Fantasy EPL Sleepers can make or break your season. Every Fantrax Draft Manager knows that finding the next breakout star or hidden gem can be extremely important if you’re going to win the league! We bring to you a Fantasy EPL Sleepers Eleven, as we try and unearth under the radar draft picks based on current Average Draft Positions (ADP).
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Fantasy EPL Sleepers
So who will be the breakout stars of the 20/21 season? We’ve put together our thoughts for Fantasy EPL Sleepers, with players needing to have an ADP of 150 or over at the time of writing. Based on this data, this means that on average these players will still be available to draft in the later rounds!
Read below for our thoughts on these under the radar players who could perform really well this season. We would happily draft any of these players from round 12 onwards!
GK: Aaron Ramsdale (ADP: 154)
Ok. So most Goalkeepers have an ADP of over 150. But we’re featuring Aaron Ramsdale here as we think he’ll perform better than people expect this season at Sheffield United. The goalkeeper is a former Blades player, so he shouldn’t take very long to re-settle at the club. The former Bournemouth player ranked 6th overall last season in our Saves Made Versus Goals Against Rankings, despite playing for a side that conceded a lot of goals! This season Ramsdale will find himself with a much better defense in front of him, and therefore he should concede far fewer goals. We are predicting a bit of regression in The Blades defense, as surely they can’t maintain their high levels of performance from last season. But still, Ramsdale is a goalkeeper we would recommend drafting; he’s ranked 3rd overall in our Goalkeepers Draft Rankings.
DEF: Matt Targett (ADP: 154)
The first defender to feature in our Fantasy EPL Sleepers is Aston Villa’s Matt Targett. The Englishman has an ADP of 154, despite being ranked at 131st overall in our Top 200 Consensus Rankings. Targett is also ranked at 37th in our Defenders Draft Rankings, as we’re confident he will be able to build upon a decent first season at Aston Villa. As we outlined in our Team Preview, if Targett can play the majority of Aston Villa’s games next season, he’s got a chance of being a Top 20 defender. His statistics from last season are not the best overall, but he was ranked 11th for key passes among defenders, 12th for successful crosses, and 11th for interceptions. Targett has potential, and therefore he’s worth a punt towards the end of the draft!
DEF: Adam Webster (ADP: 256)
We’re big fans of Adam Webster. The defender had a really strong first season in the Premier League last time around, despite being in and out of the side due to various injuries. When Webster played he usually gained a decent score, and he deserves a much higher ADP than 256. Maybe Fantrax managers are wary due to the arrival of Veltman, and the emergence of Ben White. However, we wouldn’t be too put off by that – Webster should remain a consistent member of the Brighton starting eleven. In a recent friendly against Chelsea, Webster started in a five-man defense including Veltman, White, Dunk, and March. The Seagulls have a fairly hard start to the season in terms of fixtures, but Webster still deserves inclusion in our Starting 11 of Fantasy EPL Sleepers.
DEF: Mason Holgate (ADP: 309)
Next up is Everton defender Mason Holgate. Not an exciting pick, but the young English center back looks set to continue in Ancelotti’s starting eleven for the new season. And The Toffees have winnable games in Gameweek’s 2, 3, and 4. Holgate is a player we would be looking at drafting towards the end of the draft if our other defensive options have been taken. He plays every game and deserves a higher ADP in our eyes. It looks as though no one fancies him ahead of the new season, perhaps thinking Keane and Mina are the preferred center-back pairing. In any case, add Holgate to your list of reserves to fall back on if your draft doesn’t go to plan!
DEF: Aaron Cresswell (ADP: 344)
Aaron Cresswell is a player we’re pretty keen on ahead of the new season, and he certainly deserves an ADP better than 344! The West Ham left-back was on good form during the Premier League restart, as he was scoring really well for attacking statistics. Obviously The Hammers don’t keep many clean sheets these days, but we like him as a late-round punt. Cresswell is currently ranked at 40th in our Defenders Draft Rankings and is a defender that deserves a much higher ADP. West Ham face Newcastle at home in Gameweek 1, so a decent performance to start the season is fairly likely!
MID: Alexis Mac Allister (ADP: 177)
We’re fairly Brighton heavy in this Fantasy EPL Sleepers article. Perhaps Fantrax managers are put off by Potter’s constant rotation, and therefore their players have low ADP rankings! Alexis Mac Allister is one player we would happily take a punt on at the end of the draft though. This could be his breakout season, after some encouraging displays during the Premier League restart. The Argentinean didn’t perform amazingly well in terms of Fantrax points, but he’s new to the league and will get better with every game. Now that Mac Allister has had some time to settle in, and with Aaron Mooy departed, we think he’ll be afforded more game time. We’ve ranked the creative midfielder in 51st position in our Midfielders Draft Rankings.
