Hey guys, it’s great to be back talking about and writing content for the new season of FPL. The Euros is now over and wow what a ride! We now focus on the brand new season of fantasy football after the official game launched not long ago. In this article, I’m going to not only show you my very first draft (which I’m finding hard to change) but some of the top picks to go straight into your own FPL GW1 drafts with stats, heat maps and motivational reasons.
You’ll see already the prices are now out and wow is there some really good ones in there. Lots of cheap options but also lots of tricky options all priced the same or similar pushing you into many 50/50 decisions.
How people like to structure their teams are all very different so this article will cater for all. So let’s take a look at some of the options I think we should all have in our first drafts.
Goal Keepers for FPL GW1
Emiliano Martinez (Aston Villa)
Cost: 5.5 milllion
Ownership: 39.2%
The common structure on an FPL manager suggests that managers could well leave him out of their initial drafts. What that means is that on average the top managers usually only spend 8.5-9 million on their 2 goalkeepers (usually a 4.5 or 5 million and a dud goalkeeper costing 4 million). However, there is an argument for keeping Martinez as your permanent goalkeeper (this means spending 9.5 million with the 4 million dud secondary keeper).
Martinez became somewhat of a legend in his first season as a first choice premier league club goalkeeper and boy did he impress.
Martinez managed 184 points last season with Aston Villa, the same amount Brad Friedel managed years ago to set a goalkeeping FPL record. In comparison Ederson, who came second with 158 points last season was a huge 26 points behind Emi, reflecting just how good he was.
Amongst those points 15 clean sheets, which was the 3rd best in the league only behind Chelsea’ Mendy and Man City Ederson, taking into account that Villa finished 11th in the table last year and still managed that is fantastic.
Bonus points are also a huge part of his game. 25 bonus points for Martinez last season, making him the highest-scoring bonus point returner in the league amongst goalkeepers.
Villa as a team have grown, lead by the fantastic Jack Grealish. Showing ambition in the transfer market already signing Buendia (who makes the article), who we’ll talk more about later in the article. Suggesting Aston Villa aren’t settling on being a mid-table team.
Aston Villa play Watford, Newcastle and then Brentford in that order with 2 out 3 being promoted teams suggesting Martinez has the potential to get off to a fantastic start in terms of points.
Now a lot within the FPL community are then put off by the four fixtures after that, Chelsea (yet to find a permanent striker), Everton (can be very inconsistent and have a new manager), Man united and then Spurs (who we could see their star man Harry Kane leave). With those variables included combined with the fact that a lot of Martinez’ points coming from save points doesn’t feel so off-putting.
After that arguably tough row of fixtures Martinez then goes onto play against Wolves, Arsenal, West Ham, Southampton and Brighton.
For me at a deserved price, hot on form from Argentina’s trophy success, record-equalling points tally for a goalkeeper, playing for an ambitious Villa team and successfully competing against some of the best keepers in the league Emi becomes a very valid option for your first team drafts.
Further Read: FPL GoalKeepers for 2021/22 FPL season
Robert Sanchez (Brighton)
Cost: 4.5 million
Ownership: 27.1%
The cost is always quite deceiving especially in a goalkeeping position, yes some of the most expensive keepers are more likely to keep clean sheets but it’s usually the cheaper goalkeepers playing for a lower-ranked side that haul. Save points are a lot more common from cheaper goalkeepers usually as well.
A 4.5 million keeper like Sanchez is something I would be personally aiming for alongside a 4 million dud keeper. Meaning I only spend a total of 8.5 million in that position.
After Matt Ryan’s departure to Real Sociedad, Robert Sanchez now looks set to take the first-team position for a surprisingly pretty good side in Brighton defensively.
Brighton made 12 clean sheets in the season just gone, joint 5th in the league with the likes of Liverpool, Tottenham, Arsenal and Everton, already showing a great defence.
Some more key stats that suggest buying into the cheap Brighton defence could be a clever idea.
Amongst every team in the league Brighton were:
–4th for shots conceded just behind the likes of Chelsea and Man City.
–3rd for shots conceded inside the box only behind Man City and Chelsea.
-3rd for shots inside the box.
–3rd headed attempts conceded.
