Budget FPL defender Mitchell can capitalise on Palace’s good fixtures

Gameweek 11 of Fantasy Premier League (FPL) is almost upon us, which gives us an opportunity to have a look at some more differential options.

This time, we’ve selected low-owned picks at Crystal Palace, Southampton and Liverpool 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.

TYRICK MITCHELL

• FPL ownership: 0.9%
• Price: £4.5m
• GW11-15 fixtures: WOL | bur | AVL | lee | MUN

Tyrick Mitchell (£4.5m) has played every minute of Premier League action so far this season, and has been a standout performer in Patrick Vieira’s new-look Crystal Palace.

The academy graduate, 22, has won at least eight more tackles than any other defender in the division, whilst he also leads his team-mates for interceptions. Despite that, he rarely commits a foul, and has conceded just five in total all season.

Mitchell has just one Premier League goal and assist to his name to date – both of which came in a 3-2 win against Aston Villa back in May – but now playing under a more progressive coach, could be set to add to his tally soon.

Tactically, Joel Ward (£4.5m) has tended to play as a more defence-minded right full-back under Vieira this season, tucking in to form a back-three in possession, while Mitchell has been able to push on a little more, almost performing as a wing-back at times. As a result, only Wilfried Zaha (£6.9m) – who he is forging a good relationship with – and Conor Gallagher (£5.7m) have accumulated more touches in the final third.

As for Palace, they have lost just two of their opening 10 league games, against Chelsea and Liverpool, and impressively beat Manchester City 2-0 at the Etihad last weekend. The underlying numbers are encouraging, too, as only Pep Guardiola’s side can boast a lower expected goals conceded (xGC) total, while going forward, they rank mid-table in most of the key attacking metrics.

It’s also worth noting that beyond the schedule detailed above, Palace take on Southampton (h), Watford (a) and Norwich City (h) before the end of the year, and rank top of our Season Ticker for ease of fixture between Gameweeks 11 and 20.

The likes of Gallagher, Zaha and Marc Guehi (£4.5m) have all caught the eye at Selhurst Park this season, but Mitchell should be included in that group too, and could be a nice budget differential for our Fantasy Premier League (FPL) squads.

JAMES WARD-PROWSE

• FPL ownership: 2.1%
• Price: £6.3m
• GW11-15 fixtures: AVL | nor | liv | LEI | BHA

After recording a career-high 15 attacking returns in FPL last season, James Ward-Prowse (£6.3m) – now back from suspension – is an interesting differential for the next two fixtures.

A product of the Saints academy, the 27-year-old has become a vital part of manager Ralph Hasenhüttl’s midfield set-up, and played every minute of the club’s previous two Premier League campaigns. 

Key to Ward-Prowse’s appeal is his ability from set-pieces and deliveries from wide areas. This season, he is averaging 7.5 crosses per 90 minutes, while Gameweek 11 opponents Aston Villa have conceded 44 attempts direct from set-plays, which ranks 19^th amongst all teams in the division. Those frailties were evident recently against both Arsenal and Wolverhampton Wanderers, when Dean Smith’s side looked particularly vulnerable defending dead-ball situations.

It’s also worth noting that Ward-Prowse has found the back of the net twice in eight appearances this term, against Newcastle United and Chelsea, both from the penalty spot, while he has also created 11 chances and as a result, 0.78 expected assists (xA). 

Southampton are an improving side, who have taken points from Man City and West Ham United this season, and are now unbeaten in the last three league fixtures. Both of their next two opponents sit in the bottom three of the last six form table, which suggests that Ward-Prowse could do well as a 2.1% owned differential.

SADIO MANE

• FPL ownership: 3.9%
• Price: £11.9m
• GW11-15 fixtures: whu | ARS | SOU | eve | wol

Having included Sadio Mané (£11.9m) in this column ahead of Gameweek 1, he has since gone on to bag attacking returns in seven of his nine Premier League starts, and now ranks fourth in the player standings, with 57 FPL points.

Across the opening ten Gameweeks, he ranks second amongst all players for non-penalty expected goals (non-pen xG) and third for goal attempts, shots in the box and expected goal involvement (xGI). All of those totals are behind team-mate Mohamed Salah (£12.9m), of course, but as a differential tactic, there could be an argument to pair him up with the Egyptian, and double-up on Liverpool’s premium midfielders.

Notably, the Reds’ attacking form has gone up another gear in 2021/22. Jurgen Klopp’s side remain unbeaten in all competitions this season, and have racked up a whopping 41 goals in their last 13 matches alone, averaging over three goals per game. During that run, they have scored at least two goals each time, and recently hit five against Manchester United, Watford and FC Porto in the UEFA Champions League. It’s also worth noting that they comfortably lead their Premier League rivals for goals scored, shots in the box, big chances, efforts on target and expected goals (xG).

Next up for Liverpool is a tricky trip to in-form West Ham United, before they take on Arsenal (h) – who have conceded more chances from their right-flank than any other Premier League side this term – Southampton (h), Everton (a) and Wolverhampton Wanderers (a).

Mané has delivered a string of impressive displays in 2021/22, and is an intriguing differential to sit alongside Salah in our FPL midfields.