USWNT, Morgan take home top honors at ESPYS

Fantasy Premier League: Alisson, David Raya And The Budget Goalkeepers To Consider

There's a shift in popularity among goalkeepers in Fantasy Premier League right now, with Arsenal's David Raya and Liverpool's Alisson Becker becoming popular buys for the festive period.

Liverpool and Arsenal defences have been the most consistent sources for clean sheets this season, providing reliability for the overlooked 11th man in your FPL team.

So who is the best option between Raya and Alisson? Or should we be looking to the budget picks between the sticks instead of the game's two most expensive goalkeepers?

What are the advantages of choosing Alisson or Raya?

Liverpool have had the best start to the season from a defensive perspective, keeping a league-high seven shutouts in 15 games and conceding just 13 goals along the way — the league's lowest.

Alisson (£5.4m) has had a hand in four of those clean sheets in seven games, conceding just seven goals across those appearances.

Alisson provides a cheap route into Liverpool's defence compared to popular defender picks Virgil Van Dijk (£6.5m) and Trent Alexander-Arnold (£7.0m).

Injury has meant that Joe Gomez (£4.9m) has been a budget option in recent weeks, but Ibrahima Konate (£5.1m) is expected back soon.

Ordinarily, goalkeepers have a lower ceiling for points compared to their defender counterparts, but Alisson is top for bonus points per 90 (0.71) among goalkeepers this season. However, save points are more challenging to come by when it comes to the Brazilian, with Liverpool conceding a league-lowest 52 shots on target this season.

It's worth noting that in six Premier League seasons, Alisson has produced four goal involvements and is perhaps due a rare assist. He's also made two penalty saves.

Liverpool have some good fixtures from which they can prosper once they've travelled to Tottenham Hotspur this weekend, with no 'red' fixtures on FPL's FDR (Fixture Difficulty Rating) chart until late February.

Alisson returned to Premier League action in Gameweek 16 after recovering from a hamstring injury (Michael Regan/Getty Images)

Elsewhere, David Raya (£5.6m) provides another consistent goalkeeper choice, with the Spain international having kept six clean sheets in 16 games.

It's been encouraging to see a run of home clean sheets after Arsenal's seven-game streak of conceding goals between Gameweek 5 and Gameweek 11, and is a positive sign going into the busy festive period.

Arsenal have conceded just 15 goals this season, and only three in the last five gameweeks so they are a defence in form.

Raya ranks 12th among goalkeepers for saves this season (40), scoring bonus points on three occasions. He's had a ceiling of six points in recent weeks.

Like Alisson and Liverpool's defenders, Raya is a cheaper route into Arsenal's defence than centre-backs Gabriel (£6.2m) and William Saliba (£6.3m), but is priced similarly to full-back Jurrien Timber (£5.7m). 

On current form, it feels viable to triple up on Arsenal players, with a defensive double-up the most obviously advantageous route right now, with clean sheet potential high for their game against Ipswich Town at home in Gameweek 18.

For those managers who still haven't played their first wildcard, which must be activated before the Gameweek 19 deadline, I'd certainly be looking to back a premium goalkeeper.

I think Liverpool's proven consistency over the course of the first half of the season gives Alisson the edge, plus a guaranteed double gameweek in the second half of the season. But I'm happy to hold David Raya in my own team.

Who are the cheaper alternative goalkeeper picks?

Owners of Liverpool backup goalkeeper Caoimhin Kelleher (£4.5m) and injured Newcastle United keeper Nick Pope (£5.0m) might be forced into making a transfer in this position this week.

If there are no funds in the bank to upgrade this pair to a premium goalkeeper, there are plenty of alternatives at cheaper price points.

When it comes to picking a budget goalkeeper, where clean sheets are less predictable, it's important to pinpoint those players who can accrue save and bonus points.

Brentford's Mark Flekken (£4.5m) has the best save record across goalkeepers, making 77 this season, 12 more than any other player.

The west Londoners have conceded a league-leading 299 shots on their goal this season, but rank 11th for big chances conceded on their goal. That shows the chances they allow are low-quality opportunities for their opponents.

However, Brentford have managed only one clean sheet this season, conceding 30 goals. Prospective owners might need to see an improvement in his form. That is not an unrealistic expectation, with Flekken having kept seven clean sheets last season.

