Best FPL differentials: Manchester City triple up on the cards for gameweek 17 of Fantasy Premier League

Highlights: Arsenal snatch late, huge win against Wolves

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Fourth-place Chelsea have a daunting trip to St James’ Park on Saturday, where they face a Newcastle side who have failed to live up to expectations thus far this season.

In FPL terms, with five free transfers handed out in gameweek 16 to navigate the exodus of players to the Africa Cup of Nations, the template has got even stronger.

That has made the inclusion of differentials that much more important if you want to rise up the rankings and win your mini-leagues.

So, with another massive weekend of festive football coming our way, here are three players that could be a huge help in obtaining that much coveted green arrow.

The categories are:

• Player 1: Max 10% ownership
• Player 2: Max 5% ownership
• Player 3: Max 2% ownership

And of course, it is worth noting that with Newcastle’s clash with Chelsea taking place at 12:30 on Saturdaythe deadline is back to its more regular slot of 11:00 UK time.

1.  Nico O’Reilly, £5.3m (Defender, Manchester City, 9.9%)

Nico O’Reilly JUST scrapes into the differential category, but it feels like he probably won’t for much longer.

The Manchester City defender has made the left-back position his own this season, with 90 minutes in each of the last seven Premier League matches, coinciding with City’s upturn in form that has seen them win six of those seven games.

In that time, O’Reilly got a goal, two assists, three clean sheets and has hit the defensive contribution points.

That is a formidable return, and with Manchester City in ominous form in the lead up to Christmas – when they have so often gone on massive unbeaten stretches under Pep Guardiola – a City triple up feels inevitable for most FPL managers.

Highlights: O’Reilly, Haaland secure Man City comeback win

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Phil Foden and Erling Haaland are in the essential category at this point, leaving one other spot.

City face a West Ham side who are struggling at both ends of the pitch at the Etihad Stadium, and O’Reilly was taken off in the 66th minute of their 2-0 Carabao Cup win over Brentford on Wednesday.

It appears Guardiola is picking a much more consistent team, which allays the traditional ‘Pep roulette’ fears we have been accustomed to since he came to England.

That allows for O’Reilly, who was just one defensive contribution short of another two points at Selhurst Park on Sunday, to be more of a mid-long term pick, while popular premium defender Daniel Munoz (£5.9m) and Gabriel (£6.2m) recover from their respective injuries.

City face Nottingham Forest and Sunderland in their other two festive fixtures, both teams who have struggled to score goals this season, so the prospect of consistent festive points seems likely.

2. Jan Paul van Hecke, £4.6m (Defender, Brighton, 4.2%)

If funds are an issue or you already have your premium defenders set, look no further than Jan Paul van Hecke.

The 25-year-old Dutchman has been racking up the points since gameweek 10, with 38 points in the last seven gameweeks coming via three clean sheets, two goals and an assist, as well as one bonus point.

Brighton now host a Sunderland side who have scored just 19 goals so far this season.

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Van Hecke represents excellent value, has multiple routes to points and has the form, as well as the mid-term fixtures, with West Ham and Burnley in gameweek 19 and 20.

As a fourth or even fifth defender, he would allow you to rotate out of the Arsenal fixture in gameweek 18, or he could even be one of your main three defenders should you wish to keep bigger funds for the premium attackers.

3. Evanilson, £7m (Forward, Bournemouth, 1.6%)

You may think it is knee-jerk to jump onto a player who has scored only two goals all season, and who is playing for a team that have failed to win in each of their last seven matches.

But after ending his scoring drought in the 4-4 thriller with Manchester United, Evanilson is a player to consider for this gameweek.

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With three FPL assists also to his name this season, and missing two games through injury, a return of five goal involvements in 14 matches is respectable, if not spectacular.

But with Bournemouth facing a Burnley side currently leaking goals (only Wolves have conceded more than their 33), bringing in the Brazilian could be a masterstroke for this gameweek.

Bournemouth showed they are capable of scoring goals at Old Trafford, and against a struggling Burnley defence, Evanilson could well be on for his biggest haul of the season.