The Watchlist takes a look at the stand-out Fantasy Premier League (FPL) options over a four-to-six-week lookahead, rather than concentrating on just the upcoming Gameweek as the Scout Picks does.
In the latter’s case, that takes us right through until the end of the 2022/23 campaign.
We’ve recently had our weekly refresh, with the main changes explained below.
ABOUT THE WATCHLIST
Players are selected and ranked according to factors such as form, club injuries, forthcoming fixtures, Rate My Team’s points projections and whether or not the player in question is likely to be a bargain in FPL.
Arrows before the name indicate whether a player has climbed or fallen in our reckoning since the previous update or if they are a new entry into the tables.
We typically toe the line with FPL’s definition of ‘form’ (average points accrued in matches played over the last 30 days) but allowances are sometimes made for players missing because of/coming back from injury.
The key for the factors you’ll see in the below tables is as follows:
THE WATCHLIST: BEST FPL GOALKEEPERS
The main changes to our goalkeeping pecking order sees Ederson (£5.4m) and David de Gea (£5.0m) rise to the number one and two spots respectively.
That means Brighton and Hove Albion shot-stopper Jason Steele (£3.9m) drops to fourth. The 32-year-old returned to the matchday squad for Sunday’s FA Cup semi-final after a minor injury, but in his absence, Robert Sanchez (£4.5m) has impressed, so the situation is unclear heading into Gameweek 33.
What is worth noting, however, is that all three of these goalkeepers and their respective teams have more fixtures and Double Gameweeks than anyone else still to come, which is why their assets feature so prominently throughout the Watchlist.
| Team | Remaining fixtures | Remaining Double Gameweeks |
| Brighton | 9 | 3 |
| Man City, Man Utd | 8 | 2 |
| Chelsea, Fulham, Liverpool, Newcastle, West Ham | 7 | 1 |
| Arsenal, Aston Villa, Bournemouth, Brentford, Crystal Palace, Everton, Leeds, Leicester, Nott’m Forest, Southampton, Spurs, Wolves | 6 | 0 |
THE WATCHLIST: BEST FPL DEFENDERS
There’s not much movement at the top, where fixture-proof Kieran Trippier (£6.2m) remains despite Newcastle United only keeping one clean sheet in 11 appearances. The 32-year-old is again joined by Fabian Schar (£5.1m), should he shake off a hamstring issue from Sunday’s 6-1 thrashing of Spurs.
Trent Alexander-Arnold (£7.5m) picked up his seventh post-World Cup assist on Saturday when no other defender has more than three. He stays ahead of risers Luke Shaw (£5.1m) – now back from injury – and Ben Chilwell (£5.8m), who has no Champions League rotation to worry about and a Double Gameweek 37 still to come.
Moving down is Ben White (£5.0m), as Arsenal are about to enter a tough four-game period that is without a double. They’ve also conceded at least twice in each of their last three outings.
Crystal Palace’s Joachim Andersen (£4.5m) is on two successive clean sheets, whilst Timothy Castagne‘s (£4.3m) weekend goal brought a double-digit return.
THE WATCHLIST: BEST FPL MIDFIELDERS
Plenty of green arrows appear on the midfield list, with Brighton, Manchester City and Manchester United all back in league action. Marcus Rashford (£7.1m) quickly recovered from a groin injury, although we won’t find out if teammate Bruno Fernandes‘ (£9.5m) ankle issue is problematic until after the deadline passes. He stays put as a result.
Both Kaoru Mitoma (£5.6m) and Solly March (£5.2m) rise but Alexis Mac Allister (£5.5m) stays still now that head coach Roberto De Zerbi has confirmed that attacking midfielder Facundo Buonanotte (£4.5m) will start at Nottingham Forest. It hints that Mac Allister may sit deeper, diminishing his goal threat from open play.
Ahead of their top-of-the-table clash at the Etihad Stadium, there are contrasting directions for Man City and Arsenal midfielders. Both Jack Grealish (£7.2m) and Kevin De Bruyne (£12.1m) are on the up, with Bukayo Saka (£8.4m) and Gabriel Martinelli (£6.9m) moving down.
THE WATCHLIST: BEST FPL FORWARDS
Normality is resumed now that Erling Haaland (£12.2m) is back on top.
Third and fourth place goes to Alexander Isak (£6.8m) and Diogo Jota (£8.8m), both of whom bagged a 13-point haul in Gameweek 32. The latter preceded this with 16 points at Leeds, something which Jurgen Klopp is unlikely to rotate away from at such a crucial stage of the season.
Harry Kane (£11.5m) remains ahead of them both, with the very real threat of rotation at Newcastle and Liverpool meaning that the Spurs striker will very likely end up making as many (maybe even more) starts than the ‘doubling’ Isak and Jota over the run-in.
Off the list completely is Gabriel Jesus (£8.2m) with the tricky fixture run ahead, with Anthony Martial (£6.3m) and Odsonne Edouard (£5.0m) offering some differential potential for managers needing a late push during these final weeks.
Evan Ferguson (£4.6m) remains in place despite likely missing out in Gameweek 33, as he should return thereafter in time for Brighton’s three remaining Double Gameweeks.
