Mo Salah or No Salah?

Trent-Alexander Arnold (£7.5m) and Mohamed Salah (£13.0m) are not going anywhere. They are the most consistent and FPL manager’s most trusted pick since they started to play for Liverpool FC. With Salah (as we all know), you have perhaps the greatest ever FPL asset. In his 5 seasons with LIV, his lowest score has been 231 points. Salah is likely to be one of the most highly owned assets, any return from the Egyptian is likely to plummet your rank quickly.

When it comes to the third Liverpool spot, my thinking is that you can’t go wrong with Andrew Robertson (£7.0m) or Luis Diaz (£8.0m). Robertson was so close to goal on so many occasions against Manchester City, which is him basically carrying forward last season’s form. Diaz, meanwhile, looks first choice on that left-hand side. Against Manchester City yesterday, he played the Mane role, drifting a lot more central than I remember him previously.

TAA has recreated the RB role, which has led to an incredible number of points in the last 4 seasons. With 24 attacking returns in the last 2 seasons, the Englishman is only getting better and is likely to have another stellar season.

Robertson has perhaps been “ignored” in comparison to TAA when considering the Scot’s attacking potential. With 23 attacking returns in the last 2 seasons, the Scotsman is proving he is more than just a defensive asset.

The Colombian Diaz brought the South American flair which excited fans across the PL last season. He quickly became the LW of choice in the front 3 for LIV which helped the team reach the UCL final. In GW35-38, his touches in the box and general heatmaps were in the most advanced offensive areas – behaviour that makes Luis a viable FPL asset this season. With Liverpool very much a front-foot team, we can expect a litany of chances for the attackers.

Now the punt that I’m currently taking is Darwin Nunez (£9.0m). The Liverpool forward bagged five goals on their preseason journey. Nunez is a proven goal scorer and a forward in a Klopp system will get quality goal-scoring options week in and week out.

Liverpool players are all in a great form. Nunez, Salah, TAA all disturbed opponent’s net from here and there and player like Diaz and Robertson showed their class like always. Now taking Salah in your team is not the question of form, it’s all about your team building strategy and budget. After all you can’t take more than three players from Liverpool, so you have to sacrifice some big guns. Many of us may choose the third option from Diaz and Robertson. However, it would be very difficult to choose Nunez and Salah together, because it will definitely break your team balance. Mo Salah is definitely essential to build a solid FPL team but he is not anymore, a no-brainer option. if anyone wants to build a differential “out of the box” team, they can go with Diaz or Nunez and distribute their fund to balance the team. Sometime it’s okay to take some risk.

Who is the better option between Kane and Son?

The two are part of the outstanding Tottenham attack that scored 42 times in their last 16 matches in the league. Most FPL managers will likely have one of them but the question remains, who should you pick, Kane (11.5m) or Son (12.0m)? It’s extremely difficult to choose between Kane and Son, which would explain why it’s such a hotly debated topic now a days. Right now, 25.7% fantasy managers owned Son and on the other hand 25.4% choose Kane for their team.

They’re inseparable in terms of goals and creativity since Conte came in, so it all comes down to who fits your team better. Maybe you have found a budget forward or midfielder you think will do well, and then one of the pair can slot into your squad. One thing is certain though, both are incredible options that guarantee points, no matter your choice. One final point that may sway in the direction of Kane, is their xGA from last season. Kane’s xGA was 30.5 whereas Son’s was 24.8. As alluded to above, this suggests Son is a better finisher or that Kane was unlucky in his returns.

Son and Kane are quite pricey going into 2022-23. If you think they will continue their late 2021-22 form, then it’s worth splashing the cash on them. If you expect a return to earth, then you’re probably looking elsewhere for premium assets in your fantasy sides.

Who Are The Better 8m Midfield Pick?

Saka could very well pick up where he left off. He played 226 minutes and he managed to score 4 goals and provided 1 assist in their last 4 preseason matches. The penalty-taking situation may help or hinder this, but it’s no doubt that he could again be another reliable asset.