MID: Neeskens Kebano (ADP: 180)
Most people in your Fantrax league won’t have ever heard of Neeskens Kebano. And if they look up his statistics from last season, they are unlikely to be impressed. The DR Congo midfielder only played 19 games for Fulham last season, and 11 of those appearances were as a substitute. Delve into those statistics a little further, however, and you will see why we like him! Kebano found his form at the end of the season and was in Scott Parker’s starting eleven for all three of the Championship Play-off games. The midfielder also scored a goal in each of the semi-final games against Cardiff. Because of this, we’re tipping Kebano to start the season in the team and potentially become an outstanding hidden gem. With an ADP of 180, this is a player we’ll certainly be gambling on at the end of the draft!
MID: Matt Phillips (ADP: 246)
Matt Phillips is a player with Premier League experience and, at the moment, a starting slot in a Premier League team. These are two simple reasons why his ADP should be higher. Phillips should also be drafted earlier due to the fact that he’s going to be playing in an attacking position from West Brom. As outlined in our Team Preview, the Englishman gained seven goals and six assists last season, and he does have some quality. Phillips is the player we’re least keen on from the midfielders we’ve selected for this Fantasy EPL Sleepers article, but we would still look to draft him in the final couple of rounds if he’s still available.
West Brom have apparently had an offer for Grady Diangana accepted, which would dent Phillips’ prospects a lot!
MID: Yves Bissouma (ADP: 341)
We are shocked by the current ADP for Yves Bissouma. Absolutely shocked. The Brighton midfielder really should not be in contention for our Starting 11 of Fantasy EPL Sleepers… let alone having one of the highest ADP rankings of the players we’ve selected!! We’re big fans of Bissouma after his stellar end to the 19/20 season. The Malian did struggle since arriving on the south coast, but he established himself in Potter’s midfield during the second half of last season and was a consistent source of points during the Premier League restart. Bissouma is currently ranked 40th in our Midfielders Draft Rankings, 96th in our personal Top 200 Rankings, and 141st in the Consensus Top 200 Rankings. In short, Bissouma is a player with a decent points floor of around 7/8 points and is the ideal midfielder to slot into your side when a more explosive player is rotated.
MID: Ainsley Maitland-Niles (ADP: 354)
Ainsley Maitland-Niles is a hard one to predict, which may be why his ADP is a lowly 354. However, he’s a really solid addition to our Fantasy EPL Sleepers lineup as he could be in for a good season no matter where he ends up playing! The Arsenal defender/midfielder has been unhappy at the club for a while and did look set to move to Wolves last week. However, Maitland-Niles started in the Community Shield, won the man of the match award, was called up to the England squad, and now looks set to sign a new and improved contract at Arsenal!! The youngster is apparently unhappy at being fielded in a defensive role at Arsenal, but to be honest, if he can nail down a place in the starting eleven of a top Premier League club then he shouldn’t be complaining! Certainly worth a punt towards the end of the draft.
FWD: Andriy Yarmolenko (ADP: 153)
We’re really struggling for forwards to include in this article, as all of the decent ones have an ADP below our 150 threshold. This does tell us something super important though; all of the forwards with any kind of potential are being drafted before overall pick 150! Therefore, prioritize your forwards, and take a punt on a player like Che Adams, Rodrigo Moreno, Jay Rodriguez or Jordan Ayew as your fourth forward before you reach the end of the draft!
We’ve included West Ham forward Andriy Yarmolenko as our lone striker. The Ukrainian international is a really talented footballer, he’s just struggled with form, fitness, and consistency since arriving in East London. If Yarmolenko can establish himself in The Hammers’ side, he’s a really useful asset to own on Fantrax. Take a punt on him at the end of your draft if you’re struggling to find a fourth or fifth forward to add to your roster… it’ll be highly worth it if he gets some decent game time! Yarmolenko is currently ranked 42nd in our Forwards Draft Rankings.
Let us know who your Fantasy EPL Sleepers are heading into your 20/21 draft! Or actually, maybe keep them to yourself if you’re worried about your league mates finding out who your secret weapons are!!!
Our 20/21 Fantasy EPL Draft Kit is here!! Check out our dedicated page for essential pre-season content, including Draft Rankings, Team Previews, and Draft Strategy articles!
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