GW8 Transfer Suggestions: Sell Semenyo, Buy Cherki, and a 4.4m Chelsea Keeper

This week’s transfer market has been written by the physio’s room. Szoboszlai, Semenyo, Fernandes, Wissa and Saka lead the sales, and three of those five are injured. Cherki, Tavernier, Gross, De Cuyper and Rogers lead the purchases, and all five have already risen in price. The deadline is 18:30 BST on Friday, a day earlier than usual, which leaves one night of price changes and one round of press conferences to act on. The question, as always, is which of the popular moves still have points ahead of them.

An injured player is the easiest sale in the game. The hard part is not spending the money on whoever scored last weekend.

Bring In: Rayan Cherki (Manchester City, £8.0m)

Cherki is the straight swap for Semenyo, 0.3m cheaper and in the same attack, and he is the most-bought player of the week with about 236,000 transfers in. He has four goals, two assists and seven bonus points this season, and Enzo Maresca said on Thursday that Cherki is, right now, one of the best players in Europe when he is in the right position, and that he and Foden can play together. City go to Aston Villa, then host Brighton, visit Nottingham Forest and host Fulham. The caveat is that he did not start against Ipswich and scored nothing. Semenyo’s absence makes his place more secure than it was. It does not make it certain.

Bring In: Dominic Calvert-Lewin (Leeds, £6.1m)

Calvert-Lewin is this week’s second-choice captain and the cheapest way into the best run in the league. Leeds go to Sunderland, then Bournemouth, then host Tottenham, and Sunderland have the worst expected goals against in the division. He takes the penalties, has three goals from 3.60 expected goals, and scored against Manchester United on Sunday. About 136,000 managers have bought him and his price has already risen once. He is streaky, with returns of 8, 10 and 9 points sandwiched between gameweeks of one and two, so buy him for the run rather than for any single week.

Bring In With Caution: Pedro Neto (Chelsea, £6.5m)

For Saka owners who need the money to go further, Neto frees up 3.1m and plays at home to Tottenham and Manchester United in the next two gameweeks. He scored twice at Everton for 15 points, and about 129,000 managers have already bought him without moving his price. The caution is in the numbers behind the haul: two goals from 0.37 expected goals, and the full 90 only once in six starts. He is a good player on a good run of fixtures, owned by 2.7 percent. He is not yet a proven source of points.

Budget Watch: Robin Penders in Goal

Emiliano Martinez is out until mid-December with a fractured jaw, and Chelsea’s two other senior goalkeepers are on loan, at Strasbourg and Como. That leaves Robin Penders, 4.4m and owned by 0.2 percent, as the likely starter for the next several weeks. Chelsea host Tottenham and Manchester United, then visit Sunderland and host Leeds. The honest caveat is Chelsea’s defence, which has one clean sheet in seven. At 4.4m, a starting goalkeeper with save points and an occasional clean sheet is still a cheap way to free money for the attack. It is also the obvious replacement for Martinez owners.

Consider Moving On

Semenyo is the simplest decision of the week. Maresca put his absence at around eight weeks, and the price will keep falling while you wait. Martinez and Reece James are the same case at Chelsea. Szoboszlai’s hamstring has failed twice, Iraola has asked for patience, and the official game has no return date, so sell unless Friday brings unexpectedly good news. Saka is the closest call: Arteta’s words after Munich were bleak and the official flag is 50 percent. Plan as if he misses Everton, and make the sale after Friday’s press conference rather than before it.

The one sale that is not about an injury is Newcastle’s Yoane Wissa. He has one goal from 2.97 expected goals, a form rating of 1.5, and has been sold by more than 200,000 managers this week as his price fell. Newcastle’s next five average 3.4, among the toughest in the league. There is no reason to hold him through it.

Price changes run overnight, and with a Friday deadline there is only one more of them before the round locks. Anything on the rising list is worth buying on Thursday night rather than Friday afternoon. Deadline is 18:30 BST on Friday, 23 October, ninety minutes before Ipswich host Nottingham Forest.