This article is part of our FPL Best XI series.
Just a couple days after the Premier League's full Boxing Day slate, action resumes Monday with another eight matches.
The remaining two games of the round will be played on Tuesday and Wednesday, and after those, the first half of the current campaign will be in the books.
In hopes of finishing the front end of the fantasy season strongly, here's the Best XI for Gameweek 19:
Goalkeeper:
Petr Cech
Without top attackers Graziano Pelle and Dusan Tadic in Southampton's Boxing Day starting lineup, Cech seemingly had a good shot of setting a new Premier League career record with another clean sheet, but Arsenal's historically poor performances at the St. Mary's Stadium got the better of them, as Cech and company conceded four goals. While Cech can't be faulted for the first couple of those, the veteran will still be eager to rebound at home against Bournemouth. The Cherries failed to score at their place versus Crystal Palace on Saturday, and Arsenal's joint second-best home defense could complicate matters further come Monday.
Defenders:
Leighton Baines
After missing the first four months of this season due to injury, Baines secured his first clean sheet of the campaign Saturday at Newcastle. In each of the past five seasons, Baines has totaled at least nine clean sheets, evidencing his impact on Everton's defense. While he's obviously got some catching up to do to maintain that streak, Baines is also an offensive threat, as he's compiled 21 goals and 34 assists over the same span. On Monday, Baines is pitted against a Stoke City side fresh off beating Manchester United, but the Potters' 16 goals scored this season lead only one team league-wide, and only six of those have come away from the Britannia Stadium.
Joel Ward
A vastly underrated defender, Ward too wrapped up a clean sheet on Boxing Day, marking his third through 11 games this term. Two of those have come in Crystal Palace's past three games, putting Ward in good standing ahead of Monday's meeting with Swansea City. Having already sacked a manager following their horrible first half of the season, only one team has scored fewer goals than Swansea thus far, and they've managed just two goals from their past five games. Additionally, Crystal Palace blanked Swansea at home last season, bolstering Ward's case for another clean sheet this time around.
Alberto Moreno
Yet another Best XI defender coming off a clean sheet over the weekend, Moreno impressively secured his third such performance by helping keep Leicester City, the league's highest scoring team heading into Boxing Day, at bay. In doing so, Moreno also earned a bonus point in the Premier League's official fantasy game. For his encore, Moreno is paired against Sunderland on Wednesday, giving him some extra time to rest and recover. While that bodes well for him, so does the fact that only one team has scored fewer goals at home than Sunderland this season. Not to mention, Liverpool has held Sunderland scoreless in back-to-back efforts.
Midfielders:
Kevin De Bruyne
The top-scoring player in the Premier League's fantasy game on Boxing Day, De Bruyne rightfully earns another Best XI selection following his one-goal, two-assist outing against Sunderland. That display brought De Bruyne's totals to five goals and eight assists through 14 appearances. Even though the production has largely come at home, De Bruyne's momentum contrasts enough with Tuesday's opponent, Leicester City, to inspire confidence in his ability to make an impact. The Foxes are reeling from only their second loss of the season, yet only six teams have concede more goals to date, presenting a potential flaw to be exploited by De Bruyne and Man City's joint-best attack.
Riyad Mahrez
The best fantasy performer in a Leicester offense tied with Man City on 37 goals this season, Mahrez's three-game goal assault came to an end as the Foxes failed to score Saturday. Now, the Algerian is tasked with bouncing back against mighty Manchester City on Tuesday. Despite that matchup being more difficult than most, Man City's suspect away form could allow Mahrez to make hay once again. To that point, the Citizens sport the Premiership's 12th-best road record at the moment. Given Mahrez has 13 goals and seven assists already, he's certainly someone to trust as Leicester aims to undo their Boxing Day blemish this week.
