Tottenham Hotspur

Tottenham manager Ange Postecoglou has told Sky Sports News that centre-back Christian Romero is a doubt for Saturday’s meeting with Manchester City.

Micky van de Ven, Romero’s defensive partner, will also miss out through injury.

“I’m really happy for Christian and his wife on the birth of their baby girl. He’s still not 100%, he’s a doubt for the weekend,” said Postecoglou.

“Everyone else through internationals has got through it well.

“Micky is still a good couple of weeks away. He is out on the grass and he’s training but he’s still a couple of weeks away. We’re hoping by the middle of December, he’s back and involved and playing.”

Image source, Getty Images

Alexander Isak, Newcastle, £8.5m (home to West Ham)

The Swede is in hot form, with four goals in his past four games in all competitions.

The way Newcastle play, if they were to score twice it’s hard to imagine Isak isn’t involved in at least one of those goals.

With just four league goals so far, it’s fair to say he has underwhelmed but this is a man who scored 21 last season, is on penalties and has no real threat to his starting position. I like that!

Ollie Watkins, Aston Villa, £9m (home to Crystal Palace)

There’s no Haaland in this week’s team. He could easily go off at home to Spurs but Manchester City are out of form and there are forwards who should match him this week for £6m or more less.

One of those is Watkins, on his own mini goal drought, but always involved in Villa’s attacks and he’s had 15 big chances this season – scoring five goals. Only Haaland, with 19, has had more big chances.

Joao Pedro, Brighton, £5.5m (away to Bournemouth)

The Brazilian might be in a lot of FPL teams soon. He’s budget-friendly, on penalties and has four returns in the five games he’s appeared in this season.

As long as he is fit, Pedro is the cheap striker to own, with a juicy fixture run all the way until 2025.

Everton

Everton manager Sean Dyche on the importance of Saturday’s match: “Every game is vital to the fans, vital to me, vital to the players. That is the feeling about Everton, that every game is a big game.”

On Brentford and their manager Thomas Frank, Dyche added: “I have massive respect for their manager. I know Thomas quite well. They work on their margins, they have to progress in so many ways, and you want to find the right side of it.

“Over the last few years, they keep getting on the right side of it. They have good players, I like their manager a lot personally, and I also respect him a lot.”

Everton

Everton manager Sean Dyche onDwight McNeil’s injury: “Dwight has had a really good week, we will see how he comes through that.”

Dyche onJarrad Branthwaite’s quality: “The obvious one is balance, he’s a left-sided centre-half and there’s not many around with the standard that he has.

“It’s nice to get left and right so balanced, not just him but the whole group. He’s proved to be important during his time here.”

Image source, Getty Images

Bruno Fernandes, Manchester United, £8.4m (away to Ipswich)

With the same reasoning as Salah, I’m rolling with Fernandes who is a man in form and has underproduced based on his underlying statistics.

Gameweek 11’s 17-point haul was coming and the Portuguese maestro often produces FPL points in spurts.

Dwight McNeil, Everton, £5.7m (home to Brentford)

McNeil is back to fitness and he has been Everton’s talisman this season.

Three goals, three assists and an involvement in 60% of the goals in games he has played.

Everton have only scored 10 this season but if they can’t find the net against Brentford, who have the joint-second-worst defence with 22 goals conceded, then they are in trouble.

Everton

Everton manager Sean Dyche onJarrad Branthwaite’s injury: “Jarrad trained today, we’re hopeful on that.”

On Seamus Coleman: “Seamus is on the grass, but with the specialists.”

On James Garner: “Jimmy has had good news from the specialists, but he has to be careful.”

On Tim Iroegbunam: “Tim is different, he can start semi-loading again.”

Everton

Everton manager Sean Dyche onwhat is available in January: “There’s no news, we’re working to the current situation of the club, being very sensible financially. If the Friedkin Group get their hands on the club fully, it might be different.”