Maddison’s numbers are also very impressive, and at just 5.6% ownership. He played 280 minutes and he managed to score 1 goal and provided 3 assists in his 4 preseason matches.

Mount is a solid pick to have in your starting squad. The present ownership of Mount is just 9.8%. He played 244 minutes and he managed to score 2 goals in his 4 preseason matches.  This season, no doubt he would provide great points.

Foden and Mahrez became very tempted option from City After the departure of Sterling and Jesus. If we could be sure of minutes then Mahrez would be a top choice out of the £8m midfielders. With just 6.2% and 5.8% ownership, Foden and Mehrez only played 32 minutes and 168 minutes preseason matches accordingly.

Kulusevski’s thrilling start to his time in the Premier League has been very impressive. However, with the addition of Richarlison, he is more of a rotation risk now. The present ownership of Kulusevski is just 7.2%. He played 172 minutes in their last 3 preseason matches.

Díaz is a top pick for this slot, and almost 24.6% of managers agree, making him the most-picked £8m midfielder thus far. He has proven to be an explosive asset, and forms part of a great attacking force with a favourable fixture run. He played 256 minutes in his 5 preseason matches.  The only thing that would put me off Díaz would be opting for Robertson as the third Liverpool.

Best Budget Forward?

Mitrovic: Despite his previous Premiere League struggles, Mitrovic is still the standout budget-enabling forward option given his goal-scoring ability, being on penalties, and overall improved form. He played 239 minutes and he managed to score 4 goals and provided an assist in his 3 preseason matches. Fulham does have the 2nd most difficult fixtures in the first 8 GWs, but for £6.5 or less, there are few options with the safe floor that Mitrovic presents.

Awoyini: There is a lot of hype around Nottingham Forest forward Awoniyi after he arrived at Nottingham Forest for a club-record fee. Awoyini scored 15 goals from an xG of 14.85 in 31 appearances last season. Awoniyi played 330 minutes in his 6 preseason matches.

Undav: Undav (£5.5m) has the potential to be the best budget-enabling forward option to start the 2022-23 season. Undav also has playmaking abilities as he often drops deep to pick out the passes and be involved in the build-up. In the first 8 GWs, Brighton has the easiest schedule for attackers making the Undav punt even more intriguing. He has played 183 minutes in their 5 preseason matches.

Will Chelsea’s Defence Remain Solid?

Chelsea’s recent fortunes under Thomas Tuchel have revolved around a rock-solid defence. Rudiger has departed London on a free transfer to Real Madrid along with the exit of Andreas Christensen to Barcelona puts their defence under a big question. They have conceded 7 goals in their 5 preseason matches. Chelsea signed Kalidou Koulibaly (£5.5m) as a CB from Napoli to strengthen their defence line. Is it enough to convince you that Chelsea’s back line will remain stout? Or will you avoid popular Blues’ wing defenders such as Ben Chilwell (£6.0m) and Reese James (£6.0m) along with keeper Édouard Mendy (£5.0m) in fantasy, expecting a rise in goals conceded and thus a decline in clean sheets? However, fantasy managers are expressed their trust on Reese James and Édouard Mendy with 39.8% and 22.2% ownership.

Is there any promising 5th Mid option?

Andreas Pereira regained his form last season with 7 goals and 2 assists in 31 appearances for Flamengo. Pereira is now set to occupy the no.10 role (or slot in the 2-man midfield) left behind by Fabio Carvalho at Fulham. Pereira’s fixtures are not great, but his price point allows managers to load up on other premiums and have a cheap attacking midfield bench option if necessary. Pereira is also expected to be on set pieces, Corners, and operate in advanced areas giving him a nice upside at just £4.5.

With the rumored exit of Lanzini, Pablo Fornals is a name that can quickly rise in the ranks of best midfield budget enablers. Last season, Fornals started 32 games for the Hammers and had 10 attacking returns. Fornals also ranked 1st in xGI, 1st in Big Chances Created, and 2nd in Big Chances amongst midfielders priced at £5.5 or below.  The Manchester City opening fixture is putting managers of West Ham attacking assets. However, from GW2-8, West ham has the 5th easiest schedule for attackers. Fornals gives managers a proven cheap rotation option on some set pieces with decent starting fixtures.

