It rained points in the midweek gameweek 14 as Fantasy Premier League recorded an average points tally of 58.
Mr Consistent Mohamed Salah delivered yet again as he produced a 15-point haul that helped the 72.8% of FPL managers that own him beef up their points tallies.
Cristiano Ronaldo also returned with a good haul and so did James Maddison, both of whom were among our top and differential picks for GW14.
There’s very small turnaround again as GW15 comes along almost immediately. West Ham’s match against Chelsea that opens the gameweek is the pick of the matches this weekend. Liverpool face a tricky trip to Wolves while Manchester City travel to Watford.
Manchester United host Crystal Palace in Ralf Rangnick’s first game in charge.
Fixture Difficulty
The Manchester clubs have the easiest run of fixtures in the coming weeks alongside Tottenham, Leicester and Liverpool.
Aston Villa, Everton, Leeds United, West Ham, Southampton and Wolves have some tough games coming their way in the coming weeks.
Fixture Difficulty index
| Team | Combined Difficulty rating for GW 15-17 | GW15 opponents | GW16 opponents | GW17 opponents |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Arsenal | 9 (3, 2, 4) | EVE(A) | SOU(H) | WHU(H) |
| Aston Villa | 10 (3, 5, 2) | LEI(H) | LIV(A) | NOR(A) |
| Brentford | 8 (2, 2, 4) | LEE(A) | WAT(H) | MUN(H) |
| Brighton | 8 (2, 3, 3) | SOU(A) | TOT(H) | WOL(H) |
| Burnley | 8 (2, 4, 2) | NEW(A) | WHU(H) | WAT(H) |
| Chelsea | 9 (2, 4, 3) | WHU(A) | LEE(H) | EVE(H) |
| Crystal Palace | 9 (4, 3, 2) | MUN(A) | EVE(H) | SOU(H) |
| Everton | 11 (3, 3, 5) | ARS(H) | CRY(A) | CHE(A) |
| Leeds | 12 (2. 5, 5) | BRE(H) | CHE(A) | MCI(A) |
| Leicester | 8 (3, 2, 3) | AVL(A) | NEW(H) | TOT(H) |
| Liverpool | 8 (3, 3, 2) | WOL(A) | AVL(H) | NEW(H) |
| Man City | 7 (2, 3, 2) | WAT(A) | WOL(H) | LEE(H) |
| Man Utd | 6 (2, 2, 2) | CRY(H) | NOR(A) | BRE(A) |
| Newcastle | 10 (2, 3, 5) | BUR(H) | LEI(A) | LIV(A) |
| Norwich City | 10 (3, 4, 3) | TOT(A) | MUN(H) | AVL(H) |
| Southampton | 10 (3, 4, 3) | BHA(H) | ARS(A) | CRY(A) |
| Spurs | 8 (2, 3, 3) | NOR(H) | BHA(A) | LEI(A) |
| Watford | 8 (4, 2, 2) | MCI(H) | BRE(A) | BUR(A) |
| West Ham | 10 (4, 2, 4) | CHE(H) | BUR(A) | ARS(A) |
| Wolves | 12 (4, 5, 3) | LIV(H) | MCI(A) | BHA(A) |
The big ins and outs
Watford’s Dennis, who returned in each of the last three games, is the most purchased player this week. His price and Watford’s relatively good run of games in the near future have pushed FPL managers to make that move.
Diogo Jota, Bernardo Silva and Sergio Reguilon who have been the top players in the past few weeks are also in demand and so is Emile Smith Rowe, who just keeps on delivering the goods for Arsenal.
Most transferred (in) players ahead of GW15
| Position | Player | Club |
|---|---|---|
| FWD | Dennis | WAT |
| MID | Jota | LIV |
| MID | Bernardo | MCI |
| DEF | Reguilón | TOT |
| MID | Smith Rowe | ARS |
FPL managers have run out of patience with Antonio who has struggled to replicate early-season form in recent weeks. Reece James who remains doubtful for Chelsea’s trip to West Ham is the second most sold player this week ahead of Connor Gallagher who is surprisingly third on that list ahead of Wolves’ Raul Jimenez and Said Benrahma.
