Our Gameweek 23 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!
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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!
Fantasy EPL Gameweek 23 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.
After GW21's humbling score, it was more of the same vibes with our GW22 Sleepers XI. Our selections ended up only scoring 78 FPts, not the kind of total where you'd win a matchup in a competitive league. Not all is lost though, there were still positives to pick out from the result, so let's dig a bit deeper.
In net we went with new boy at Spurs, Kinsky, as we thought the matchup with Everton, a team that has scored the 2nd fewest goals (18) in the league was a good gamble for a clean sheet. Of course the complete opposite happened. Moyes either got a bounce of his new team or Spurs were just themselves and continued their horrid form in the league. It might have also been both. Hence Kinsky ended up on 4.5 FPts after conceding 3 goals against the Toffees. We then went with a 4-man defence which ended with a couple of varying scores. The good news was that 2 of our defenders managed to get clean sheets in their respective games with Castagne scoring 15.75 FPts and Lacroix scoring 15 FPts. The bad news was that Maguire, despite playing the full game like the aforementioned duo, only registered -3.5 FPts as a result of conceding 3 goals and receiving a yellow card. Our last defender Emerson was subbed off after 55 minutes but still put up 3.25 FPts, whilst conceding 1 goal. In midfield we went with a full house. However, one of our 5 players, Mathias Jensen, did not start in the 2-0 loss versus Liverpool, leaving him with 0 FPts, even though he came on as a sub for 8 minutes. Only one of our remaining midfielders, Matheus Nunes, played the full match but put up a frustrating 3 FPts which also included a caution. On the plus side, regardless of our remaining 3 midfielders all being.subbed in the second halves of their games, they all had pretty good scores. Brooks stole the show with his 18.75 FPts (all ghost points) in 81 minutes, followed by El Khannouss' 10.5 FPts in 63 minutes and lastly Baleba's 4.5 FPts in 88 minutes who thankfully only got a yellow card for his antics versus Manchester United. As you might have deduced by now, we only had the solitary FWD in Keane Lewis-Potter, who played the full game and got 6.25 FPts.
Even though we did not reach the 100 FPts mark as we had hoped for, the more concerning bit is that we had 0 attacking returns in the team. Bad job by us but the ghost points are kind of nice to take notice of and I'm sure a couple of last gameweek's picks would have already been waivered in a few leagues by now. So let's hope we can find a couple more gems as we tackle the GW23 challenge.
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 23. 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.
Antonin Kinsky (G, Tottenham)
There should be no surprise that we would have at least one defensive pick against one of the worst teams in the league. In the last 6 gameweeks, Leicester have been rock-bottom in the form table, the only team to have 0 league points and scored the fewest goals (2) in that period. It's clear that Ruud and his Foxes are clearly struggling but what's more concerning is the lack of signs that it is going to improve in the near future. Therefore we've got to go as safe as possible with Kinsky. What could go wrong?
Ben Davies (D, Tottenham)
Davies was reintroduced to the Spurs set-up after another spell on the sidelines due to injuries, a common dilemma that has affected the North London club. However, it was a positive 2025 debut for the Welsh defender after he put up 7.25 FPts despite conceding 3 goals. Majority of Davies' points came from aerials, clearances and tackles won but it was even more promising that he was not the sacrificial lamb when Ange decided to tweak his tactics and chase a result in the game for Spurs. We're expecting Davies to start against Leicester and given his 11.3 gPP90, we're more than comfortable gambling on his output against one of the worst attacks in recent gameweeks.
Harry Maguire (D, Man Utd)
Harry Maguire would have understandably been dropped in many leagues after his stinker of a score of -3.5 FPts. However, we're staying a bit more positive about the Englishman's prospects as a pick for this gameweek and potentially the rest of the season. Not saying that you should drop significant FAB on Maguire but he is still definitely worth a spot in your roster as a DEF-3/4. Maguire's 7.3 gPPS might not seem very impressive but it's the best of the Manchester United defenders, and that's saying a lot given the Red Devils use wingbacks in their system. It's also well known that Slabhead has attacking threat on set pieces as well. So if you think Amorim could turn it around before the end of the season, Maguire should be on your radar.
Jan-Paul van Hecke (D, Brighton)
If we think that the Everton's goal-fest versus Spurs was merely a glitch in the matrix, then there's sound reason to want to gamble playing a defender against the Toffees, especially if that team has the home advantage. So enter JPvH. He's not the fanciest pick of the lot but there's one thing the Dutchman does guarantee and that's ghost points. Since the start of the year, JPvH has been averaging just over 7 gPPS, which is one of the best of the regular starters for the Seagulls. So if you think Brighton can restrict Everton to at least one goal, then JPvH is a useful DEF-4 for your team this gameweek.
