FPL GW16 Tips & Preview – Best Midfielders, Defenders + More

Welcome to Insanely Football’s Dilemmas blog for Gameweek 16 of the FPL 2023/24 season. This blog will break down all the popular Dilemmas FPL managers have this week and offer FPL GW16 tips that will help you address the key dilemmas and maximize your FPL points.

The blog is written by Insanely Football. Do subscribe to his YouTube channel Insanely Football for more FPL-related content. You can also follow him on Instagram for daily FPL updates.

Link to all our FPL GW16 blogs including Buy, Hold, Sell analysis, Differentials, Captaincy metrics, Scout picks, Wildcard Drafts, Tips, and more. Completely free to access as well!

FPL GW16 Tips – Key Questions/Dilemmas Answered

1) Who are the best goalkeepers to own right now?

Goalkeepers aren’t the most exciting FPL picks and managers don’t like to spend valuable transfers on them. But with Nick Pope getting injured along with budget pick Areola missing out last week, there is a spot open for the GKP position. 

Areola was not in the squad for West Ham against Tottenham in GW15 as he had sustained a wrist injury. If he is your only starting goalkeeper it’s a bit tricky as he’s not surely guaranteed to return for GW16.

Martin Dubravka and Caoimhin Kelleher are two budget starters available to us. Out of the two, I like Dubravka and Newcastle has been the better defense between them and Liverpool. There is more clean sheet potential. Newcastle’s no1 option Nick Pope is out for 4-5 months and Dubravka looks nailed at least till the start of January. 

Liverpool on the other hand are leaky and conceding a lot of chances. They are struggling more in the absence of Alisson. Plus, he is expected to be back soon and going with Kelleher might just be a wasted Liverpool spot. 

In case you have slightly more budget for a goalkeeper, you can even look at David Raya (£4.9m) from Arsenal. The Gunners defense is among the top this season and Raya at least for now has the no1 spot in goal. 

Chelsea’s Robert Sánchez can also be an option but the Blues have struggled to keep clean sheets this season (only 3 so far). Now, this could change with a great run of fixtures coming up but for now its a slightly risky pick.

Further Read: FPL Gameweek 16 Transfer Tips: Two Players To Buy, Hold & Sell

2) Which defenders to target right now ahead of FPL GW16?

The two most expensive defenders in the game are in great form but it’s not easy to get them in your FPL teams. I am talking about Trent Alexander-Arnold (£8m) and Kieran Trippier (£7m). 

They rank 1st and 2nd in terms of FPL points and there is a lot of potential here. Trippier has had a solid season till now but with games coming thick and fast and getting no rest, his overall performances have gone down a bit. Still, he is a great value pick as there is immense attacking potential along with a chance to get clean sheets. With Liverpool and Trent, clean sheets look a bit dodgy but there is maybe an even better attacking threat when compared to Trippier. Trent has 4 attacking returns in the last 3 games compared to Trippier’s 1.

On current form Trent looks better but at £8m, you would probably have to downgrade one of Saka/Son or the 2nd striker spot with Watkins/Nunez. Is it worth it? It depends whether you believe Trent can also provide you with clean sheets as attacking returns every game are not a guarantee. The fixtures are slightly tricky and I am not seeing many clean sheets in the upcoming games. It’s for this reason, I think Trent is a wait and watch at the moment. 

With Trippier, it’s simple if you have him you hold but I won’t suggest breaking up your team to get him in GW16.

Arsenal defenders William Saliba (£5.5m) and Ben White (£5.6m) are good holds and you can buy them if you are looking to move in for an Arsenal defender. Gabriel (£4.9m) and Zinchenko (£5.2m) are slightly cheaper picks but I do feel they will get benched for the odd game. Zinchenko is a risky pick considering Jakub Kiwior played instead of him in GW15. The former is still 1st choice but is surely not nailed.

Newcastle’s Fabian Schär (£5.3m) is still the most nailed defender after Trippier. Jamaal Lascelles (£4.3m) needs to be monitored closely as Sven Botman is back in training and is likely to occupy the 2nd CB spot in the Newcastle backline. It’s definitely not the time to buy Lascelles and if you have him keep a transfer ready in case he loses his place to Botman. Tino Livramento (£4.3m) can be a decent budget pick if you are looking for an enabler. I’d definitely consider him over Lascelles right now.