On injuries and plans for January, Dyche added: “If you carry a lighter squad, those injuries dilute the squad quickly. It can enhance development but it also loses that competitive depth. If the finances are there, we will certainly be looking.”

Mohamed Salah (captain), Liverpool, £12.9m (away to Southampton)

The way Salah is producing at the moment, giving him the captain’s armband is a no-brainer.

He has seven double-digit returns in 11 games so far, which is astonishing. A pessimist would say that he can’t carry on at that rate of production – if he does he’s on for a record 369-point season – but an away game at Southampton doesn’t feel like it’s going to be a stumbling block.

Salah has so many routes to production. Last gameweek was classic Mo – non-owners were escaping with just an assist – with Villa chasing the game and the Egyptian pouncing on a counter-attack to score with his only shot on target late on.

Emile Smith Rowe, Fulham, £5.7m (home to Wolves)

The former Arsenal midfielder was a pre-season player to watch for me but is making his debut in the team of the week.

Like McNeil, ESR has become a key player for Fulham and he is returning roughly every other game.

He’s got a knack of arriving in the box at the right time and it wouldn’t be a surprise if he ends the season close to 10 goals – he has three so far in 11 games.

Felix! TMI!

Southampton

Southampton boss Russell Martin on facing Premier League leaders Liverpool: “I’m really excited about Sunday. We’re
playing the best team in the country at the moment, on their current form and what they have been doing with their manager, built on an incredible foundation from the previous manager, so I’m really looking forward to it.”

Southampton

Southampton boss Russell Martin on a busy schedule in December: “I think we showed the guys the Premier League table last season and how much it changed by the end and by the end of December. But it’s honestly such an exciting month.

“People talk about the difficulty of the game and every competition we face in the next four or five games, but it’s what we all worked so hard for. We should be excited for the challenge and I think teams have shown in the last few weeks that you can pick up big results against big teams, good opposition, and we are going to have to. Our level of performance against teams at the top end of the table has been good on the whole.”

Nizaar Kinsella
BBC Sport football news reporter

James has suffered his eighth hamstring injury in four years, according to Transfermarkt data.

He has suffered a further six injuries to his knee, thigh and ankle – as well as an absence with illness.

Upon his return against Liverpool in October, it had been 562 days since James last managed to play a full 90 minutes in the Premier League, with the subsequent match a week later at home to Newcastle his first full match completed in well over a year.

Since breaking into Chelsea’s senior squad in the 2019-20 season, James’s best run of matches is six achieved in May 2021. His most league starts in a single season is 25 matches while last season he played just 482 minutes due to injury and two red cards.

His surgery last December in Finland was designed to help him overcome the issues permanently but he has suffered his second setback since the season started, injuring himself initially in Chelsea’s penultimate pre-season match against Real Madrid in the United States.

James has also not been involved with England since March 2023. When asked about his goals for the coming season in the United States tour, he said: “I have one goal. My goal is to stay on the pitch.”

Image source, Getty Images

Lewis Hall, Newcastle, £4.4m (home to West Ham)

The new England international is about to become a budget favourite with a decent run of fixtures and an enticing price.

He is far and away Newcastle’s most creative defender, with three big chances produced and an expected assists (xA) of 1.43.

Up-and-down West Ham at home is a favourable match-up for him.

Image source, Getty Images

David Raya, Arsenal, keeper, £5.5m; Gabriel, Arsenal, £6.1m; William Saliba, Arsenal, £6m (all home to Nottingham Forest)

Yes, you’re reading that right. I’ve gone for a triple-up on Arsenal’s defence this week.

This is a part gut feel and part data-based decision. Arsenal had the best defence last season, they started out in the same way this time and they haven’t suddenly lost the ability to defend.

Mikel Arteta has most of his first-choice defenders back and it’s time for the Gunners to make a statement after no wins in four.

Forest are flying in the league but they are bottom six for expected goals (xG) with 14.54 and have scored just 15 in 11 games.

