The FPL Banger boys are back with their Fantasy Premier League tips for Gameweek 23, outlining their top picks and a best captain selection.
Welcome to a new series for the 2024/25 season, provided by Siva & Sam, the twisted minds behind the FPL Banger Podcast.
Last week wasn’t the best, but Chris Wood saved the day, as the Kiwi Lewandowski lifted me up to 75k OR. But enough about the Auckland Aguero, here are our picks for Gameweek 23.
FPL Banger Gameweek 23 Tips
BEST CAPTAIN
Mohamed Salah (£13.7m) – Fixture: Ipswich (H)
It’s a straight shootout between Mohamed Salah and Alexander Isak this week. And I’m tempted to go against Mo. Very tempted. Home advantage means nothing for the Saints, who lost 5-0 to Brentford the last time they played at St. Mary’s. Aaron Ramsdale is also a doubt with a knock, and if you had a striker playing against the goalkeeper who wasn’t good enough to start ahead of Aaron Ramsdale, you’d be tempted too.
That said, Ipswich losing 6-0 to Manchester City was a timely reminder of the gap in quality between the promoted sides and the top end of the Premier League – and Salah & Liverpool are at the very top. Salah’s blanks in his last two Prem games were put to bed as he scored midweek against Lille, and I fully expect Mo to return against Ipswich. Given that midfielders get an extra point for goals and clean sheets, I think the balance tips in Salah’s favour. Just.
TOP PICKS
David Raya (£5.6m) & Gabriel (£6.4m) – Fixture: Wolves (A)
Nope, don’t refresh your screens, this isn’t an error page. Even if double Arsenal defence has felt like a massive error for the past two months. Arsenal were back to their best against Dinamo Zagreb midweek, restricting the Croatian side to just 0.13 xG. Wolves, meanwhile, have scored just once in the past 270 minutes, a Matt Doherty goal that was only scored after Robert Sanchez dropped the ball at his feet. Fortunately, Arsenal do not have an error-prone Spanish goalkeeper whom they signed from a team whose name begins with the letter “B”.
At the back, Wolves have struggled defending set pieces all season, and Arsenal only score from set pieces, so Gabriel owners would be well advised to keep the faith.
Anthony Gordon (£7.7m) – Fixture: Southampton (A)
Did you know that Gordon has only blanked four times in the past 11 weeks? Well, you do now. The winger has been supremely consistent but gets less attention than Alexander Isak and Lewis Hall because of their bigger hauls. But owning those two isn’t enough. Newcastle play a Southampton side still on track to beat Derby County’s record from 2008 as the worst-ever Premier League side. You need Gordon.
Cody Gakpo (£7.5m) – Fixture: Ipswich (H)
Is Cody Gakpo nailed? Nope. Is Cody Gakpo guaranteed to start both games in Double Gameweek 24? Nope. Is he a safe pick in FPL? Nope.
But if you can look past all of that, you have a forward playing for the best team in the league with 9 starts in a row and 6 goal contributions in that time, who is about to play Ipswich, Bournemouth, Everton, Wolves and, most importantly, a Rodri-less Manchester City.
Besides, selecting a Liverpool player with uncertain minutes before he plays Ipswich has never failed in FPL (who’s Quansah, no idea what you’re talking about).
Thanks for reading the article in this new series for SportsCasting. Be sure to follow @FPL_Banger for more FPL tips and hints, including their weekly podcast and team reveals.
