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

    The most important thing today is Man United missing out on Top 4!

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

      Vardy hatty

      1. Hazz
        • Fantasy Football Scout Member
        • 6 Years
        3 years, 8 months ago

        Inject it.

    2. tokara
      • 9 Years
      3 years, 8 months ago

      F off lol

  2. Lubic87
    • Fantasy Football Scout Member
    • 13 Years
    3 years, 8 months ago

    That was a brutal last 5 mins before the deadline - frantically changed my FH team when I saw the Liverpool leak. Ended up bringing in Auba for Salah (switching my fodder to midfield), Robbo for TAA, and KDB back in for Mahrez (had no idea he wasn't starting, just wanted to use the funds).

    Relieved its over!

    1. DA Minnion (Former great)
      • 11 Years
      3 years, 8 months ago

      Done well.

  3. PascalCygan
    • Fantasy Football Scout Member
    • 6 Years
    3 years, 8 months ago

    Sold Salah yesterday as a desperate differential punt against my ML rival. That's one player fewer to worry about!

  4. Rolls-Royce
    • 10 Years
    3 years, 8 months ago

    Williams coming on for Bellerin already. Mahrez benched lmao

  5. Yome
    • 12 Years
    3 years, 8 months ago

    Gutted about Mahrez, I panicked when I sold my LFC players and didn’t do Mahrez to KDB

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

      Me too... didn't know about Mahrez benching until after the deadline.. initially prefered him over KDB anyway as he seemed a sure starter... tricked by the Pep Roulette again!

  6. FPL Blow-In
    • 11 Years
    3 years, 8 months ago

    I hope Trent doesn’t feature at all now. Very frustrating, I hadn’t taken a hit in so long.

  7. A Fat Spanish Waiter
    • Fantasy Football Scout Member
    • 9 Years
    3 years, 8 months ago

    Going to be a lot of unexpected hits this week.

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

    This site crashed in the last 10 mins where did you all see the team leaks. Anyway I’m pretty sure I left Salah(c)

    Stupid question I know but any chance he stays on the bench for the whole game?

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

      Site was up with a few minutes left

    2. Letsgo!
      • 7 Years
      3 years, 8 months ago

      Nope he will come in at the 80 the mins haa

  9. tokara
    • 9 Years
    3 years, 8 months ago

    I changed my C to DSilva, chicken out on sterling (bitten b4)

  10. Canary_Kid
    • 7 Years
    3 years, 8 months ago

    Mahrez (tc) 🙁

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

      Haha, unlucky.

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

      Sh.t

    3. Twisted Saltergater
      • 14 Years
      3 years, 8 months ago

      Anything can still happen. Hang in there, it's not over til it's over.

  11. Shark Team
    • 6 Years
    3 years, 8 months ago

    You can't feel me if you haven't done Salah and Mahrez to Son and KDB...

  12. sully29
    • Fantasy Football Scout Member
    • 9 Years
    3 years, 8 months ago

    Saw Neale retweet the Liverpool line-up but to my shame I wondered how trustworthy the info he was retweeting was.

    The lesson is, trust Neale.

    1. Athletic Nasherbo
      • 7 Years
      3 years, 8 months ago

      Neale is the goat with team news. Literally his job.

  13. NABIL - FPL otai
    • 11 Years
    3 years, 8 months ago

    Benched salah for foden just in time.

    Thanks Twitter

  14. The Red Devil
    • 9 Years
    3 years, 8 months ago

    Just did TAA & ings to pieters & Aubameyang, feels ok ok with it, still have robbo for pool CS
    So, the kopHQ is reliable!

  15. Pompel
    • 10 Years
    3 years, 8 months ago

    Salah benched worst thing for me. And he'll come on to block Foden haul from bench

  16. Sun Jihai
    • Fantasy Football Scout Member
    • 12 Years
    3 years, 8 months ago

    Just noticed Lundstram starts - dead teams in heaven!

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

      First sub so TAA will 100% get a 1 pointer

      Same happened with a Otamendi in GW11

  17. Mike2795647
    • 9 Years
    3 years, 8 months ago

    Not sure if it’s good or not, brought in cover for TAA for a -4, bottled changing Salah for Sterling as someone on here posted that Sterling was benched as well. 9 players starting but certainly makes it fu in 30-45 minutes to see what people in my mini league have

  18. panda07
    • Fantasy Football Scout Member
    • 11 Years
    3 years, 8 months ago

    Salah (c) here- oh well!

