It was another huge week for managers in Fantasy Premier League as several big players produced huge returns.
In particular Erling Haaland (£14.2m), who scored four goals to register a 21-point haul against Wolverhampton Wanderers.
FPL experts Harry Daniels and Lee Bonfield reflect on the weekend’s matches and look ahead to Double Gameweek 37, debating whether managers should sell their Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur players after their poor results over the weekend.
Palmer and Gordon’s numbers show why they will be hugely popular figures in DGW37 line-ups.
The underlying data indicates De Bruyne could be a better option than Foden if you have a spare Man City slot free. The Belgian’s minutes per shot and chance created are both quicker than his midfield team-mate across their last four matches, while he’s also matching him for shots in the box.
Fernandes also looks a strong option if he’s fit, with the form and underlying player statistics very much in his favour.
Nonetheless, there’s no doubt that the opposition data is against Man Utd and the Portuguese is far from essential.
Elsewhere, Chelsea’s Madueke and Brighton winger Adingra could prove the pick of the cut-price options for those managers who need a budget midfielder to help with their Bench Boost chip.
By assessing the recent defensive displays of each DGW37 side’s opponents, managers can get a better idea of those who are most likely to score.
The Magpies first play a Brighton side who have an xGA of 9.20 across their last six contests, and then face a Man Utd team who have a lofty 12.96 xGA across their previous six encounters. Those two figures combined come to 22.16 xGA, markedly better than the rest of the DGW37 sides.
Man City’s opponents have a combined 18.57 xGA over the same period, with the Spurs defence looking particularly porous, with an xGA of 12.49.
There’s very little between Brighton, Chelsea and Spurs in the analysis, while Man Utd fare the worst by some margin. Indeed, both their DGW37 opponents, Arsenal and Newcastle, were among the six best defences in the league for xGA across their last six matches.
The Portuguese has made more key passes and created more big chances than any of his rivals, with his 19 minutes per key pass also the quickest on show.
Gordon is his closest rival on 16 key passes, with the Newcastle star’s share of dead-ball duties a big factor – he’s taken 27 corners in his previous four outings, placing him top here.
Madueke also catches the eye. The Chelsea winger is the only player in the analysis devoid of any set-piece duties, yet he still made 12 key passes – placing him third in the table below.
For Man City, De Bruyne has the advantage over his team-mate Foden for both key passes, by 11 to nine, and for big chances created, by four to one.
Son, meanwhile, was Spurs’ top creator, with eight key passes. However, it’s worth noting that none of those were big chances, while his average of 41 minutes per key pass is the slowest in the assessment.