–3rd big chances conceded
–3rd for expected clean sheets
These stats for me are incredible. For a team to claim 16th in the league Brighton have arguably been the 3rd best defence in the league behind premier league winners and champions league winners, which is again, fantastic.
Brighton play Burnley, Watford, Everton, Brentford and Leicester in their first 5 matches showing great short term fixtures. In fact, only a third of their first 20 matches are rated difficult on the official FDR rating. This also shows, for me, good long term fixtures. Furthermore, Brighton don’t play 3 or more difficult opponents in a row with them only playing 3 pairs of tough fixtures throughout their entire season.
Sanchez being one of the cheapest keepers in the game, playing for one of the best defences in the league last season, with great short term and long term fixtures has to be considered for not only the first draft but to keep for the entire season.
Further Read: FPL GoalKeepers for 2021/22 FPL season
Illan Meslier (Leeds)
Cost: 5 million
Ownership: 5.9%
Meslier offers that 3rd nice option of goalkeeper in which he’s 0.5 cheaper than Martinez and 0.5 more expensive than Sanchez. This reflects on both sides in terms of stats.
Meslier was the 3rd highest point scorer amongst goalkeepers playing for Leeds last year only 6 points behind second-place Man City goalkeeper Ederson. This already suggests Meslier could be great value for 5 million alongside a 4 million placeholder keeper on the bench, accumulating to only 9 million which meets my personal overall cost for that position.
Managing bonus points with a huge 25, Meslier managed to come second behind Martinez and ahead of the likes of Mendy, Ederson and more expensive goalkeepers. This again highlights my earlier point about cheaper keepers over expensive keepers.
Leeds, a promoted side last year came up and showed some really entertaining football but they also showed some very good defensive displays to the surprise of many. Beating Man City, and drawing 0-0 to teams like Chelsea and Man United are great examples of this.
Leeds play only 3 Red (Hard) fixtures using the official FDR (fixture difficulty rating) in their first 10 matches in the new premier league coming up with the 3 hard fixtures being Man United, Everton and Liverpool. However, seeing Leeds defend like they did against the top sides last season is enough to not fear these fixtures.
Overall a great option with Meslier showing great value, potential for a high amount of save and bonus points, and with the fixtures to succeed as an asset. For me makes a great 3rd goalkeeper pick.
Further Read: FPL GoalKeepers for 2021/22 FPL season
Defenders for FPL GW1
There’s a keen debate amongst the community as to how to build defence this year, some making full use of the great cheap options, some going big at the back with some nice pricey options and the rest a mixture of both.
Here I will cover all of those different price points so let’s begin.
Trent Alexander Arnold (Liverpool)
Cost: 7.5 million
Ownership: 27.2%
Trent seems an obvious pick but his ownership doesn’t really reflect that. In fact, for me, the price obviously being a big part of why people don’t own Trent. Make no mistake this is probably due to people not having the money to fund both Trent and another premium. Let’s look at why he makes my first draft.
Not only did Trent break records as an FPL defender in the season before last he still managed 160 points making him the 2nd highest scoring amongst all defenders in the game last season behind his colleague Robertson. Managing this feat even after being injured for a part of the season, within a Liverpool plagued by injuries and losing their main man Van Dijk at the back feels like a success.
Liverpool being joint 5th in the league for keeping clean sheets with 12 shows just how off form the Liverpool defence was and yet Trent still found a way to flourish especially towards the second half of the season.
In terms of defence with Van Dijk set to rejoin Liverpool that backline will inevitably get stronger, further cementing more clean sheets than last season but that’s only part of the reason Trent makes the top pick list.
Firstly in terms of what Trent can do going forward let’s just take a look at his heat map for last season
You can see just how much time he spends in his opponents half, it’s incredible that Trent seems to spend more time there than in his own half.
Let’s take a lot at last seasons data that Trent achieved:
-1st amongst defenders for shots, 19 ahead of second place with 55.
-Joint 2nd for shots on target
–1st for big chances created with 14
–1st for expected assists
–1st for crosses
–2nd for corners taken
These levels of stats reflect the price and are actually pretty astonishing. This shows that Trent offers both potential from goals and assists as well as the addition of clean sheets.