Timothy Castagne (D, Fulham)
Despite Castagne's couple of back-to-back shady scores of 3.75 and -1.75 against Ipswich Town and West Ham respectively, the Belgian returned to his double digit scoring ways with 15.75 FPts against his old employers Leicester City. This now means that Castagne has 4 double digit hauls in his last 6 starts, where only half of those included clean sheets. So it's clear that there are other aspects to Castagne's game with a bit of possible upside when he's utilised as a wingback. There's a very good chance that Marco Silva might use Castagne in that position as he could match Amorim's wingback system at some point during the game. Amorim has already called his team the worst possible collective that has donned the Red Devil's kit, which cannot be great for morale at all meaning Fulham could run riot at Craven Cottage during the final game of the gameweek.
Valentino Livramento (D, Newcastle)
Our fifth and final defender was obviously an option that had to be facing the worst team in the league, Southampton. So ultimately we've gone with one that really should have some attacking threat but in reality has zero goals or assists to his name for the season. It's baffling but Southampton can easily fix this problem for us. Although Wolves have conceded the most goals (51) for the season, Southampton are only 1 goal better, which is just as bad as being the worst. Southampton have also scored the fewest goals (15) this season. The Magpies have comfortably been one of the best teams in the league over the last 6 gameweeks (and possibly more) having earned 15 out of a possible 18 points. They've only conceded 5 goals in that time frame, a feat only bettered by the best defence in the league, Nottingham Forest. So if you think they can keep a clean sheet on the road, then Livramento is a viable gamble despite his 5.7 PPS.
Christian Norgaard (M, Brentford)
When you're unsure about any of your studs starting a given gameweek, it's always handy to have a reliable option like Norgaard in your roster. The Danish midfielder rarely fails to deliver fantasy points and has shown this season, and in the past, that he is able to get goals and assists. In Norgaard's last 3 starts, he has averaged just over 9 gPPS. These are MID-2/3 kinds of numbers when in reality he's been averaging just under 7 gPPS. So if he is currently in a slight purple patch, he's useful as a MID-4/5 for this gameweek, especially if you're struggling to find a reliable FWD-3 in your FA pool for this weekend.
Jacob Ramsey (M, Aston Villa)
According to our fixture difficulty tracker, Aston Villa midfielders have the 4th best rated fixture for this gameweek. I know what you're thinking, Jacob Ramsey? A player that has only scored a double digit score ONCE all season? Let me land though. West Ham are still figuring out their system and team tactics under Potter and it definitely has not been a consistent or comfortable ride so far. We've also noticed that West Ham also enable assets to score points like they usually don't do. For instance, Hughes scored 7.25 FPts and Kamada scored 6 FPts versus the Hammers in GW22, not great but not terrible scores from a ghost point perspective either. We're fully expecting Ramsey to start this gameweek given the Villan's UCL commitments next week and we're hoping he matches his GW21 score of 6.5 FPts versus Everton. Surely we don't judge him on his 0.5 FPts versus Arsenal in GW22, one of the best teams in the league.
Mateus Fernandes (M, Southampton)
Whilst Southampton are being talked up as potential candidates to break Derby's lowest points tally in Premier League history, there have still been some positive aspects to the Saints' diabolical season. One of them being Mateus Fernandes. Last gameweek we witnessed a very unexpected fightback from Southampton as they narrowly missed out on earning a positive result versus Nottingham Forest, ultimately losing 3-2. Fernandes managed to get an assist in that game and score 18.75 FPts. Now after seeing Newcastle being absolutely dismantled by Bournemouth in the first fixture of GW22, Southampton will be licking their lips at the prospects of attempting another upset in the Premier League. At this point, the south coast club have nothing to lose and if they were to get a goal, Mateus could easily be part of the fun. Worst case scenario, his 7.1 gPPS is still good enough to warrant a start as a MID-4.
Yankuba Minteh (M, Brighton)
After so much hype in the summer transfer window at the start of the season about Minteh's transfer from Newcastle to Brighton, the Gambian FWD has not had the best of times at Brighton, considering the number of injuries he's had to deal with. This has most likely affected his chances of starting back-to-back games in the league, which has not happened since GW3 and GW4. However we're hoping after his season best performance of 23.5 FPts in GW22, which included a goal and an assist, Hürzeler could reward his attacking player with another start versus Everton. Minteh's 7.3 gPPS is the best of his Seagull teammates and he also boasts the highest ceiling of 18.1 FPts. So if you're up against a Mitoma or Joao Pedro owner, this might be a great way to even out your matchup if Minteh starts.
Keane Lewis-Potter (F, Brentford)
Finding a reliable ghost point scoring FWD has been a popular discussion amongst Fantasy managers over the past few weeks, especially ones that are consistent and have a bit of upside. It's fair to say that managers have now jumped on board the KLP-train. In his last 3 starts, KLP has averaged just over 8 gPPS. This is a great floor to have as one of Brentford's "attackers". Yes, he is playing OOP but points are points, regardless of how they come. The upside is the fact that Brentford are still a team that scores lots of goals (40 for the season, 6th overall) and have shown they can go toe-to-toe with some of the big boys. So in the off chance that KLP is able to score a goal or nick an assist, we're looking at scores of of upwards of 15 FPts.
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