It’s the first international break of the season and time for us to put FPL on ice for a while.
In the meantime, it’s time to consider your transfers for GW9, with some big performers from last weekend to consider.
There will be plenty of active Wildcards following a couple of weeks of blanks.
Here are some of the best options to consider for GW9.
Best Players to Transfer In for FPL GW9
| Name | Team | Position | Price | Pick % | GW8 Points | Total Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mohamed Salah | Liverpool | Midfielder | £12.9m | 35% | 3 (GW6) | 38 |
| Jarrod Bowen | West Ham | Midfielder | £8.1m | 4% | 2 | 15 |
| James Maddison | Leicester | Midfielder | £8.0m | 8% | 7 | 29 |
| Youri Tielemans | Leicester | Midfielder | £6.3m | 2% | 7 | 23 |
Mohamed Salah
- Price: £12.9m
- Picked by: 35%
- Fixtures: Brighton (H), Arsenal (a), Man City (H)
Salah has two goals and three assists yet is still underperforming by his usual high standards.
However, he still has the 6th highest xGI in the league (5.1), with an xG of 3.1 (6th highest) and an xA of 2 (5th highest).
He’s playing a lot wider than last season, becoming more creative in the process as evident in his high xA.
The Egyptian has played the second most key passes (22) and produced 27 shot-creating actions (5th most).
After the international break, Liverpool play Brighton, which will be the new Seagulls manager Roberto De Zerbi’s first game in charge. A difficult start to say the least.
Salah is still performing well and his decreasing ownership is even more of an incentive to get him.
Jarrod Bowen
- Price: £8.1m
- Picked by: 4%
- Fixtures: Wolves (H), Fulham (H), Southampton (a)
There have been no attacking returns yet for Jarrod Bowen, but there are positives to focus on.
He has the second highest xGI in the West Ham side (1.7) and has some good fixtures in which he’ll be hoping to get off the mark.
They have two consecutive home matches next, the first of which is against fellow strugglers Wolves.
Additionally, Bowen is going to start returning eventually, and whilst he may not be as influential as last season (12G 17A) he will start to balance out his xGI again.
James Maddison
- Price: £8.0m
- Picked by: 8%
- Fixtures: Nottingham Forest (H), Bournemouth (a), Crystal Palace (H)
Maddison is Leicester’s top scorer this season with three goals, getting an assist as well.
He has the highest xG in his team (1.1) ahead of the East Midlands derby with Nottingham Forest.
Neither side has started the season well but the away side have a terrible defensive record so far, with the highest xGA in the league (14.5), which Maddison can exploit.
He’s taken 20 shots overall (7th most) at a rate of 3.3 per 90 and is a great asset, especially with Leicester’s next two games in mind.
Youri Tielemans
- Price: £6.3m
- Picked by: 2%
- Fixtures: Nottingham Forest (H), Bournemouth (a), Crystal Palace (H)
Tielemans wouldn’t be very high on many people’s watchlists, but he’s a better FPL asset than he seems.
Last term he scored 6 times and got four assists too, and this campaign his xGI is the highest in the Leicester team (2.6).
Read More: Best FPL Differentials: Live Table Showing Best Player Picks
This is partly due to his xA of 1.7 (9th highest), thanks to 12 key passes (most in the team) and the same number of passes into the opposition box (10th most).
Furthermore, he’s on penalties, scoring one against Spurs at the weekend, and Forest have given away the joint most this season (2).
Plus, at £6.3m, he’s cheap.