The 2019/20 FPL Season ended just 48 days back and here we are close to the GW1 deadline of the new FPL Season. Although the break has been relatively small. All of us managers are excited that FPL is back again as we can all go about doing the thing that we love to, playing FPL, and managing our team week in week out. As the excitement builds towards the GW1 Deadline here’s our famous Allaboutfpl top 5 differential picks for GW1. By mixing a few of these differentials with your GW1 you’ll be able to get those extra differential points and have a jump start over your rivals.
As last season, our differential article will have five players with less than 10% ownership who have high chance of returning for that particular GW and beyond. Check out our top differential options for GW1 below!
Note: all player ownership at the time of writing, subject to change as we move close to FPL GW1 deadline
FPL GW1 Differential picks
1. Dele Alli vs Everton (H) £8.0 Mil TSB: 2.9%
Dele Alli is our first differential pick for the new season. The spurs attacker had a good run of games under Mourinho and has scored 6 goals and four assists since Mourinho took over in 16 starts. Having missed most of the games post restart last season due to injuries Alli is back in action and put up a string of good performances including two assists in their comfortable 3-0 victory over Ipswich Town and a goal against Reading.
Dele Alli had a mixed 2019/20 season with the bulk of his starts coming during a period of GW9 and GW29 during which he is the fourth-highest scoring midfielder in FPL with 113 points. Only Salah, Mane, and KDB scoring more. Amongst all positions, Dele Alli ranks 7th for most FPL points between GW9 and GW29 having scored 8 goals and 4 assists in that period.
Dele Alli compared with FPL Midfielders between GW9 and 29:
Stats from FFHUB Opta stats. Sign up to FFHUB Now!
Dele Alli compared with other FPL assets between GW9 and 29:
Stats from FFHUB Opta stats. Sign up to FFHUB Now!
His numbers are very close compared to Son who is currently owned by more than 30% FPL managers. Son registered an xG of 11.38 is not convincingly more than Alli’s 8.25. Alli had more big chances (15) compared to Son who had 14 big chances. One main factor is that Dele Alli played 633 minutes fewer than Son last season. If Dele can improve his shooting, his appeal could increase even further.
Son is also expected to switch to the wing now that Harry Kane is back which even further increases the FPL appeal of Alli. If all goes well Dele Alli could repeat his 2016/17 in which he scored 11 goals and 17 assists finishing with a whopping 225 points.
Dele Alli record against Everton: Played (9) Goals(4) Assists(2)
Further Read: FPL Mid-priced Midfielders (£7.0m-£9.5m) Analysis Ahead Of 2020/21 Season
2. Matheus Pereira vs Leicester (H) £6.0 Mil TSB: 3.8%
Matheus Pereira (24) was the most creative player in the Championship last season. He was directly involved in >30% of West Brom’s goals scoring eight goals and making 16 assists (Highest in championships) making him their talisman and stand-out attacker.
Pereira created 20 big chances last season and averages 1.9 shots and 2.8 key passes per 90 mins, these are numbers from the championship but we fully expect him to replicate this in PL this season. Pereira operates on the RW or CAM and is expected to be the main creative force for the hawthorns this season.
West Bromwich Albion are up against a Leicester side that are without three of their four starting defenders with Chilwell moving to Chelsea, Pereira, and Evans still injured. Leicester ended last season in poor form and just won two of their 9 games post restart conceding 13 goals and keeping just three CS during the period. A tricky opening game away at Hawthorns could definitely see Leicester conceded a goal or two.
Preseason: WBA played two friendlies against Brighton and Nottingham Forest. Pereira played in both of them and came close to scoring against Brighton as he hit the woodwork once.
Further Read: Best FPL assets to consider from promoted teams ahead of 20/21 FPL season
FPL GW1 Differential Picks – Forwards
3. Callum Wilson vs West Ham (A) £6.5 Mil TSB: 5.5%
FPL Hero/Villain Wilson has made his move from Bournemouth to Newcastle. The magpies will be boosted by the signing of wilson as he’s a player who is physical and is aerially strong which suits their style of play. Now with ASM playing in the wing, Almiron right behind in his preferred attacking midfielder role and his former cherries teammate Ryan Fraser in the attack, Wilson should get plenty of chances and we would expect him to get going against a West Ham United side who are weak defensively and are amidst a turmoil with the squad being divided over the transfer over the exit of Diangana to West Brom.
Wilson and Fraser have combined for the most goals(13) in PL over the last two seasons. The duo registered a whopping 21 goals and 26 assists between them during the 2018/19 season and this season could be a repeat of the same. But the point to be noted is Fraser is unlikely to start GW1 due to lack of match fitness. Wilson though has a knack of scoring against West Ham having scored seven goals against them in eight games and he could be a very good differential option for GW1.
West Ham conceded the most big chances(103) in PL last season further increasing the appeal of Wilson.
Pre Season: Wilson joined Newcastle a few days back and had not featured in any pre-season fixtures for the magpies. NUFC played four friendlies losing 1-0 to Stoke and 5-1 to Nottingham Forest and winning 3-0 vs Crewe and 2-1 vs Barnsley. Goals have always been the problem and Wilson could be the answer to Newcastle’s goal-scoring worries.
