Ezri Konsa doesn’t like plastic beer cups. Because some of them hit his brother after England’s goalless draw against Slovenia in June, 2024. He was not aware of plastic, beer, or cups when his current employer, Aston Villa embraced European glory in 1982. Nor the world was aware of his existence back then.
The 27-year-old England international might not like fantasy but fantasy, when coupled with football, likes him very much because of his rich prospects in the game. Liverpool bouncing back from the 0-1 deficit of the first leg and winning 4-0 against Spurs in the second leg of the Carabao Cup semi-final, meant a double date for Konsa in gameweek 25.
Unai Emery’s men who have already made it to the last-16 of the 2024/25 UCL, will face Ipswich Town at Villa Park before hosting table-toppers Liverpool in double gameweek 25. With one plum fixture accompanied with another home match, Konsa will have a high-ceiling for points.
In such a scenario, the £4.4m price-tag makes the Villa defender one of the most lip-smacking fantasy picks at the moment. He is also a niche asset in the world of FPL, as only 6.5% of the managers have the English centre-back in their ranks.
Konsa, who has also scored a goal in Fantasy Premier League 2024-25, is a nailed-on starter for Aston Villa. Out of the first 24 games, Villa gaffer Unai Emery has handed him starts on 22 occasions. I expect him to be the subject of a bidding war among PL clubs in the summer.
Now, Villa has recorded only two clean sheets in the 2024/25 Premier League till date, conceding 34 goals in the process. However, they have managed to garner clean sheets against much-fancied sides in the UEFA Champions League like Bayern Munich and Juventus.
In the January transfer window, Aston Villa strengthened its squad substantially with arrivals of Marcus Rashford, Malen, and Marco Asensio while squaring-off Jhon Duran in a record deal. I won’t be surprised if they succeed in making a deep run in the UCL.
Also, Villa’s fixtures look great right till the end of this fantasy season. Hence, Konsa maybe a long-term hold in FPL. I am also planning to bring him in before double gameweek 25. Meanwhile, Arsenal’s Myles Lewis-Skelly too, appears a solid-pick in this budget segment.
