Our Gameweek 9 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 9 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.
Roberto Firmino
Position: Forward
Team: Liverpool
GW8 Rank: 59
GW9 Rank: 50
What's Changed?: Bobby!!!! Maligned by many, loved by few, Roberto Firmino produced an incredible 47 point display in Gameweek 8. The Brazilian forward was given the nod ahead of Jota, and made the most of his chance against a poor Watford side. As a Firmino rosterer, I'm feeling pretty smug writing about his feats at the weekend. Many Draft PL managers are not fans of Firmino, because he doesn't score that many goals, and also doesn't score too well for ghost points. But he's a good asset to have as your 5th or 6th best player. Plug him into your starting eleven when he starts, because he does perform well on occasion. Firmino will eat into Jota's minutes, as well as those of Salah and Mane during busy periods, as well as the upcoming AFCON.
Ethan Pinnock
Position: Defender
Team: Brentford
GW8 Rank: 82
GW9 Rank: 51
What's Changed?: This write up is dedicated to @seanwconley. Sean has been pestering me (in a friendly way) about my relatively low ranking of Ethan Pinnock for the last few weeks. I had the Jamaican defender lower than most as I wanted to wait and see if Brentford could keep up their good performances, and also Pinnock was withdrawn after 42 minutes in GW6 so I was concerned about his fitness. After another mind-blowing Fantrax performance against Chelsea at the weekend, I'm all in on Pinnock. He's risen to 51st overall, ahead of the likes of Coufal, Tarkowski, Chilwell, and Maguire. Pinnock is the 4th highest scoring defender, and ranked 2nd for Aerial Wins, 9th for Clearances, and 15th for Interceptions. Brentford are a really good side, and should easily finish in mid-table. Pinnock is one to try and trade in; he's ranked 20th overall in our Ghost Point Tracker!
Pascal Gross
Position: Midfielder
Team: Brighton & Hove Albion
GW8 Rank: 38
GW9 Rank: 34
What's Changed?: And finally, a small rise for Pascal Gross as he moves up 4 places in my Weekly ROS Rankings. The Brighton midfielder continues to score incredibly consistently, averaging over 12 points per start so far this season. Gross is a reliable Fantrax asset, and seemingly trusted by manager Potter. He has a near-monopoly on Brighton Set Pieces, and his value is not going to decrease. Brighton need his creativity, and he's a player I love rostering on Fantrax; set and forget midfielder, who's seemingly fixture proof.
For the full list of all the Gameweek 9 risers, check out the Weekly ROS Rankings page!
❄️❄️❄️ Gameweek 9 Cold List ❄️❄️❄️
These are Fantasy EPL players that have fallen in our Weekly ROS Rankings. This may be due to poor form, dropping out of the starting XI, suffering an injury, or receiving a suspension. It's time to consider trading out these Draft Premier League players from your rosters!
Diogo Jota
Position: Forward
Team: Liverpool
GW8 Rank: 20
GW9 Rank: 29
What's Changed?: As Firmino rises, Diogo Jota falls. Irrespective of Firmino's performance at the weekend, I think I had Jota ranked too highly. With a Consensus Ranking of 25th overall in our October refresh, my colleagues tended to agree. The Portuguese forward is a very good Fantrax player to roster - any starting Liverpool forward obviously is - but he's not at the elite level just yet. Jota faces competition from a now 'hot' Firmino, and also doesn't score great for ghost points. He's currently ranked 19th amongst forwards in our Ghost Point Tracker based on Ghost Points Per Start.
Recommendation: You've got to hold Jota at this stage. His trade value is lower than it should be due to the Firmino performance, so sit tight and hope he gets plenty of chances back in the starting eleven. Just be aware that you may need additional cover in case he doesn't start from now on.
Kai Havertz
Position: Midfielder
Team: Chelsea
GW8 Rank: 44
GW9 Rank: 82
What's Changed?: I've had enough of Kai Havertz. I've been keeping his ranking fairly high, thinking that an attacker from one of the best teams in the league was worth a fairly high spot in my rankings. But he's getting hardly any minutes at the moment, and doesn't score well for ghost points in Fantrax. Chelsea assets are worth rostering, but Havertz has plummeted down my rankings after another disappointing gameweek. I had really high hopes for the German this season, but it looks like its going to be another poor campaign. Werner has started the last three games, playing 90 minutes in each!
Recommendation: I would personally trade Havertz out for the likes of Smith Rowe, Trossard, Silva, Pinnock, Tarkowski, Gray, or Trincao. Use his name value to try to acquire a more reliable player. I would even trade out Havertz for an underperforming Maddison.
Bukayo Saka
Position: Midfielder
Team: Arsenal
GW8 Rank: 32
GW9 Rank: 47
What's Changed?: Like Havertz above, Bukayo Saka also takes a big tumble in my rankings. This one feels harsh as I do like Saka, and he's struggled with niggling injuries this season, but he just doesn't score that well in Fantrax. After a few improved performances before the International Break, Saka gained 0 points during the first half against Crystal Palace, before being withdrawn due to a nasty kick received by McArthur. Saka is still a Top 50 player for me, but I'm now nearer to our Consensus Ranking of 41st for the Arsenal youngster.
Recommendation: I would test the waters for a 1 for 1 trade for the likes of Gross, McNeil or Bowen, but if not I'd happily keep Saka. He's a great player and will score pretty well throughout the season.
For the full list of all the Gameweek 9 fallers, check out the Weekly ROS Rankings page!
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