Brentford's Mark Flekken tops the FPL leaderboard for saves (Mike Hewitt/Getty Images)

For those managers keen to play the fixtures, Fulham's Bernd Leno (£5.0m) is a sound option, facing all three promoted teams, plus Bournemouth and West Ham, in his side's next six games.

On the surface, Fulham's defensive numbers are underwhelming, with just two clean sheets and 22 goals conceded putting them mid-table. However, they've conceded just 31 big chances on their goal, which is better than Liverpool, with only Arsenal and Nottingham Forest ahead of them for this metric.

Those figures also put Nottingham Forest's Matz Sels (£4.7m) in the conversation, with five clean sheets this season and just 19 goals conceded.

Nottingham Forest's fixtures are a mixed bag but Sels has been consistent, racking up 44 saves this season. Only Andre Onana, Jordan Pickford and Raya have more fantasy points.

Speaking of Jordan Pickford (£4.9m), he's another goalkeeper we know will have a double gameweek towards the end of the season, with the Merseyside derby postponed in Gameweek 15.

Everton have kept six clean sheets in this campaign, with four of those coming in the last five gameweeks. That is the kind of form we expect from a Sean Dyche defence.

It's worth noting that West Ham's Lukasz Fabianski (£4.1m) remains the cheapest starting goalkeeper in the game, and is worth picking as your second goalkeeper on a wildcard.

He has two clean sheets in the past six gameweeks, conceding 10 goals in this period. He ranks joint-top for saves in the same window, with 23.

His fixtures rotate well with Fulham, Nottingham Forest, Spurs and Crystal Palace over the next six gameweeks, who all provide budget options in the goalkeeper spots.

(Top photos: Alisson, left, and David Raya; Getty Images)

Fantasy Premier League: With No Obvious Choice, How Do You Pick A Captain For Gameweek 17?

Once again there are no standout options for captaincy this week.

Which means another tricky decision, but also an opportunity to capitalise if you can get it right.

Here we will look at the best targets for Gameweek 17, based on player stats and their fixtures.

We will also get into some of the best practice when it comes to making your decision.

But first, here are the top options…

Fixture: Ipswich (A)

Isak is the joint-ninth top scorer in the Premier League this season with seven goals. He has been in a great run of form, with three goals and two assists in the past three matches, against Liverpool (H), Brentford (A) and Leicester (H).

Newcastle have been inconsistent this season but have scored nine goals in their past three games and have a good fixture this week when they take on Ipswich.

Only five teams have conceded more goals (28) than Kieran McKenna's side, and they have the third-worst xGC (expected goals conceded: 32.7) in the division. They are one of the worst defences in the league and Newcastle will be strong favourites.

Isak celebrates scoring against Leicester (George Wood/Getty Images)

Isak is Newcastle's talisman, so he is nailed on to start and will be the first-choice penalty taker too now that team-mate Callum Wilson (£6.9m) is injured again.

He is also the second favourite to score at any time (48 per cent) according to the bookmakers.

Fixture: Everton (A)

Cole Palmer has 11 goals and seven assists so far and has registered an xG (expected goals) of 9.8 and an xA (expected assists) of 4.1.

He is pulling the strings at Chelsea, so is always going to be involved in a large share of their goals.

Chelsea play Everton this week. The Toffees are struggling this season and sit 16th in the league. But despite their lowly position, their defence hasn't been too bad. They share the seventh-best defensive record (having conceded 21, the same as Bournemouth, Newcastle and Crystal Palace) and have an xGC of 20.1 (fifth best).

Palmer almost guarantees goal involvements this season (Julian Finney/Getty Images)

On the other hand, Enzo Maresca's Chelsea have been the best attacking side in the division. They have scored the most goals (37) and also boast the best xG (34.2).

The London side have to be considered as title contenders now and I see a Chelsea win here with at least a few goals, Palmer being the likeliest to either score or assist them. He is at 38 per cent to score at anytime.

Fixture: Spurs (A)

On paper, Liverpool have a tough game but Tottenham is a good fixture for the opposition attackers.

I think there is potential for this fixture to be the highest scoring of the gameweek. Both teams have good attacks and Spurs don't sit back against any side, which usually means they give up a lot of chances.

Liverpool have been one of the best teams in the final third, scoring 31 goals (fourth most) with an xG of 30.6 (third best).

This is shaping up to be Mohamed Salah's best-ever season. He already has 13 goals and nine assists with an xG of 10.48 and an xA of 3.29. It follows that he also has the most FPL points (156), with 10 double-digit hauls.

