Fantasy Premier League

Whose FPL prospects have improved after Gameweek 2?

By The Scout 21 Aug 2023

The Scout pinpoints players who appear less risky picks following their second round of matches

The Scout pinpoints players in Fantasy Premier League whose prospects have improved after Gameweek 2.

Defenders

Reece James’ (£5.5m) injury has boosted the prospects of ultra-budget pick Malo Gusto (£4.0m) ahead of Chelsea’s very favourable run of opponents.

Gusto was handed his first start of the season in the Blues’ loss at West Ham United, as head coach Mauricio Pochettino continued with a wing-back formation.

While the imminent introduction of summer signing Moises Caicedo (£5.0m) to the first XI is expected to result in a move to Pochettino’s favoured 4-2-3-1 set-up, Gusto would be a cut-price gem if he retains his starting role.

According to the Fixture Difficulty Ratings (FDR), five of Chelsea’s next six matches score just two.

Chelsea's next six matches

GW	Opp.	FDR	GW	Opp.	FDR
3	LUT (H)	2	6	AVL (H)	3
4	NFO (H)	2	7	FUL (A)	2
5	BOU (A)	2	8	BUR (A)	2

Pedro Porro’s (£4.9m) return to the Tottenham Hotspur line-up helped them claim their first clean sheet of the season in a 2-0 home win over Manchester United.

The Spaniard’s £0.1m drop in cost makes him a more appealing pick over Destiny Udogie (£4.5m) as Spurs' best route at the back against AFC Bournemouth, Burnley and Sheffield United in the next three Gameweeks.

Porro’s average of 4.4 points per start ranked second among team-mates last season, combining three goals and three assists with two clean sheets.

See: Best replacements for benched Joao Pedro in Fantasy

Meanwhile, Manuel Akanji (£5.1m) looks the most secure route into a Manchester City defence who have kept back-to-back clean sheets in their opening two fixtures.

The Swiss is one of only two defenders to start both their matches in 2023/24, along with Kyle Walker (£5.0m).

Since making his debut in Gameweek 8 last season, Akanji has played 2,473 minutes in league matches, at least 730 minutes more than any other defender for Pep Guardiola’s side.

The champions also have a very kind run of opponents to help extend their run of shutouts, with four of their next five scoring just two in the FDR.

Midfield

Spurs' Pape Sarr (£4.5m) could be another low-cost gem after being handed his first start of the season by new head coach Ange Postecoglou last weekend.

The Senegalese seized his opportunity, scoring the opening goal and earning 10 points in the 2-0 win over Man Utd.

Sarr’s six shots in the box in the first two Gameweeks were double the total of any other Spurs player and rank second only to the seven of Marcus Rashford (£9.0m) among midfielders in Fantasy.

A central role for Man City helped Phil Foden (£7.5m) to his first attacking returns of the campaign, with the midfielder assisting Julio Alvarez’s (£6.5m) strike in the 1-0 win over Newcastle United.

Pick that one out! 🎯🤟 pic.twitter.com/cQgmKoyx8N
— Manchester City (@ManCity) August 19, 2023

Foden has produced a team-high nine key passes in 2023/24 so far and is clearly thriving as their chief creator in the absence of Kevin De Bruyne (£10.3m).

New set-piece takers

Elsewhere, Chelsea’s Enzo Fernandez (£5.0m) and Aston Villa’s Douglas Luiz (£5.5m) both appear to be their clubs’ new first-choice penalty-takers.

Luiz’s converted effort against Everton looking like bad news for owners of Villa forward Ollie Watkins (£8.0m), their previous first-choice taker.

Meanwhile, James Ward-Prowse’s (£6.0m) set-piece duties made an immediate impact on his debut for West Ham.

Dangerous on debut 🎯 pic.twitter.com/8qY2s3417b
— West Ham United (@WestHam) August 21, 2023

The summer signing from Southampton supplied the first of his two assists against Chelsea from a corner, with centre-back Nayef Aguerd (£4.5m) scoring from a header.

Forwards

AFC Bournemouth’s Antoine Semenyo (£4.5m) could be a great third forward for managers playing a 3-5-2 formation.

The Cherries’ attacker scored away to Liverpool in his first start of the season at the weekend, adding to his assist against West Ham in Gameweek 1.

See: Scout Selection: Best FPL team for Gameweek 3

At present, Semenyo is the cheapest starting forward in 2023/24 Fantasy.

Taiwo Awoniyi (£6.5m) also made his first start of the campaign in Nottingham Forest’s home meeting with Sheff Utd.

Although the forward has scored in each of the opening two Gameweeks, it must be noted he has only recorded two shots, a clearly unsustainable conversion rate.

Alvarez, meanwhile, showed why he can be an ideal partner for Erling Haaland (£14.0m) in managers’ forward lines by scoring the winner against Newcastle.

Indeed, the Argentinian has been named alongside Haaland in each of the first two Scout Selections of 2023/24, producing points on both occasions.