The Headline Pick: Mo Salah (12.5) – Liverpool
Mo Salah has been the Fantasy King ever since he returned to the Premier League in 2017. In two seasons, he’s gathered 54 Premier League goals, plus 24 assists and a massive 562 fantasy points, leaving all other fantasy players past and present trailing in his wake. He’s an absolute must-have for your fantasy squads.
A price cut to £12.5 million, while maintaining his midfielder status, was music to fantasy managers ears. Meanwhile, Sadio Mane received a price hike to £11.5 million and has had his pre-season cut short after Senegal went to deep into the African Cup of Nations, depleting his fantasy potential. Given that James Milner is reaching the tail end of his career, I expect Salah will take plenty of penalties this season for Liverpool too.
Mo Salah is now available to back at 9/2 to win the Golden Boot again this season.
The Budget Pick: Leander Dendoncker (4.5) – Wolves
Playing Fantasy Premier League means much more than selecting a strong starting XI lineup: all 15 squad players have their role to play. It’s important to find a cheap budget midfielder to have as a bench option if you aren’t choosing to play a five man midfield, and Dendoncker is the go-to £4.5 million option this season.
The Wolves man cemented his status in the heart of the midfield towards the latter stages of last season, securing two goals from his 18 starts. He’s a crucial part of this attacking side: in this calendar year his expected goals statistics was third behind Jota and Jimenez, creating and shooting in the box. What more can we ask for at this bargain price?
He’s had his loan deal made permanent during the off-season, underpinning his value as a crucial man for Wolves as they head into their Europa League campaign and push to break into the Premier League’s top six.
The VAR Pick: Gylfi Sigurdsson (8.0) – Everton
Sigurdsson was the fifth highest scoring FPL midfielder last season; behind Salah, Sterling, Hazard and Mane. He looks like an absolute bargain in the era of VAR, with a superb run of opening fixtures: he faces Crystal Palace, Watford, Aston Villa, Wolves, Bournemouth and Sheffield United in his opening six games. He finished last season on 182 points, despite missing three penalties: if he had converted these it’s likely that he would have broken the 200 point barrier.
The Icelandic midfielder is a fantasy legend, with proven pedigree in the Premier League over a number of seasons – he regularly hits double figures for goals and assists combined and is returning off the back of his best fantasy season ever. Given the form The Toffees ended last season with under Marco Silva, Gylfi could improve his tally of 13 goals even further this campaign. Everton have been awarded a total of 12 penalties over the last two seasons, which is 5th highest of all Premier League clubs.
You can back VAR and bet on a penalty to be awarded in Everton’s opening fixture against Crystal Palace at odds of 15/8.
The Sleeper Pick: Raheem Sterling (12.0) – Man City
Considering current ownership levels and buzz with fantasy circles, many managers are struggling to decide between a plethora of Manchester City attackers, with Bernardo Silva, Kevin De Bruyne, Raheem Sterling and Sergio Aguero all receiving plenty of traction.
It’s Sterling who I’m tipping to be the highest scoring FPL player from Manchester City this season, if not in the whole game outright. He keeps going from strength to strength and plays in the best team in the league, so there’s no reason why he couldn’t push Salah the whole way.
His last two fantasy seasons have been his best, with his all-round playing helping him to 35 goals and 32 assists in this period. In points per match terms, he edges the Egyptian at 6.9 to 6.8, so all the signs are there for his potential. A downgrade to a cheaper City midfielder asset looks tempting, but his teammates are unlikely to be able to compete with him in fantasy terms.
Back Manchester City to score four or more goals against West Ham at 3/1 on Premier League opening weekend.
The Wildcard Pick: Wilfried Zaha (7.0) – Crystal Palace
Wilfried Zaha is our wildcard pick to complete our selection of midfield options for this season. He’s been linked with a move away from Crystal Palace, with Arsenal and Everton potential suitors which increases his appeal at this interesting price point.
Zaha is notorious for being one of the most fouled players in the league, winning six penalties last season which was the highest in the Premier League, boosting his fantasy assist potential. 2018/19 was the first season where he achieved double figures for goals and assists, taking him to an impressive 143 fantasy points.
If he remains at Crystal Palace he has a great run of opening fixtures; facing Everton, Sheffield United, Aston Villa and his former employers Manchester United in his first four games. There’s certainly plenty of potential for points in those games.
Follow me on Twitter @FFCommunity_ and find even more Fantasy Premier League Tips over on the Fantasy Football Community blog!
Source: Betfair Premier League
