On Monday, December 26th at 1:30pm, the Premier League kicks off again after the World Cup break – and at the same time, the new Premier Manager Spring 2023 game begins.
Here, three Sportbladet profiles recommend which players you should not miss on your team.
Bring out your dream team in the new Premier Manager Spring 2023
Makoto Asahara
Suspension: Given the ongoing World Cup, it is not easy to decide which players will be available for their clubs in the mid-day matches. Having said that, there wasn’t much budget left when Erling Braut Haaland was included directly in the starting line-up. A step, in short, necessary given the goal for which he was responsible and will continue to be responsible, if he does not completely lose his shape during the Marbella holiday).
Dejan Kulusevski costs a fortune but comes from vacation rather than the World Cup and has become a vital part of Tottenham’s attack. Eddie Nketiah did not play a prominent role at Arsenal during the autumn but will have to do so upon the departure of Gabriel Jesus. Likewise, Leon Bailey learns to play an important part in the rebirth of Unai Emery (?) Aston Villa. Leeds star Crysencio Summerville for 2.5 million SEK? Sold!
At the same time, on defense, I mainly focused on players from teams that I think have good chances of scoring well during the rest of the season.
Cali Carlson
Suspension: The starting point was that I wanted to cut Erling Haaland out in order to keep a few kroner left to trade.
In the back I fell in love with Nick Pope. Newcastle’s defensive play was effective and Pope was convincing. In the back line, I choose cheap players from teams that concede relatively few goals. Giant Dan Byrne should, in theory at least, be able to climb up and nod to a standing stance.
The midfield has become very strong with the goalscoring trio of Kulusevski (Tottenham), Gross (Brighton) and Saka (Arsenal). Going forward, I think Callum Wilson has good conditions to continue scoring goals (partly he scores regardless of the environment, partly he gets a good serve from the “magpie”). Mo Salah is still creating a lot and I believe the second half is strong from him while Crescencio Summerville (Leeds) proved to be a breath of fresh air with some goals.
Samuel Abrahamson
Suspension: It’s almost impossible to pick a team considering you don’t know which players are available after the World Cup. Quite a few of them may have played with injuries that no one knew about and it may be a while before all teams have full squads again.
However, I focused on players who weren’t in the WC or who sat on the bench during the tournament and now they should be reasonably fresh. He’ll be a cheap backline where Trippier feels he’s been given, often joining attacks and also hitting corners and free kicks that should result in some points.
Bukayo Saka has definitely played a bit in the World Cup and looked absolutely fantastic and that’s why I’m betting on him as my top scorer in midfield. But I also have a lot of faith in someone like Leon Bailey who finally seemed to find his footing under Emery.
I chose to stand over Erling Haaland, who of course accepts it as a goal guarantee. But I think even Salah might have felt good about taking a break now for a while and is keen to show how great he really is. Together with the magicians Martinelli and Saint-Maximin, I get an attack that will bring me points.
Bring out your dream team in the new Premier Manager Spring 2023 here