Fantasy Premier League: Darwin, Díaz or Diogo - Who to Transfer In?

With a double Gameweek 25 for Brentford, Liverpool, Luton and Man City, Fantasy Premier League (FPL) managers will be on the lookout for the optimal transfer to boost their squad's performance. So in this blog, the spotlight falls on Liverpool's attacking trio: Darwin Núñez, Luis Díaz, and Diogo Jota. Each player brings a unique set of skills to the table, but who will be the best transfer in for FPL managers in the upcoming gameweeks? Let's dive into the analysis.

A range of statistics comparing the Liverpool trio using the Fix Comparison Matrix over the last six games, shows all have attacking potential.

Player Analysis

Darwin Núñez, priced at £7.6m, has played 1421 minutes this season, amassing 96 FPL points. With an ownership of 32.0% among the top 100k managers, he has scored 8 goals, substantially underperforming his expected goals (xG) of 13.18, and has provided 9 assists. Interestingly, outperforming his expected assists (xA) of 4.78. Darwin has been transferred in by 173,538 managers this gameweek.

Luis Díaz comes in at a slightly lower cost of £7.5m. Over 1487 minutes of play, he has accumulated 85 FPL points, with an ownership of 4.6% among the top 100k managers. Díaz has scored 5 goals, closely aligning with his xG of 5.42, and has 4 assists, nearly doubling his xA of 2.19. This gameweek, 110,970 managers have brought him into their squads.

Diogo Jota, the most expensive of the trio at £8.2m, has played 1008 minutes, scoring 93 FPL points. His ownership stands at 67.8% among the top 100k managers, the highest of the three. Jota has netted 9 goals, significantly outperforming his xG of 4.93, and has made 5 assists, more than double his his xA of 2.14. A total of 185,925 managers have transferred him in this gameweek.

Liverpool attacking assets' data in the Opta Stats Sandbox tool, demonstrating the the Liverpool trio are the stand out options other than the currently unavailable Salah.

Upcoming Fixtures

Liverpool's next five fixtures are as follows: - Away against Brentford and Home against Luton (DGW25) - no fixture in Gameweek 26 - Away against Nott'm Forest (GW27) - Home against Man City (GW28).

Liverpool are ranked 11th for Attacking Difficulty in the next four Gameweeks as shown in the Fixture Planner tool.

The fixture run appears mixed, with a very challenging match against Man City but more favourable fixtures against Luton and Brentford, and of course the upside of it being a double gameweek. However, the blank gameweek following the double will cause FPL managers a planning headache. Adequate cover for this should be considered before making any transfers for a Liverpool asset.

Predicted Points

Here's how the predicted points for each Liverpool player stacks up in the upcoming fixtures:

Núñez is predicted to score the most points in DGW25, while Díaz has a slight edge in GW27 and GW29. Jota's highest predicted score comes in DGW25, but he generally trails slightly behind in the other gameweeks.

Conclusion

Choosing between Darwin Núñez, Luis Díaz, and Diogo Jota is a tough call for FPL managers. Darwin offers the highest potential in DGW25, while Díaz presents a more consistent option across multiple fixtures. The Columbian midfielder is the lowest owned of the trio and could be an upside chasing 'differential' option. Jota, despite being the most expensive, is highly owned amongst top FPL managers and could be deemed a 'safer pick' than the other two. Ultimately, the decision may come down to the specific needs of your FPL squad and your appetite for risk. Each player has the potential to make a significant impact in the upcoming gameweeks, making them all worthy considerations for your next transfer. However, caution should be taken with half an eye on the blank fixture that follows this gameweek.