Most transferred (out) players ahead of GW15
| Position | Player | Club |
|---|---|---|
| FWD | Antonio | WHU |
| DEF | James | CHE |
| MID | Gallagher | CRY |
| FWD | Jiménez | WOL |
| MID | Benrahma | WHU |
Top picks for Gameweek 15
Whether you bring them in through transfers or (luckily enough) have them in your squad already, these are the five hottest selections for GW15:
Cristiano Ronaldo (Manchester United): The Manchester United talisman once again showed why he is the greatest goalscorer of his generation at the very least when he netted a brace against Arsenal to go past the 800-goal mark in his career. Up against a leaky Palace side, he is a must-have especially considering United have the best run of matches to come in the league.
Mohamed Salah (Liverpool): It’s becoming a bit boring mentioning Salah in this list but just to ensure the readers take this seriously, the Egyptian has to be a part of this for the most obvious reasons. Thirteen goals, nine assists and 146 FPL points is reason enough to have him in your team and forget about it.
Sergio Reguilon (Tottenham):
The Spaniard seems to be thriving as a wing-back in Antonio Conte’s system as he has recorded a goal and an assist in his last two matches for Tottenham, who have kept two clean sheets in three league matches since Conte took charge. Reguilon is a good bet against Norwich for both attacking and defensive returns.
Bernardo Silva (Manchester City): The Portuguese midfielder has been City’s best player in the last few matches and it has reflected in his FPL points. With three goals in his last four matches for City, Silva is a man to have in your team especially considering the run of games City have in the next few weeks.
Son Heung-min (Tottenham): After ending his four-match goal drought against Brentford, Son will look to build on his form against Norwich. The South Korean is a streaky player and usually goes on a run and Tottenham fans and his FPL owners will hope for the same.
Top differential picks for GW15:
Ollie Watkins (Aston Villa): Up against a leaky Leicester City side, Aston Villa’s Ollie Watkins would be hoping to continue his recent good form. With goal contributions in each of his last four home games, Watkins, who is owned by less than 4% of FPL managers, is a great differential pick for GW15.
Marcus Rashford (Manchester United): Ralf Rangnick had glowing things to say about Manchester United’s young players and Rashford who is the pick of the lot is certain to have a big role to play under the German. He produced an assist against Arsenal and might be about to get going as United have a relatively easy run of games. Owned by just 0.8% of FPL managers, Rashford is a great differential option.
Callum Wilson (Newcastle United): Wilson got on the scoresheet for Newcastle against Norwich and would be hoping to do the same against Burnley. Owned by just 4.1% of FPL managers, Wilson is a proven and reliable goalscorer that one can certainly bank on.
Captaincy Conundrum
This section has become a bit of a no-brainer considering Salah’s consistency and form. Also, his high ownership numbers make not awarding him the captain’s armband too big a risk to take.
Although Ronaldo is a great option to hand the armband to in GW15, the hit which your rank can take if Salah hauls big is just too big.
So till the Egyptian shows any signs of a dip in form or goes away to the African Cup of Nations, it will take a really strong candidate to make anyone look anywhere else apart from Salah.
The Field’s FPL team
Gameweek 12 points: 62
It was another above-average week for our team thanks largely to Salah. Raphinha’s late goal also played a big part.
But heading into GW15 and with two free transfers available to us, we have decided to bring in Ronaldo in place of Gabriel Jesus. That has forced us to do away with Son to raise funds but we have replaced him with Smith Rowe who has been equally potent this season.
We have decided to take a hit this week and replace Hwang with Neal Maupay.
Despite temptations to hand Ronaldo the armband, we are sticking with Salah for the aforementioned reasons.
GW15 deadline: 4:30 pm IST on Saturday, December 4, 2021.
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