As I said last week, Chelsea and Manchester City’s fixtures are about to change for the better in the coming weeks, while Manchester United and West Ham look like they are about to face a tough few weeks.
Last week was slightly disappointing, with my team scoring 41 points, with captain Romelu Lukuaku only scoring four points with the armband.
Mohamed Salah, surprise surprise, was the top scorer with 13 points, and it makes sense to stand by the Egyptian until the Africa Cup of Nations.
So without further ado, I can reveal my wildcard team, which should hopefully be set up for a long-term rise up the rankings.
Goalkeeper – Aaron Ramsdale
The former Sheffield United keeper has had to bide his time since his summer move from Bramall Lane, but he now looks to have the number one shirt at the Emirates Stadium.
Ramsdale has picked up 24 points from just four matches, and Arsenal’s fixtures look tasty at times over the coming weeks. They face Crystal Palace, Watford and Newcastle, while Ramsdale could also rack up save points against better opposition.
Defenders – Ben White, Antonio Rudiger, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Joao Cancelo
Sticking with the Arsenal theme, we believe it makes sense to stick with centre-back White. The former Brighton ace has scored 21 points in four weeks, and at £4.4million, he looks relatively cheap as a long-term option.
Rudiger has been a mainstay in Chelsea’s defence this season, and he has rewarded players with 36 points. Rudiger is expected to shake off a back injury this week, and the Germany international should be able to return as the Blues try to grab three points at odds of 5/8.
Alexander-Arnold missed the clash against Manchester City due to injury, and the England international returned to training on Wednesday. The right-back has already scored double figures on two occasions, and Liverpool’s games look great, with Watford, Brighton, Southampton and Newcastle all to come.
Manchester City’s Cancelo looks the pick of the defenders this week, even though he is priced at £6.2million. Burnley, Brighton and Crystal Palace are City’s next three fixtures, and Cancelo has already scored 44 points.
Midfielders – Mohamed Salah, Emile Smith Rowe, Bryan Mbeumo
Salah is an automatic pick with Watford next up, and he will also be my captain choice, and how could we not? He has 70 points from seven matches and is 17/4 to score two or more goals against the Hornets.
Mbeumo looks a great differential choice at the moment, and he has scored 18 points in the last three weeks.
Raphinha’s international selection with Brazil means he could miss Leeds United’s clash with Southampton, so Mbeumo comes into our starting XI.
My midfield is completed by Smith Rowe, with the Arsenal man offering good value at £5.4million.
Forwards – Raul Jimenez, Michail Antonio, Romelu Lukaku
Lukaku has muscle fatigue issues ahead of the clash with Brentford, but it would be a huge risk to leave him out of this wildcard squad.
Even though he has failed to score for three matches, the Belgium international is Chelsea’s main striker, and he looks a great long-term pick.
Jimenez has started to find his magic touch of late, with the Mexico international scoring one goal and grabbing two assists in the last two weeks.
Antonio completes the strikeforce, and even though West Ham’s fixtures look tough, the Jamaica international has not let us down this season.
Captain – Mohamed Salah
Here’s your FPL Gameweek 8 team in full:
*All odds correct at time of writing.
