Welcome to AM’s Perfect XI - Week 11 player picks. This column focuses on Togga’s Perfect XI game, which you can play via their IOS and Android app. Find the apps here and make sure you update regularly to take advantage of the constant enhancements: https://www.playtogga.com
In case you missed it we’ve set up a Rotoworld PL Private League where you can challenge myself and the rest of the RW PL team over the course of the season. To join it download the app and then click the below link from your device, or find us from the Featured Leagues tab:
Each week I provide a Perfect XI of my own for the upcoming gameweek, recommending 11 players to consider along with some honourable mentions. The players listed won’t necessarily be the exact 11 selected for my own Perfect XI fantasy side. The point of this column isn’t to tell you exactly who to pick; it’s to present some ideas and get your brain whirring. I’ll be listing a combination of the must-haves and slightly riskier options, alongside the odd hunch. Hopefully you’ll find this useful whether you’re playing Togga’s game or looking at potential transfers for your official Fantasy Premier League team.
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Week 10 started off great for my own team, but trailed off as the weekend progressed. This was the line-up ...
Gomes, Koscielny, Bellerin, Walker, Holebas, Son, Payet, Coutinho, Ozil, Deeney, Sanchez
Doubling up on Arsenal defenders against Sunderland didn’t work out but Ozil and Sanchez proved a successful combination. There were solid contributions from Gomes, Walker, Holebas and Coutinho but Son and Payet disappointed and my decision to go Deeney over Aguero was a total failure. 154 points would usually be a decent total but it wasn’t this week as I dropped down to 68th in the overall standings and lost ground to some of my main rivals.
We don’t have an early game in Week 11, with the fixtures kicking off at the old-standard 3pm on Saturday afternoon here in the UK. Please note the clocks went back in the UK last weekend as we switched from BST (British Summer Time) to GMT (Greenwich Mean Time) so please ensure you check your timings to avoid missing the deadline in any of the fantasy games you play.
As always, in Perfect XI you can swap out a player right up to one minute before their match kicks off and bring in an alternative player whose match is also yet to kick off. This flexibility will allow you to prevent the pain of a surprise benching or unreported last minute injury and a big fat zero. Ensure you keep your eyes on the RW PL Twitter account for line-ups one hour prior to matches.
Here are your fixtures ...
SATURDAY
Bournemouth v Sunderland
Burnley v Crystal Palace
Man City v Middlesbrough
West Ham v Stoke
Chelsea v Everton
SUNDAY
Arsenal v Spurs
Hull v Southampton
Liverpool v Watford
Swansea v Man Utd
Leicester v West Brom
And the picks ...
KEEPERS
Artur Boruc - Bournemouth were brought back to earth with a bump in Week 10 as they lost to Boro, but Week 11 offers a fantastic opportunity to bounce back with a comfortable home win against rock-bottom Sunderland. It should be a clean sheet too, hence the selection of Boruc in goal.
Honourable Mention: Claudio Bravo at home to Middlesbrough, Loris Karius at home to Watford
DEFENDERS
Charlie Daniels - Doubling up on the Cherries defence seems sensible this week and so Daniels makes his second column appearance of the season. The left-back has a clean sheet opportunity, takes the odd free kick and has become an increasing threat from corners.
Christian Fuchs - If you didn’t play Perfect XI last season let me assure you that Fuchs was an absolute beast and one of the few fixture-proof players you were justified in picking every week. Like Leicester, the Austrian hasn’t quite hit that form this season but things are starting to click again and so he looks a good pick for the home match with West Brom.
Aaron Cresswell - A favourite from season’s past, Cresswell returned from a serious injury in Week 8, played as a wing-back, was awesome throughout the game, picked up an assist and then got sent off for nothing. He found things tough going against Everton last weekend but I’m expecting a positive performance and fantasy score against Stoke in Week 11.
Ryan Bertrand - Hull are in rancid form and so Southampton can win to nil at the KC, which means you should be considering one of their defenders. Virgil van Dijk is the usual go-to man for such a situation but this feels like a game for full-backs to excel, so I’m putting my faith in Mr Bertrand.
Honourable Mentions: Daley Blind away at Swansea, Marcos Alonso at home to Everton, Hector Bellerin at home to Spurs
MIDFIELDERS
Philippe Coutinho - There are no surprises in my midfield picks this week - we’re going for the tried and tested. And we start with the most in-form midfielder in the Premier League, Philippe Coutinho. His performance against Crystal Palace last week was truly majestic, with two assists and five shots on goal, and he is racking up the fantasy points in all formats. Home to Watford? Yes please.
Nathan Redmond - As mentioned earlier, Southampton have a cracking fixture at Hull this weekend and so you’ll want a Saints attacker as well as a defender. You’ll read later why Charlie Austin isn’t quite going to make it in to my own team but there’s definitely room for Nathan Redmond, who has playing up in support of Austin and has two goals in his last three starts.
Kevin De Bruyne - As soon as his free-kick hit the back of the net on Tuesday night I decided that De Bruyne was going to take a spot in this column. His all-round display in that second half was sublime, he looks back to full fitness and optimal match sharpness, which should send shivers down the spines of the Middlesbrough defence.
Dimitri Payet - A no-brainer for West Ham’s home fixtures, despite that fact that “home” has caused the Hammers some problems. Payet has the best PPG average in the Perfect XI game and will surely be the main attacking threat against Stoke.
Honourable Mentions: Eden Hazard at home to Everton, Junior Stanislas at home to Sunderland, Riyad Mahrez at home to West Brom, Mesut Ozil at home to Spurs
STRIKERS
Sergio Aguero - Form is temporary, class is permanent, as Aguero proved with a match-winning display against West Brom after a run of six matches without finding the net. The Argentine still boasts an impressive 13 strikes in 14 games in all competitions this term and he can boost that to a goal a game with a brace against Boro.
Callum Wilson - Bournemouth’s lone striker, with a bunch of very talented wingers and midfielders feeding him chances, in a home fixture with the Black Cats. What’s not to like? The fact Wilson is playing at home gives him the nod over Charlie Austin.
Honourable Mentions: Charlie Austin away at Hull, Roberto Firmino at home to Watford, Alexis Sanchez at home to Spurs
That’s it for Week 11. Check out the Rotoworld Features page to see a whole bunch of great content to get you ready for the weekend ahead. Feel free to comment below to us know how you’re getting on so far. And of course, good luck to all managers this week.