Having recovered from the devasting knee injury that derailed most of last season, Neto comes in as one of the best budget midfielders to start with for the 2022-23 season. Neto has shown what he can do with an impressive 5 goals and 8 assists in the 2020/21 season. In his limited playing time last season, Neto posted a respectable xGI of 0.59 per 90 and had the best minute per shot and chances created amongst Wolves players. There is a worry given Wolves’ struggles to score goals last season. However, with an entire pre-season to regain his form, Neto’s presence should provide wolves with a creative outlet they desperately miss.

Any Exciting 4m Budget Defender?

There’s nothing quite like a £4.0m bandwagon to set the Fantasy community’s pulses racing. This group of budget assets is a bit of a harder sell in 2022/23, with a ‘big at the back’ strategy. But, for those managers opting for perhaps a 4-4-2 or 3-5-2 in Gameweek 1, it’s worth looking at which cut-price players could deliver the goods.

Neco Williams (£4.0m), who has swapped Liverpool bench duty for a possible first-team spot with newly promoted Nottingham Forest. Steve Cooper seems to be sticking with a wing-back system in pre-season so far, which will hand more attacking license to Williams. Forest conceded only 28 goals in their 38 Championship games with Cooper at the helm. Neco has played 273 minutes in his 4 preseason appearances.

Nathan Patterson (£4.0m) is a possible Gameweek 1 starter at wing-back for Everton due to a Seamus Coleman (£4.5m) injury, with the onus on the young Scot to impress Frank Lampard in the remaining warm-up matches. Patterson has played 253 minutes in his 4 preseason appearances.

Leo Hjelde (£4.0m) is one of Jesse Marsch’s options at left-back in the absence of the sidelined Junior Firpo (£4.5m), meanwhile, should Leeds not dip into the transfer market. played 67 minutes in his 2 preseason appearances.

Brandon Williams and Japhet Tanganga are the only current £4.0m defenders who made 10 or more Premier League starts in 2021/22 but game-time prospects now look extremely unlikely at Man Utd and Spurs respectively.

Is there any Rotational GK?

The rotation between the Brentford keeper and the Forest keeper is arguably one of the best rotations amongst the budget keeper on paper. All the way till GW15, they can be rotated perfectly. Therefore, having this pair from the beginning could help solve your keeper problems, at least for the first half of the season.

Another viable rotational keeper option could be between Brighton and Leicester keeper if anyone wants to going for a short time solution. Brighton’s Robert Sanchez (£4.5m) is a very known and bonus magnate option for the FPL managers. He played 205 minutes on his 3 preseason appearances. On the other hand, after the departure of Leicester’s regular keeper Kasper, it became very difficult to predict to predict about their potential keeper’s name. They could sign a big name or we could see Danny Ward (£4.0m) to carry the role. Though he did not play a single minute in their preseason campaign.

Best Premium Midfielders?

The premium template seems strong with >55% ownership for both Salah and Haaland. The undisputed king of FPL has just won his third Golden Boot (shared with Son) in five seasons and topped the assist charts, scoring the most FPL points in the process. His NPxG+xA per 90 of 0.86 is the best among all players who played a minimum of 500 minutes last season.

With two back-to-back 225+ points seasons and now a Golden Boot under his belt, Sonny demands our attention. His overperformance on NPxG is striking. His numbers have been even better under Conte. The fixtures are fairly good early on and the South Korean presents an opportunity to break the template. Also, his fixtures rotate quite nicely with Salah’s for captaincy.

De Bruyne had an electric second half of the season, with 8.2 points per start, the best among all players who had more than a single start in that period. His massive overperformance on NPxG stands out, scoring more than double the amount of non-penalty goals. De Bruyne is a bonus points magnet. He accumulated 33 bonus points last season, the most by any player, despite starting only 25 games.

