Bournemouth&#8217;s injury crisis among their forwards is among the key talking points ahead of FPL Gameweek 21, with the popular Joao Pedro also a doubt.
In this article, we take a look at the early injury news ahead of Tuesday&#8217;s deadline (January 14), following the conclusion of the midweek Carabao Cup semi-final games.
Bukayo Saka aside, FPL managers have been fairly fortunate in recent weeks. Among players at 5% ownership and above, only Lukasz Fabianski and Danny Welbeck were flagged following the conclusion of Gameweek 20.
But a handful of issues have emerged since, with Bournemouth&#8217;s issues potentially presenting an opportunity for fantasy fans.
Check out our <a href="https://www.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/premier-league-predicted-lineups">team news and predicted lineups article</a> early next week for full updates from every club press conference before Gameweek 21.

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<h2>Evanilson and Unal injuries: Semenyo to play up front?</h2>
Bournemouth have been rocked by injuries to their two main strikers.
The Cherries confirmed on Tuesday (January 7) that Evanilson had undergone an operation to repair a fractured foot, picked up in the weekend win over Everton.
The Brazilian, who has largely been first-choice striker this season, was taken off with &#8216;discomfort&#8217; late in the match but a broken bone was found after assessment.
<div id="attachment_69907" style="width: 808px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-69907" class="size-full wp-image-69907" src="https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Evanilson-GW1-20.jpg" alt="Evanilson's stats" width="798" height="650" srcset="https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Evanilson-GW1-20.jpg 798w, https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Evanilson-GW1-20-300x244.jpg 300w, https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Evanilson-GW1-20-768x626.jpg 768w, https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Evanilson-GW1-20-610x497.jpg 610w" sizes="(max-width: 798px) 100vw, 798px" />Evanilson&#8217;s <a href="https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/opta/" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c="1" title="FPL Stats by OPTA - Player and Team Stats">stats</a></div>
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Enas Unal was set to deputise, however the next day the club announced he had suffered a serious knee injury. A statement read:
<blockquote>&#8220;We are devastated to confirm that Enes Ünal has suffered a tear to his right anterior cruciate ligament during a training session this week.
&#8220;The Turkish striker, who has featured in every Cherries game since September, scoring two vital goals in our current club-record unbeaten run in the Premier League, experienced the contact injury in a routine drill on Tuesday morning.&#8221;</blockquote>
Neither player is highly owned in FPL, with Evanilson in 2.9% of teams and Unal in 0.2%.
But it is the knock-on effect of their absence which could interest fantasy managers, with the potential for either Antoine Semenyo or Justin Kluivert to play out of position up front.
Semenyo seems likeliest, having already filled in as the main forward earlier in the season.
A new signing could however be the solution with the January transfer window open.
Bournemouth rank 19th on our <a href="https://www.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/fixture-ticker">customisable fixture ticker</a> up to Gameweek 25, so FPL managers can afford to wait and see how the Cherries shape up.
Semenyo made the <a href="https://www.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/best-fpl-wildcard-team-for-gameweek-21-according-to-ai">Hub AI Wildcard team</a> even before the Unal news broke though, and the latest news is likely to further cement his role as a squad player in the AI&#8217;s thinking.
<div id="attachment_69908" style="width: 808px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-69908" class="size-full wp-image-69908" src="https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Semenyo-gw1-20.jpg" alt="Antoine Semenyo's stats" width="798" height="650" srcset="https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Semenyo-gw1-20.jpg 798w, https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Semenyo-gw1-20-300x244.jpg 300w, https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Semenyo-gw1-20-768x626.jpg 768w, https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Semenyo-gw1-20-610x497.jpg 610w" sizes="(max-width: 798px) 100vw, 798px" />Antoine Semenyo&#8217;s <a href="https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/opta/" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c="1" title="FPL Stats by OPTA - Player and Team Stats">stats</a></div>
<h2>Alexander Isak</h2>
Isak has been in superb form, scoring in seven straight league games. He also contributed a goal in Newcastle&#8217;s 0-2 victory over Arsenal in the Carabao Cup on Tuesday.
But the Swede is one to monitor after he came off in the 65th minute, with manager Eddie Howe stating after full-time:
<blockquote>“It was a case of just managing the game. Alex was just feeling his hamstring and Sven [Botman] was feeling a groin. We had a couple of players struggling so we had to manage them.”</blockquote>
Isak&#8217;s withdrawal appears to be precautionary but it would not be a surprise to see him &#8211; and most other first-team players &#8211; rested against Bromley in the FA Cup at the weekend.
The Magpies&#8217; next league game is not until Wednesday (January 15), giving Isak a week to recover if he misses the cup clash.
<div id="attachment_69906" style="width: 808px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-69906" class="size-full wp-image-69906" src="https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Isak-gw1-20.jpg" alt="Alexander Isak's stats" width="798" height="650" srcset="https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Isak-gw1-20.jpg 798w, https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Isak-gw1-20-300x244.jpg 300w, https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Isak-gw1-20-768x626.jpg 768w, https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Isak-gw1-20-610x497.jpg 610w" sizes="(max-width: 798px) 100vw, 798px" />Alexander Isak&#8217;s <a href="https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/opta/" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c="1" title="FPL Stats by OPTA - Player and Team Stats">stats</a></div>
<h2>Joao Pedro</h2>
There is some injury concern surrounding Brighton forward Joao Pedro.
The Brazilian is a popular pick in FPL thanks to his low price tag and penalty duties.
Pedro twisted his ankle in Brighton training on Thursday, and according to Pedro&#8217;s social media his scan showed no signs of serious injury.
He is a doubt for the Seagulls&#8217; clash with Norwich in the FA Cup, and that will have to be monitored ahead of Gameweek 21.
Keep an eye on our <a href="https://www.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/premier-league-predicted-lineups/">team news and predicted lineups</a> closer to deadline for information on whether Pedro is likely to be available for Brighton&#8217;s trip to Ipswich, as well as a potential season-ending injury for Gabriel Jesus.
<div id="attachment_69920" style="width: 808px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-69920" class="size-full wp-image-69920" src="https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/FFStuffImage-2025-01-09T180620.822.jpg" alt="" width="798" height="650" srcset="https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/FFStuffImage-2025-01-09T180620.822.jpg 798w, https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/FFStuffImage-2025-01-09T180620.822-300x244.jpg 300w, https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/FFStuffImage-2025-01-09T180620.822-768x626.jpg 768w, https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/FFStuffImage-2025-01-09T180620.822-610x497.jpg 610w" sizes="(max-width: 798px) 100vw, 798px" />Joao Pedro&#8217;s <a href="https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/opta/" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c="1" title="FPL Stats by OPTA - Player and Team Stats">stats</a></div>
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FPL Gameweek 21 early injury news: Isak and Pedro fitness, Semenyo to play up front amid Bournemouth issues?

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