Liverpool only play 4 red (hard) fixtures in their first 10 matches, however, we know Liverpool have it in them, especially with VVD back, to keep a clean sheet against anyone. Liverpool also play Norwich and Burnley in their opening 2 matches showing huge potential for Trent.
Although Costly Trent has the stats to both score and assist against any team in the league giving him 2 additional routes to points other than just clean sheets. Trent makes my draft for all of the reasons above.
Further Read: Best Premium Defenders To Target For The 2021/22 FPL Season
Lucas Digne (Everton)
Cost: 5.5 million
Ownership: 23.4%
Starting a season with Digne doesn’t usually sound right but in this case, a lot indicates that he could be a fantastic asset to start the season with.
Last season for Everton Digne kept 9 clean sheets and assisted 7 goals accumulating to 16 goal contributions in 30 matches that he played, averaging a return every 2 matches he played.
Carlo Ancelotti has now moved on as manager and incomes Benitez to take over Everton. Both have very similar ways of managing in terms of defence which suggests clean sheets are still a priority.
Everton were joint 5th for clean sheets last season with 12, higher than the likes of Leicester and West Ham, which feels about right in terms of what to expect clean sheets wise from Digne. However, we’re not just buying Lucas for his clean sheets.
Take a lot at his heat map for Everton last season showing his average positions. Take a look at the area he covers in the opponents half.
Let’s also now have a look at his deeper stats and just see what makes Digne a good option with his 5.5 million price tag. Amongst defenders Digne was:
–2nd in the league for FPL assists only behind Cresswell and ahead of Trent and Robertson.
–3rd for indirect accurate free kicks
–5th for corners taken
–3rd total crosses
–Joint 3rd big chances created
–4th expected assists
Stats from FFHUB. Subscribe to FFHUB with an exclusive 25% discount and start planning for the season ahead using some of the best tools and stats. Exclusive 25% discount link
So some great stats last season for a team that finished 10th in the league.
What I especially like about Digne is the fixtures. In Digne’ first 10 fixtures Everton only play one tough (red) fixture. Over the entire season, Everton play only several double blocks of hard games but never 3 in a row. With this in mind not only does this make Digne a great short term hold but depending on form long term as well.
Digne has the creativity from set-pieces and crossing to cause opponents serious problems, especially with Calvert Lewin upfront. His assist potential combined with fantastic short and long term fixtures makes Lucas Digne a great asset to start the season with.
Further Read: Best Premium Defenders To Target For The 2021/22 FPL Season
Luke Shaw (Man United)
Cost: 5.5 million
Ownership: 41.1%
With shooting ownership, Luke Shaw really showed the world what he was capable of during the Euros with 8 fantasy returns in 6 games consisting of 4 clean sheets, 3 assists and a goal in the Euros final showing the spread of pathways to potential assists already.
Last season for Man United, Shaw managed 10 clean sheets, 5 assists and a goal combining to 16 returns in 32 matches with a points return every 2 matches. This shows a good asset but doesn’t reflect his form quite like his Euros stats as shown previously.
Shaw now seems to have nailed the first choice over Telles who has somewhat faded into the background due to Shaw’s fantastic form.
Take a lot at Shaw’s heat map below to see once again just how attacking he is for Man United.
Some additional stats to further show his attributes amongst defenders last season:
–3rd for corners taken only behind Trent and Robertson.
–4th indirect accurate free kicks
–4th successful crosses
Man United play Leeds, Southampton, Wolves and Newcastle in the first 4 matches showing fantastic short term fixtures and great potential for both clean sheets and attacking returns.
Playing for a motivated Man United chasing the title, great short term fixtures, the potential of both clean sheets and attacking returns and great value for money with arguably a cheaper price tag than what he should have, Luke Shaw, becomes a very serious option. Monitoring news to suggest he starts the first game after just finishing the Euros for England is vital.
Further Read: Best Premium Defenders To Target For The 2021/22 FPL Season
Coufal (West Ham)
Cost: 5 million
Ownership: 17.5%
West Ham were 2 points off the top 4 in the season gone by and actually clinched 6th which is a huge achievement for the hammers. This successful season was as much part due to Coufal and many other teammates but what a signing he turned out to be.
Coufal is 5 million and for me a great cheap way into a fantastic all-around team built by Moyes. His price sits nicely below the likes of the options already discussed above.
