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This article provides a preview of what Gameweek 19 has in store for fantasy managers, including top captain selections and strong picks for the weekly FPL Challenge game.
Happy Holidays, RotoBallers! Wolves and Nottingham Forest earned a Boxing Day surprise gift as they secured home wins against Man United and Tottenham, while the Egyptian King, Mohamed Salah, found the net once more against Leicester. It's been a remarkable 2024, and Gameweek 19 is just a few hours away.
The FPL Challenge: Festive Fixtures series introduces this week's new task, "Final Countdown," where managers must select a team in a 2-0-2-5 formation. As always, we’ll offer weekly breakdowns of the top assets to target and help you maximize your point potential.
The Gameweek 19 deadline for the 2024-25 Fantasy Premier League season is Sunday, December 29, at 8:00 a.m. EST, when Leicester welcomes Man City. Also, check out the rest of our excellent soccer coverage as the squad gets you all set for every EPL and UCL slate with our EPL DFS lineup picks and betting picks.
FPL Gameweek 19 Tips
Target Chelsea, Tottenham and Crystal Palace Assets
Chelsea's eight-game EPL unbeaten run ended; however, the Blues will aim to bounce back with their next clash against Ipswich. The same setback goes for Tottenham and Crystal Palace, who have struggled to pick up wins in their last two matches.
These three London sides will be geared up to secure victories against their next opponents. Given this, FPL managers are advised to prioritize selecting FPL assets from Chelsea, Tottenham, or Crystal Palace for Gameweek 19.
💹 PL GW19 matchups
First look at projected goals and clean sheet odds for the next round of Premier League games, via spread betting markets pic.twitter.com/Vni4NAGx2i
— Rob T (@robtFPL) December 27, 2024
According to goal projections, Chelsea and Tottenham are projected to produce 2.45 xG (expected goals) in their upcoming matches, with Crystal Palace following closely at 1.75 xG.
Recommended FPL assets for Gameweek 19
- Chelsea: Cole Palmer (on pens), Nico Jackson, Enzo Fernandez, and Marc Cucurella.
- Tottenham: Son Heung-min (on pens), Dominic Solanke, James Maddison, and Dejan Kulusevski.
- Crystal Palace: Jean-Philippe Mateta (on pens), Ismaila Sarr, Eberechi Eze, and Dean Henderson.
FPL Gameweek 19 Top Captain Picks
The weekend fixtures present a list of fascinating options for your captaincy choice. Players like Eberechi Eze against Southampton, Ollie Watkins at home to Brighton, and Man City's Phil Foden against Leicester all present strong cases. However, my top two picks would be:
Mohamed Salah (£13.5m) - Liverpool
Topping the FPL rankings with 186 points, averaging 10.9 points per match, and delivering an attacking return for 10 consecutive gameweeks. The Egyptian King now has 16 goals and 11 assists to his name, and it looks like he's not slowing down soon.
The 32-year-old boasts a personal goal record of 12 goals in 16 outings against his next opponents, West Ham. Mo Salah is our RotoBaller top captain pick for Gameweek 19.
How Mohamed Salah's form compares to last season...
Just 2️⃣ goals away from equalling last year's total
Already 1️⃣ assist ahead
Still 2️⃣1️⃣ matches remaining! pic.twitter.com/HRj8v1Yhla— Premier League (@premierleague) December 26, 2024
Cole Palmer (£11.3m) - Chelsea
Is it cold in here? Cause 'Ice Cold' Cole Palmer just walked into the building. The 22-year-old has had an excellent 2024 and recently broke the record for most goals scored in a calendar year by a Chelsea player.
The Englishman returns to our top captaincy list this week, thanks to his 41 FPL points garnered in his previous five matches. Set to take on Ipswich next; Palmer is an exciting option to entrust with the armband for Gameweek 19.
The most goals of any @ChelseaFC player in a calendar year...
👏 Cole Palmer 👏 pic.twitter.com/MzOzgmRmbx
— Premier League (@premierleague) December 26, 2024
FPL Challenge: Festive Fixtures
The FPL Challenge section for the 2024-25 season is back, and RotoBaller remains your go-to source for valuable insights on selecting the right assets for any challenge.
The 18th challenge, "Outside the Box," focused on selecting a team of nine players with an unlimited budget, where goals scored from range earned seven extra points. This week, we have a new task in the Festive Fixtures series, and our goal is to help you maximize points for each task presented.
In case you missed it, here is a breakdown of what is expected from the FPL Challenge: Festive Fixtures event.
Fantasy Challenge is LIVE for 2024/25 🚨
Build your squad for Gameweek 1 now 👇#FPLChallengeAccepted
— Fantasy Premier League (@OfficialFPL) July 24, 2024
The Festive Fixtures is a four-gameweek run that tasks fantasy managers to take on diverse festive challenges while celebrating the holidays and anticipating the new year. This series covers four tests focusing on earning points through different players and play styles.
- Gameweek 17: Home for the Holidays - Players at home earn double points.
- Gameweek 18: Out of the Box - Goals "outside the box" are worth seven extra points.
- Gameweek 19: Final Countdown - The formation must be 2-0-2-5.
- Gameweek 20: New Year, New Chance - Big chances created are worth five additional points.
It's time to come together.
It's time for the #FestiveFixtures. pic.twitter.com/SSDKSjf44h
— Premier League (@premierleague) December 18, 2024
Festive Fixtures FPL Challenge: Final Countdown - Players to Target
Week 19 of the FPL Challenge highlights selecting a team of nine players with an unlimited budget and sticking to a 2-0-2-5 formation. This week's task is to choose two goalkeepers, two midfielders, and five forwards while defenders are unavailable.
RotoBaller's top picks for this week's challenge are:
- In goal, a duo of Jordan Pickford and Robert Sanchez will be our top selection thanks to each keeper's excellent shot-stopping qualities and high likelihood of keeping a clean sheet.
- In midfield, Mohamed Salah and Cole Palmer come in. There is no need to overthink it; Mo Salah takes the spotlight as our captain of the week.
- A front line of Jean-Philippe Mateta, Dominic Solanke, Alexander Isak, Ollie Watkins, and Erling Haaland completes the attack, rounding off our lineup in a 2-0-2-5 formation.
Note: Four of the five strikers selected are on penalties for their respective teams, and this could be an unfair advantage needed to win this week's challenge.
Remember, you have the liberty to select any other top FPL Challenge alternatives that are not mentioned above. Best of luck to everyone participating in this week's challenge!
Join the RotoBaller FPL League
Fancy pitting your wits against fellow RotoBallers? Then, join our free league to compete against the team and our dedicated FPL fans. Head to the official FPL site, click the leagues and cups tab, and enter the RotoBaller league code: b278pa.
Go head-to-head against your friends and family in mini-leagues 🏆
Pick your squad and compete for #FPL glory now! ⬇️
— Fantasy Premier League (@OfficialFPL) July 18, 2024
Stick around for more 2024-25 Fantasy Premier League content coming soon. Hit us up on X @RotoBaller. We would love to hear your feedback and ideas!
