clean sheets. Yikes. Up front, Hull's Cho was a no show but still somehow scored more than Hornicek's -1.75 FPts, after the Magpies' goalie shipped 4 goals against Coventry. Speaking of the Sky Blues, Pinnock followed up his monster score with 2.75 FPts (1 goal conceded), whereas Affengruber got 4.25 FPts (2 goals conceded) versus Ipswich. Hull's Mendy scored 4.5 FPts (2 goals conceded) and Ruggeri only lasted 45 minutes before getting injured, which makes his 5.25 FPts score look pretty reasonable. Lastly, Lewis Dunk scored the 2nd most points in our team despite coming on as a 30 minute sub, scoring 7 FPts with no goals conceded. Insane week really, and not in a good way at all. All we can do is try again. So keep reading to see our attempt at Gameweek 7.

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 7. So keep an eye out when lineups are announced and pick them up if you see them starting, especially if you need to fill a spot on your roster. Read below for the rationale behind each of the Starter selections.

Bart Verbruggen (G, Brighton)

Over the last 3 gameweeks, Verbruggen has been the best scoring goalkeeper in the game. He's been averaging just over 15.5 PPS, making 11 saves, keeping 3 clean sheets and been the only shot-stopper with a 100% save percentage record during that period. The early projections for the weekend have Crystal Palace with one of the lowest goals scored (1.02) of all teams, only better than the likes of Forest who face Arsenal as well as Coventry and Ipswich. Palace have only scored 3 goals on the road during this season, which is half their home tally. Brighton on the other hand have only conceded once at home, which is the fewest in the league. I can't see anything other than another Verbruggen double-digit haul.

Aaron Wan-Bissaka (D, Aston Villa)

After Matteo Ruggeri's impressive start to his time at Villa, at least from a Fantrax scoring perspective, the Italian had to be subbed off against Brentford after 45 minutes after picking up a hamstring injury which is expected to keep him sidelined for more than a month. With Maatsen still recovering from his own injury, Wan-Bissaka is likely to keep the left-back role for Villa, after starting there and playing the full match against Fenerbache in the Champions League, helping the Villans earn their 2nd cleansheet of the season. His numbers in the league have been pretty impressive as well, averaging 8.25 PP90 over his last 3 appearances. A solid DEF4/5 for managers looking to add fresh blood to their ranks.

Bobby Thomas (D, Coventry)

After losing their first 4 games of the season, Coventry have now won back-to-back games in the league against 2 established Premier League clubs, keeping a clean sheet against Forest and thrashing Newcastle, putting 4 goals past them. One of the main reasons for their recent success is Bobby Thomas. Their ever-reliant CB leads his teammates in blocked shots (9), aerials won (17), clearances (52) and interceptions (9). Over the season, he's been averaging just over 9.5 gPPS and over the last 4 gameweeks it's actually been just over 11.25 gPPS. So even if Coventry don't keep clean sheets every game, which is highly unlikely given the level of opposition they'll face in the PL, Thomas is still worth a spot in most rosters. He's even attempted the most shots of all his teammates. A haul is coming.

Ferdi Kadioglu (D, Brighton)

As always with defensive picks in these articles, I'm doubling up with the goalkeeper on the hope that Brighton are able to keep a clean sheet against the Eagles in the M25 derby. One player that has gone somewhat under the radar is Turkish defender Kadioglu. After a horrid start to his season in GW2, conceding 4 goals and ending with a -4 FPts score, Kadioglu has been averaging just under 9 PPS over his last 4 games. The only negative aspect of this proflific form is the fact that these scores have included 3 clean sheets, which doesn't scream ghost points production. That being said, Brighton have one of the best clean sheet odds for the weekend, so I think it's definitely worth a gamble, especially if your opponent has a Brighton DEF themselves.

Gabriel Gudmundsson (D, Leeds)

According to our Fixture Difficulty Tracker, Leeds defenders have the 3rd best rated fixture difficulty of all teams in Gameweek 7. Daniel Farke's men host Manchester United at Elland Road this weekend, in what is usually a very fiery affair, and one they will definitely be fancying their chances in winning given the form of the Red Devils. Man Utd have only scored 3 goals in 3 away games this season, not having won any of those games. Leeds on the other hand have not lost a single game at Elland Road yet and have only conceded twice across those 3 games. After missing the first 2 games of the season due to injury, the Swede has been a mainstay in the starting XI, averaging just over 13 PPS over his last 3 games. He kept 2 clean sheets in those and got the assist for their goal against Arsenal along with 2 key passes and 3 accurate crosses. Grab him before it's too late.

