Tips

The Complete Guide to Scout’s tips and advice for FPL Gameweek 38+

It’s here: the final day of the season! Soon all the tinkering will stop and the rollercoaster ride will begin. Strap yourselves in! 

Welcome to the Fantasy Football Scout Guide to Gameweek 38+. Today’s deadline is at 15:00 BST, one hour before all ten matches kick-off.

The basics first: check the team news. Neale watches all the press conferences throughout the season and will have a sense for how each Premier League manager might approach their last game.

His predicted line-ups and notes contain the most up-to-date information about each team. Make sure your picks or potential transfer targets are included in his best-guess starting XIs. We might get some early team news but it helps to be prepared as much as possible beforehand.

There are a number of different ways to approach Gameweek 38+ and what you choose to do may depend on your overall rank and mini-league situation.

Mark Sutherns, for instance, hasn’t enjoyed his best campaign despite climbing the ranks since the resumption. And he revealed on the FPL show that Christian Pulisic will be his captain because he needs something different to break into the top 100k.

But this isn’t a recommendation that all FPL managers do the same, as Mark himself admitted a safe pick would be a Manchester City player such as Raheem Sterling or, perhaps, Kevin De Bruyne. In the conclusion to his Captain Sensible article, David wrote:

Sterling is clearly the most promising asset from Guardiola’s squad based on his last four performances. No Citizen can match him for big chances or shots on target during that period as he has rediscovered his clinical edge and an impassioned desire to hit 20 or more goals in the Premier League this season.

– David, Captain Sensible

Not only is Sterling in good form but he faces a team in bad shape. Norwich City have conceded 54 shots in the box over their last four matches; only Brighton have been worse. 

It’s easy to understand why so many are considering Pep Guardiola’s troops. To add fuel to the fire, Pep himself revealed that scoring goals will be a motivation for his players:

Every game there has to be a target, a focus, a desire to win the game, and maybe, scoring 100 goals is one of the reasons why.

– Pep Guardiola

The Citizens are currently on 97 goals for the season. So, is everyone tripling up on the former champions?

We’ve had five articles from our Pro Pundits this week: Zophar, Sam, Az, Holly, and Lateriser12 and they all have three City players in their teams.

Likewise Neale, who is preparing his Free Hit team, and Andy, who isn’t on a Free Hit but will have three City attackers.

using-the-top-10000-ownership-to-increase-your-fpl-rank-andys-article 9

On the Scoutcast, Az unveiled an alternative Free Hit team, one without Aubameyang, while both Joe and guest Aleksander will have two City attackers. Aleksander is currently third in the world and is debating whether he goes all out to win FPL – which means picking some differentials – or playing safe and trying to hold onto the bronze medal.

And in his regular review, TheFantasyFreÆK explained how he favours the City front three

It seems only Mark will have one City player as he considers swapping Willian for David Silva

Who knows where the points are going to go, it’s a bit of a lottery isn’t it?

– Mark Sutherns, FPL Show

But there are plenty of opportunities this week for captain and transfer options with a number of enticing match-ups. 

Newcastle, as Neale outlined on the Team News video, are down five of their recognised six centre-halfs, while David described them as being “among the most obliging defences of the last four matches”.

Good news for Liverpool and perhaps Mohamed Salah, who has, according to expected goals, been “the ‘unluckiest’ player in the Premier League from Gameweek 30+ onwards when we factor in both the quality of his chances and the execution of his shots”.

As Pro Pundit Holly notes:

[Salah’s] top for shots (21), shots on target (12) and shots inside the box (19), so ignore him at your peril.

– Pro Pundit Holly
 1

On the Breakfast Club, Neale explained that Mané’s aerial ability could lead to points against the Magpies. Steve Bruce’s side have conceded the most headed chances since the restart, which is consistent with their performance all season. 

There could be a lot of joy in the air for Liverpool.

– Neale, Breakfast Club

Crystal Palace are another side who are expected to struggle, with injuries across their backline. Good news for Harry Kane:

Not only are the Eagles giving up a host of high-quality chances, Spurs’ centre-forward has been steadily improving his total of big chances and shots on target over the last four.

