Last updated on August 8th, 2024
Written by FPLFrano
In this article, we will focus on cheaper midfield options, their projected points, role in the team and how we can fit them in our teams to get the best value for money. The focus will be on three players, whose teams rank second (Aston Villa), fifth (Fulham), and eighth (Nottingham Forest) for offensive FDR based on the Premier Fantasy Tools season ticker.
Image: Premier Fantasy Tools, Fixture Planner
1. Morgan Rogers, Aston Villa (5.0, current ownership 7%)
The first suggestion is the cheapest one, which is also the most likely to feature in my draft. This 0.5 extra invested in Rogers instead of a defensive midfielder (Winks, Sangare..) should pay off. Villa’s attacking midfielder is undoubtedly the best 5.0 fantasy option, and even though there are rumors that Villa will be signing another player in that area, I just don’t see their best player in these pre-season games (3G 2A) benched for someone who is not even at the club yet. Fixtures from GW3 don’t come much better (two newly promoted teams and home matches against Everton and Wolves) and if he manages to record a strong start into the campaign and establish himself as a regular starter, you could have a real steal in your team.
Although he was playing more on the left side of Villa’s attack in the previous season, he had already shown that he fits well in Emery’s system by scoring 3 goals and recording one assist in only 8 starts, linking very well with Watkins and Bailey.
Projected points (16.53) for the first six games don’t really back my expectations (Wharton, Smallbone, and Alcaraz are all projected to score more for example), but I believe that this is due to the algorithm still considering him minutes risk. If he is a starter in at least 4 of these 6 games, I have no reservations that he will outperform this points projections.
2. Emile Smith Rowe (5.5, current ownership 5.3%)
Since joining Fulham in a club-record transfer, ESR quickly became one of the most interesting fantasy budget options. Considering Fulham’s opening fixtures and Smith Rowe’s attacking potential, this is hardly a surprise.
In his debut against Sevilla, he already showed what he can do by scoring minutes after coming on. Although he is an attacking midfielder and will predominantly play as No.10 (there could be games where we will see him at LW, as this is where he was mainly playing in his best season so far 21/22), he is not the type of midfielder who is positioning himself as a passing option between lines, maintaining possession with backward passes, etc. He is an excellent energetic runner, who is great at attacking space either to take advantage of space created by his teammates when he seeks to finish the action with the shot or to drag the opponent’s attention and open space for his teammates.
The fact that he scored 41 goals and recorded 24 assists backs the theory of the player who is focused on taking part in the end zones of his team’s attack.
Projected points (18.07) are not really at an elite level, but we have to take into consideration that ESR barely played last season, and there is a certain element of risk regarding match fitness, and team cohesion that the algorithm might be taking into account. However, an ‘eye test’ in combination with underlying numbers looks promising.
A possible issue with ESR as a pick is his two teammates who also caught the eye last season, Andreas Pereira, a midfielder with the same price but with a higher points projection (22.37), and Rodrigo Muniz, 6.0 forward who impressed in the second part of last season.
In my opinion, although Pereira is on set pieces and already knows Silva’s system perfectly, ESR is still the better pick as there seems to be a consensus that Smith Rowe will take the No.10 spot with Pereira dropping deeper, which could affect his FPL productivity and points.
Rodrigo Muniz is however a very interesting option, and if you decide to go with him, then I would suggest that you look for a midfielder from another team, as Fulham double up, despite great fixtures seems a bit too much.
3. Callum Hudson-Odoi (5.5, current ownership 5.5%)
Although his preseason stats are not that great (1 goal and no assists), since the arrival of Nuno Espirito Santo he established himself as one of the focal points of Forest’s attack, scoring eight goals and playing a significant part in the relegation battle.
Forest did sign promising Portuguese winger Jota Silva, who in combination with Elanga, could take some minutes from CHO, but I still believe that he is their first-choice left winger and don’t see it changing at least for several first game weeks.
Points projections are also looking good (20.69, second best in this price class after Everton’s McNeill) and all this suggests that if you are looking for cheaper options, with great fixtures and nice underlying numbers, Callum Hudson-Odoi might be your hidden gem.
Similar to Emile Smith Rowe, Forest has some other interesting options in this price range such as Elanga or Wood. Regarding Elanga, I believe that CHO’s xMinutes are better, but as for Wood, he could end up being a great forward option. The same thing I said about Fulham assets could be applied here, meaning that if you go with CHO, I would not suggest having Wood as well as doubling up on Forest or Fulham attack seems too risky.
4. Other notable mentions
1. Yankuba Minteh (5.5, current ownership 0.9%)
Ultra differential pick and Brighton’s best player in the preseason tour. However, the fixtures are pretty bad. Solid Everton defense away, United at home, and perhaps the worst possible away game Arsenal at Emirates in GW3. However, GW4 and GW5 are really promising, two home games in a row against Ipswich and Forest, and by the time we get there we should have more info on which Brighton players will be the best options for these two games.
2. Amad Diallo (5.0, current ownership 2.8%)
A player who had a promising and full preseason, unlike his rivals for the starting line-up. Showed glimpses of his potential last season when he managed to record a goal and assist although started only 3 games. According to Ten Hag’s comments, this could be the season of affirmation for the youngster and could be worth a punt for at least the opening two games of the season (after that you could just replace him with Rogers for example, if he is dropped).
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