Gameweek 2 of Fantasy Premier League (FPL) is just hours away, which gives us an opportunity to have a look at some more differential options.
This time, we’ve selected low-owned picks at Liverpool, Tottenham Hotspur and Brentford, who we think have the potential to make an impact.
As always, to qualify, the player must have an ownership of 5% or less at the time of writing.
DOMINIK SZOBOSZLAI
- FPL ownership: 3.8%
- Price: £7.0m
Dominik Szoboszlai (£7.0m) played the entirety of Liverpool’s Gameweek 1 draw with Chelsea, showing some promising signs.
The summer arrival from RB Leipzig was deployed on the right-hand side of Jurgen Klopp’s midfield, pushing up into the advanced no. 8 role in possession, before finishing the game on the left of Liverpool’s front three.
He showed some nice touches, with his creativity shining through.
Szoboszlai completed the most passes that led to a shot (3) and took two of the Reds’ four corners. He also racked up more final-third touches (24) than any other team-mate at Stamford Bridge.
“The new players gave us a massive opportunity in offensive moments. Dom [Szoboszlai] is a beast, he played three positions today. Top boys, top players.” – Jurgen Klopp on his new signings
Saturday’s meeting with Bournemouth should allow the 22-year-old an even better chance to demonstrate those creative qualities, especially via set pieces. Three goals in pre-season came from his corners, while the Cherries conceded more chances from dead-ball situations than any other side in 2022/23.
And if Klopp continues with his ultra-attacking line-up, which includes Szoboszlai, Cody Gakpo (£7.5m), Mohamed Salah (£12.5m), Luis Diaz (£7.6m) and Diogo Jota (£8.0m) in the same XI, expect the goals to flow.
Capable of scoring from distance or playing a creative final ball, Szoboszlai looks like an excellent differential option in Gameweek 2.
RICHARLISON
- FPL ownership: 4.1%
- Price: £7.0m
Richarlison (£7.0m) has struggled for form since joining Tottenham Hotspur from Everton last year and looked a bit rusty against Brentford in Gameweek 1.
However, new boss Ange Postecoglou is clearly a fan of the Brazilian and will count on him after Harry Kane’s move to Bayern Munich, suggesting he could be in for a big season.
Listed as a midfielder in FPL, he is effectively playing out-of-position as Spurs’ lone forward.
And given how good Tottenham looked in attack at Brentford, he should score plenty of goals, especially with the likes of James Maddison (£7.5m), Dejan Kulusevski (£7.0m) and Son Heung-min (£9.0m) creating for him.
“I thought he worked hard today but I felt we didn’t use him enough. I thought we could have been a little bit more direct to him and look for him a little bit more. He was making some good runs and he was working hard. He had a couple of half opportunities but I thought we could have created more for him.
The key for us with Richy is to keep supporting him because he’s working awfully hard for the team in a defensive sense and when we get in that front third I thought we didn’t look enough for him today. I have got a lot of time for him. He’s a striker and he’s got a lot of great attributes and he will always work hard for the team and that’s a good starting point for me.” – Ange Postecoglou on Richarlison
Spurs meet a Manchester United side on Saturday evening who shipped plenty of chances against Wolverhampton Wanderers, with their midfield often overrun, so there could be goals in this one.
They have a very favourable schedule from Gameweek 3 onwards, too, with back-to-back matches against Bournemouth, Burnley and Sheffield United.
Yes, Richarlison hasn’t been great so far, but he was effective for Brazil at the FIFA World Cup and scored plenty of goals for Everton previously, so he could be a nice differential pickup.
RICO HENRY
- FPL ownership: 3.6%
- Price: £4.5m
While we’d love to include Chelsea’s Malo Gusto (£4.0m) here in light of Reece James’ (£5.5m) injury, it arguably feels a bit premature with a number of other right-back options available to Mauricio Pochettino.
So, we’re going to monitor that situation this weekend and have instead opted for Rico Henry (£4.5m).
The Brentford man underlined his importance to Thomas Frank with a great display against Tottenham Hotspur in Gameweek 1.
Playing as a wing-back, he was involved in the build-up to the Bees opener, before setting up Yoane Wissa (£6.0m) for their second. He also ranked top among team-mates for key passes (3), attempted crosses (3) and successful take-ons (3).
He won’t always be a wing-back – Brentford regularly switch to a back four against easier opposition – but he will carry an attacking threat regardless. That’s because no team in the Premier League focused more of their attacks down the left flank than the Bees (41%) in 2022/23.
While a clean sheet at Fulham this weekend is far from certain (only four sides stopped the Cottagers from scoring at home throughout 2022/23), looking further ahead, Henry should provide real value, with home clashes against Crystal Palace, Bournemouth and Everton to come.
With an ownership of just 3.6%, Henry is a great differential pick at the back.