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

      30 mins against tired legs could = brace. Hang in there.

    2. Drexl Spivey
      • 5 Years
      3 years, 8 months ago

      He'll be on after half time. Need not worry.

      1. have you seen cyan
        • 4 Years
        3 years, 8 months ago

        this, Liverpool will be losing at half time with that attack. Theres fresh legs, and then theres that..

    3. have you seen cyan
      • 4 Years
      3 years, 8 months ago

      🙁

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

    I feel quite regret that I made Laca to Auba on last minutes thanks to the funds free up by Salah. Too shocked to see Salah benched and afraid that Laca will be benched also. Hope Auba could match Laca points tho.

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

      No he is not

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

      Reply fail

  20. Hazz
    • Fantasy Football Scout Member
    • 6 Years
    3 years, 8 months ago

    Williams is a bit of an issue for TAA in our teams next season.

    1. FPL Blow-In
      • 11 Years
      3 years, 8 months ago

      Especially when you consider his price

    2. MrZ
      • 9 Years
      3 years, 8 months ago

      He'll only threat TAA position in gw 38

  21. Athletic Nasherbo
    • 7 Years
    3 years, 8 months ago

    I was debating whether to start Lundstram instead of Egan. I just know the Lord will score!

  22. Rainer
    • 7 Years
    3 years, 8 months ago

    Foden hatty is happening, isn't it 😀

    1. Cilly Bonnolly
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 12 Years
      3 years, 8 months ago

      I f**king hope so.

  23. beric
    • 12 Years
    3 years, 8 months ago

    in the last minute panic i totaly forgot about son and went for martial. hopefully works out!

  24. diesel001
    • 7 Years
    3 years, 8 months ago

    Anyone else got 11 starters on their FH team?

    1. beric
      • 12 Years
      3 years, 8 months ago

      yep

    2. The Red Devil
      • 9 Years
      3 years, 8 months ago

      Yep, triple Burnley defence though

  25. RAFA THE GAFFA
    • 7 Years
    3 years, 8 months ago

    Feel physically sick with this lot 🙂

    Pope
    TAA, Aurier, Pieters
    Salah, Sterling(C), Dilva, Mahrez, Pulisic
    Kane, Ings

    1. RAFA THE GAFFA
      • 7 Years
      3 years, 8 months ago

      That was meant to be a 🙁 🙁 🙁 🙁 🙁

    2. diesel001
      • 7 Years
      3 years, 8 months ago

      Damn. 1pt for both TAA and Mahrez likely as well

    3. Top Lad Dakes.
      • 7 Years
      3 years, 8 months ago

      Very unlucky mate. I’m the same with Mane Trent Mahrez, but no Sterling.

      1. RAFA THE GAFFA
        • 7 Years
        3 years, 8 months ago

        Could literally cry 🙁

    4. BobbyDoesNotLook
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 6 Years
      3 years, 8 months ago

      I have exactly this team. Previously had Kdb, Jesus and Foden from City.

  26. Saïss Doesn't Mat…
    • 7 Years
    3 years, 8 months ago

    Have y'all calmed your tiities now?? Jeez it was a pandemic in here haha

    1. Cilly Bonnolly
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 12 Years
      3 years, 8 months ago

      Was a bit mental wasn't it? 😀

  27. vincentwsho
    • Fantasy Football Scout Member
    • 5 Years
    3 years, 8 months ago

    Managed to change TAA to Robbo, another bench defender to VVD and Salah to Bruno....:)

    But didn't know about Mahrez until after the lock..... 🙁 hopefully he plays 45 minutes and gets a goal and assist

  28. Top Lad Dakes.
    • 7 Years
    3 years, 8 months ago

    Hope for a Vardy hattrick tbh. Rashford Greenwood in the foals too, 4-4 FT

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

      Let the horses run free.

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

    The day of 1 point cameos is about to commence ...

  30. The Ejiptian King
    • 5 Years
    3 years, 8 months ago

    Was the Liverpool lineup known here then? I've got nothing to play for so wasn't watching.

    1. FPL Blow-In
      • 11 Years
      3 years, 8 months ago

      Wouldn’t know, couldn’t load anything on here.