Fantasy Premier League: The final gameweek and the last hope for an improved finish
What is the most important piece of information for me before this round? To establish who is playing for what. That way you can more easily predict the line-ups of the teams in question and their approach before a round where many teams will not be as motivated to perform at their best.
Manchester City and Arsenal - these teams are fighting for the title and it is certainly a good idea to triple up on them. Both teams are playing at home against clearly lower-ranked sides and will do their best to get the three points, score a lot of goals and preferably keep a clean sheet.
Tottenham, Chelsea, Newcastle and Manchester United - these are all teams that are in contention to play in the Europa League and Conference League. Of course, some of them have an easier task and some have a harder one, but they will certainly all be doing their best.
Spurs will play Sheffield United away and Chelsea are at home against Bournemouth, making players from both of those teams a certain choice. Newcastle and Man United have away matches and their chances of European qualification are lower.
Nottingham Forest and Luton - although only an absolutely crazy scenario sees Luton stay up and Forest relegated to the Championship, these teams are in theory still fighting to stay up. And that means the Tricky Trees will be doing everything they can to get a point minimum in their game against Burnley, while Luton will be looking to score as many goals as possible against Fulham who are thought to be on holiday.
Liverpool - the Reds players will officially bid farewell to Jurgen Klopp at a packed Anfield on Sunday in an emotional match against Wolves. Does anyone expect them to lose points on this special day for the coach who gave them a Champions League victory, a Premier League win, as well as many other minor trophies? Of course not, Liverpool will do their best to provide a fitting farewell to their legendary coach.
Who to captain?
Who then should we entrust our captain's armband to? Just as we started, so we end.
Erling Haaland (14.3) might have missed several weeks with injury a couple of months ago, but now everything is back to normal. The Norwegian is on a roll, he's going to win the Golden Boot again and on Sunday he'll be looking to chip in with as many goals as possible to add a second Premier League to his CV.
And what if someone is, for whatever reason, not tempted by Haaland or doesn't want to pick who everyone else is picking and instead wants look for an opportunity to rise in the rankings?
Surely a solid second option is Cole Palmer (6.3), whom Chelsea will play against Bournemouth, and the Englishman will be looking to end his excellent season on a high and further bolster his already incredible stats.
Bukayo Saka (8.8) hasn't had quite as good a season, but he will also surely be Arsenal's driving force in the match against Everton, which could give the Gunners the title.
Of course, there is still Mohamed Salah (13.4) in the game, who will surely want to seize the opportunity to say a worthy farewell to Klopp and mark the day with a standout performance.
Who to buy?
Do you want some niche advice? If not, I'm very sorry, but this time that's exactly what you'll get.
Morgan Gibbs-White (5.7) - Nottingham Forest lost against Chelsea in the last fixture, and that means they haven't yet officially guaranteed themselves certain safety in the Premier League. Nuno's line-up starts with Gibbs-White, who has recorded three assists in the last two games and is a certainty for the game. Less than 2% of FPL players have him in their line-ups and in the final gameweek this can be exploited.
Leandro Trossard (6.6) - once again I recommend the Belgian because he just keeps producing. He has scored five goals in his last seven league appearances. He is extremely consistent and Mikel Arteta is fielding him in the first team, yet Arsenal's game against Everton will be all about scoring goals. So if the Gunners score a few of them, Trossard will surely notch assists or find the net himself. Less than 3% of players still have him in their line-ups.
Carlton Morris (4.7) - this is a really unexpected choice, but for the final round he could be a good shot. Luton have virtually said goodbye to the Premier League but can still dream of staying in the elite with a heavy win over Fulham. Of course, that is unlikely to happen, but the Hatters will surely want to say a dignified farewell to their fans after a season in the top flight. Marco Silva's players will not drop below the 14th place they now occupy, and could move up to 12th. Morris has scored 10 goals this season and could add to that tally on Sunday.
Radim Horak (one of the best Czechs playing in Fantasy Premier League)
Mohamed Salah (13.4) - unobtainable for many FPL managers before the last round, so making a remarkable difference. Just over 20% of players have him in their team, and many of them are those who haven't changed the line-up they set at the start of the season for a long time.
Jurgen Klopp is saying goodbye to Liverpool and Salah's future is still uncertain at this point. You can expect the Reds to give their all in this encounter, and they are, after all, competing against Wolves, who are playing for honour and have won just one of their last nine league games. If you want to catch up with your mini-league opponent and need to take a risk with your captain's choice, Salah is the number one option.
Michael Olise (5.7) - the next match where I expect lots of goals and open play is the duel at Selhurst Park between Crystal Palace and Aston Villa. Olivier Glasner was able to spur the Eagles on to some great performances, with the trio of Eberechi Eze (6.0) - Jean-Philippe Mateta (5.0) - Michael Olise shining. I expect them to do well against Aston Villa in front of their home crowd as well. Of the aforementioned trio, I pick Olise, who has scored three goals and had an assist in the last two games.
Brennan Johnson (5.8) - with injuries to Timo Werner (6.3) and Richarlison (6.8), the Welshman has a certain place in Tottenham's end-of-season squad. Ange Postecoglou's team cannot lose to Sheffield United, fighting for fifth place in the table, and their rivals have lost the most goals in all Premier League history this season. I expect a match in which the visitors prevail on the pitch and achieve their goal. Johnson is owned by less than 2% of FPL players and looks a good choice for the final round.
