Fantasy Premier League managers are activating their Free Hit chips to give their squads a temporary makeover ahead of a reduced schedule in Gameweek 32.
The Free Hit provides FPL bosses the opportunity to make unlimited changes to their squads without incurring a points hit for one week only and is invaluable for gameweeks like this when only eight fixtures are taking place.
It’s especially effective when numerous popular assets are out of action. Brighton, Manchester City and Manchester United are all contesting the FA Cup semi-finals, while Chelsea have the weekend off.
That means the likes of Kaoru Mitoma, Bruno Fernandes, Reece James and the indomitable Erling Haaland are not on FPL duty. If you don’t have a Free Hit and need to make one or two transfers to plug some gaps, keep your Brighton players and Haaland anyway as they have promising double gameweeks coming up.
Gameweek 31 top scorers
Goalkeepers:
- Johnstone (Crystal Palace) – 9
- Sa (Wolves) – 7
- Martinez (Aston Villa), Kepa (Chelsea), De Gea (Man Utd) – 6
Defenders:
- Dalot (Man Utd) – 14
- Moreno (Aston Villa) – 10
- Alexander-Arnold (Liverpool) – 9
- Stones (Man City), Dawson (Wolves) – 8
Midfielders:
- Eze (Crystal Palace) – 16
- Salah (Liverpool), Antony (Man Utd) – 14
- Ramsey (Aston Villa) – 13
- James (Fulham) – 12
- Odegaard (Arsenal), McNeil (Everton), Gakpo (Liverpool) – 10
Forwards:
- Watkins (Aston Villa), Jota (Liverpool) – 16
- Solanke (Bournemouth) – 15
- Haaland (Man City) – 12
- Enciso (Brighton), Costa (Wolves) – 9
There are two Premier League fixtures that stick out like a sore thumb this weekend: Arsenal vs Southampton and Liverpool vs Nottingham Forest. Players from Arsenal and Liverpool should form the basis of your Free Hit squad if you’re using it or be your transfer priorities if not.
We’ve selected three players from each team along with representatives from in-form pair Aston Villa and Crystal Palace and a differential up front.
This week’s deadline is at 6.30pm on Friday 21 April.
Gameweek 32 fixtures
Friday 21 April
- Arsenal vs Southampton
Saturday 22 April
- Fulham vs Leeds
- Brentford vs Aston Villa
- Crystal Palace vs Everton
- Leicester vs Wolves
- Liverpool vs Nottingham Forest
Sunday 23 April
- Bournemouth vs West Ham
- Newcastle vs Spurs
Goalkeeper: Sam Johnstone (Crystal Palace)
A run of three consecutive wins under Roy Hodgson has all but ensured Crystal Palace’s survival and Sam Johnstone has been one of their most impressive performers since the managerial change.
Johnstone kept Palace in the game at Elland Road in Gameweek 30, making seven first-half saves to thwart Leeds and inspire a dramatic second-half turnaround. And he followed that up with a clean sheet in Gameweek 31 as Palace beat Southampton to push them closer to the drop zone.
Price: £4.4m Points: 13 Gameweek 32 fixture: Everton (h)
Trent Alexander-Arnold (Liverpool)
It hasn’t been a vintage Trent Alexander-Arnold season by any means but the Liverpool right-back still ranks second among all defenders for chances created (albeit some way behind the leader Kieran Trippier).
Alexander-Arnold managed four FPL assists in his first 27 games of the season, but has since added three more to his tally in his last two games against Arsenal and Leeds.
A shift into a central midfield role has also boosted Alexander-Arnold’s FPL prospects as he is now operating higher up the pitch and has fewer defensive responsibilities than before.
Price: £7.3m Points: 110 Gameweek 32 fixture: Nottingham Forest (h)
Alex Moreno (Aston Villa)
An unsung hero of Aston Villa’s dramatic turnaround under Unai Emery, Alex Moreno has quickly made the left-back spot his own since signing from Real Betis and delivered his best performance since his arrival against Newcastle last weekend.
Moreno registered his third assist of the season for Ollie Watkins’ opening goal and could conceivably have had a hat-trick of them for Villa’s striker after a superb attacking display.
Since making his debut in Gameweek 20, Moreno is level with Jacob Ramsey at the top of Villa’s creativity charts with 19 chances created.
Price: £4.5m Points: 56 Gameweek 32 fixture: Brentford (a)
Andy Robertson (Liverpool)
If you’re not using your Free Hit and are keen to sign a new defender this week, Alexander-Arnold is probably the prime candidate to pick. However, if you are using your Free Hit a Liverpool defensive double-up looks promising given the Reds host Nottingham Forest at Anfield this weekend.
