Is it time to go BIG in midfield in Fantasy?

The Scout looks at whether managers in Fantasy Premier League should aim to own a number of premium midfielders such as Mohamed Salah (£12.9m), Cole Palmer (£10.9m) and Bukayo Saka (£10.1m) at the expense of Manchester City forward Erling Haaland (£15.2m). 

Liverpool's Salah is the only player to break the 100-point barrier so far, combining eight goals with six assists to collect 107 points across his 11 outings.

Chelsea star Palmer, meanwhile, has produced seven goals, five assists and 84 points to claim second place ahead of Haaland, who has 82 points thanks to his 12 goals. 

Look beyond goal threat in FPL

When assessing each player's goal threat in Fantasy, it's clear to see why Haaland already looks well on the way to claiming a third successive Golden Boot.

Haaland's 49 shots in the box match the combined total of Salah and Palmer, who have had 30 and 19 respectively. 

Similarly, Haaland's 19 big chances - situations where the player is expected to score - are just one fewer than the combined 20 of Salah and Palmer. 

The Norwegian's 21.8 per cent goal conversion also looks very sustainable and indicates he can continue to score goals at the same pace over the remainder of the campaign.

Goal threat compared GW1-11

But crucially, the points-scoring system in Fantasy and each player's classification by position shows why these underlying statistics for goal threat should not be looked at in isolation. 

Midfielders such as Salah, Palmer and Arsenal's Saka earn FIVE points for each goal they score, whereas Haaland – as a forward - earns only FOUR points. Midfielders also collect one point for every clean sheet their side keeps, but forwards are not rewarded at all.

A breakdown of the premium players' output this season helps to highlight why Salah has enjoyed such a strong start to the new Fantasy campaign. 

Haaland, who is the most-sold player ahead of Gameweek 12, has collected 48 points from his goals, with each of his 12 strikes earning him four points. He has earned zero points for his side’s two clean sheets.

By comparison, Salah’s eight goals have earned him 40 points as a midfielder, which is the equivalent of 10 Haaland goals. Salah has also picked up six points from clean sheets. 

So despite scoring four goals fewer than Haaland (or only two-thirds), Salah has totalled 46 points from goals and clean sheets – just two points less than the Man City talisman.

Palmer's seven goals and two clean sheets have helped him amass 37 points, just over the equivalent of nine Haaland goals. 

Goals and points compared GW1-11

Midfielders beat Haaland for creativity

It is also important to look at the creativity statistics, because the premium midfielders massively outperform Haaland here.

Haaland has failed to supply a single assist, with a mere five key passes and one big chance created to his name. Clearly, his potential for returns is almost exclusively reliant on his goal threat.

Salah, on the other hand, has produced six assists, helping him to a further 18 points. 

Saka and Palmer, meanwhile, have collected 21 and 15 points respectively from assists. The duo occupy the top two spots here for both key passes and big chances created, with Saka being the league's leading player for the latter statistic on 13.

The "big chances created" statistic is particularly relevant here as it is favoured by the Bonus Points System (BPS), which helps determine the bonus points in any given match.

Indeed, due to their creative endeavours, both Saka and Palmer have each earned bonus points in matches this season in which they have neither scored nor assisted.

Creativity compared GW1-11

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Who has the best fixtures?

When deciding whether to invest funds in Haaland or stock up on premium midfielders instead, it is also worth noting that Haaland clearly has the toughest schedule ahead.

According to the Fixture Difficulty Ratings (FDR), his next six matches score a combined total of 21, with only one of those scoring two - against Crystal Palace in Gameweek 15.

By contrast, Palmer and Saka's next six matches score a total of just 15 in the FDR. Crucially, four of Palmer's matches score just two, with contests against Leicester City, Southampton, Brentford and Everton giving him plenty of opportunities to deliver more huge hauls in Fantasy.

Meanwhile, three of Salah's next six fixtures score just two, with the Liverpool star likely to compete with Palmer for the captaincy over his encounters with Southampton, Everton and Fulham.

FDR score for next six matches

*1 = easiest possible fixture, 5 = hardest possible fixture