EPL GW-14 FPL Player Picks

With the FPL deadlines coming thick and fast, it’s time to speed up the decision-making process and lock in our FPL teams. Here are some player picks for GW 14.

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Keepers

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José Sá (£5.0, Wolves vs Burnley)

Outside the top-three (Man City, Chelsea & Liverpool), Wolves are statistically the best defense in the league (12 GC in 13 games, four clean sheets) with decent defensive underlying numbers (16.74 xGC in 13 games) to back it up. Wolves’ GW-14 opponent Burnley is in the bottom five for expected goals (14 xG in 13 games), increasing Jose Sa’s clean sheet potential. Although Wolves’ fixtures after GW-14 aren’t ideal for the short term, Sa can rack up loads of save points, making the Portuguese a smart pick for the long run.

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Edouard Mendy (£6.3, Watford vs Chelsea)

Mendy is backed by the statistically-best, defense in the league (5GC in 13 games, 7 clean sheets). Watford is expected to sit deep against Chelsea to avoid a big defeat, which could lead to Mendy being relatively untroubled, resulting in an easy clean sheet.

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Defenders

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João Cancelo (£6.7, Aston Villa vs Man City)

Man City is top-three in the league for most goals scored (27G in 13 games) and fewest conceded (7 GC in 13 games) with Cancelo having a lot to do with both feats. Apart from being solid at the back, the Portuguese fullback is Man City’s creator-in-chief in the absence of De Bruyne. Cancelo is due a goal (xG 1.73 in 13 games) in the league and could break his duck in GW-14.

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Tariq Lamptey (£4.4, West Ham vs Brighton)

After an injury-laden start to the season, Lamptey is back with a bang. Listed as a defender, the winger is Brighton’s main attacking threat down the right flank, constantly beating defenders and whipping dangerous crosses into the corridor of uncertainty. Lamptey will feel unlucky not to have tallied an assist or two against Leeds in GW-13 as Maupay couldn’t finish the big chances created. Lamptey is one of the most exciting players to watch and could make a mockery of his price if he remains injury-free.

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Marcos Alonso (£5.6, Watford vs Chelsea)

With Chilwell out for a minimum of 6 weeks due to an ACL injury, backup left wing-back Alonso returned to the Chelsea starting 11 against Man United. Until Chiwell’s inclusion in the starting lineup in GW-7, Alonso displayed great attacking threat and solid defending with a goal, assist, and 4 clean sheets in six games. In Alonso’s comeback game against United, the Spanish wing-back showed glimpses of what he has to offer as he constantly occupied attacking positions (sometimes in the #9 position as well!).

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Trent Alexander-Arnold (£7.9, Everton vs Liverpool)

Alexander Arnold is one of the best defenders in FPL. According to underlying numbers, TAA is the most creative player in the league (5.55 xA in 11 appearances) despite featuring in two fewer games than the close #2, Mohamed Salah (5.01 xA in 13 appearances). Backed by a strong Liverpool defense and facing an out of form Everton, TAA is close to a must-own in GW-14.

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Reece James (£6.3, Watford vs Chelsea)

James is having an outstanding season so far. The Chelsea RWB is the top goal-scoring defender (four goals in 10 Appearances) in the league and is also Chelsea’s top scorer this season! With Chelsea’s relatively easy fixture run, James is an excellent long-term pick and could score big points if he features against a struggling Watford defense (24 xGC in 13 games — 2nd worst in the league behind Norwich).

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Midfielders

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Ilkay Gündoğan (£7.2, Aston Villa vs Man City)

According to the underlying stats, Gündoğan (4.27 xG in 9 appearances) is the best goal-scoring Man City midfielder to own, notably ahead of Phil Foden (2.50 in 8 appearances) & Bernardo Silva (3.81 in 12 appearances). Gündoğan, famous for arriving late in the box to be on the ends of big chances could yet again reach the heights of his brilliant 2020-21 season (13 goals, 4 assists). The German midfielder is also one of City’s main penalty takers when Riyadh Mahrez (likely to miss GW19-GW 24 due to AFCON) isn’t on the field, which adds to his value as an interesting long term FPL asset.

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Mo Salah (£13.0, Everton vs Liverpool)

Salah is the best player in the league and is arguably the best player in the world at the moment. The numbers the Egyptian is posting are out of this world (#1 in the premier league for goals, assists & expected goals). Leave him out at your peril.

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Diogo Jota (£7.7, Everton vs Liverpool)

Jota is the best bargain buy in the game at the moment. With the injury to Firmino (unknown return date), Jota is a regular starter now for Liverpool. The Portuguese attacker has outscored Salah in the last three games so is even an option for captain against disjointed Everton. With Jota playing as the main striker for Liverpool’s league-leading attack (39G,34. 49xG in 13 games), expect the former Wolves forward to rack up big points.

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Son Heung-min (£10.4, Tottenham vs Brentford)

Son hasn’t had the best of starts to his 2021-22 season, having scored just four goals (3.41 xG) in 11 premier league appearances so far. But, with the appointment of Antonio Conte, he seems to be slowly heading in the right direction. Tottenham faces Brentford & Norwich in the next two, so Son could benefit from the easy fixtures (on paper) to end his four game-goalless run. Plus, the postponed match against lowly Burnley will popup as a mini-DGW when rescheduling allows.

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Conor Gallagher (£6.1, Leeds vs Crystal Palace)

Gallagher is having a brilliant season so far. The Crystal Palace attacking midfielder is the club’s joint top goal-scorer and top assist-provider (4 goals, 5 assists in 12 appearances), playing a pivotal role in Palace’s surprisingly good season. Palace’s GW-14 opponent Leeds is in the wrong half of the goals-conceded column (20 GC in 13 games), so Gallagher could be at the end of ample goal-scoring opportunities.

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Forwards

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Teemu Pukki (£5.8, Newcastle vs Norwich)

Norwich’s GW-14 host Newcastle has the worst defensive record in the league (29 GC in 13 games). Although Eddie Howe’s arrival has improved the Newcastle attack, the defense remains a concern. Norwich’s fixtures get tricky after GW-14, but club talisman Pukki (4 goals in 13 appearances) has the least rotation risk among the Canaries’ starting 11, which could prove useful, especially with the tight schedule ahead.

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Harry Kane (£12.3, Tottenham vs Brentford)

Like his teammate Son, Kane hasn’t had a great start, but it’s Harry Kane — England’s all-time top-scorer in competitive games. He proved in the last international break that he still has plenty of goals in him, so sooner or later Kane will come good in the league. GW-14 opponent Brentford could pay the price. Brentford has failed to keep a clean sheet in 7 of the last 8 league games. After the Bees toiled hard to win 1-0 against Everton, the Spurs’ restful postponement weekend could play into the hands of Kane & Co.

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Jamie Vardy (£10.6, Southampton vs Leicester City)

At the moment, Jamie Vardy is the most in-form forward in the league. Leicester’s #9 has scored 9 goals in 13 appearances, second only to Salah among top goal-scorers this season. Despite looking solid so far, Leicester’s GW-14 opponent Southampton is beginning to show signs of defensive weakness. In GW-13, Southampton’s high-press strategy against Liverpool in the 1st half backfired heavily as the Reds picked apart the Saints to net three times before the break. With Ralph Hassenhuttl expected to employ a similar high-pressing strategy against Leicester, Vardy & Co could have a field day.

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Remember that our deadline is Tuesday! What shape is your FPL team in? Whom do you need to drop? Do any of the above picks fill your gap(s). Is it time to use a chip? Please share in the comments below!

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