The high-scoring spree came to an end last week as Gameweek 6 recorded the lowest average score of the season at 43. None of the usual big guns registered a double-digit score as there were some surprise performances across the board.
GW7 could also follow a similar pattern with Liverpool hosting Manchester City and United entertaining Everton at Old Trafford.
The fixtures are turning for good for Chelsea from GW7 and FPL managers are looking to bring in their assets. Aston Villa and Tottenham are also set to get some relief in terms of the fixtures after some hard games in the last few weeks.
Fixture Difficulty
Chelsea and Leeds have the best fixtures in the coming three weeks followed by Newcastle United. The three title contenders Manchester United, Manchester City and Liverpool all have tough games in the coming weeks as they face each other.
Chelsea and Leeds’ fixtures remain good even beyond the next three gameweeks and hence it would be wise to invest on assets from these two teams in particular. Arsenal also have a good run of games and given their fine recent form and good price, the Gunners’ stars could also attract plenty of interest.
There is an international break to contend after this gameweek as well, so beware of injuries.
Fixture Difficulty Index
| Team | Combined Difficulty rating for GW 6-8 | GW7 opponents | GW8 opponents | GW9 opponents |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Arsenal | 8 (3, 2, 3) | BHA(A) | CRY(H) | AVL(H) |
| Aston Villa | 9 (3, 2, 4) | TOT(A) | WOL(H) | ARS(A) |
| Brentford | 11 (4, 4, 3) | WHU(A) | CHE(H) | LEI(H) |
| Brighton | 9 (3, 2, 4) | ARS(H) | NOR(A) | MCI(H) |
| Burnley | 9 (2, 5, 2) | NOR(H) | MCI(A) | SOU(A) |
| Chelsea | 6 (2, 2, 2) | SOU(H) | BRE(A) | NOR(H) |
| Crystal Palace | 9 (3, 4, 2) | LEI(H) | ARS(A) | NEW(H) |
| Everton | 10 (4, 4, 2) | MUN(A) | WHU(H) | WAT(H) |
| Leeds | 6 (2, 2. 2) | WAT(H) | SOU(A) | WOL(H) |
| Leicester | 8 (2, 4, 2) | CRY(A) | MUN(H) | BRE(A) |
| Liverpool | 10 (4, 2, 4) | MCI(H) | WAT(A) | MUN(A) |
| Man City | 10 (5, 2, 3) | LIV(A) | BUR(H) | BHA(A) |
| Man Utd | 10 (3, 3, 4) | EVE(H) | LEI(A) | LIV(H) |
| Newcastle | 7 (2, 3, 2) | WOL(A) | TOT(H) | CRY(A) |
| Norwich City | 10 (2, 3, 5) | BUR(A) | BHA(H) | CHE(A) |
| Southampton | 9 (5, 2, 2) | CHE(A) | LEE(H) | BUR(H) |
| Spurs | 9 (3, 2, 4) | AVL(H) | NEW(A) | WHU(A) |
| Watford | 11 (3, 4, 4) | LEE(A) | LIV(H) | EVE(A) |
| West Ham | 9 (2, 4, 3) | BRE(H) | EVE(A) | TOT(H) |
| Wolves | 8 (2, 3, 3) | NEW(H) | AVL(A) | LEE(A) |
The big ins and outs
The fixtures are clearly dictating how FPL managers are thinking as three Chelsea players make the top five purchased players this week. Given the Blues’ solid defensive record since Thomas Tuchel’s arrival, it’s no surprise to see that Marcos Alonso and Antonio Rudiger top the list of transfers in ahead of GW7.
West Ham’s Antonio and Watford’s Ismaila Sarr are the others on that list.
Most transferred (in) players ahead of GW7
| Pos | Player | Club |
|---|---|---|
| DEF | Alonso | CHE |
| DEF | Rüdiger | CHE |
| MID | Sarr | WAT |
| FWD | Antonio | WHU |
| FWD | Lukaku | CHE |
Luke Shaw and Trent Alexander-Arnold who are likely to miss the weekend’s action and are heading out of a lot of teams. Manchester City midfielder Torres who has fallen out of favour in the starting XI is also on his way out of FPL teams. Injury has also forced Patrick Bamford owners to look elsewhere and Bruno Fernandes continues to lose ownership since Ronaldo’s arrival and not helped by the recent penalty fiasco against Villa.
Most transferred (out) players ahead of GW7
| Pos | Player | Club |
|---|---|---|
| DEF | Shaw | MUN |
| DEF | Alexander-Arnold | LIV |
| MID | Torres | MCI |
| FWD | Bamford | LEE |
| MID | Fernandes | MUN |
Top picks for Gameweek 7
Whether you bring them in through transfers or (luckily enough) have them in your squad already, these are the five hottest selections for GW7:
Raphinha (Leeds United): The Brazilian midfielder has scored in each of Leeds’ last two games and has looked good all season even when Marcelo Bielsa’s men have struggled. Against Watford, Leeds would like to win and push up the table and would look at Raphinha for inspiration upfront. He has been a consistent performer since last season and is a must-have during a really good run of matches for Leeds starting this weekend.
