FPL: Five players to consider in GW4

An incredibly tight start to the 2019/20 Premier League has made for some tricky decisions for FPL managers around the world. This weekend will see GW4 played out but with only two points separating 4th from 19th, the search for form is still very much on. Where does the value this week? Dave Black takes a look at the fantasy football prospects for the round ahead.

With only three clean sheets across the ten fixtures last week, it was very much a week for the attacking assets. Aguero, Salah and Sterling all continued to stake their claim to be your premium assets whilst Pukki, Barnes, Abraham and Haller looked to be in fine form as budget options.

The only conclusions we can really draw so far are that Man City and Liverpool are still ahead of the competition but the rest of the league is in somewhat of a flux. I’m surprised at the number of wildcards already played as personally I can’t identify a squad of 15 that I definitely want – within budget at least. It’s also the last week before an International break and the International transfer window still being open, so there are still some loose ends to tie up before making a big decision like that.

Anthony Martial has been ruled out of GW4 through injury. Martial was looking like a must have – a reasonably priced midfield option playing as a striker. But when one door closes another will open, for somebody, so where can we find some points this week? Here are five players I’ve picked out for your consideration:

1) Sergio Aguero (Man City, Forward, £12m)

Gabriel Jesus’ hamstring injury might be bad news for the Brazilian international but it is excellent news for Sergio Aguero and his owners. With Jesus out of action that clears the way for Aguero to play unopposed, finally free of the threat of Pep rotation. He certainly enjoyed that luxury last weekend, netting twice against Bournemouth and continuing his record of having scored in every match so far.

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With Brighton visiting the Etihad this weekend, Man City will be heavy favourites to win. The Seagulls may have moved to a more expansive style but if anything they could do with being as rigid as possible to try and quell the Man City attack. It’s hard to look past Aguero here but his partner Raheem Sterling (£12.2m) has also scored in all three games so far so if you can spare the smaller extra amount (or want to spoil yourself with both) you will have a solid captaincy option for this week.

2) Mo Salah (Liverpool, Midfield, £12.5m)

Salah may have blanked in Liverpool’s last away outing (Southampton), but that came on the back of a gruelling European game and limited recovery time. Burnley is never an easy place to go but you would never back against Salah really would you? He’s had two golden seasons in the Premier League and this looks like being a third.

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Of course, that success means Salah is a pricey and you’d be forgiven for opting for Sadio Mane at £11.5, or even Roberto Firmino at £9.5m. Salah hasn’t started Liverpool’s two previous trips to Burnley but it would be hugely surprising if he doesn’t here. Burnley suffered a shock home defeat in the Carabao Cup midweek but did at least keep a clean sheet in their only home game so far, but Liverpool are a step up in quality and will fancy their chances of making it four wins from four. With games against Newcastle and Sheffield United to come after the International break, the prospects for Salah remain high for weeks to come.

3) Tammy Abraham (Chelsea, Forward, £7.1m)

Frank Lampard’s faith in Tammy Abraham was rewarded last weekend with a double in the win over Norwich. With Giroud and Batshuayi as competition, managers were reluctant to take a chance on Abraham previously but his exploits last weekend have seen over 300,000 managers transfer him in. Chelsea are at home to Sheffield United this weekend which should be a good opportunity for the Blues to get their first home win of the season.

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Mason Mount has also enjoyed a good start to the season and is even cheaper at £6.2m. However, he came off with an injury last weekend and is considered a slight doubt for this week. Chelsea games look likely to be unpredictable but Sheffield United look set to attack every game they play, which could lead to a similar game to last week where Chelsea were able to score three times against Norwich. More of the same and it could be a good week to have Tammy Abraham.

4) Sebastien Haller (West Ham, Forward, £7.4m)

There is a risk we’re just following the points here but form is important. Haller scored twice in West Ham’s 3-1 win over Watford to announce his arrival to the Premier League. We’ve just mentioned Norwich’s open style last weekend and they are the visitors to the London Stadium this weekend. Haller will be confident of adding to his two goals as the Canaries are without a clean sheet so far this season.

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West Ham’s fixtures on the horizon are quite reasonable too, so Haller could be in your lineup for a number of weeks barring injury. Exciting midfielder Felipe Anderson is only £6.9m but there might be even more value in Manuel Lanzini, who at £6.5m has already registered two assists.

5) Richarlison (Everton, Midfield, £7.9m)

Everton haven’t exactly found their scoring touch so far, scoring only once in three games so far. They did however find their scoring touch with four goals away at Lincoln in midweek and Everton fans will hope it’s a sign of things to come. For that reason, I’ve put forward Richarlison as a bit of a punt pick this week.

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His price has already fallen from £8m but this could be his weekend. Wolves have struggled to find form so far on the back of playing in the Europa League on Thursday nights, so will Everton be able to take advantage of any Wolves weariness?

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Saleem has extended his lead to 20 points, a mammoth lead in Premier League terms. Captain Sterling was a big contributor with 16 points but Salah and Pukki were also a large part of the success. Ary Emery was the big winner, moving up to third with a score of 69. There’s an awful long way to go though and it can all change pretty quickly.

That’s all for this week, the deadline is back to the more traditional Saturday morning at 11.30am. Good luck with your teams and I’ll be back after the International break.

You can follow Dave on Twitter @CM9798