Game week 5 puts in the center of the two particularly attractive facilities.
Everton have Ipswich Town and Hull City ahead, while Nottingham Forest host Coventry City before traveling to Crystal Palace and then visiting Ipswich.
Newcastle United also have a useful defensive line, and Manchester City’s suspension news creates another potential avenue into their attack.
These five players are not all blocks of the season. Some are short-term picks, while others have the numbers and underlying accessories to become long-term picks. As always, check the final team news before making a transfer.
1. Thierno Barry
Price: 5.6 m
Property: 6.7%
Position: ahead
Opposite: IPS (H), HUL (A), CHE (H)
Thierno Barry is one of the most attractive points of two weeks FPL. Everton face Ipswich and Hull in Weeks 5 and 6, giving them two excellent opportunities to turn their encouraging underlying numbers into goals. Hull have defended well so far, but their figures suggest they have conceded fewer goals than their performances deserved.
Barry averages 3.5 shots per game, 1.3 big chances and 0.75 expected goals without a penalty. Add in the possibility of penalties and a price tag of just 5.6 million, and he becomes a very viable short-term striker. The beauty of the selection is that it can also sit on your bench if needed. He doesn’t need to become a season starter; he just needs to make the most of these facilities.
2. Liam Delap
Price: 5.5m
Property: 1.7%
Position: ahead
Opposite: COV (H), CRY (A), ARS (H)
Liam Delap is a player I never expected to put on my watchlist, but his move to Nottingham Forest has completely changed the picture. The move has improved his chances of regular minutes, and Gameweek 5’s fixture against Coventry is exactly the type of fixture a budget forward is worth considering.
Delap has a huge 5.5 goal differential and has already shown a willingness to shoot, registering six tries and scoring in Forest’s win at Aston Villa. He’s not in penalties, which limits his ceiling a bit, but he doesn’t need kicks to be useful at this price. Forest’s upcoming schedule also includes Crystal Palace and Ipswich, making Delap an aggressive but attractive point for managers willing to take a chance.
3. Morgan Gibbs-White
Price: 8.0 m
Property: 13.1%
Position: Midfielder
Opposite: COV (H), CRY (A), ARS (H)
Morgan Gibbs-White would be my preferred midfielder for this game, as long as you have a plan to bench him in Week 7 when Nottingham Forest take on Arsenal. Before this tough game, Forest have Coventry at home, Crystal Palace away and then Ipswich away in Week 8 – three games that offer plenty of attacking potential.
Gibbs-White is excellent for minutes, draws penalties and averages 2.3 shots per outing. He also provides a strong creative threat, ranking high among midfielders for the big chances created and expected goal implications. This gives him multiple routes to points, similar to Pascal Gross, Dominik Szoboszlai and Bruno Fernandes. It is expensive at 8.0m, but its role and equipment make the investment worthwhile.
4. Ryan Cherki
Price: 7.8 m
Property: 28.2%
Position: Midfielder
Opposite: SOL (H), LIV (A), IPS (H)
Rayan Cherki has become a much more attractive option following Phil Foden’s suspension. Foden’s absence should improve Cherki’s starting chances and could give him a more advanced role in Manchester City’s attack. This opportunity is important because Cherki is an exceptional footballer with the technical quality to produce at Premier League level.
The next three games aren’t perfect, but Sunderland, Liverpool and Ipswich all have defensive weaknesses that City should be able to exploit. The main caution is minutes: Foden’s suspension creates an opening, but doesn’t guarantee Cherki 90 minutes every week. Still, for his price and with his creative and attacking ability, he’s a very attractive short-term buy, especially for managers who want a differential attacker from City.
5. Lewis Hall
Price: 5.2m
Property: 14.4%
Position: defender
On the contrary: HUL (H), COV (A), AVL (H)
Newcastle’s Defeat 4-1 against Leeds Some managers are understandably nervous, but I wouldn’t let a result completely change my view of Lewis Hall. Newcastle now face Hull, Coventry, Aston Villa and Crystal Palace, a run which should give them several chances to keep clean sheets.
Hall offers more than clean sheet potential. He has marked ball involvement, a strong attacking role and impressive DEFCON numbers, giving him multiple routes to points even when Newcastle concede. At 5.2m, this combination is hard to ignore. Newcastle are far from an elite defence, but if they keep even a clean sheet or two during this run, Hall has the offensive and defensive contribution to produce a double-digit haul. He’s one of the best defensemen to target this week.
