Fantasy Premier League is seemingly more popular than ever, with over 5.7 million players playing FPL this season on the official site. There’s an ever-increasing number of articles and podcasts dedicated to fantasy football and constant discussion on Twitter and on other social media as a result. In some ways, this makes it more difficult than ever to make decisions regarding what to do with your fantasy team. Sifting through the almost endless amounts of information available to you has become a valuable skill. How do you know which people know what they’re talking about? Below is a summary of the main debates and conversations around the Fantasy Premier League game ahead of GW11, rather than a vain attempt to provide a hot take as to who is “essential” or a “must-have”.
Midfield Moves
Gameweek 10 was testing for many fantasy managers, as the average player had more than 1 player automatically subbed in as the likes of Eden Hazard, Andrew Robertson and Marko Arnautovic not appearing for their sides in GW10. Hazard is being reported as being “okay for the weekend” but the uncertainty has fantasy players sweating and 152,906 players have transferred him out ahead of GW11.
Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mané each returned 15 points in GW10, rewarding those who stuck with the duo during tougher times. Attention is shifting back towards the two after their most recent performance, as many managers missed out on their hauls after bringing in Hazard, Raheem Sterling or Kevin de Bruyne. There are cases to be made for all of the potential options (though Kevin de Bruyne is out for another 4-6 weeks), which makes for an interesting game but some agonising decisions.
Most Transferred In GW11
Ross Barkley (MID, CHE, £5.8m) – Ross Barkley has only completed 90 minutes once all season but 267,405 managers have rushed him into their teams. It’s hard to score points when you’re not on the pitch, as managers who were spurned by Pedro or Mkhitaryan earlier in the season know all too well. This seems very premature to me, but Ross Barkley now finds himself in 6% of teams.
Callum Wilson (FWD, BOU, £6.6m) – Wilson has now risen £0.6m from his starting price after another [number] managers chose to transfer him in so far this gameweek. Wilson doesn’t have the kindest fixtures between now and GW20 but he’s taking more shots than ever before and Bournemouth have looked impressive as a whole when going forward.
Roberto Pereyra (MID, WAT, £6.4m) – Roberto Pereyra has shone this season after having a more limited impact in his first two seasons with Watford. If he can continue producing at this rate he’ll prove to be a bargain at his current price, but that’s a very big ‘if’ considering that he’s not sustained this kind of form at any point in the Premier League previously. Pereyra has been transferred in 133,235 times this gameweek.
Sadio Mané (MID, LIV, £9.8m) – Mané has a reputation for running hot and cold in the Premier League and 115,098 players have transferred him in anticipating another potential hot streak with some favourable fixtures in the coming gameweeks (including a home game against Fulham in GW12). Mané is certainly less consistent than his teammate Mohamed Salah but has only scored two fewer points thanks to some big hauls.
Anthony Martial (MID, MUN, £7.4m) – Martial completed 90 minutes again in GW10 and scored his fourth goal in three games to earn himself 9 fantasy points. You’d think that Martial has effectively forced himself into Mourinho’s plans but he’s still at risk of being rotated and Manchester United have looked far from consistent this season. 110,470 managers have transferred in Martial so far this gameweek.
Most Transferred Out
Eden Hazard (MID, CHE, £11.3m) – Chelsea put four goals past Burnley despite Hazard’s absence in a fixture where many had put the armband on the Belgian for GW10. As mentioned, he’s expected to appear in GW11 after missing his side’s Carabao Cup fixture in midweek. Hazard has two great fixtures in GW11 and GW14 and remains the top performing player overall. Hazard is in a fine position to make 152,906 managers regret selling him and the fact his price has risen to £11.3m will make it tricky to work him back into teams.
Aleksandar Mitrovic (FWD, FUL, £6.9m) – It’s hard not to feel sorry for Mitrovic when watching him play and Fulham’s poor form makes it very difficult for Mitrovic to find himself earning fantasy points. Fulham have scored four goals since GW4 and Mitrovic’s output has suffered. Fulham play Huddersfield in GW11 but even one more week is a bridge too far for 113,546 managers.
Lucas Moura (MID, TOT, £7.2m) – The Lucas Moura exodus continues once again this gameweek after yet another disappointing performance from a fantasy perspective. Tottenham’s overall play isn’t encouraging either and it’s difficult to imagine a scenario in which Lucas can replicate his performance over the first four gameweeks with any real consistency. 100,954 managers have removed Lucas Moura from their team this gameweek.
James Maddison (MID, LEI, £7.0m) – Leicester’s playmaker is no longer one of the most coveted fantasy options after a string of three blanks. Maddison still has great fixtures until GW16 and has set-piece duties, which definitely makes him a worthy asset. But, fantasy managers are fickle and there are alternative options firing so Maddison makes this list with 91,090 transfers out.
Marko Arnautovic (FWD, WHU, £7.0m) – Arnautovic has just nine points in the last five gameweeks after sitting out GW10 due to illness. West Ham’s talisman has battled recurring injury issues for much of the season but has looked imperial when on the pitch this season. He has a fantastic run of fixtures from GW11 but 88,888 managers have gone for a safer option after considering all the question marks surrounding Arnautovic.
Under the Radar
The top picks from the top teams are all generally performing well, but the options outside of them are limited. There simply aren’t many mid-price midfielders or forwards in good form with good fixtures. It’s critical, then, to find the right cut-price enablers so that you can afford the players who are firing.
West Ham’s defence was touched on last week and despite the lack of clean sheets Fabián Balbuena (DEF, WHU, £4.4m) still looks to be a good option. Brighton’s great defensive form has continued but Mathew Ryan (GKP, BHA, £4.5m) looks like the only one to own. He continues to rack up saves and bonus points, which gives him a much higher points ceiling.
Those looking to break the mould could find some joy in picking up Spurs players while they’re less in-demand as they have one of the better slates of fixtures aside from games against Chelsea and Arsenal in Gameweeks 13 and 14. Christian Eriksen (MID, TOT, £9.2m) and Dele Alli (MID, TOT, £8.9m) have the potential to completely change the FPL meta and create selection headaches if they can find form. It’s very hard for most teams to fund a move to bring in Eriksen or Alli, but they’re nothing more than intriguing until they start scoring points.