Matty Cash (£4.9m) from Aston Villa is quite a popular pick but I don’t think he is a viable FPL option right now. He has only played 61 minutes in the last 3 games and didn’t feature at all against Man City in GW16. At that sort of price, there are better alternatives available.

Pedro Porro (£5.3m) is another great pick that is being overlooked at the moment. While I am not expecting Spurs to keep clean sheets, Porro has the ability to give us attacking returns. He is ranked 3rd for xGI among all defenders and has 3 assists in his last 4 PL appearances. 

Chelsea has great fixtures coming and that may change their defensive fortune. Right now, it’s difficult to go for an option from the Blues as they have been quite leaky at the back and I would definitely suggest monitoring Chelsea’s defensive performances in the upcoming games.

Further Read: FPL GW16 Transfer Targets & Watchlist Based On Eye Test & Stats

3) Who are the best Mbeumo replacements ahead of FPL GW16?

Bryan Mbeumo suffered an ankle injury against Brighton in GW15 and is expected to be out for weeks. FPL managers are looking for replacements and there are quite a few across the board.

Now, this section is with the assumption that you have Bukayo Saka in your team. If not and you have the additional money, I would definitely get in Saka as a priority. He is Arsenal’s best midfield option and is surely expected to be involved whenever Arsenal do anything good in attack.

In a scenario where you already own Saka or can’t get to him, there is Jarrod Bowen from West Ham. He also costs more than Mbeumo but is reachable at £7.6m. We know he is West Ham’s talisman in attack. He doesn’t have any injury issues and is a nailed option in attack. The fixtures are a bit mixed but overall he is a great Mbeumo replacement. 

Differentials from West Ham include Mohammed Kudus and James Ward Prowse but both are slightly risky picks. Their returns aren’t consistent and it’s Bowen or nothing for me if I am considering West Ham. 

If you can’t afford a Bowen, there are few really good cheaper replacements available. We have Anthony Gordon from Newcastle. The attacker has been in great form getting 5 attacking returns (4G+1A) in his last 7 games. Like Bowen, he is also nailed and my pick of the budget picks.

An alternative to Gordon is Cole Palmer from Chelsea. He costs just £5.4m and while most of his attacking threat comes from penalties and set pieces, he can be a good Chelsea cover for the great attacking fixtures coming up. A more nailed pick may be Raheem Sterling. At £7m, he is costing significantly more than Palmer and is also not on penalties. Still, I do believe he provides more goal threat and is a great differential if you are looking to go against the crowd. 

Hwang Hee-chan is another great budget differential that allows you to save some money. The Wolves attacker has been in fine form only blanking thrice in his last 12 PL matches. He is just behind Bowen and Gordon wrt FPL points and is providing some serious value at the moment. The fixtures for Wolves aren’t the easiest and that is why I rank him after Gordon and Palmer among the budget picks.

Moussa Diaby and Kaoru Mitoma are okay holds but I won’t buy them on priority. While I expect both of them to be fairly nailed, there are better value alternatives available.  

*Players like Phil Foden and Gabriel Martinelli are a bit higher in price and not ideal replacements for Mbeumo. Not in my consideration set!

My Ranking

1. Anthony Gordon
2. Jarrod Bowen
3. Cole Palmer
4. Raheem Sterling(4 yellow cards)
5. Hwang Hee-chan(4 yellow cards)

Further Read: Top FPL Gameweek 16 Captain Picks Based on Analysis & Metrics

4) Are any Chelsea players worth a transfer?

Chelsea has the best run of fixtures from now till GW21. Their fixtures read

• GW16 – vs EVE(A)
• GW17 – vs SHU(H)
• GW18 – vs WOL(A)
• GW19 – vs CRY(H)
• GW20 – vs LUT(A)
• GW21 – vs FUL(H)

These are great fixtures and a lot of FPL managers are looking to jump on the right players. The bigger question remains: Are any Chelsea players worth it?

It’s a tricky yes in my opinion. I understand Chelsea has been quite erratic in their performances and it’s difficult to trust their FPL options. Still, there are a couple of picks we can rely on.