– David, Captain Sensible

Kane’s teammate Son Heung-min was mentioned by Aleksander on the Scoutcast, and Johnny Orphan, currently 53rd in the world, has an interesting theory that the Eagles’ current right-back Joel Ward is a weak link in their defence.

Meanwhile, Watford’s recent poor form will give encouragement to those backing Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Alexandre Lacazette. The latter was selected by Pro Pundit Tom Freeman as one of his three differentials this week.

[The Hornets’] 13 big chances conceded over the last four matches is the same number as Palace and Norwich but means giving up one every 2.7 shots in the box.

– David, Captain Sensible

Seven of those big chances conceded were against Manchester City, it has to be said. 

Tricky Calls

We might feel reasonably confident in predicting wins for City, Liverpool, Spurs and Arsenal but a number of matches are much harder to call.

Take Chelsea v Wolves, for example. Both teams need to get a result to fulfil their European ambitions. The boldness of Mark’s decision to hand Pulisic the armband is highlighted when we consider the strength of the opposition defence: 

Five big chances conceded by Wolverhampton Wanderers since the restart, which is the lowest total in the division. No club has conceded fewer goals (four), shots in the box (16) or efforts in the box (41) than Wolves from Gameweek 30+ onwards.

– Neale, Big Numbers

And Manchester United’s trip to Leicester City is another game with a lot potentially riding on the result – a place in the Champions League could be at stake.

Their recent schedule afforded Ole Gunnar Solskjær’s men very little time to recover between matches, which may well have contributed to some tired-looking performances. However, as Az warned on the Scoutcast, taking out United players could hurt given their huge ownership levels. 

But, equally, this could be a very cagey match as a draw will be good enough for both teams should Wolves beat Chelsea.

Go cheap at the back?

With many managers looking to invest in appealing attacking assets, identifying cut-price defenders with clean sheet potential could be key to Gameweek 38+ success.

So Chris Wood’s comments ahead of Burnley’s match against Brighton were music to our ears:

As a team, we’ll be fighting like hell for [Nick Pope]. He’s an outstanding goalkeeper. Hopefully, we can get him one more so he can get his hands on the Golden Glove.

– Chris Wood

Not only do Burnley offer several cheap defensive options but there’s also the chance they could produce some attacking returns too:

36 chances conceded by Brighton and Hove Albion from their right flank since the restart. Only relegated Norwich City have allowed more opportunities to be created from that zone than the Seagulls… Erik Pieters could potentially exploit that weakness when the two sides meet on Sunday, then.

– Neale, Big Numbers

Since replacing Bernd Leno in goal in Gameweek 30+, Emiliano Martinez has saved 83.3% of the shots on target he’s faced. At £4.4m, he could help enable more expensive options further forward.

And Southampton have the fifth-best chance of recording a clean sheet according to the latest odds supplied, as ever, by G-Whizz. Alex McCarthy, Jack Stephens and Kyle Walker-Peters are all sub-£4.5m options for our squads.

Enjoy the final day

Lateriser12 reminded us that we should try to have fun, and one way of doing that is by playing the game our way:

… you still need to make well informed decisions that are based on stats and the eye-test and on the correct side of probability. The point is that you have to be happy you made the right choice for your playing style, regardless of the outcome.

– Lateriser12

In his article this week, he quoted former community member Eunuch Jelly, who defined what made playing FPL so enjoyable for him:

If you keep your eye on the ball, you can set yourself up for hours of enjoyment at the expense of your rivals. I urge you to transcend points and find the true heart of the game, where those who take a different path can mock others for a few minutes on the weekend and be the real champions of the game.

– Eunuch Jelly

Whether it’s getting one over on a rival or reaching a certain rank, FPL is a game which unites us all.

And speaking of the Fantasy community, here’s your chance to get more involved with the site by joining the Scout Network.

Be it a cool tool, a video channel, amazing tech skills or anything else in between, we want to hear from you.

Community Competitions

For an update on all FFS Mini-Leagues and Community Competitions – including the winners of both the Head-to-Head league and Last Man Standing – please click here to read the latest round-up.