Ryan Sessegnon (D, Fulham)

After 3 sub appearances off the bench, Ryan Sessegnon was finally rewarded with his first start of the season against Ipswich in Gameweek 6 and grabbed it with both hands. The Englishman went the full 90 minutes, scoring a goal from outside the box, which was 1 of 3 shots that he attempted during the game. He also racked up 2 accurate crosses, 1 interception, 4 clearances and 1 aerial won. He scored 15 FPts in the end, even after conceding 2 goals. What gives us hope about him as a reliable pick are his sub appearances that we alluded to earlier as well. If you tally the 3 of them and extrapolate the numbers, he was actually averaging just above 21.5 PP90. Obviously he's not going to score like this when he plays full games, but it's evident that he's impactful when he's on the pitch.

Nico Gonzalez (M, Newcastle)

Nico Gonzalez scored 22 FPts against Coventry in their 4-1 loss in the Monday Night Fixture in Gameweek 6. This was his highest Fantrax score of his career since joining the league during the 2024/25 season with Man City. On Monday, not only did he get his first attacking return, he also racked up a gameweek high 6 key passes, which is quite telling as to how important he is to Jaissle's team and how they function. It's quite impressive he managed he also got key passes in his last 2 starts but only scored 4.5 and 2.75 FPts in those, getting a yellow card in the latter. I'm not saying that he is definitely a must start in your roster, but if you need to replace a FWD2, DEF5 or another MID5 in your roster this weekend because of rotation to some of your European competition tied assets, you could get lucky.

Noni Madueke (M, Arsenal)

Arsenal have been hit with injuries yet again. However, this time it was to their new Greek signing Christos Tzolis, while he was on international duty. It seems like the exciting FWD could be out until the November break, so there was always going to be an opportunity for one of their second-string attackers to get minutes. Many Fantrax managers had their eyes on Eze, but surprisingly Noni Madueke got the start in Gameweek 6, and boy did he take his opportunity. The English winger played the full 90 minutes, racked up 3 key passes, 5 accurate crosses, 1 interception, won 1 aerial and completed 2 successful dribbles, scoring 14 points in the end. All ghost points by the way. This production shouldn't come as a surprise as he scored 9.5 FPts in 22 minutes as a sub against Coventry earlier in the season as well, racking up 4 key passes in that game. After starting in midweek and getting subbed early, we think he has that left flank for the Gunners on lock. Ride it until the wheels fall off.

Brandon Thomas-Asante (F, Coventry)

After starting Gameweek 1 for the Sky Blues and only lasting 69 minutes, the Ghanaian was dropped from the starting for the next 3 games. However, in the last 2 games, which Coventry ended up winning, Thomas-Asante went the full 90 minutes scoring 10 and 13.25 FPts against Nottingham Forest and Newcastle, respectively. He scored 9 ghosts in the first game and 7.25 ghosts in the second. He got his first attacking return of the season against Newcastle, which could be the start of a great run of reliable scores from the winger. He ended up with 13 goals and 4 assists during their Championship winning season. He played a pivotal role in their promotion and could do so in their attempt to survive the drop this season. Spurs have the worst home form in the league so far this season so Coventry will be licking their lips at the prospect of earning their third win in a row.

Matias Fernandez-Pardo (F, Newcaslte)

Despite what the Fantrax score says for Pardo against Coventry, Fantrax managers who started the Belgian FWD against Coventry were massively unlucky to not walk away with double digit returns in Gameweek 6. If it weren't for Bobby Thomas, Pardo would have had his first goal for the season already. The Newcastle FWD amassed a very impressive 0.7 xGi, which mainly comprised of his 0.49 xG. He missed 2 big chances, despite only attempting 1 shot and that's because he unselfishly dummied the ball in the box thinking his teammates were right behind him. Pardo's 6 FPts against Coventry also included 1 key pass, 1 accurate cross and 2 successful dribbles. Aston Villa up next won't be easy by any means but the Villans have only kept 1 clean sheet in the league this season. A FWD2 if you need one.

Sorba Thomas (F, Hull)

Thomas' first start of the season was not a very impressive one, after only scoring 0.5 FPts in 62 minutes. However, in his 2 sub appearances before that, he scored 2.5 FPts in 27 minutes and 3.5 FPts in 30 minutes. This impressive PP90 all came to fruition when he finally got his near 90-minute start against Everton, where he ended the game with 18 FPts which included an assist. The Hull attacker put up 4 key passes, won 1 tackle, made 1 interception, completed 1 dribble successfully, had 1 accurate cross and won 2 aerials. While this spread of points is impressive, what really caught the eye is that he took 6 of the 7 corners that the Tigers were awarded. While it's uncertain if he keeps these, especially as Belloumi was off the pitch for majority of the game, he took 1 more corner with the Algerian on the pitch right before he was subbed off himself. We might have a gem FWD2 on our hands and one you'd definitely want to play against Fulham, the worst team in the league.