Once again, I’m here to help you navigate through the upcoming gameweeks. We will look at the teams with upcoming DGWs and also replacements for players with a blank GW. Firstly, Aston Villa and QPR have a DGW in GW 31. Secondly, Arsenal, Aston Villa, QPR, and Sunderland have a blank in GW 33. Finally, Chelsea and Leicester have a DGW in GW 34. It is worth noting that Liverpool have a FA Cup replay against Blackburn, and if they win that match they and Hull will have a blank in GW 33. This will also lead to a DGW for both teams, likely in GW 34 or 37. Also, Arsenal and Sunderland have a DGW in GW 37 – something to keep in mind when you decide whether to sell or keep your Arsenal and Sunderland players for their blank in GW 33. Let us begin by looking at GW 31. 

In GW 31, Aston Villa face Manchester United away and QPR at home, while QPR face West Brom away and Aston Villa away. Aston Villa have several defensive injuries, and with Sherwood in charge, they’re probably not going to be defensively solid anyways. Offensively, however, they have most certainly improved. Looking at the midfielders’ contributions in recent matches, there really aren’t any standout options, with Sinclair, Bacuna, and N’Zogbia only contributing 1 goal, 2 assists, and 1 assists in recent matches respectively. Benteke and Agbonlahor both have 3 goals in their last 3 matches, while Benteke also has 1 assist. If you want any Aston Villa players for the DGW, these two are the standout options. Looking at QPR, you wouldn’t expect much from their defenders, but Yun warrants some consideration as he’s only 3.9, meaning that he could also be the 5^th defender on your team after the DGW. At 4.6, Phillipscould not only serve as your 5^th midfielder, but he actually has 1 goal and 4 assists in his last 6 matches. Thus, he actually deserves some consideration for your team. Also, you will all be familiar with and at least consider Austin, who has 2 goals and 1 assist in his last 5 matches. Neither Aston Villa nor QPR have good fixtures for the DGW, and their fixtures after the DGW aren’t kind either. Therefore, you will find plenty of managers who will ignore this DGW, meaning that the players listed here should be differentials, but that is of course for a reason.

In GW 33, Arsenal, Aston Villa, QPR, and Sunderland have a blank. Let us look at players that can replace the popular players from these teams. From Arsenal, Bellerin, Sanchez, and Giroud are the most owned players. Similarly priced players to Bellerin are Alderweireld, Naughton, and Jenkinson. You could also plan ahead by bringing in Schlupp from Leicester, who has an upcoming DGW and good offensive potential. As Sanchez has seen a dip in form, many have already sold him for other players, some with other Arsenal mids, such as Cazorla and Özil. Good premium replacements for these players are Silva, Hazard, and even Mata, if you believe he will maintain a starting spot. Eriksen has seen a dip of form recently, but has nice fixtures that could see him return to form. Cheaper options are Mane, Sigurdsson, Ki, Downing, and Chadli. The obvious replacement for Giroud is Costa,considering that he has a DGW right after Giroud’s blank. Most people will probably have a trio of Aguero, Kane, and Costa come DGW 34, but if you want differentials, Rooney and Sakhoare good options. Diouf has scored 3 in his last 5, but he played less than 30 min in two of them so it doesn’t seem like he’s a certain starter. I assume that the most popular players from QPR and Aston Villa will be Austin, Benteke, and Agbonlahor, and the aforementioned replacements for Giroud can serve as replacements for these players too. Furthermore, the most commonly owned players from Sunderland are Pantilimon and van Aanholt. Some of you will want to keep Pantilimon as he consistently gets save points and has a DGW in GW 37. If so, Myhill and Davis are 2 budget options to consider. It should be noted, however, that neither teams rotate well with Sunderland, so if you get Myhill, you might want to let him play GW 33 and let Pantilimon play the rest of the season as WBA have tough fixtures, while Davis is probably better as a direct replacement for Pantilimon. Two other cheap options are SchmeichelandHeaton, while Fabianski, Adrian, and Lloris are a bit more expensive. I already mentioned some defenders that can replace PvA, but both Burnley and Stoke have a fixture list that could see them keep some clean sheets, so defenders from them could be considered too.

In GW 34, Chelsea play Arsenal and Leicester, both away, while Leicester face Burnley away and Chelsea at home. The obvious options from Chelsea are Hazard, Costa, and Ivanovic, but plenty will probably have Terry instead as he is cheaper than Ivanovic. Fabregashas seen a dip in form recently that means most people will likely go without him, but if he should rediscover his previous form, he would be a great differential. Oscar seems to struggle with his game time, so there are better options out there. From Leicester, Schmeichel and Schlupp are essentially the only two options I can suggest as neither their strikers nor midfielders produce a considerable amount of points. Vardy has 1 goal and 3 assists in his last 4 matches, but his limited game time makes him doubtful as a fantasy prospect.

Overall, you will most likely not be overly concerned with Aston Villa, QPR, or Leicester, but three players from Chelsea are obviously a must. Arsenal have a very nice fixture list, so you should consider getting your Arsenal players back in good time before their DGW in GW 37. Manchester City, Tottenham, West Ham, Southampton, Swansea have good looking fixtures for the remainder of the season so I suggest you look to bring in players from these teams to replace your blank GW players. West Brom, on the other hand, have bad looking fixtures so players from them are best to be avoided. I hope you found this article helpful in your planning for the upcoming gameweeks, and I wish you luck for the remainder of the FPL season. Thanks for reading!