The Head-to-Head fixtures for Gameweek 38+ can be found below:

Use the drop-down menus to show your league and division. To find out which league and division you are in (although you probably know by now!), follow the instructions on the main Head-to-Head page.

May your arrows be green!


TopMarx Fan of Fantasy Football and Monty Python. "Archimedes out to Socrates, Socrates back to Archimedes, Archimedes out to Heraclitus, he beats Hegel. Heraclitus a little flick, here he comes on the far post, Socrates is there, Socrates heads it in! Socrates has scored! The Greeks are going mad, the Greeks are going mad! Socrates scores, got a beautiful cross from Archimedes. The Germans are disputing it. Hegel is arguing that the reality is merely an a priori adjunct of non-naturalistic ethics, Kant via the categorical imperative is holding that ontologically it exists only in the imagination, and Marx is claiming it was offside. Follow them on Twitter

3,847 Comments Post a Comment
  1. JBG
    • 5 Years
    3 years, 8 months ago

    Kdb + Vardy to Sterling + Kane worth it for -4? Already won my ML, just wanna push for top 10k. C Sterling.

    1. Moose™
      • 11 Years
      3 years, 8 months ago

      Go for it!

    2. Sim Simma
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 13 Years
      3 years, 8 months ago

      Top 10k teams will have those players. Go for a differential

      1. JBG
        • 5 Years
        3 years, 8 months ago

        Who else :/?

    3. Orion
      • 13 Years
      3 years, 8 months ago

      yup why not

  2. Babit1967
    • 7 Years
    3 years, 8 months ago

    What time is the cut off for transfers ?

    1. Von Lipwig
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 5 Years
      3 years, 8 months ago

      49 mins

    2. Up the tics
      • 8 Years
      3 years, 8 months ago

      3pm uk

  3. FOO FIGHTER
    • 4 Years
    3 years, 8 months ago

    This gives me some comfort. I reckon Klopp to play his strongest defence 😉

    Midfield is where he will play fresh legs

    “I think and I hope we will have the ball the majority of the time, that means protection must be perfect because whatever system they play – and they played pretty much all the systems during the season – there’s one or two strikers they leave up front and that’s quite a challenge for protection. So we have to be spot on.”

    1. JURGENAUT
      • 3 Years
      3 years, 8 months ago

      Which Liverpool defender do you have? I got TAA but this makes me more calm

      1. FOO FIGHTER
        • 4 Years
        3 years, 8 months ago

        Trent.

        May bring in Robbo for -4. Still deciding.

    2. Maximus Bonimus Pointimus
      • 14 Years
      3 years, 8 months ago

      You capping your main man Mo Foo Fighter?

      1. FOO FIGHTER
        • 4 Years
        3 years, 8 months ago

        Raz

    3. jtreble
      • 7 Years
      3 years, 8 months ago

      A "spot on" "protection scheme" to deal with the NEW strikers would imply Klopp needs fresh legs in midfield **and** on defence imho.

  4. konrad.sygula95
    • 6 Years
    3 years, 8 months ago

    Best Captain ?
    A) Auba
    B) Salah
    C) Kdb
    D) D. Silva
    E) Jesus

    1. b91jh
      • 6 Years
      3 years, 8 months ago

      DBCAE

  5. zizoo10
    • 8 Years
    3 years, 8 months ago

    DCL • Greenwood • _________

    A) Rashford
    B) Jiminez

  6. Moose™
    • 11 Years
    3 years, 8 months ago

    A. VVD Pulisic

    B. Bertrand Martial

    C. TAA Greenwood

    1. Up the tics
      • 8 Years
      3 years, 8 months ago

      A

  7. b91jh
    • 6 Years
    3 years, 8 months ago

    A) KDB+Wilson
    B) Mahrez+Lacazette

    Which is better?

  8. Hardly Athletic
    • 14 Years
    3 years, 8 months ago

    Most reliable twitter account for Man City team news?

    1. iL PiStOlErO
      • 4 Years
      3 years, 8 months ago

      Hard to say. They are rotating all the time

      1. Champ
        • Fantasy Football Scout Member
        • 13 Years
        3 years, 8 months ago

        Lol

    2. Guy Demel
      • 11 Years
      3 years, 8 months ago

      @mancity

  9. Ruinenlust
    • 6 Years
    3 years, 8 months ago

    TAA out for Neco Williams?

