What to do with Antoine Semenyo (£8.1m)?

That’s a question millions of Fantasy Premier League (FPL) managers might be asking themselves during this international break, not least because of the Bournemouth star’s missed penalty last time out in Gameweek 11.

Giving him a scoreless match for the first time this season, it also meant Semenyo has just nine FPL points to show from his most recent four outings.

He still sits atop the FPL midfielders standings and has the third-most points overall, but is there a reason for owners to be concerned? Do the stats back up this dip in form?

We’ll dive into that, some of the reasons why it could make sense to hop off perhaps the biggest bandwagon of this early part of the campaign, and also some key points which may convince you it’s worth hanging onto Semenyo for now.

DO STATS BACK UP THE ‘DROP-OFF’?

First, a look at the drop-off in Semenyo’s output:

But do the stats back that up?

GOAL THREAT

Overall, Semenyo has slipped to eighth among FPL midfielders for goal attempts (23) this season, though it’s still only Mohamed Salah (£14.2m) and Bryan Mbeumo (£8.5m) who’ve had more shots in the box than his 19, and he’s joint-top with those two for Opta-defined ‘big chances’ (eight) and with Mbeumo for shots on target (14).

Just six midfielders, meanwhile, have had more than his 45 touches in the opposition’s penalty box.

But if we look at Semenyo’s first seven Gameweeks of the season versus his most recent four, there is definitely a drop-off in his stats as well as his output:

37 FPL midfielders have had more touches in the opposition’s penalty box than Semenyo over the last four Gameweeks, 26 have had more shots and shots in the box than his six and four, respectively, and 17 can beat his sole big chance, but still only two – Mbeumo and Enzo Fernandez (£6.7m) – can better his total of five shots on target.

Of course, one of those – and the only big chance – was his unsuccessful Gameweek 11 penalty.

Between Gameweeks 8 and 11, Semenyo was Bournemouth’s joint-leading shooter twice, against Crystal Palace and Manchester City, but found himself outperformed by several teammates against both Nottingham Forest and Aston Villa.

His cumulative non-penalty expected goal involvement (NPxGI) figure over the past four Gameweeks is a lowly 0.29; across the seven matches prior, it was one of the Premier League’s highest at 3.17.

CREATIVITY

Playmaking in the Bruno Fernandes (£8.9m) or Jack Grealish (£6.8m) mold has never necessarily been Semenyo’s game, but he’s still created a respectable 11 chances so far this season, too.

However, all but one of those came in the first seven Gameweeks of the season, and he hasn’t crafted one at all since Gameweek 9.

BUT IS IT ALL ON HIM?

It’s of course worth mentioning that the Cherries have suffered an overall dip in form to coincide with Semenyo’s own, with a record of W1, D1, L2 – with six goals scored and 10 goals conceded – in their last four Premier League outings compared to W4, D2, L1 – with 11 goals scored and eight goals against – from the seven matches before that.

But his declining personal stats, which are usually so highly ranked in this department, suggest that out of necessity – if opposition teams are beginning to ‘figure him out’ – or by Andoni Iraola’s design, Bournemouth have been channeling fewer of their attacks through Semenyo recently compared to the early weeks of the campaign.

Iraola’s side also managed five shots on target in each match between Gameweeks 8 and 10, only dipping below that in Gameweek 11 when they tested Villa’s goal three times and actually matched their hosts for big chances (two) but still came away with a 0-4 hiding.

REASONS TO SELL

So, it’s clear Semenyo’s stats have been on the decline recently, with a four Gameweek spell representing a decent-ish chunk of evidence.

Is it therefore time to part ways with Bournemouth’s hitherto main man?

On top of his dip in numbers and output, here are a few more reasons why the answer to that question could be ‘yes’.

DECLINING OWNERSHIP – SAFER TO SELL, AVOID POTENTIAL PRICE DROPS?

Semenyo is still owned by more than 64% of all FPL managers, but over 76,000 people have sold him since Gameweek 11 started, putting him in the top 10 for transfers out at the time of writing.

You’d expect the number of sales to grow, with a chance – depending on how bad it gets – that could lead to a price drop before the Gameweek 12 deadline. He’s in action for Ghana twice over this international break as well, on November 14th and 18th, so be sure to keep an eye on our team news articles in case he picks up any knocks.

OFF PENS?

Semenyo’s miss from 12 yards last time out could also mean he’s taken off spot-kick duty, particularly with last term’s go-to guy Justin Kluivert (£7.0m) returning to the fold in recent weeks.

To be fair to the Ghanaian, it was less a poorly taken effort and more so a fine stop from Emiliano Martinez (£5.0m), who followed his stinker of an evening against Liverpool in Gameweek 10 with a great display at Villa Park to shut the Cherries out altogether for only the second time in the Premier League this season.

Iraola agreed with that assessment, giving no post-match indication that Semenyo wouldn’t take the next penalty that Bournemouth win:

“It’s an amazing save also, it’s not a bad penalty.

“I think Antoine has taken penalties before, has scored goals. We have to accept when they don’t go in.” – Andoni Iraola on Semenyo’s unsuccessful penalty in Gameweek 11

However, with Kluivert – who hasn’t missed from the spot in his senior career, and netted six times from there in 2024/25 – in the frame again, there’s always a chance that it isn’t Semenyo stepping up anymore, which chips away at his FPL appeal further at a time when his threat from open play has already been waning.