Further Read: Premium FPL Forwards Comparision, Analysis and Rating ahead of 2020/21 FPL Season
4. Che Adams vs Crystal Palace (A) £6.0 Mil TSB: 3.2%
Che Adams vs Danny Ings has been a popular comparison over the past few weeks as Adams has been priced 2.5 Mil lesser compared to ings. Although Ings is a great asset and is Southampton’s talisman, Che Adams could be a good FPL asset this season at 6.0 Mil. Adams scored his first goal of the campaign against Man City in GW33 and has put on a string of good performances.
Over the last five-game weeks, Adams and Ings registered the same number of goals(4), had the same shots on goal(16). Adams having more shots on target(7), shots inside the box(15), and more FPL points (34) compared to Ings who got 32 points in the period while playing 200 minutes less. Although the data set is small, it’s definitely one to look into as Adams continued his good run of form into the pre-season as well. Adams could be a very good differential pick for FPL GW1 and a season keeper.
Pre Season Form: Southampton played Swansea in a 120 minute friendly and scored seven goals. Adams scored one and assisted one more. Ings scored two (one penalty) and assisted one goal.
Further Read: FPL Expert Talk: Strategy, Tips, and Team reveals from some of the best managers ahead of the 2020/21 FPL Season
FPL GW1 Differential Picks – Defenders
5. Ben Davies vs Everton (H) £5.0 Mil TSB: 2.2%
Ben Davies has now become one of the main strays of Mourinho’s defense having started all games post restart last season which coincided with spurs improved defensive performance. Post restart spurs registered three Clean sheets and conceded just seven goals only Man City (4), Man United(6), and Wolves(6) conceding fewer goals. The number of big chances conceded reduced as well with Spurs conceding just eight big chances only Wolves(6) and Man United(7) conceded fewer Big Chances post restart.
The Spurs defense is slowly beginning to look like a Mourinho defense and Ben Davies is expected to start as the first choice left-back or could even play LCB in a three-man defense. Spurs have some pretty good fixtures with only two games above a fixture difficulty rating (FDR) of 3 in the opening eight-game weeks to begin the season and Ben Davies could be a very good differential option.
Pre-season form: Davies played three of the four pre-season for spurs and missed the last one as he was on international duty with Wales playing both the games for his country for the full duration of 90 minutes.
Further Read: Best Budget Defenders to consider for the upcoming 2020/21 FPL season!
Few Other differential options to consider for FPL GW1:
Arsenal duo Eddie Nketiah (£6.0 Mil) TSB: 2.1% and Saliba (£4.5 Mil) TSB: 3.8% could be great differential options for FPL GW1. Nketiah started the Community shield fixture vs Liverpool ahead of Lacazette as the striker and could continue come GW1 vs Fulham. Nketiah was away with young lions and bagged four goals in two games during the international break. Saliba has nailed a spot in Arsenal’s defense now that Luiz is injured for GW1 and he could be part of a three-man defense with Holding and Tierney as his center back partners vs Fulham.
Dominic Calvert Lewin (£7.0 Mil) TSB: 6.6% is back in the FPL mix after Carlo Ancelotti and Everton signed James, Allan, and Doccoure revamping their midfield. DCL has a tricky away fixture against spurs but if you’re looking at a long term option DCL could be the one as Everton have a kinder run of games after GW1. Recce James (£5.0 Mil) TSB: 4.1% could also be a great FPL GW1 differential offer a cheaper route into Chelsea’s defense as they face Brighton in GW1.
Thanks for reading the FPL GW1 differential picks we hope that you liked it. Now that the clock is ticking towards the GW1 deadline check out our further reads ahead of FPL GW1.
Further read from ALLABOUTFPL ahead of 2020/21 FPL Season:
We have written 15 blogs during the pre season and all of them listed below do check them out and support us!
FPL Expert Talk: Strategy, Tips, and Team reveals from some of the best managers ahead of the 2020/21 FPL Season
FPL Mid-priced Midfielders (£7.0m-£9.5m) Analysis Ahead Of 2020/21 Season
FPL 2020-21 Season Team Preview- AllAboutChelsea
Premium FPL Forwards Comparision, Analysis and Rating ahead of 2020/21 FPL Season
FPL Budget Midfielder (£4.5 – £6.5 Mil) Analysis Ahead Of 2020/21 Season
Why Fulham Striker Mitrovic Should Be In Your GW1 FPL Team?
Does doubling up on Liverpool defense a good strategy for the upcoming 2020/21 FPL season?
Goal Keeper Analysis ahead of 2020/21 FPL Season
FPL Fixture Analysis: Four Teams With The Best Opening Fixtures to Begin 2020/21 PL Season
Best FPL assets to consider from promoted teams ahead of 20/21 FPL season
The Best Mid-Priced Strikers To Consider For The Upcoming 2020/21 FPL Season
MJ’s column | FPL 2019/20 Season Review & Lessons Learnt Complete FPL Guide from the man who finished with an OR of 148
Best Budget Defenders to consider for the upcoming 2020/21 FPL season!
Meet World.No. 16- Dave King Discussing About His Remarkable FPL Season
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