Who are the players to add to your Fantasy Premier League team for Gameweek 22 of 2025-26? We assess the Opta data to reveal our top under-the-radar picks.
The Premier League resumes after a break for FA Cup action with a Manchester derby. Is there any value in selecting players from either City or United for your Fantasy Premier League team? There’s one man included below so read on.
We’ve crunched the Opta data to identify five players you absolutely must consider owning on your Wildcard, despite them currently being picked by fewer than 10% of FPL managers.
GK – Guglielmo Vicario | 4.8m | 6.9% Ownership
Tottenham need a win. Dumped out of the FA Cup by Aston Villa last weekend, Spurs have won just twice in their last 12 league games. The condensed nature of the Premier League table means they aren’t far adrift of the top five despite starting the weekend 14th, but they need to start picking up more points.
They face West Ham in a London derby on Saturday. The bookmakers have Nuno Espírito Santo and Thomas Frank as the frontrunners in their ‘next Premier League managers to leave their post’ markets. This match could be something of a sack race cup final.
While Tottenham have underwhelmed this season, their defence has largely been sound. Conceding just five goals fewer would’ve given them the joint-third best defensive record. In West Ham and Burnley, their next two opponents, Spurs will face two sides averaging 1.05 goals per league game in 2025-26. The Hammers have also only scored three goals in their last four meetings with Tottenham.
As Guglielmo Vicario has overachieved against the xG on target (xGOT) he has faced this term, he could keep them at bay. Only Aston Villa and Liverpool’s goalkeepers are predicted by Opta to be needed to make fewer saves this weekend, so it should be an easy afternoon for the Italian. The Tottenham shot stopper should not be too busy against the Clarets either, given they have produced the fewest expected goals in the top flight this season.
With Brentford’s Caoimhin Kelleher the only cheaper goalkeeper with more FPL points this season, you should sign Vicario considering his opponents in the next two weeks.
DEF – Dan Ballard | 4.6m | 2.9% Ownership
We don’t have to imagine Sunderland conceding five fewer goals to have the third-best defensive record; they’re already there. The Black Cats were only five off the best before the last round of fixtures, but their 3-0 defeat at Brentford put a dent in that.
Whether this is sustainable for the rest of the campaign when they’ve conceded 9.3 goals fewer than their xG allowed remains to be seen. What does look fairly likely is goalkeeper Robin Roefs not being beaten too often in Sunderland’s next three games.
Régis Le Bris’ team play Crystal Palace and Burnley at home either side of a trip to West Ham. They then face Arsenal and Liverpool, but the forthcoming trio all scored just 22 goals in their first 21 league games this term.
Nordi Mukiele would’ve been a good option here but he has ticked over into being in 10% of FPL teams. Let’s turn instead to Dan Ballard. He’s arguably a better option anyway, or at least he is when fit and available.
Ballard has averaged 5.5 FPL points per start this season. As he has been in Le Bris’s XI on 13 occasions, there are only three defenders who have better averages across more starts: Gabriel Magalhães, Daniel Muñoz and Jurriën Timber. Speaking of Arsenal players, Ballard scored and got a (fantasy) assist against them earlier in the campaign, so is clearly a threat in attack, too.
It is at the back where he thrives, though. That should continue over the next few matchdays.
DEF – Jeremie Frimpong | 5.7m | 6.0% Ownership
After a relatively slow start to his Liverpool career thanks to fitness issues, the second half of 2025-26 could be Jeremie Frimpong’s time to shine. The season-ending injury suffered by Conor Bradley ensures the Netherlands international will start the majority of the remaining games.
Frimpong is in decent form, too. While he only has one Opta assist in the Premier League, the 25-year-old collected fantasy assists against Tottenham and Fulham. He also scored in the FA Cup against Barnsley last time out, effectively giving him four goal contributions in his last six appearances.
Liverpool host Burnley on Saturday. This will give Frimpong an excellent chance of picking up a clean sheet while also offering opportunities to get forward. The Reds then head to Bournemouth, which should be tougher, but will they be as much of an attacking threat without Antoine Semenyo?
With 4.5 FPL points per start, Frimpong is averaging more than the likes of Andy Robertson (4.0), Ibrahima Konaté or Virgil van Dijk (both 3.8). As an outlet for Arne Slot’s more solid Liverpool, this could be a productive period for the former Bayer Leverkusen man.
MID – Jérémy Doku | 6.4m | 3.0% Ownership
From Jeremie to Jérémy. Having drawn their previous three league games, the next four could make-or-break Manchester City’s title challenge. Three of the four games are on the road, at Manchester United, Tottenham and Liverpool. The exception is against Wolves, which should result in three points at the Etihad, even if Rob Edwards’ men are finally finding a little form.
A combination of injuries and absences due to the Africa Cup of Nations has given Pep Guardiola few options for rotation. This is good news for Jérémy Doku, as it means he should retain his place in the side, despite the arrival of Semenyo.
He likely would have anyway after proving his worth in City’s last league match, the 1-1 draw with Brighton. Regaining possession in the final third, Doku dribbled into the box before drawing a foul. Erling Haaland converted the penalty to give the Belgian an FPL assist.
The City winger also has a decent record in the Manchester derby. Doku recorded two assists against United earlier this season, making him the only player to achieve this against the Red Devils since Mohamed Salah did so in September 2024. Having also scored against Liverpool this season, City’s difficult run of opponents won’t frighten Doku.
FWD – Danny Welbeck | 6.2m | 4.1% Ownership
Danny Welbeck seems to be enjoying the veteran stage of his career. The 35-year-old doesn’t start every game, far from it, but he can be relied upon to deliver when he is called upon.
The Brighton forward has scored in three of his last 10 appearances in all competitions. It doesn’t sound that impressive, but some of those run-outs were brief cameos. Another way of putting it is that Welbeck has found the net in three of the previous four matches in which he played over 65 minutes. Give him enough time and he has a decent chance of scoring.
Former club Manchester United found that out in the FA Cup last weekend. While there’s no guarantee he starts this week, three of the Seagulls’ next four league matches are at home so he should get opportunities soon enough.
Welbeck is also a good choice for those of you on a budget. Dominic Calvert-Lewin is the only forward with more FPL points who also costs less. With Brighton’s next four games against teams currently no higher than ninth in the table (with an average placing of 12.3), there should be more chances for Welbeck to maintain his hit rate.
*FPL player values and ownership data accurate as of 15 January 2026
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The 10% Club: Opta’s Best Under-the-Radar FPL Picks for Gameweek 22 Opta Analyst.
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