This is the last FPL week before fixture mayhem takes over, with gameweeks starting on December 26, December 30, January 3 and January 6.
It’s a lot of football to be played in a short amount of time so expect rotation, random benchings and a bit of injury chaos.
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If you didn’t spend all your five free Afcon transfers last week then well done – you’ll need them over the next three weeks!
The team of the week is selected based on current FPL prices to fit within a £100m budget, as if you were playing a Free Hit.
Don’t miss our FPL special Q&A with expert Gianni Butice, live on the BBC Sport website on Friday at 15:30 GMT.
How did last week’s team do?
Strong performances from captain Bukayo Saka (22 points), Bruno Fernandes (13), Hugo Ekitike (13) and Robin Roefs (nine) speaheaded another high-scoring week.
A total of 79 points, following on from week 15’s 81-pointer.
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BBC Sport’s FPL team of the week for gameweek 17
[BBC Sport]
Keeper and defence
Lucas Perri, Leeds, £4.5m – Crystal Palace (h)
Not much budget for a keeper this week so taking a punt on Leeds keeping a clean sheet against a Palace side that has lost key creative assets Daniel Munoz and Ismaila Sarr.
Palace top scorer Jean-Phillipe Mateta only has one goal in six games, too.
Marcos Senesi, Bournemouth, £4.9m – Burnley (h)
Despite conceding four goals at Manchester United, Senesi got defensive contribution points (defcon) for the 12th time in 15 matches.
He gives you a high floor for a game in which a clean sheet is also a distinct possibility.
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Jan Paul van Hecke, Brighton, £4.5m – Sunderland (h)
Van Hecke has returned at least four points in seven of his past 10 games (three goals, three clean sheets, one assist and a defcon performance).
Sunderland visit the Amex having scored just four times on the road.
Nathan Collins, Brentford, £4.9m – Wolves (a)
Over the past 10 games, Brentford have a top-five defence for expected goals conceded (xGC) – level with Liverpool and better than the likes of Chelsea and Aston Villa.
Couple that with a game against a poor attacking side and Collins looks a great pick, especially with his goal threat.
Midfield
Bruno Fernandes has created 50 chances this season, more than any other player in Europe’s top leagues [Getty Images]
Phil Foden, Manchester City, £8.8m – West Ham (h)
Foden is averaging 13.75 points per game over his past four matches and has made himself a must-have player.
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West Ham at home is almost as good as it gets – they are winless in their past five games.
The only downside to picking Foden is the risk of a random Pep Roulette benching but you just have to take that on the chin if it happens.
Antoine Semenyo, Bournemouth, £7.5m – Burnley (h)
Burnley have conceded at least twice in every away game this season – a total of 23 goals in eight games.
Semenyo is back in the goals after two and half months following his strike at Manchester United and is clearly his team’s talisman.
He might still be a sell, long-term, if you still own him but this week is a great match-up for him.
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Marcus Tavernier, Bournemouth, £5.5m – Burnley (h)
Tavernier was Bournemouth’s star man in their eight-goal thriller against Manchester United on Monday, but his potential has been shown by his underlying data for a while.
Semenyo is Bournemouth’s star performer but Tavernier is not far behind.
He has created more chances (22) than any other Bournemouth midfielder and has the second-most shots, xG, goals and big chances.
At £5.5m, he’s a great budget option to rival the likes of Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall and Granit Xhaka.
Bruno Fernandes, Manchester United, £9.3m – Aston Villa (a)
Fernandes tops nearly every creative stat for midfielders and is essential until further notice, even in a tricky fixture like Villa away.
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Simple as that!
Strikers
Igor Thiago, Brentford, £7.2m – Wolves (a)
Don’t lose faith in Thiago, despite an underwhelming past three weeks in which he has scored just five points.
Equally, don’t be fooled into thinking Wolves are suddenly able to defend after nearly taking a point at Arsenal.
They’ve conceded 21 goals in eight home games and you’d expect Brentford to win at Molineux.
Erling Haaland (captain), Manchester City, £15m – West Ham (h)
Captaincy is back on Haaland and it might stay there for a while.
If you went against him with Bukayo Saka or Bruno Fernandes last week then it didn’t really cost you but this gameweek that is too much of a risk.
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Hugo Ekitike, Liverpool, £8.6m – Tottenham (a)
You can’t ignore Ekitike’s form and all of a sudden, given Tottenham’s recent performances, this looks like a great fixture for him.
The Frenchman has four goals in his past two games and Liverpool are improving bit by bit.
With Wolves and Leeds at home in his next two, it is not too late to jump on the bandwagon.
Subs’ bench
Martin DubravkaBurnley, £4m – Bournemouth (a)
Antonee RobinsonFulham, £4.9m – Nottingham Forest (h)
Anton StachLeeds, £4.8m – Crystal Palace (h)
Omar AldereteSunderland, £4m – Brighton (a)
Team total cost: £98.4m