Salah will likely get opportunities against Spurs (Alex Livesey/Getty Images)

He has been involved (goal or assist) in 71 per cent of Liverpool's league goals, which is by far the highest in the league.

He has been their talisman for eight seasons running, but just seems to be even more integral this campaign.

He is nailed on to start.

He is on penalties.

He is likely to get a lot of chances.

And the Egyptian is at 46 per cent to score at anytime in Gameweek 17 despite being away from home.

Alternative captains

The lack of an obvious first-choice candidate might be an opportunity to take a gamble.

Bruno Fernandes (£8.4m) at home to Bournemouth is a good option also. He has played as part of a front three and as one of the two No 10s under Manchester United's new manager Ruben Amorim, enjoying a bit more freedom and chalking up two goals in his last two.

The Portuguese has goals and assists, takes a lot of set pieces and is the first-choice penalty taker. A great differential this week outside the usual suspects.

Fernandes could be on for points after United's upswing in form (Michael Regan/Getty Images)

Bukayo Saka (£10.6m) will be a huge differential for the captaincy this week given he has now blanked in the last three games. However, he is still very much one of the best options in the game and although Crystal Palace (A) might not be the easiest of fixtures, Arsenal have the firepower to put a few past Oliver Glasner's side.

He is Arsenal's main man, is nailed on to start, is on set pieces and penalties, and I can see his captaincy ownership being really low this week.

How to choose

When the captaincy is close in weeks like this I always like to firstly look at the best fixture when I have whittled my options down to two or three.

We have seen over and over again that fixtures do matter and is probably the most important factor when looking at captaincy.

Then I look at the individual's underlying numbers and sometimes this will suggest a player over one who has a better fixture. For example, if Bruno plays Southampton (H) and Salah is playing Everton (H), you would still go Salah despite Sean Dyche's team having a far superior defence than Southampton. That's because the Egyptian's xG is more than double Bruno's — he is clearly the better FPL option.

We also have to take into consideration midfielders versus forwards. The former get an extra point for a goal and a clean sheet, so generally need fewer attacking returns to get the same number of points. I always favour the midfielder if it's a close call with a forward.

A deciding factor between two players would be whether they are on set pieces or penalties, and then their anytime goalscorer odds. I would never base my decision solely on these factors but only use them in a close tiebreaker.

Stats Table

PlayerxGxAxGIxGC of opponentSet piecesPenaltiesAnytime goalscorer odds

Mohamed Salah

10.48

3.29

13.77

23.8

No

Yes

46%

Cole Palmer

9.82

4.08

13.9

20.1

Yes

Yes

38%

Alexander Isak

7.01

2

9.01

32.7

No

Yes

48%

Bruno Fernandes

5.66

2.85

8.51

20.2

Yes

Yes

33%

Bukayo Saka

4.17

5.6

9.77

22.1

Yes

Yes

31%

It's handy to see all the facts in table format to help make your decision. (Note: xI is expected goal involvement: xA + xG.)

Looking at the table, Salah has the highest xG, plays the second worst defence, has the second highest anytime scorer odds and is on penalties.

Therefore, for me, the best captaincy option this week is the Liverpool star.

GO DEEPER

FPL: What we learned from Gameweek 16 - Jota's back and Amad's on the rise

(Top photo: Isak by George Wood via Getty Images)

Premier League Table 2024-25: Latest Standings, Fixtures And Results

Liverpool remain top of the Premier League table ahead of another huge round of fixtures.

While the Reds are in control of the title race, their lead has been cut to only two points by in-form Chelsea.

Still, Arne Slot's side do boast a game in hand and have largely been perfect all season.

Manchester City, however, kicked off the action on Saturday but could not find a way through their crisis, falling to a 2-1 defeat at Aston Villa.

Brentford and West Ham are both in action later that day with home games against Nottingham Forest and Brighton respectively.

Arsenal's trip to Crystal Palace in the evening kick-off rounds off Saturday's action.

Chelsea are then offered the chance to go top of the Premier League if they can beat Everton on Sunday afternoon. Fulham, meanwhile, host Southampton while Manchester United entertain Bournemouth.

Liverpool can then respond to whatever Chelsea do when they travel so Tottenham on Sunday afternoon in the final game of the weekend.

Premier League table 2024-25Live scores, fixtures and results

Follow the Premier League LIVE with Standard Sport!

---