They’ve had success from corners this season but Arsenal have conceded just four shots from set-pieces.

I’m benching Chris Wood in my own FPL team and expecting a low-scoring win to nil for Arsenal.

Thomas Woods
BBC Sport senior journalist

We’re approaching a great part of the season for Fantasy Premier League players.

No pesky international breaks until March, midweek fixtures coming up and the game-packed Christmas period.

It’s also a time for some big decisions so this team of the week sets that tone – no Erling Haaland, no Manchester City at all and triple Arsenal defence.

How about that!

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.

Southampton

Southampton boss Russell Martin on speaking to PGMOL after their match against Wolves earlier this month: “As a club, we had a meeting with them, with the owners involved as well, and the chief executive. I have to say, it’s not an easy job for Howard Webb, so I think he does it really, really well. I still have an issue with the goal for sure, and a foul on the second goal. I also have an issue with them coming out and saying it was a correct decision ultimately.

“If we are going to improve VAR and make it better, we need to have real honesty and accountability, so for it to come out as a correct decision in the match review is frustrating to me but it is objective, right, so the second goal for sure they should take longer on analysing the foul from Craig Dawson, because it is a foul. They let us hear all the audio and watch it, and the first goal is open to interpretation.”

Southampton

Southampton boss Russell Martin on Taylor Hardwood-Bellis’ engagement to Roy Keane’s daughter, Leah: “Yeah, that it is his private life and I think in football we often blur the line between private life and professional life.

“But yeah, I think that if he does receive any stick or banter from the lads about it, he takes it really, really well. He’s able to separate that and it is what it is. I think everyone was so happy for him [about scoring on his England debut].”

Southampton

Image source, PA Media

Southampton defender Taylor Harwood-Bellis made his senior debut for England during the international break and the 22-year-old scored during their 5-0 win over the Republic of Ireland.

Saints boss Russell Martin said:“We’re all immensely proud of him at the club and really happy for him. I think the aim when he came last year in the Championship, he was disappointed in not being in the Premier League at that point, it was to get there together and give him the best chance of achieving his dream of playing international football.

“To then make his debut and score on his debut is incredible so we’re really pleased for him and his family. Hopefully it will be the first of many for Taylor.”

Celtic

Image source, PA Media

Manager Elena Sadiku is “excited for what we have in front of us” despite Celtic exiting the Champions League after just four games and without earning a point.

The Scottish club still have two games in Group B to play but now cannot progress after losing 3-0 at Chelsea.

The in-form Women’s Super League (WSL) side are through to the quarter-finals with a couple of games to spare in a lop-sided pool in which Real Madrid need just a point to join them in the last eight.

Celtic will hope to claim a first point of their campaign when they travel to Twente on 17 December – but Sadiku has been encouraged by her players dealing with Chelsea’s star-studded line-up better than WSL sides have this season.

“It says a lot about the team I have. We have quality players and the players are learning that as a team we can compete with Chelsea and Real Madrid,” she said.

“I have seen them hurt other teams more than they have hurt us. You can see how good they have been against top players. There are star players in every position for them.”

Emma Sanders
BBC Sport women’s football news reporter at Stamford Bridge

Sonia Bompastor wants Chelsea to make winning “become easy” by continuing their successful run in Europe.

Chelsea have won 11 successive matches since the Frenchwoman took over from Emma Hayes in the summer and sit top of the Women’s Super League (WSL) table.

Their 3-0 win over Celtic in the Women’s Champions League on Wednesday meant they reached the quarter-finals with two group games to spare.

“As a club it’s always important to make sure after four games you have the opportunity to qualify,” said Bompastor.

“That’s perfect, even if tonight you saw everything was not perfect – but in terms of results we are in a good place.

“It’s good because once again it brings a lot of confidence. It is important for us to continue our run. There are a lot of positives.

“It’s important to work hard so things can become easy, even if they are not easy.”

Image source, Reuters