West Ham kept 11 clean sheets in the season just one less than the likes of Tottenham and Everton. Not too shabby for Coufal.
In terms of attack Coufal more than passes the eye test from bursting runs to fantastic in swinging corners. Check out his heat map below:
Last season amongst defenders Coufal achieved:
-Joint 2nd highest for assists with Digne (9)
-5th expected assists
-4th big chances created ahead of players like Cancelo and Shaw.
A great way to start your West Ham career off and a fantastic first season at the club.
In the euros just passed for the Czech Republic Coufal showed once again he doesn’t need clean sheets alone to secure points returns with 2 clean sheets and 2 assists in the 5 matches he played.
West Ham play only 2 red fixtures (hard) in the official FDR amongst their first 10 matches against Man United and Leicester, both teams the hammers will fancy some points from with their newly built squad. They play Newcastle, Crystal Palace and Southampton in their first few matches which suggests a great clean sheet and assist potential.
Coufal offers different threat and avenues to points. In a well organised David Moyes Team, with a huge physical attacking presence from crosses, great short term fixtures and a nice price, Coufal makes the list.
Further Read: Best Premium Defenders To Target For The 2021/22 FPL Season
Tariq Lamptey (Brighton)
Cost: 4.5 million
Ownership: 18.8%
We have already discussed the fact that Brighton had kept 12 clean sheets in the league last season being joint 5th.
We’ve already mentioned some of the stats below, but to reiterate Brighton last season were:
-3rd for shots conceded inside the box only behind Man City and Chelsea.
-3rd for shots inside the box.
-3rd headed attempts conceded.
-3rd big chances conceded
-3rd for expected clean sheets
Lamptey himself was plagued by injuries which saw his exciting start to the season get cut short. Training images from Brighton suggest Lamptey is already fit and ready to go but with plenty more rest time before the beginning of the season meaning we’ll surely see him start the new season.
When he played Lamptey was one of the fastest and most eye-catching defenders in the league, creating problems for the opponents constantly and gliding past defenders like they weren’t there.
Check out his heat map from the matches he did play, showing just how attacking he can be
Brighton play Burnley, Watford, Everton, Brentford and Leicester suggesting Lamptey could well have a fantastic start to the season.
Lamptey at 4.5 million, playing for one of the best defences in the league last season, with great first fixtures and impressing in the games he managed to play last season before the injuries make him a great potential asset.
Further Read: Best Premium Defenders To Target For The 2021/22 FPL Season
Luke Ayling (Leeds)
Cost: 4.5 million
Ownership: 9.2%
A lot of FPL managers from last year will know how important Dallas was in this position within the game and how exciting he was. FPL have now changed his position to a midfielder which has made a lot of managers lose interest. For this reason, we now look again to Leeds to find some great value players.
We’ve already discussed some of the defensive stats about Leeds when we talked about Meslier so without repeating too much we can just say that for 4.5 million Ayling already sounds like a good option.
In terms of going forward a Leeds wing back is an exciting prospect. Although Dallas overshadowed Ayling last year, Ayling still offers a threat. Let’s take a look at his heat map for Leeds last season because this reflects that.
Some deeper stats that suggest he could be a great budget option:
-11th amongst defenders in regards to big chances created with 5 as many as Tierney and more than players like Reece James, Reguillon and Matt Targett.
-11th for expected assists again bettering players like Chilwell, Tierney and Reguillon.
-12th for shots and shots outside the box, better than many more expensive options.
These stats show that like most of the Leeds players he loves to get forward and especially likes to shoot which is an exciting prospect for an owner.
When it comes to fixtures Leeds seem pretty fixture proof in terms of points returns and that feels like a bold statement for a mid-table team. We already discussed that Leeds can be defensively fantastic against the big teams and with Man United on the opening day and Liverpool a couple of game weeks later it doesn’t put me off. After Liverpool, Leeds then play 6 green and grey fixtures (easy/medium opponents according to the FDR).
For me, Ayling is a perfectly cheap price to enable funds around to the rest of the squad. At the same time plays in an attacking Leeds side who can play against anyone and with good long term fixtures. For me, Ayling has to be considered.
