How do you pick a team at Saturday lunchtime when the round does not finish until Monday night?

That is the Gameweek 7 problem. Ten matches, two derbies, and a final fixture that does not start until Monday evening. The deadline is Sat 17 Oct, 12:30 UK, and none of it has happened by then.

FPG is simple: pick one Premier League team each round. If they win, you score points. A win is worth +1, a draw nothing and a defeat -1; the full rules spell out the rest.

Round 7 is a normal round, with two derby matches in it.

In a derby a win earns an extra point, and a draw costs one just like a defeat. How derbies score in FPG has the detail.

The 12:30 Kick-Off: Everton's Draws, Chelsea's Mood Swings

Everton v Chelsea, Sat 17 Oct, 12:30 UK. Chelsea put five past Bournemouth last round and lost 0-3 at Brentford the round before. Everton are the opposite problem: unbeaten in three, but two of those were draws, and a draw moves you nowhere this round.

The Rest of Saturday

Manchester City v Ipswich, Sat 17 Oct, 15:00 UK. The one that stands out, and the reason is plain: three wins from three, the best of them 3-0 away at Liverpool. Ipswich have a 3-2 win at Crystal Palace on their record, so it is not a formality, but it is the most likely home win on the board. Each team can be picked twice a season, and only two players have spent both of their City picks, so very nearly the whole field can still take this one.

Brentford v Liverpool, Sat 17 Oct, 15:00 UK. Liverpool arrive off a 3-0 home defeat by City, and a trip to the Brentford side who beat Chelsea 3-0 in round 5 is an awkward place to go looking for a reaction. Backing Liverpool here is a bet on character rather than form. I would leave it.

Fulham v Hull City, Sat 17 Oct, 15:00 UK. Two sides without a win in three. Pass, unless what you are after is precisely a match the rest of the field will ignore.

Newcastle v Aston Villa, Sat 17 Oct, 17:30 UK. Newcastle were last round's most-backed team, 20 of 122 players, and they went down 4-1 at Coventry. They shipped four at Leeds in round 4 as well. Villa have been the steadier of the pair since, with a 3-2 win at Tottenham and a 2-2 draw with Brentford.

Two Derbies and a Quiet One, All at 2pm on Sunday

Leeds v Manchester United, Sun 18 Oct, 14:00 UK — derby. Sky Sports reports that United have failed to win five of their last six games in all competitions (Sky Sports, as of Tue 13 Oct), and their league form says the same: two 1-1 draws and a home defeat by Manchester City. Leeds lost 1-2 at Arsenal last round, but they had put four past Newcastle in round 4. A home side against a United team in that state is tempting. It is also a derby.

Brighton v Crystal Palace, Sun 18 Oct, 14:00 UK — derby. The form side of the round, and it is not close: three straight wins, ten goals, none conceded. Sky Sports has them on 11 wins from their last 18 league games with three consecutive clean sheets (Sky Sports, as of Tue 13 Oct). The catch is who they are playing and what kind of match it is: Palace beat Nottingham Forest 3-1 last round, and this is the second derby.

Bournemouth v Sunderland, Sun 18 Oct, 14:00 UK. Sunderland have lost three on the bounce, to Brighton, Manchester City and Arsenal. Bournemouth's own form is grim — 1-5 at Chelsea last time out — but a home side against a team in that run is the quietest bit of value on the Sunday.

Seven Players Cannot Pick Arsenal Here

Nottingham Forest v Arsenal, Sun 18 Oct, 16:30 UK. Arsenal won 2-1 at home to Leeds last round and Forest have lost two of their last three, so the shape of this one is not in doubt. The complication is availability: Arsenal has more players out of picks than any other team, with seven having used both, and another 40 down to their last one. For those seven, the Arsenal side of this fixture is gone, and Forest is what is left of it.

Monday Night Decides It

Tottenham v Coventry, Mon 19 Oct, 20:00 UK. The round's last match, and the only one still live once the other nine are settled. Coventry have won two in a row, including that 4-1 over Newcastle; Tottenham have not won in three. Coventry is the differential I would take, and the timing is the argument: a Monday night winner moves you against a field whose results are already in. If you end up the only player on them there is a top-up too — be the only one to pick a team, see them win, and there's a bonus point — though nobody managed that last round. Climbing the table with a lonely pick goes through the tactic.

The Call

Manchester City at home to Ipswich. That is the pick, and nobody is going to call it clever.

Here is what it actually buys you. There are 123 players in the FPG table, one leads on 16 points, and the next four are on 12, four behind. If you are near the top, City is how you stay there.

If you are in that chasing four, City is the wrong pick. A win the leader also banks leaves you four behind on Monday night, which is where you started. So the caveat on my own call: if you are chasing, take Bournemouth at home to a Sunderland side on three straight defeats, or Coventry, and accept it can go wrong while the field banks a win. Safe pick vs differential weighs that trade up properly.

I will have been wrong about at least one of these by Monday night.

FAQ

Who should I pick in Gameweek 7? Manchester City at home to Ipswich, if you want the straightforward answer. The reasoning, and the riskier alternative for anyone chasing the leader, is above.

When is the FPG Gameweek 7 deadline? Sat 17 Oct, 12:30 UK, the same minute as Everton v Chelsea. Miss the deadline and a team is picked for you; it scores as normal, but if that score is positive you lose a point.

How big is the FPG table going into Gameweek 7? 123 players, with one clear on 16 points and four more on 12.

The round locks at 12:30 on Saturday. Make your pick at fpg-app.com, then settle in for three days of football you can no longer do a thing about.

Written by Toby Gaskell, Founder of FPG