    1. Christina.
      • 14 Years
      3 years, 8 months ago

      definitely

      1. La Roja
        • 12 Years
        3 years, 8 months ago

        Eh?

    2. jtreble
      • 7 Years
      3 years, 8 months ago

      Seems likely.

    3. kalshot
      • 3 Years
      3 years, 8 months ago

      No. St Max against Nico?! Klopp isn't that mad

  10. primal33
    • Fantasy Football Scout Member
    • 5 Years
    3 years, 8 months ago

    Bottomed...Foden to Dilva for a -4 worth it?

    1. bc82
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 13 Years
      3 years, 8 months ago

      Both should be given a good run out, but I'd say silva will be in the spotlight.. players will want to assist him too.. worth a punt at -4 for sure

  11. MGD
    • 7 Years
    3 years, 8 months ago

    Play:

    A) Greenwood + Robertson (2 Burnley def)
    B) Ings + Pieters (3 Burnley def)

    Ty

  12. SAKA AND EMILE SMITH ROWE
    • 7 Years
    3 years, 8 months ago

    Salah (C) anyone?

    1. Christina.
      • 14 Years
      3 years, 8 months ago

      no one

      1. KaBoZ: Kids,don't Drin…
        • Fantasy Football Scout Member
        • 9 Years
        3 years, 8 months ago

        Why Christina? He's due, and newcastle are on the beach and without defenders

    2. KaBoZ: Kids,don't Drin…
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 9 Years
      3 years, 8 months ago

      me if I don't get Sterling for a hit

    3. Amey
      • 5 Years
      3 years, 8 months ago

      Vice for me

  13. DandyDon
    • 5 Years
    3 years, 8 months ago

    Lacazette or Aubameyang!?

    1. b91jh
      • 6 Years
      3 years, 8 months ago

      Currently on Laca.

    2. Reggie Nainggolan
      • 7 Years
      3 years, 8 months ago

      Auba if you have to

      Nketiah most likely to start imo

  14. Bishopool
    • 12 Years
    3 years, 8 months ago

    Who are you captaining??

    1. DandyDon
      • 5 Years
      3 years, 8 months ago

      Sterling

    2. b91jh
      • 6 Years
      3 years, 8 months ago

      Sterling. Kane as the back-up option.

    3. iL PiStOlErO
      • 4 Years
      3 years, 8 months ago

      Dilva or Salah

  15. Maximus Bonimus Pointimus
    • 14 Years
    3 years, 8 months ago

    Coming to the sad realisation that TC’ing Dilva May be a bit wreckless with Sterling’s EO going to be >100% 🙁

    1. Up the tics
      • 8 Years
      3 years, 8 months ago

      Lol, yeah go sterling, youll enjoy it more

    2. Camzy
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 13 Years
      3 years, 8 months ago

      I don't think it'll be over 100%.

      1. Maximus Bonimus Pointimus
        • 14 Years
        3 years, 8 months ago

        If Sterlings ownership last week was 28% (EO 31%)

        And 30% of the Top10k still have Free Hit

        Then we’re really looking at a Sterling EO of way over 100% this week right?

        i.e. say most Free Hitters get him & his ownership pops up to 50%

        Then a 5-10% ownership increase from non-FH FT’s brings it up to 60%

        Then double that for captaincy & triple captaincy....

        Could be a disaster NOT to captain at that ownership actually

    3. Woy_is_back
      • 6 Years
      3 years, 8 months ago

      Sterling starts in the bench imo

      1. Maximus Bonimus Pointimus
        • 14 Years
        3 years, 8 months ago

        In the bench or on the bench?!

  16. KaBoZ: Kids,don't Drin…
    • Fantasy Football Scout Member
    • 9 Years
    3 years, 8 months ago

    Pick 1 to play:
    A) Fernandes
    B) Vardy

  17. Amey
    • 5 Years
    3 years, 8 months ago

    Bench of Peiters Nketiah Johnson !