Further Read: Best Premium Defenders To Target For The 2021/22 FPL Season
Ayling/Lamptey rotation
Owning them both individually is great but owning them both could be even better. I have weighed up a rotation plan between both players just in case managers wanted to avoid tough fixtures (according to the FDR). Let’s take a look at just how well we can navigate a rotation plan to avoid tough fixtures.
GW1 – Lamptey v Burnley (avoiding Man United)
GW2- Lamptey v Watford (avoiding Everton)
GW3-Ayling v Burnley (avoiding Everton again)
GW4- Lamptey v Brentford (avoiding Liverpool)
GW5- Ayling v Newcastle (avoiding Leicester)
GW6- Lamptey v Crystal Palace (avoiding West Ham)
GW7- Ayling v Watford (avoiding Arsenal)
I could go on. This shows that rotating the pair of players on paper works well and so owning both could be a great game plan for the season ahead.
Further Read: FPL 2021-22: Best Rotational Pairs of Teams for Alternate Easy Fixtures
Midfielders
For me personally, there is little chance I don’t own 2 premiums in midfield to start the season based on last season so let’s dive in.
Mohamed Salah (Liverpool)
Cost: 12.5 million
Ownership: 49.7%
Not much detail is needed here however more motivation and freshness could provide a bumper to an already amazing player in both real life and FPL.
He is the Liverpool talisman, he takes the penalties, the 3rd highest scoring player in the game last season and is an all-around must have to start the season.
22 goals and 5 assists accumulating to 27 goal contributions in 37 games played in a season that was largely known to be a poor one for Liverpool. Very impressive.
Some more stats amongst midfielders:
-Salah was 1st for shots with 126.
–1st shots on target
–1st shots in the box
–1st for big chances
–1st non-penalty expected goals
–1st expected goals
I could go on. These levels of quality in stats are hard to ignore moving into the next season.
With Harry Kane snatching the golden boot ahead of Salah last season the self-motivation is there. Combine that with Liverpool as a team who will be looking to retain their title after a poor attempt to defend it the season gone by. Plagued with injuries Liverpool will now look to bounce back with all of their best players returned from injury.
Liverpool play only 3 red (difficult fixtures) according to the Official FDR. They also play Norwich and Burnley in their opening 2 fixtures suggesting that not only can Salah do exceedingly well but also makes him a top target for captaincy in both weeks.
Having to even write the above seems questionable in that Salah will inevitably be the first name on an FPL team. However, just less than 50% owned makes me question if players really know how well Salah could do in the next season. Also without playing in the Euros Salah also offers to be fully fit and fresh.
For me personally not starting with Salah is a dangerous game. Take that from experience.
Bruno Fernandes (Man United)
Cost: 12 million
Ownership: 40.6%
Bruno is Bruno. Another situation similar to Salah where for me has to be in those 1st draft teams and could be dangerous to go without.
Bruno Fernandes was the highest-scoring player in the whole game last season with 244 points ahead of the likes of Salah and Kane.
Bruno scored 18 goals and created 14 assists accumulating to 31 goals in 37 matches played. Numbers unmatched by any player in the league. Showing a balance between both goal scorer and creator.
You can see this in his heat map below. You’ll see he is everywhere, controlling the game, creating and being an all-around player in most matches he plays.
This isn’t where Bruno returned all his points, however. A large part of the game is bonus points and Bruno was a magnet for them. 1st for bonus points amongst midfielders with 36 with Son 2nd being a huge 10 points behind. Amazing right? Even better when the captaincy is on him doubling those bonus points.
Let’s look more into the stats as some people did question how good Bruno was without penalties, amongst midfielders he was :
–2nd for shots just behind salah with 121.
–2nd shots on target
–1st for shots outside the box
–2nd expected goals
–2nd for goals
–Joint 1st with Kevin de bruyne for big chances created
–1st for expected assists and actual assists
Stats from FFHUB. Subscribe to FFHUB with an exclusive 25% discount and start planning for the season ahead using some of the best tools and stats. Exclusive 25% discount link
Some fantastic stats there reflecting just how much of a must-have Bruno is.
