As the deadline looms closer, it is time to decide what to do with our precious free transfer(s). Aside from playing chips or selecting a captain, our transfers are the single most important aspect of our FPL campaign, and the importance of getting it right cannot be overstated.

In this article we crunch the numbers, analyse the fixtures, take advice from the Algorithm, and decide which player to buy, which player to sell, and which player to keep for Gameweek 24.

BUY: James Tarkowski

• Cost: £4.2m
• Selected by: 2.2%
• Projected Points (Next 5 GWs): 17.4

A somewhat less exciting recommendation than we made in last week’s article, but nevertheless, James Tarkowski (£4.2m) could be a great, albeit vanilla, addition to your FPL squad.

Firstly, many managers may be looking to have a defensive shuffle around in the coming Gameweeks. Highly owned defenders such as Kieran Trippier (£6.1m), Luke Shaw (£5.2m) and Fabian Schär (£4.8m) are all facing a difficult run of fixtures (including a blank in Gameweek 25). Tarkowski plays Leeds next – and has two fixtures in Gameweek 25, when many teams are blanking – followed by Nottingham Forest (see the Fixture Planner for more information).

Second, at £4.2m, he’s not going to break the bank and could free up much needed funds for bringing in more expensive options elsewhere. Tarkowski has played every minute this season, something which looks set to remain under the new management.

Finally, we mustn’t be distracted by Everton’s defeat to Merseyside rivals who looked much more like the Liverpool of yesteryear. Sean Dyche remains a pragmatic manager who will look to inject defensive solidity into the team as the first port of call.