The Blues haven’t kept a single clean sheet in their last 8 games and Robert Sanchez has not at all made a case for us here. He has committed a lot of mistakes and it’s difficult to recommend him as a solid ‘Goalkeeper’ option. If you are looking at the defense, Levi Colwill might be a better pick. Though he is not attacking, he looks nailed in the Chelsea defense and you can cover off any clean sheet points at the bare minimum. 

A fair amount of managers are considering Reece James but it’s a big no for me. He is very injury prone plus he looks nothing like the Reece James of old. One would expect him to start regularly if he remains fit but that is one big if. His injury record doesn’t fill me with any confidence and he is an avoid for me.

Attackers are definitely where I would look if I am punting on Chelsea FPL picks. Cole Palmer is the pick of the lot. He is costing less than £5.5m right now and there is not a lot of risk involved with him. If you are okay with taking a bit of a risk and are looking to go aggressive, Raheem Sterling may just end up being an excellent punt.

Nicolas Jackson is another option in attack but he has just scored in 4 games this season and that isn’t very promising from an FPL point of view. He is definitely on my watchlist for the upcoming run of games.

To sum up, I would definitely look to invest in one of Palmer/Sterling to cover off the Chelsea attack. Defence is not a priority and I would only suggest considering Colwill if you have the Arsenal and Newcastle defender picks covered.

Further Read: FPL Gameweek 16 Transfer Tips: Two Players To Buy, Hold & Sell

5) Play with 5 Midfielders or switch to 3 Strikers? Which is better?

Most FPL managers are playing a 3-5-2 with one of Nunez/Watkins up top. With Mbeumo getting injured there is an opportunity to shift your funds towards the 3rd striker by downgrading the Mbeumo position and playing a 3-4-3 instead. 

Your 3rd striker will be dependent on how much you have invested in the current 3rd option along with how much is left in the bank. Assuming you are dead ending the Mbeumo spot, you can get anyone ranging from Solanke (£6.5m) to Watkins (£8.4m). This is assuming you have Nunez as your 2nd striker. 

So basically, your 3rd striker will be competing against the likes of Bowen, Gordon, Palmer etc. 

It really depends on what 3rd striker you are able to get. For example, if your front three includes Haaland, Watkins and one of Darwin/Jesus, I do think it’s a stronger option than playing 5 across midfield. This may be a bit difficult to achieve if you already have the likes of Salah, Son and Saka in your midfield. For any other player as your 3rd forward (Isak, Alvarez, Solanke, João Pedro, Cunha), I like the 5 playing midfielders a bit more. 

There is another scenario where you can reach a compromise by downgrading Mbeumo to Palmer and you may just have enough money to go for Solanke from Bournemouth. He is the main striker for the team so minutes are not a problem and his fixtures from GW17-19 (LUT, NFO, FUL) are worth going for. The biggest problem with this is that you have to bench one of your 8 attackers and that is not going to be easy. You are mostly likely to get it wrong and this is not optimal.

Overall, I feel going with 5 midfielders provides our FPL teams with a better balance, plus there are more alternatives for the 4th and 5th midfielders spot compared to the 3rd striker position. By dead ending the 3rd striker spot, you can properly invest in 5 midfielders. This also allows you to use the rest for sorting out your defense or just saving the money for later use.

That will be all from my side for this week! I wish you all the best for FPL Gameweek 16, and I will see you all next week.

You can subscribe to my YouTube channel Insanely Football for more FPL-related content. Follow me on Instagram for daily FPL updates.

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Further reads from ALLABOUTFPL ahead of FPL GW16

FPL Gameweek 16 Transfer Tips: Two Players To Buy, Hold & Sell
FPL GW16 Injury News & Press Conference Updates Of All Teams
FPL GW16 Differential Picks(<10% TSB)
FPL GW16 Tips & Preview – Best Midfielders, Defenders + More
Top FPL Gameweek 16 Captain Picks Based on Analysis & Metrics
FPL GW16 Transfer Targets & Watchlist Based On Eye Test & Stats
Premier League Players who will miss PL due to AFCON
What is FPL CUP? What are the rules? | 2023/24 FPL Cup Guide
FPL GW16 Ultimate Guide: Tips, Differentials, Captaincy & More

Link to all our FPL GW16 blogs including buy, hold, sell analysis, differentials, captaincy metrics, transfer targets, and more. Completely free to access as well!

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