Bruno plays 4 red fixtures on the FDR in his next 10 matches with Man United with those being Everton, West Ham, Tottenham and Liverpool all of which Man United will think they can take points from. With Leeds, Southampton, Wolves and Newcastle Opening fixtures not only does Bruno become one of the best options in the game but a captaincy option too.
Bruno has all the stats you’d want in an asset, great fixtures, motivation to push for the title, a new signing in Sancho who could arguably earn Bruno more penalties and the disappointment in not playing much for Portugal to take the new season by storm.
Emiliano Buendia (Aston Villa)
Cost: 6.5 million
Ownership: 10.6%
Buendia offers something we all need in our teams, a great budget player. After helping Norwich get to the premier league through promotion Emiliano impressed many. Aston Villa were quick to seal a deal with Buendia after securing the deal as quick as the transfer window opened.
Aston Villa have arguably missed a great attacking winger in their side with Buendia having the versatility to play both left and right and doing so for Norwich. See below
You’ll also see positions taken up by Buendia below representing again his versatility and love to get into every attacking position possible:
For Norwich Buendia played a huge 39 matches scoring 15 goals and 16 assists accumulating to 31 goal contributions in 39 matches which is amazing. This also shows a nice spread between creativity and goal threat which is again what you want in any attacking assets, different paths to return points.
Aston Villa last season finished 11th last season and many would say underachieved with the quality they had. Although Villa finished 11th, it’s widely thought that if Jack Grealish their star man was fit Villa could have finished a lot higher.
11th but lacking edge as shown in the stats below, amongst all teams were:
–6th for shots only behind the likes of Chelsea, Leeds and Man United
–6th shots on target
–5th shots in the box
–6th expected goals
–3rd for crosses
–5th for expected assists
So really positive stats from Villa including when Grealish was injured. This shows that they underperformed especially because they were only 10th for goals scored. Buendia could be the missing piece to not only creating more chances but also putting them away.
Aston Villa play 5 difficult fixtures in their first 10 matches however start the season with 3 matches against Watford, Newcastle and Brentford with 2 of those 3 being promoted sides.
At a nice price that allows funds around the rest of the squad, playing alongside Grealish and Watkins, amazing previous season stats, and great short term fixtures Buendia becomes a top pick.
Raphinha (Leeds)
Cost: 6.5 million
Ownership: 24.9%
Underpriced is the first thought that comes to mind when talking about Raphinha this season, with so many expecting a price hike on last season, he once again becomes a huge option.
Leeds as a team, only promoted last season took the premier league by storm with their attacking style of play being able to play against any team without fear. Although that dampened them defensively sometimes it only sharpened the attack and so for FPL, we found ourselves a group of gems in the FPL world.
To reflect this Leeds amongst all teams in the league came:
–1st for goals scored outside the box ahead of some of the best teams in the league.
–5th shots on target
–4th goal attempts in the box
–6th goals scored
–2nd total crosses
–3rd most corners
Some great stats for a promoted team and with that came some fantastic Leeds assets with Raphinha being one.
Raphinha takes corners and free kicks to bulk up his abilities to return on the pitch. You’ll also see from the heat map below just how spread Raphinha is in terms of attacking positions:
From that and playing 30 matches for Leeds , Raphinha scored 6 goals and created 9 assists accumulating to 15 returns, resulting in a return every 2 matches. Not bad.
Coming:
–6th for big chances created
–8th expected assists
–8th assists
–5th corners
Some really promising stats. Although a lot of people felt Raphinha underperformed last year he hugely impressed fans of all clubs with his skill and talent. Passing the eye test in so many ways Raphinha looks to be a serious player and with clubs already eyeing up he’ll be looking to impress even more.
3 matches in Leeds’ opening 10 fixtures with a red difficulty rating in the FDR showing great long term fixtures. Leeds have shown in their first season that their style of football gives them chances against any side within the league no matter how tough.
Raphinha is arguably underpriced. With great long term fixtures, playing for one of the most attacking teams in the league and looking to impress once again. For me, Raphinha becomes a great pick for that 1st draft.
Jota (Liverpool)
Cost: 7.5 million
Ownership: 11.9%
Liverpool are one of the best sides in the league going forward and there is no doubt about it.
