We have chosen our best Fantasy Premier League (FPL) players for Gameweek 21 ahead of Tuesday’s 18:00 GMT deadline.
The Scout Picks is partly chosen from the Scout Squad submissions made by Neale, Tom, Marc and Sam.
As ever, we are limited by certain restrictions in our selection:
- An £83.0m budget for our starting XI
- An overall squad limit of £100.0m
- No more than three players per team
GAMEWEEK 21 SCOUT PICKS
GOALKEEPER
Aston Villa’s away clash at Everton hands Emiliano Martinez (£5.0m) a spot between the sticks.
The Argentine shot-stopper, who missed Friday’s 2-1 win over West Ham United due to a small injury, should be available in Gameweek 21.
The return of David Moyes might give Everton a lift, but the Toffees have scored a mere five goals in their last 10 matches, fewer than any other team in the division.
Goodison Park has also been a happy hunting ground for Villa in recent seasons, having kept clean sheets in each of their last three visits.
DEFENDERS
Newcastle United’s Lewis Hall (£4.9m) comes into contention for the home encounter against Wolverhampton Wanderers.
The Magpies have kept four clean sheets in the last five Gameweeks.
Hall’s propensity for points at the other end of the pitch is a major factor, too. The left-back has now served up three assists since mid-December.
The underlying stats suggest that this is no fluke: the former Chelsea man ranks fourth among defenders for chances created this season (27) and third for expected assists (xA, 3.11).
Elsewhere, Daniel Munoz (£4.7m) is drafted in as Crystal Palace make their way to the King Power Stadium.
Leicester City are in the bottom three for expected goals (xG) in 2024/25 and have scored just two in their last five matches, while Munoz has already demonstrated his attacking sensibilities by finding the net twice since Gameweek 13.
Noussair Mazraoui’s (£4.4m) raids down the flank bring him into our three-man backline.
Manchester United entertain a Southampton side that’s failed to score in five of their last six matches, with Ivan Juric’s arrival failing to galvanise the squad.
As for Mazraoui, he should fulfill a wing-back role in Gameweek 21, particularly with Diogo Dalot (£5.0m) suspended.
MIDFIELDERS
Mohamed Salah’s (£13.7m) relentless displays for Liverpool earn him yet another Scout Picks call-up.
The Egyptian has scored or assisted in each of his last 12 appearances for the league leaders, summing up his impact ahead of Tuesday’s trip to Nottingham Forest.
That said, the Tricky Trees are among the top three sides for the fewest actual and expected goals conceded (xGC) this season, so it’s no surprise Alexander Isak (£9.3m) has edged ahead in this week’s captain poll:
Cole Palmer (£11.4m) also gets the nod for Chelsea’s home encounter against Bournemouth.
The England international has served up seven goals and three assists at Stamford Bridge this term, including four double-digit hauls, and his contribution looks key if the Blues are to breach the Cherries backline.
Two goals and three assists in eight league appearances under Ruben Amorim earn Bruno Fernandes (£8.3m) a place in our midfield as Manchester United welcome Southampton to Old Trafford.
With others impressing in central midfield, Fernandes should reprise the No 10 role that saw him score against Arsenal in the FA Cup on Sunday.
Considering that the Saints have kept just two clean sheets all season, the Portuguese schemer could be an excellent pick in Gameweek 21.
Meanwhile, Anthony Gordon (£7.6m) cannot be overlooked for Newcastle’s home encounter with Wolves.
The winger has delivered three goals and four assists in his last seven starts and netted last time out against Tottenham Hotspur, underlining his outstanding return to form after a slow start to the campaign.
Gordon found the net in the corresponding fixture last season and will fancy his chances against a defence that’s conceded at least twice in seven of their 10 road trips.
A goal, an assist and three bonus points over the last two Gameweeks suggest Eberechi Eze (£6.6m) is finally starting to rediscover the form that took the top flight by storm during the latter stages of 2023/24.
Furthermore, the Crystal Palace midfielder has racked up 14 shots in the last three matches alone.
He also looks well-placed to profit from Leicester City’s ongoing issues defending set-pieces.
Teams sorted by set play attempts conceded (SP) in 2024/25
FORWARDS
Newcastle’s Alexander Isak (£9.3m) unsurprisingly earns a spot in our frontline for the visit of Vitor Pereira’s Wolves.
The Magpies striker has netted in each of his last seven appearances for the club, a period which has seen him average 9.9 points per start.
Bearing in mind Wolves have allowed their opponents nine big chances in the last two matches, Isak could be set to add to his 13-goal tally on Wednesday.
Yoane Wissa (£6.2m) hosts Manchester City on the back of an 11-point return in Gameweek 20.
The Brentford forward ranks fourth among forwards for big chances in 2024/25 and will be optimistic of breaching a backline that’s shut out their opponents in just two away fixtures this season.
SUBSTITUTES
- Bart Verbruggen (£4.5m) visits an Ipswich Town side who have lost Omari Hutchinson (£5.2m), Conor Chaplin (£5.1m) and Sammie Szmodics (£5.8m) to injury in recent weeks. One of three shut-outs Verbruggen has recorded this season came against Kieran McKenna’s side back in Gameweek 4.
- Lisandro Martinez (£4.4m) faces Southampton in Gameweek 20, having registered seven shots and five key passes in his last six appearances.
- Budget defender Josh Acheampong (£4.0m) makes the bench for Chelsea’s home clash with Bournemouth. The youngster was handed a surprise start at centre-back in Gameweek 20 and is expected to keep his place.
- Niclas Fullkrug’s (£6.7m) injury leaves Danny Ings (£5.0m) as the only fit striker at West Ham United. He should start or at least get minutes off the bench against Fulham in Gameweek 21.
THE CAPTAIN
We chose the Scout Picks captain using a vote between our Scout Squad panel.
We’re handing Cole Palmer the armband, with Mohamed Salah our vice-captain.
COMMUNITY CHAMPION
A Fantasy Football Scout community member takes on the Scout Picks each week.
The community member who beats our team by the largest margin will win a £100 Amazon voucher. They’ll also get a place in our Moderators and Contributors League for the following season.
Boleyn Boy’s 80-44 victory in Gameweek 6 gave them the biggest win (36 points difference) of 2024/25 so far.
Our champion this week is Dubem_FC, who has gone for: Pickford; Hall, Munoz, Konsa; Salah, Palmer, Fernandes (c), Sarr, Amad; Isak, Mateta
The Scout Picks are 11-6 up on the community this season.
FOLLOW THE SCOUT’S WEEKLY TRANSFER PLANS
We’re running a Scout FPL community team this season, with regulars like TopMarx, Tom Freeman, Marc Jobling and more contributing to the weekly decisions.
And we’re not just looking one week ahead like we are with the Scout Picks but instead planning in advance for the weeks and months to come.
You can follow our team via the Premier Fantasy Tools Pro Planner, which you can read more about here.