    Bring it on rotation .... (No cameo's please 😉 )

  18. Reggie Nainggolan
    • 7 Years
    3 years, 8 months ago

    Salah for Sterling TC?

    1. KaBoZ: Kids,don't Drin…
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 9 Years
      3 years, 8 months ago

      I'd try to keep both, but sterling TC is a good shout

    2. iL PiStOlErO
      • 4 Years
      3 years, 8 months ago

      Aksing the same. At the end I will keep Salah and TC him or Dilva

  19. Mr_Barbs
    • 6 Years
    3 years, 8 months ago

    Any below worth -4?

    A) Vardy > Kane
    B) Lascelles > Robbo/Aurier/Tark (have TAA/pope)

  20. Geezer
    • 13 Years
    3 years, 8 months ago

    Just woke up. Any early line ups?

    1. Sim Simma
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 13 Years
      3 years, 8 months ago

      Not from FPL Rockstar or Scarface

    2. Amey
      • 5 Years
      3 years, 8 months ago

      Yeah
      Vardy Nacho Albrighton starts for Leicester

      1. iL PiStOlErO
        • 4 Years
        3 years, 8 months ago

        Barnes at rb

  21. Astronautovic
    • 8 Years
    3 years, 8 months ago

    Aurier or Davies?

    1. GoingUpUpUp
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 5 Years
      3 years, 8 months ago

      I went Aurier - concerned (but understand) he may not make the squad today, but think if he plays he will do better

    2. iL PiStOlErO
      • 4 Years
      3 years, 8 months ago

      Aurier, more power

  22. FPLGeezer
    • Fantasy Football Scout Member
    • 5 Years
    3 years, 8 months ago

    Sterling in for a hit worth it if captaining?

    1. Brazooka
      • 11 Years
      3 years, 8 months ago

      Sure.

  23. FDMS All Starz
    • 8 Years
    3 years, 8 months ago

    If trent doesnt start, which one of this is better?

    A)
    Martinez
    Pieters - Bardsley - Nico
    Salah - Dilva - Sterling - MARTIAL
    Kane - AUBA - JESUS

    C)
    Martinez
    Pieters - Nico - Bardsley
    Salah - Dilva - Sterling - MANE - MAHREZ
    Kane - INGS

  24. Debauchy
    • 11 Years
    3 years, 8 months ago

    Couple hours to go , thinking Demba Ba must be busy setting up his many laptops , couple TVs on the wall.
    Wondering how many OMGs he will get on one page. GL all, let the goals flow

  25. Moose™
    • 11 Years
    3 years, 8 months ago

    VVD or Doherty?

    1. Amey
      • 5 Years
      3 years, 8 months ago

      VVD

    2. Hairy Potter
      • 8 Years
      3 years, 8 months ago

      VVD

    3. Up the tics
      • 8 Years
      3 years, 8 months ago

      Vvvvvd

    4. jtreble
      • 7 Years
      3 years, 8 months ago

      VVD.

  26. Pringle
    • 10 Years
    3 years, 8 months ago

    Mahrez out of ffs favour now?

  27. Joshtrini
    • 5 Years
    3 years, 8 months ago

    Emi
    Taa saiss tark
    Willian kdb dsilva puli bruno
    Laca jesus
    Bench: greenwood, taylor, lundstram
    TC available
    1 FT
    Thinking KDB --> SON and TC DSILVA
    g2g?

  28. Ruinenlust
    • 6 Years
    3 years, 8 months ago

    Antonio or Greenwood??

    1. Up the tics
      • 8 Years
      3 years, 8 months ago

      A

    2. Jack Burton
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 8 Years
      3 years, 8 months ago

      Same issue just got rid of Antonio for him not sure how I feel about it though

  29. Woy_is_back
    • 6 Years
    3 years, 8 months ago

    I'm surprised to see so few FH teams with Rich in them.

  30. Mini Mahouse
    • Fantasy Football Scout Member
    • 11 Years
    3 years, 8 months ago

    Only thing I can't decide on - And would be lovely to get early team news for this decision

    A) Aurier & KDB
    B) Robertson & Mahrez