Only three defenders, including his full-back friend at Anfield, have provided more assists than Andy Robertson’s six this season. Forest meanwhile have failed to win any of their last 10 league games and have only scored five goals in 15 away matches this term.
Price: £6.8m Points: 98 Gameweek 32 fixture: Nottingham Forest (h)
Bukayo Saka (Arsenal)
It says much about the impatience of some FPL managers that Bukayo Saka has crept into the top 10 for players sold ahead of Friday’s deadline despite having the best fixture imaginable and being available to play in a reduced gameweek.
Saka’s owners have endured a frustrating few weeks since his 18-point return in Gameweek 28, with the winger registering only two points in his last three outings. However, this is the first time all season that Saka has gone three consecutive matches without a goal or assist and he’s due a return to form on Friday night.
Price: £8.6m Points: 172 Gameweek 32 fixture: Southampton (h)
Mo Salah (Liverpool)
If you’ve got £12.8m sloshing around in your FPL bank, do the sensible thing and invest it in Mo Salah.
Salah is currently the 10th most popular FPL asset but his ownership is bound to increase given his excellent display against Leeds coupled with Liverpool’s upcoming schedule. The Reds top FPL’s Fixture Difficulty Chart from now until the end of the campaign.
Salah has scored seven goals in his last seven league games and you’d back him to continue that hot streak against a Nottingham Forest defence that has conceded at least twice in each of their last six away matches.
Price: £12.8m Points: 180 Gameweek 32 fixture: Nottingham Forest (h)
Gabriel Martinelli (Arsenal)
Another five points on Sunday ensured that Gabriel Martinelli extended his lead over Marcus Rashford at the top of the FPL standings for midfielders this season with 180 in total. Not bad going for someone who started the campaign at just £6m. It’s safe to assume he won’t be that cheap again when the game refreshes in August.
Martinelli is the form player of Arsenal’s quartet of attacking midfielders – a group that now includes Leandro Trossard who has been unfortunate to lose his starting place. The 21-year-old has provided attacking returns in eight of his last nine matches, combining seven goals with three assists.
Price: £6.9m Points: 180 Gameweek 32 fixture: Southampton (h)
Eberechi Eze (Crystal Palace)
We picked the wrong Crystal Palace attacker in last week’s tips with Eberechi Eze outscoring Michael Olise by 13 points. There’s every chance that Olise could prove us wrong for the second week running as his and Eze’s underlying stats since Hodgson’s re-appointment are very similar.
Since Gameweek 29, Eze has had nine shots on goal and created six chances, while Olise has managed seven shots on goal and created 10 chances. Eze’s goal threat is higher – his xG is 0.74 better than Olise’s in that time – while Olise’s xA (expected assists) is 1.1 superior to Eze’s. With goals worth an additional point to assists, Eze just shades it.
Price: £5.5m Points: 120 Gameweek 32 fixture: Everton (h)
Ollie Watkins (Aston Villa)
A striker playing at the very top of his game. Newcastle have the best defensive record in the Premier League this season and yet they were run ragged by Ollie Watkins last Saturday.
Watkins assisted Jacob Ramsey for Villa’s opener, scored two legitimate goals, had another ruled out for a marginal offside and hit the post. He has scored 11 goals and provided three assists in his last dozen appearances, despite facing the three best defensive teams – Manchester City, Arsenal and Newcastle – in that time.
Brentford can be a tough nut to crack at home, but you can’t overlook Watkins on current form.
Price: £7.7m Points: 155 Gameweek 32 fixture: Brentford (a)
Gabriel Jesus (Arsenal)
After going eight Premier League games without a goal either side of the World Cup, Gabriel Jesus has since netted in three consecutive matches, scoring four times in total.
Although he was substituted off in each of those games as Mikel Arteta manages his minutes following a lengthy spell out injured, Jesus has still registered the second-highest xG total of any player in FPL over the past three gameweeks.
The Brazilian has faced criticism during his time in England for being a wasteful finisher, but he has been anything but recently, scoring all four of his shots on target since Gameweek 29.
Price: £8.1m Points: 97 Gameweek 32 fixture: Southampton (h)
Callum Wilson (Newcastle)
This is a risky pick given Alexander Isak has started ahead of Callum Wilson in Newcastle’s last two games and it is not one we would advocate for FPL managers not using a Free Hit.
However, if you are temporarily taking a sledgehammer to your team snapping up a Newcastle attacker looks like a great move given how shambolic Tottenham’s defence was against Bournemouth.
Wilson has been in good form despite not featuring prominently scoring three goals and registering an assist in his last four games and may come into the starting XI after Newcastle’s Villa Park horror show.
Price: £6.9m Points: 98 Gameweek 32 fixture: Spurs (h)
