FPL Top Picks for Gameweek 21

The Premier League is back after a brief hiatus by its participating clubs to attend to their commitments in the FA Cup tournament. This means that we will be having close deadlines for weeks 21 and 22. Managers are encouraged to be very attentive to their squads so that they do not miss out on the needed changes to be made ahead of both gameweeks.

We are here with the analysis for gameweek 21, which will cover some key areas in Fantasy Premier League squad selection including the best picks ahead of the gameweek. Let’s get right into it!

Gameweek Analysis

Right off the bat, we are going to direct your focus to Chelsea vs AFC Bournemouth and Nottingham Forest vs Liverpool.

Yes, the North London derby is in week 21 and the usually tricky matchup between Brentford and Manchester City also takes place this week, but the two games we are directing your focus to have been analysed by our in-house FPL experts as the games to watch.

Chelsea are looking more vulnerable than they have been this season and this happens to coincide with Bournemouth’s best overall form ever in the Premier League. Chelsea have the upper hand because they are the hosts and they also have a good record against the Cherries. This game has the potential to produce goals and clean sheets from either side.

Assets like Cole Palmer (£11.4m) and Nicolas Jackson (£8.1m) from Chelsea will remain popular, while Cherries’ players like Dean Huijsen (£4.4m), Antoine Semenyo (£5.6m) and Justin Kluivert (£5.5m) will likely still be sought after among managers. This is a reminder to ensure you bring in at least one asset from both teams into your squad ahead of week 21.

Meanwhile, Nottingham Forest will host Liverpool in a third-place versus first-place match in week 21. This is a sight we did not expect to see in the 21st century, which shows how beautifully insane football as a sport is. Cracks have started to appear in Liverpool’s armour and Forest are among the teams who are in the best place to widen them. Like the Chelsea-Bournemouth game, this has potential for goals and clean sheets—although the latter is less likely.

Assets like Mohamed Salah (£13.7m) and Trent Alexander-Arnold (£7.2m) from Liverpool will remain popular, while Forest players like Mats Sels (£4.9m), Chris Wood (£6.8m) and Anthony Elanga (£5.2m) will still be in plenty of managers’ teams. Again, this is a reminder to ensure you bring in at least one asset from both teams into your squad ahead of week 21.

These are the two most interesting games of gameweek 21. However, we have two more intriguing games from which you can pick players as you build your squad for this midweek.

Best Value Games for Week 21

West Ham United vs Fulham: Harry Wilson (£5.2m), Alex Iwobi (£5.9m), Raúl Jiménez (£5.7m).

Leicester City vs Crystal Palace: Ismaila Sarr (£5.9m), Eberechi Eze (£6.6m), Jordan Ayew (£5.2m).

Best FPL Players for Week 21

Bruno Fernandes (£8.3m) – Manchester United

It may be poor compared to the standards he has set since swapping Portuguese football for English football, but Bruno Fernandes has four goals and seven assists this season. He has, however, outperformed his expected assists (xA) of 3.6, but has underperformed his expected goals (xG) of 6.2.

Despite the low numbers, he has been putting up good stats which, unfortunately, do not contribute to the bottom line in FPL.

Manchester United host Southampton in gameweek 21 and he will have the opportunity to level up a little. The Saints have conceded the second-most goals (44) and have the worst xGC (expected goals to be conceded) in the league at 45.8.

The Red Devils will go into this fixture buoyed by their victory over Arsenal in the FA Cup and Fernandes will be pulling most of the strings. This makes him one of the top captaincy contenders this week.

Alexander Isak (£9.3m) – Newcastle United

Alexander Isak is currently the most in-form player in the league, with nine goals in the last seven games. He has 13 goals and four assists over the season and his current run is looking like Jamie Vardy’s famed 11-game run—something that will definitely be spurring his performances now that the media has made him aware of how close he is to matching and possibly breaking the record.

Newcastle United host Wolverhampton Wanderers in gameweek 21. Vitor Pereira’s side have conceded the most goals (45) so far and have an xGC ratio of 31.8, which is the sixth-worst in the league.

With Newcastle’s current form, they should score a few here and Isak will definitely be among the goals—if he is not the sole goalscorer of all of them. Isak is also backed by one of the league’s most in-form creators over the last ten weeks in Jacob Murphy (£5.1m), making him a strong pick for week 21’s captaincy.

Phil Foden (£9.2m) – Manchester City

Phil Foden’s light has finally illuminated the rest of his Manchester City teammates ahead of one of their trickiest fixtures in the past four seasons: Brentford.

The Bees have proven stubborn when faced with the might of Manchester City since their ascent to the Premier League and luckily for the Cityzens, all their players are picking up from at the right time. Foden has done all the carrying and now he has his teammates to lighten the burden.

This match could go either way but thanks to his consistency for City in their recent horror run, he makes our top three picks. Also, Erling Haaland is too expensive and uncertain at the moment to count on, even though he scored a brace in their last match.