top of page
Writer's pictureThe FF Chaps

Fantrax EPL: Gameweek 26 Hot or Cold

Updated: May 3, 2022

Our Gameweek 26 Hot or Cold article is here to outline the current prospects of key Fantasy EPL players.  The 'Hot' or 'Cold' status will help take away your emotional attachment to certain Draft Premier League players and help you bring in the players that you need to help you dominate your Fantrax Draft League!

These Hot or Cold ratings are based on the data contained within the Weekly Rest-of-Season Rankings produced by The FF Chaps. The Draft Society's exclusive weekly refresh of Fantasy EPL prospect rankings!


Gameweek 26 Hot List

These are Fantasy EPL players that have risen in our Weekly ROS Rankings! Keep an eye on these Draft Premier League players, and bring them into your Fantrax squad if you can.


Anthony Gordon

Position: Forward

Team: Everton

GW25 Rank: 79

GW26 Rank: 52

What's Changed?: Anthony Gordon was one of the only bright sparks towards the end of Rafa's reign as Everton boss, and he's quickly established him as potentially the brightest spark under new manager Lampard. The 20 year old Liverpudlian has moved up to 52nd overall for me, after an electric display against Leeds at the weekend. Gordon bagged a goal and an assist, as well as 5 Shots on Target, 2 Key Passes, and 4 Tackles Won (!), to name his most impressive stats. I see this form continuing, and wouldn't be too worried about competition for places. Lampard likes to develop younger players, and therefore Gordon will see plenty of minutes, and, based on this form, probably make the most of them!


Joel Matip/Romian Saiss

Position: Defenders

Team: Liverpool/Wolves

GW25 Rank: 54/51

GW26 Rank: 44/45

What's Changed?: I've decided to highlight both Joel Matip and Romain Saiss here, as they have both deservedly moved inside my Top 50. Matip is basically van Dijk with a few less minutes, and therefore his Fantrax points scoring form really needs to be highlighted. Van Dijk has averaged 11.07 points per game so far this season, with Matip averaging 10.86. The only issue the Cameroonian defender faces is potential rotation with Konate, but it's obvious that Matip is the preferred option this season. He's ranked 19th for defenders in our Ghost Point Tracker. Saiss has returned from Afcon, and got straight back into his excellent points scoring form at the weekend as Wolves kept a clean sheet away at Tottenham. The Moroccan is the 28th highest scoring player so far this season, and I'd expect him to continue to perform at this kind of level. Wolves keep clean sheets, and Saiss scores fairly well for ghost points (33rd best defender as per our aforementioned tracker).


Jack Harrison

Position: Midfielder

Team: Leeds United

GW25 Rank: 88

GW26 Rank: 73

What's Changed?: It pains me to feature Jack Harrison here, but he deserves the shout-out after an incredibly good start to 2022! The Leeds midfielder is second only to Bowen for points scored since 1st January!! I drafted Harrison as the 24th overall pick in my Community League, based on his awesome form of the 20/21 season. But after an ok start to the season, he completely tanked as a Fantrax asset and I had no choice but to drop him. Harrison scored 81 points between 14th August and 31st December, averaging 5.4 points per game. But between 1st January and 12th February he's scored 91.5 points, averaging 18.3 points per game! Obviously his hattrick against West Ham has boosted his numbers, but Harrison also scored against Burnley, and registered double-figure ghost point hauls in losses to Newcastle and Everton. We might just have our Harrison back. If he keeps up this form, the Leeds winger will soon be back inside my Top 50!


For the full list of all the Gameweek 26 risers, check out the Weekly ROS Rankings page!

Gameweek 26 Cold List

These are Fantasy EPL players that have fallen in our Weekly ROS Rankings. This may be due to poor form, they have been dropped from the best 11, they have suffered an injury, or received a suspension. It's time to consider trading out these Draft Premier League players from your rosters!


Jack Grealish

Position: Midfielder

Team: Manchester City

GW25 Rank: 16

GW26 Rank: 49

What's Changed?: I'm featuring three pretty prominent Fantrax assets in the cold section this week, kicking off with Jack Grealish. The Manchester City midfielder has scored just 24.5 points during the league leaders' last eight games, and now he has an injury which is rumoured to keep him out for up to a month. Although Pep is being a naughty scoundrel and suggesting Grealish will miss minimal time. The Englishman is likely to miss a few weeks of action, and considering the amount of rotation happening at City, he'll probably only see 6 or 7 starts rest of season. @Tottiandor put together a Twitter thread containing some more insight into this.

Recommendation: This is a tough one. I've now got Grealish ranked 49th overall, so I'd attempt to trade him out for the likes of Saka, Gallagher, Odegaard, Pogba, or maybe even Soucek if you need a steady midfielder to see you through to the end of the season. If you can't get value around that kind of level, I think Grealish is worth keeping for the handful of games he will start between now and May.


Ollie Watkins

Position: Forward

Team: Aston Villa

GW25 Rank: 24

GW26 Rank: 39

What's Changed?: I was super excited to see Ollie Watkins feature for Villa as their central striker, flanked by Buendia and Coutinho. But it isn't working out for him as a Fantrax asset. The Englishman hasn't scored for two months, and is picking up meagre points. Zero points against Newcastle was the final straw for me, and I've moved Watkins down to 39th overall. This should have probably been lower, but I'm still hopeful he'll be able to flourish whilst being surrounded by great attacking players.

Recommendation: I would look to trade Watkins out for players such as Mahrez, Toney, Gray, DCL, or Cornet. But if you can't get a deal over the line for a good asset, then I would stick with Watkins and hope he finds his goal-scoring boots!


Raphinha

Position: Midfielder

Team: Leeds United

GW25 Rank: 9

GW26 Rank: 18

What's Changed?: I'm finishing off with a player who I absolutely adore as a Fantrax asset, but simply has to be moved down my rankings based on recent form. Raphinha has dropped outside of my Top 10 for the first time this season, finding himself ranked 18th overall. This comes after three poor scores in a row, and the fact that Bielsa withdrew the Brazilian at half-time in GW25 for tactical reasons. That's right. Bielsa took off his best player when Leeds were losing at half-time, and this wasn't injury related. A shocking turn of events, which you would never expect from an elite level Fantrax asset such as Raphinha. Worrying times for managers who roster him!

Recommendation: I'm not expecting Raphinha to be riding the bench whilst Leeds fight against relegation, but it's certainly a worry that he isn't the bulletproof force we thought he was. In terms of options going forward, I would test the waters for a trade for ASM or Foden, but if you can't get that level of player back for Raphinha then he's worth keeping. His half-time withdrawal could light a fire in his belly and he comes back firing in Leeds' next few games.


For the full list of all the Gameweek 26 fallers, check out the Weekly ROS Rankings page!


For all the latest from The Draft Society, follow @Draft_Society on Twitter!

And for more in-depth and exclusive resources, become a member of The Inner Circle.


1,044 views

Recent Posts

See All

Comments


bottom of page