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With the Christmas fixtures done and out of the way, we can now finally take a step back and take a look at the state of things in FPL. Most managers have flocked to the likes of Pogba and Salah over the last 2 weeks, but we all love differentials. Here are some picks to help you move up your mini leagues or if you don’t have the money to move to a premium option.

Goalkeeper –

In goal, there appear to be two standout options in the form of Guaita and Foster. Palace have kept 8 clean sheets this term, the 4th best in the division and Guaita has contributed to 3 of those in the last 5 games. He appears to have nailed down that goalkeeper slot ahead of Wayne Hennessey and with Palace’s fixtures easing up seems like a cut-price 4.2M option at less than 2% ownership. He has the best points per match of any goalkeeper that has played 5 or more times and his value for form is second only to Cardiff’s Etheridge.

Ben Foster, on the other hand, has been part of a Watford defense that has kept only 4 clean sheets but Foster ranks 7th on both the bonus points stat as well as the number of saves made. Barring a trip to Spurs, his fixtures in the next 6 games look very good, all ranking less than 3 on the FDR. He is owned by less than 5% of teams, and appears to be a decent choice for the near future.

An outside the box pick, given that he played only once is Angus Gunn. The former City goalkeeper raked up a clean sheet against a Chelsea side that had 17 attempts on goal, with Gunn making 6 saves. Southampton’s fixtures over the coming weeks look absolutely delightful with his next 5 all ranking 3 or below on the FDR. His ownership is minimal as his price at 4.3M so he seems a lucrative differential at the moment.

Defence –

In defence, we have 3 options once again, with Jonny being the cheapest of the 3 at 4.3M averaging a point per game less than his more illustrious counterpart Doherty but is also a whole million cheaper. He averages 0.8 shots per game to Doherty’s 1.3 but the difference isn’t stark. Whilst Wolves haven’t been keeping too many clean sheets the fact remains that at a 2.2% ownership and a dirt cheap cost, Jonny could be a lucrative option.

Morrison is about 4.7M and it is quite baffling as to how he has not had more goal scoring contributions this term. He is owned by 0.6% of managers but ranks 7th on the ICT index ahead of the likes of Robertson and Trippier. He ranks third for threat behind only Doherty and the final player on this shortlist, Patrick van Aanholt. With Cardiff keeping 3 clean sheets in their last 6 and Morrison due a goal he would appear to be a reasonable option to go for.

The final player is Patrick van Aanholt. The Dutch full-back is a whole million more expensive than everyone’s favourite Aaron wan Bissaka but his numbers would imply that it could be worth it in the long run. He ranks 2nd for threat and 6th overall on the ICT index. With Palace being resolute at the back and his ownership being a meager 4%, he seems a good option away from the conventional Pereira or Digne.

Midfield –

Nathan Redmond is the cut-price option at 5.2M with Southampton’s new system and manager boosting his numbers over the last few game weeks. He ranks 5th for value on form and has a very lucrative set of fixtures over the coming weeks. More than 40% of his points have come under the new manager.

With Ings appearing to be injured at this point in time, Redmond could be a source of quite a few points in the weeks to come.

David Silva’s ownership has dropped to below 5% over the last few weeks and while most people might go for Sane or Sterling, or the cheaper Bernardo, David Silva seems to be a very good differential at this point in time. He ranks highest for any Man City player with respect to creativity and ranks 6th on the overall ICT index despite missing out in 6 games from the start this term. With Guardiola informing us that Kevin de Bruyne will be phased in gradually and Foden not being trusted yet, David Silva could be bringing managers double-figure hauls once more. His fixtures look neat and at 8.5M is not the most expensive midfielder.

The final player on the shortlist is Gerard Deulofeu. Last time around we tipped Doucoure over Deulofeu purely because of the underlying stats but over the last few gameweeks Deulofeu has appeared like a very good option at 5.5M. He ranks the best on points per game for all midfielders having played more than 900 minutes and at an ownership of under 6%. Watford’s next 5 look very good and Deulofeu looks nailed on in the #10 role behind Troy Deeney.

An outside the box midfield option could be Lucas Moura with Son’s departure after the United game, he is likely to line up alongside Harry Kane and get in beyond at every instant possible. With Spurs fixtures looking brilliant, Moura could be a player to get ahead of the rest at a very slim 6.9M.

Forwards –

Jamie Vardy is the standout differential. The English forward seems to have found his goal scoring touch and is generally fixture proof. With Leicester now focusing only on one competition and there being a high likelihood that they will not have a blank in the FA Cup 6th round week, Vardy seems to be a slightly expensive second choice forward that might just be worth the extra money. Leicester’s next 4 fixtures are not great but it is a run of green on the FDR.

Ashley Barnes is the other option that seems to be coming to the fore over the past few weeks. He has 3 goal scoring contributions in the last 4 and Burnley’s fixtures appear to have turned. Their next 8 all rank at 3 or below barring games against Manchester United and Tottenham. He ranks 5th for value with respect to form. He appears to be nailed on in this system once more under Dyche and there appears to be a sense of stability once more at Turf Moor.

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