Liverpool last season were:
-1st for shots
-2nd shots on target
-1st shots in the box
-1st for big chances
-2nd expected goals
-3rd for goals
However great those stats were they still finished 4th and failed to retain their title from Man City. For me, Liverpool and their players already have high motivation to succeed this year and score plenty of goals. Jota at his price point is a cheaper and easier way into those goals and point returns than players like mane and firmino.
Last season Jota only played 19 matches and still scored 9 goals. Plagued by injury for a large part similar to the Liverpool team in general, Jota was slightly frustrating to own as a player. However a new year and in a potent attack lead by salah I think Jota could do really well.
With only 3 red (difficult) fixtures in their first 10 matches, Liverpool look set to attack the first part of their season. With playing Norwich and Burnley in their first 2 games Jota could really do well.
At a cheap price into one of the best attacks in the league, great first fixtures and the desire to prove himself I feel Jota becomes a great pick.
Forwards for FPL GW1
Dominic Calvert-Lewin (Everton)
Cost: 8 million
Ownership: 28.5%
Everton for me have very limited options in terms of how they score goals and the majority of their play as we saw in Digne’ stats when attacking come from crosses and set pieces. This sounds like a bad thing but it really isn’t as it plays right into the hands of DCL.
Last season for Everton DCL amongst forwards was:
–4th for shots
–3rd for shots on target
–4th big chances
–Joint 1st for headed attempts
–1st for non-penalty expected goals
–3rd for goals
–2nd for goals in the box
–1st for headed goals with 7
Above Stats from FFHUB. Subscribe to FFHUB with an exclusive 25% discount and start planning for the season ahead using some of the best tools and stats. Exclusive 25% discount link
These stats are very good and show that DCL is especially a huge threat in the air. Combine this with his teammate Lucas Digne with his speciality being crosses and DCL has a constant source of chances to put away.
33 matches played with 16 goals and 6 FPL assist combining to a total of 22 returns in 33 games for me is great, especially for an 8 million forward.
Everton as discussed have a fantastic run of fixtures. With only 1 red fixture against Man United in their first 10 matches, Everton and DCL look set to have a very good start to their season and even more importantly potentially return a lot of points.
For me the combination of Both Digne and DCL I would recommend as they both suit each other very well and can both help each other return points. DCL needing those pinpoints crosses for goals and Digne needing Lewin’ heading ability to return him assist points bodes well for both. For me, not only one but both become a good option, especially with those long term fixtures.
Ollie Watkins (Aston Villa)
Cost: 7.5 million
Ownership: 33.3%
Ollie Watkins a personal favourite of mine from last season.
We have already discussed some of Aston Villa’s attacking stats being somewhat underperforming and a great deal of it due to Watkins missing chances but after having his first season to adjust in the premier league after playing for Brentford in the championship Watkins I feel will find his way. This sounds like his numbers are bad but their not. This is only to show that if firing, Watkins could rack up some serious goals.
Let’s take a look at some of his stats from last season which were actually quite impressive, amongst forwards Watkins was:
–3rd for shots only behind Kane and Bamford
–2nd for shots in the box ahead of Kane
–3rd for expected assists
So some really positive stats and with signings like Buendia and a fully fit Jack Grealish I expect him to do much better in the new season.
37 matches played for Villa last season scoring 14 goals and creating 9 assists, making 23 goal contributions in 37 matches a great first season for Ollie Watkins.
As discussed already Aston Villa have 5 fixtures rated 4 (hard) on the FDR in their first 10 matches but play Watford, Newcastle and Brentford in the first 3 matches showing huge potential in that they play 2/3 of the promoted sides.
Watkins at a good price, with 2 extremely creative players behind him in Jack Grealish and Buendia to supply him and some great opening fixtures becomes a great pick.
Ivan Toney (Brentford)
Cost: 6.5 million
Ownership: 35.5%
We’ve discussed already some of the players that started at a price similar to this and newly promoted budget strikers are always something FPL has thrived on. Last season both Bamford and Watkins had their first season in the premier league with their newly promoted clubs and posted some great numbers in terms of returns.
Brentford won the playoffs last season without automatic promotion but actually posted some pretty good numbers, they were:
–1st in the entire league for goals scored (79), 5 more than second-place Norwich.