We know what Sterling is capable of when he gets regular minutes. He had three consecutive 200+ points seasons in 2017-2020. And, now he has moved to a club where he’s expected to get those minutes. Chelsea has created an NPxG per game of 1.65 since Tuchel took charge. This makes them the third best attack in that period. However, we could argue that Tuchel’s style of play would probably suit Sterling more than Pep’s. Though Tuchel likes a similar positional play-based football, he allows more freedom in the final third than Pep.

Last season saw Bruno’s decline as an FPL asset, scoring just 4.29 points per start. He scored 6.77 points per start in 2020/21 and a jaw-dropping 8.36 in 2019/20. He is a wait-and-watch even with the drop in price and ten Hag at the helm. The pricing of other United assets like Sancho (£7.5m) and Rashford (£6.5m) makes it very hard to justify paying the extra for Bruno. Also, the fixtures aren’t that good early on. If Ronaldo ends up leaving though, he could be back on the radar, with penalties reclaimed.

Best Differential?

Ramsdale (£5.0m) is just 12% owned despite having the 4th highest points per game amongst starting GKs last season. Ramsdale is a great option to start the season, given that Arsenal has the 5th easiest defensive schedule in the first eight GWs.

Robertson (£7.0m) is being seriously overlooked this season with just 11.1% ownership. Last season, Robertson went on an absolute tear racking up 3 goals, 11 assists, and 17 clean sheets. At just £7.0m for a 200-point player, Robertson will greatly reward the managers who select him that season.

Manchester City has not signed Cucurella nor another LB/RB. Given the lack of depth at the position, Walker (£5.0m) seems increasingly likely to get tons of minutes at the start of the season. Manchester City has the easiest defensive schedule for the first eight GWs, making Walker a great differential pick for those doubling up on the MCI defence. Only 7.2% managers owned him so far.

Mount (£8.0m) averaged 6.4 points per game (7th amongst mids) with 11 goals and 11 assists last season. Mount’s advantage over the £8.0 options is his xMins for one of the best sides in the premier league. However, just 10% fantasy managers owning him right now. If Mount can maintain his underlying numbers and avoid injuries, he will be one of the best differentials to start the season.

Sterling’s (£10.0m) move to Chelsea makes him an intriguing FPL option, given his minutes are likely to go up. With the 6th easiest attacking schedule in the first 8 GWs, Sterling is a great pick for those looking at a differential premium option. Right now, his ownership is just 10% among the managers.

Foden (£8.0m) had a disappointing season in 2021-22, given his 24 starts. The arrival of Haaland does mean that he will get fewer minutes at the false 9 position, but given his versatility, Foden should still start a lot of games for City. Just 8% fantasy managers owning him right now.

Bowen (£8.5m) is being massively overlooked to start the season due to the Man City GW1 fixture. With a good xGI per 90 of 0.53 and explosiveness of 12 goals and 17 assists last season, a differential Bowen could massively pay dividends to start the season. However, just 8.1% fantasy managers owning him right now.

The issue with Mahrez (£8.0m) has also been about his lack of xMins. With the 2nd easiest schedule for attackers, an expected increase in minutes, and amazing underlying stats, Mahrez could be one of the best differentials this season. Right now, his ownership is just 5.8% among the managers.

Last season, the Vardy (£9.5m) Party showed what he could do with 15 goals and 3 assists despite suffering from injuries and load management. In the first eight GWs, Vardy does face difficult opponents (4 top six sides), but those are the type of opponents that Vardy loves to score against. With an xG per 90 of 0.51, the explosive Vardy can kick off the season as one of the most under-the-radar FPL picks. Just 4.9% fantasy managers owning him right now.

Wilson (£7.5m) is one of those players who can be a massive bargain if he stays healthy. Last season he scored 8 goals despite missing most of the season due to injury. The fixtures against MCI and LIV in the opening eight GWs are tricky, but besides those two fixtures, Wilson has the 3rd easiest schedule for attackers. As long as you can rotate him in GWs 3 and 5, Wilson can be that cheaper, differential, FWD option to start the season. Just 3% fantasy managers owning him right now.

By Ahmed ShanTonu

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