Aaron Ramsey
Since the injury to teammate Santi Cazorla afforded him the privilege of reclaiming his preferred box-to-box central midfield role, Ramsey has returned the favor with two goals and two assists in five starts across all competitions. Just two seasons ago, Ramsey claimed 10 goals and nine assists in league play from that position. As important now as ever in Arsenal's setup, Ramsey will strive to help the Gunners overcome their Boxing Day embarrassment when Bournemouth enter the Emirates Stadium on Monday. Only two teams have conceded more goals than the Cherries, so Ramsey should be keen to capitalize on that shortcoming.
David Silva
With an assist in Manchester City's 4-1 trashing of Sunderland on Saturday, Silva claimed his seventh helper despite playing in only 10 Premiership games this season. That eye-opening ratio comes after Silva has recorded 12 assists in three straight seasons, showing his supreme set-up ability when healthy. Come Tuesday, Silva will try to break down a Leicester City defense that he scored against in the most recent meeting between the sides last season. Going further back, Manchester City's four consecutive wins over the Foxes makes Silva an even more intriguing option this week.
Forwards:
Olivier Giroud (C)
Not only did Giroud's three-match scoring streak in the Premier League get snapped Saturday, but the Frenchman was rather invisible as Arsenal were skinned by Southampton. That being said, Giroud has developed a commendable ability to avoid having back-to-back poor performances, so an improved effort is expected from him Monday against Bournemouth. As previously mentioned, just two teams have shipped more goals than the Cherries this term, so playing an agitated Arsenal attack away from home is hardly ideal. With seven goals in his past 10 league games, Giroud garners this week's Best XI captain's designation.
Harry Kane
Now just ahead of Giroud with 11 goals on the season, Kane's tally was increased by two over the weekend, as the Englishman sparked Tottenham's 3-0 win against Norwich. That marked Kane's second straight game with a goal, and judging by his 10 goals in Tottenham's last nine Premiership encounters, it appears Kane is once again hitting his mid-season stride. While that's undoubtedly a good development for Spurs, the timing is especially important ahead of this week's matchup against a red hot Watford outfit. Prior to drawing 2-2 at Chelsea on Saturday, the Hornets reeled off four straight wins, so having Kane at his best is a perk Tottenham may need Monday.
Christian Benteke
Even though his powerful style and stature might not suit new manager Jurgen Klopp's pass and press tactics, Benteke's ability to find the back of the net should prove too hard for Liverpool to overlook going forward. The Belgian scored the deciding goal of the Reds' 1-0 win over Leicester City on Saturday, breaking their three-game winless streak. After that contribution, Benteke figures to start at Sunderland this week, which would present an outstanding opportunity for fantasy owners. The Black Cats have leaked four goals more than any other Premier League team this season, and Benteke scored twice against them last time they crossed paths.
BENCH
GK: Boaz Myhill
Only five goalkeepers have more clean sheets than Myhill's six heading into Monday's home match versus Newcastle, the league's worst away attack.
DEF: Virgil van Dijk
Although he had a goal disallowed, van Dijk still secured an improbable clean sheet against Arsenal on Saturday, and now gets to play a West Ham outfit that has painstaking scored just once in their last five games.
MID: Yohan Cabaye
Introduced as a halftime substitute over the weekend, Cabaye could be fit to start Monday versus Swansea City, who have merely two wins since September.
MID: Willian
With Diego Costa suspended, Eden Hazard doubtful and Oscar having badly missed a penalty over the weekend, Willian, who boasts three assists in Chelsea's past two matches, should lead the Blues' attack against beleaguered Manchester United on Monday.
FWD: Jamie Vardy
Still the Premiership's leading goalscorer, Vardy has shown the inevitable signs of slowing his unprecedented pace, but he could return to the scoring column against Manchester City's surprisingly poor road form.
FWD: Odion Ighalo
With a goal at Chelsea on Saturday, Ighalo has now scored in five matches in a row going into this week's game against Tottenham's top-ranked defense.
FWD: Sergio Aguero
Sidelined for Man City's convincing victory over Sunderland on Saturday, Aguero will be vying for a return to the lineup at first-place Leicester City on Tuesday after teammate Wilfried Bony missed a penalty. Should that transpire, Aguero could expose a vulnerable Leicester defense coming off a loss over the weekend.