–3rd for shots
–3rd for shots on target
–3rd for shots per 90 mins
–1st for shots on target to goals ratio
–1st for goals and assists per 90 minutes
Some great stats.
Toney himself as a player absolutely ripped up the records for most goals scored and was a fantastic player to watch on a personal level for me. His movement on the pitch shows he likes to attack from everywhere and also suggests he can also be a creator, take a look below.
Now for his numbers. Ivan Toney played 45 games for Brentford in the season gone scoring a huge 31 goals and creating another 10 goals through assists. Combined Toney made 41 goal contributions in 45 matches which shows outstanding talent in both goal threat and creativity.
Brentford play 4 out of 20 matches against level 4 (hard opponents) in a block of 4 games, however, they first face a good block of 5 matches against Arsenal, Crystal Palace, Aston Villa, Brighton and Wolves. This shows huge potential for Brentford.
Ivan Toney has the confidence of breaking records in the championship, great first fixtures, a fantastic enabling price and penalties to potentially return lots of points and for that reason makes the cut.
Michail Antonio (West Ham)
Cost: 7.5 million
Ownership: 11.2%
We’ve already talked about how good West Ham have been this season gone by in claiming 6th place, only 2 points off the top 4, and incredible feat for a team that many tipped for relegation at the start of the season.
Let’s discuss some West Ham stats from last season and see what I found.
West Ham were:
–1st for headed attempts last season with 102, 8 more than second-place Liverpool.
–Joint 1st for headed goals scored with 14
–4th goals in the box
–4th total crosses
–2nd for successful crosses
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This shows a clear way of attack for West Ham and that is crossing the ball into the box in the air aiming for headed opportunities, but also being successful at it.
Antonio was plagued with hamstring problems last season which put a huge dent in the numbers he posted. This made it difficult when representing Michail as an option in that sense.
West Ham are without a frontman and with that opportunity the chance for Antonio to push forward and take up that front spot.
In terms of what his teammates can offer him in terms of service is a lot and at high quality.
Cresswell, Antonio’s teammate makes the top 4 in the league amongst defenders for total crosses, successful crosses, corners and even came 2nd only behind Trent for big chances created. 2 out of the top 3 for defenders for assists in the entire league were also Cresswell and other teammate Coufal showing extreme levels of quality unmatched in the league by any club for assists from the backline. From this, the service is there for Antonio to stick plenty of goals away in the new season.
Antonio only played 26 matches due to injury last season scoring 10 goals and creating 5 assists accumulating to 15 goal contributions. Not bad for someone hit heavily by injuries.
West Ham only play 2 red (hard) fixtures in their first 10 matches showing great long term fixtures. Newcastle, Leicester, Crystal Palace and Southampton are ahead in the first 4 matches for West Ham showing good long term fixtures as well and plenty of potential for Antonio to return points.
Antonio has a nice price, great fixtures both short term and long term, 2 of the most creative players in the league in terms of assists serving him up, full fitness from his previous injury and the motivation to make up for the lost time. For me, Antonio becomes a fanatic option.
My first draft for FPL GW1
Let’s put that into practice and see how my first draft shapes up for the new season.
So guys plenty of options. You’ll also notice plenty of options left out for various reasons. You’ll find out why players haven’t made this list in my next article titled Players to Watch. Thank you for reading and I hope this helps you making that important first draft.
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Further Reads from ALLABOUTFPL Ahead of the 2021/22 Season:
FPL 2021-22: Best Rotational Pairs of Teams for Alternate Easy Fixtures
Best Premium Defenders To Target For The 2021/22 FPL Season
FPL Season Review – How I became a Top 500 FPL Manager! | FPL Tips
FPL Scouting Report: Jadon Sancho | Is It Worth Getting Sancho in FPL?
Team to Target for Initial Few GW’s – Everton | FPL 21/22 Season
An In-Depth Look at Team Structure 1: Three Premium Assets
2021/22 FPL Season: FPL Price Changes Explained | FPL Guide
2021/22 Fantasy Premier League Season Rules, Tips | The Ultimate Guide
What is Effective Ownership(EO) in FPL? | FPL Guide
A Guide to FPL Team Structure | 21/22 FPL Season (Pre Wildcard)
How Structure and Approach can Shape your 2021/22 FPL Season
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Louis Roberts
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