SOME TOUGH FIXTURES AHEAD

Then there’s the Fixture Ticker.

Bournemouth sit just about in the upper half between now and Gameweek 21, but that run includes some potentially tricky tests such as Sunderland, Chelsea, Manchester United, Arsenal and even Brentford, given the Bees’ impressive home form this season.

Those away days look even tougher when you factor in Bournemouth’s struggles on the road: they’ve won just one of their six away matches this season, conceding 16 goals away from the Vitality Stadium (the second-most of any Premier League team) compared to just two goals on their own turf.

Semenyo personally has three goals away from home, though two of those were at Anfield back in Gameweek 1 and the other one was at Leeds United, plus a single away assist (in the 3-3 draw at Crystal Palace in Gameweek 8).

That means that of his eight most recent attacking returns, six have been in front of a home crowd.

REASONS TO KEEP

SOME GOOD (HOME) FIXTURES COMING UP

Given that last point, though, any FPL bosses with their finger hovering over the ‘sell’ button may want to pause for a second.

That’s because a quick look back at Bournemouth’s upcoming fixture list will tell you that in Gameweek 12, immediately after this international break, the Cherries host West Ham United.

Okay, Semenyo has actually never scored against the Hammers in four Premier League attempts (three of them starts) over the last two seasons. But he’s had his best-ever start to a league campaign while West Ham – despite winning two straight under Nuno Espirito Santo before the break – have just had their worst in more than half a century.

The Londoners have just one win away from home in 2025/26, while Bournemouth are unbeaten at the Vitality this season. Coupled with Semenyo’s own aforementioned home record, perhaps this isn’t the week to sell him just yet. 

Everton are next to come to the south coast, in Gameweek 14, and at the time of writing the Toffees’ away record is just as bad as West Ham’s (W1, D1, L3). Semenyo also scored against them last season (albeit at Goodison Park) to begin an almighty late comeback – could that play on the Merseysiders’ minds?

A few weeks after that, meanwhile, is Burnley, who have lost five of their six away games since returning to the top-flight, conceding a league-high 18 goals on the road in the process.

The Clarets and the Hammers are the worst sides in the division for key passes conceded down their left flank as well, which could benefit Semenyo, and those two, plus Everton, are the worst three clubs for shots in the box conceded so far this season as well.

And in actuality, when you limit the Fixture Ticker to look just at Gameweek 12-18, Bournemouth sit second behind only Liverpool based on overall fixture difficulty.

CAN SEMENYO RETURN AGAINST ANYONE?

Semenyo’s biggest FPL points haul of the current campaign (courtesy of a brace, an assist and maximum bonus points) may have come against struggling Fulham, but he did also score twice at Liverpool on the opening day.

And last season, the 25-year-old proved himself capable of delivering against big clubs as well. He found the net home and away against a then-impressive Nottingham Forest, got two assists against Newcastle United, scored home and away against Manchester United, bagged a goal against each of Manchester City and Chelsea, and even managed an assist at the Emirates Stadium. 

With that in mind, some of those matches in his upcoming run might be less difficult for him to return in that at first glance – provided he can get his stats back on track, of course.

90-MINUTE MAN

Being able to return in any game is, naturally, helped if you start every game – and Semenyo does. He’s been a 90-minute man throughout this season and nearly all of last season, too.

With the Cherries not having Europe to worry about, expect that trend to continue.

Plus, being a nailed-on starter is always a bonus in FPL but particularly during the congested winter schedule.

NO AFCON

There’s another reason for his pretty much guaranteed gametime in the foreseeable future, too.

Due to Ghana shockingly failing to qualify for the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations, Semenyo won’t have to be sold in a few weeks’ time when players like Mbeumo, Salah and more will be.

DO A FEW BAD WEEKS MAKE OR BREAK YOU?

If done correctly and with sufficient reasoning, there’s something to be said for reacting quickly to changing form by chopping and changing your FPL squad.

However, if you’re ditching good players – and Semenyo is undeniably one of those – then there’s always a chance that the FPL transfer curse comes back to bite you.

Remember, this is a player who, despite his recent dry spell, still has more FPL attacking returns (10 – six goals and four assists) than any other Premier League player not named Erling Haaland (£14.9m).

Pretty much everyone’s form will go up and down at some stage in a 38-match season, and there’s every chance Semenyo’s fortunes change for the better again at some point – possibly as early as Gameweek 12.

With the value many FPL managers have built up in him, bringing him back in at a later date therefore may prove difficult, especially if he doesn’t drop in price by as much as you might expect him to.

And with his ownership still currently as high as it is, any haul could see your rank take a sizable hit.

FINAL THOUGHTS

In conclusion, then, Semenyo’s drop in output has indeed been accompanied by a dip in his underlying stats, and there are a few other reasonable enough arguments that could be made for selling him, particularly if you have a solid replacement in mind.

However, there are also plenty of reasons why selling him now might not be the wisest choice. We’ll certainly revisit that assessment if the Ghana international blanks at home to West Ham but for now, it could be worth keeping the faith for at least one more Gameweek (if not longer).