Michail Antonio (West Ham): The Hammers forward has gone from strength to strength and has the most goal contributions this season than any other player. His consistency has meant that he has entered the must-have bracket that is usually only reserved for the best players in the league playing for the top clubs. Brentford looked quite shaky defensively against Liverpool and Antonio could have a good time at the weekend when the Bees travel to east London.
Antonio Rudiger (Chelsea): The Blues have conceded just two goals in the Premier League this season and that have come against Liverpool and Manchester City. Against goal-shy Southampton, Tuchel’s men are expected to keep a clean sheet again and Rudiger, as the most nailed starter under the German coach, is the safest bet. Alonso was replaced by Ben Chilwell in midweek and the English full-back will give the Spaniard really tough competition for the left wing-back spot. Andreas Christensen is another defender who could start regularly but Rudiger has earned more bonus points.
Son Heing-min (Tottenham Hotspur): Nuno Espirito Santo’s team have been poor in recent weeks but will feel more confident after the midweek victory. Harry Kane scored a hat-trick and it will help his confidence but Son has been Spurs’ best player this season and scored in the 3-1 loss to Arsenal last week. He has a good record of scoring at home and could be a good option against Aston Villa. Dean Smith’s men have been in good form but aren’t really known for keeping too many clean sheets.
Cristiano Ronaldo (Manchester United): You got to have him. He can have a poor game and still end up on the scoresheet. The midweek match against Villarreal was proof of that. Everton aren’t the most easiest of visitors but the Portuguese has a good record against the Toffees historically having scores five times against them. Everton generally don’t do well at Old Trafford and United would be boosted after the late winner against Villarreal and like to put on a show for their fans at the weekend.
Other notable players: Romelu Lukaku (Chelsea), Mohamed Salah (Liverpool), Chris Wood (Burnley)
Top differential picks for GW7:
Raul Jimenez (Wolves): Remember him? Once an FPL hot favourite, injury forced the Wolves frontman to spend almost the whole of last season on the sidelines. He scored his first goal after returning last week and faces a struggling Newcastle United side this week. With just over 5% ownership, he is a really good differential to have given a good run of upcoming fixtures for Wolves and his pre-injury record.
Neal Maupay (Brighton): The forward has quietly helped himself to four goals in the Premier League this season and faces one of his more favoured opponents in Arsenal. He scored both home and away against the Gunners in the 2019-’20 season and often fancies a contest against the Gunners. With goals in his last two games, Maupay who is owned by just 3.1% of FPL managers, could be a good differential this week.
Wilfried Zaha (Crystal Palace): The Palace winger has gone under the radar a bit but has put in some good performances. He has two assists and a goal in the south London side’s last two home games. Palace welcome a struggling Leicester side this weekend and Zaha, who was also on penalty duties last week, could be a good differential player to have.
Captaincy Conundrum
The captaincy decision this week is tough and equally crucial. There are as many as three top candidates for the armband and few other outsiders who could be decent alternatives.
Chelsea’s Lukaku, United’s Ronaldo and West Ham’s Antonio will be the favourites for the armband with Liverpool’s Salah also in contention. The Belgian seems to be the top choice for most but the Blues haven’t been at their best going forward. They have scored just one goal in the last 300 minutes and won’t find it very easy against a Southampton side who have been fairly solid defensively. The Saints have already drawn against Manchester City and Manchester United and know what it takes to get a result against the big boys. Southampton are also unbeaten in their last three matches against Chelsea. Many expect the Blues to bounce back after successive defeats but it won’t be a big surprise if they win it by the odd goal or two.
The Blues have the most number of different goalscorers in the league and that trend could continue at the weekend. Lukaku thus probably is just behind his other rivals Antonio and Ronaldo whose teams have been quite prolific this season.
The Portuguese veteran who has scored in all games barring one in which he has started since returning to Manchester United is thus the top choice for captaincy this week and will probably be for most weeks to come this season.
The Field’s FPL team
Gameweek 6 points: 28
We had a torrid week in GW6 as none of our players fired. Both Lukaku and Ronaldo blanked but we expected them to be among the points this week. Injury to Recce James meant we had to swap him for Rudiger. We also brought in Raphinha for Torres who is not starting games for Man City any longer. Thanks to an extra free transfer, we avoided a hit.
We decided to keep Trent Alexander-Arnold as we felt we have the bench strength to cope with his absence and didn’t want to waste a transfer or two in getting him back at a later stage. We will take a call on him after the international break.
We are going with Ronaldo as our captain for reasons listed above and hope we could break the chain of poor scores this week.
FPL Deadline for GW7: Saturday Sat Oct 2 15:30
(Stats Courtesy: FPL website, Understat.com and WhoScored.com. Ownership % figures as of Thursday evening)