In a bizarrely long Gameweek, spanning two weekends, we analyse the squad made up by some of the greatest FPL managers in the world; the Consensus XI.

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The Consensus XI is an aggregated FPL squad, based on the most commonly owned players amongst the Elite XI managers. As it represents the combined wisdom of the very best managers, there is an argument to say that this is currently the best FPL squad for Gameweek 21 and beyond. Let’s take a look:

Goalkeepers

At the beginning of the season, Manchester United’s new acquisition, André Onana (£4.8m) was the main goalkeeper amongst our Elite XI. After failing to meet his lofty expectations, he has since been replaced by a pairing of Alphonse Areola (£4.2m) and Martin Dubravka (£4.2m).

While the former frustrated early adopters, keeping only one clean sheet seemingly all season, West Ham have recently regained their defensive solidity, keeping 3 out of 3 clean sheets since Gameweek 18. Areola has managed to gain save and bonus points in each of those fixtures.

Those who put their faith in Dubravka, however, have had a torrid time of late. With 4 out of 4 defeats, Newcastle’s fall from grace has been well-documented. In no place is the decline more apparent than in defence. While FPL managers were right to get excited by the prospect of a £4m goalkeeper playing for (statistically) one of the best defences in the league, owners have been poorly rewarded; Newcastle have conceded a shocking 18 goals in their last 7 games.

Defenders

One of the most highly owned defenders amongst our Elite XI is Pedro Porro (£5.8m). He is owned by just over two-thirds of all managers in the Top 100k. An assist against Manchester United yesterday evening helped negate the points lost from conceding two goals. Capable of achieving both clean sheets and attacking returns, the Spurs full back will probably retain his space in the Consensus XI.

Gabriel (£5.0m) keeps his place from the beginning of the season despite enduring a period of tactical benchings in the opening Gameweeks. The Arsenal defender will probably not be going anywhere in the short-term as the Gunners have a decent run of fixtures on the horizon.

Pervis Estupiñán (£5.0m) rounds off the back three. Marking his return from injury with a wondergoal and a clean sheet, the Ecuadorian full back has caught the attention of our Elite managers. With a look at the Fixture Planner, we can clearly see that Brighton’s short-and-medium term fixtures provide ample opportunity for more returns.

Midfielders

With so many strong forward options, the Consensus XI has changed from a 3-5-2 formation to a 3-4-3. In addition, highly owned premium midfield pair Mohamed Salah (£13.1m) and Son Heung-min (£9.7m) have created something of a gulf in the middle of the park.

While Salah was one of the most sold players ahead of Gameweek 21, with almost 2.7m FPL managers parting ways, it would seem that Son has been the preferred sacrificial lamb for our Elite XI managers, with the majority of them keeping hold of Salah – and his Liverpool team mate Trent Alexander-Arnold (£8.5m).

Fresh midfield additions to the Consensus XI are Phil Foden (£8.0m) and Richarlison (£6.9m). While the former disappointed with a blank (despite his team scoring 3 goals), the latter made it six goals in seven games.

Bukayo Saka (£9.1m) remains one of the most owned players in the game. According to Live Insight, he is currently selected by 84.1% of Top 100k managers. But with just one goal involvement in his last five appearances, this could all be due to change as managers grapple with the dilemma of bringing back returning premiums in the near future. All eyes will be on Saka against Crystal Palace – another blank there could convince managers to part ways and distribute his £9.1m elsewhere.

It is no surprise that Cole Palmer (£5.8m) stakes a place in the Consensus XI. Cheap, on pens, and capable of double-digit returns. Explaining why he is so popular would be a waste of words.

Forwards

It seems strange not seeing Erling Haaland (£13.9m) as a permanent focal point of the Elite XI front line. But such is the ruthless nature of FPL, there is no time for sentimentality. In some ways, Haaland has been replaced by Julián Álvarez (£7.0m) who has the double advantage of being cheap, while still representing the Manchester City forward spot.

Ollie Watkins (£8.9m) has been sensational under Unai Emery and is the most owned player amongst the Top 100k with a whopping 93.5%. With good long-term fixtures for Aston Villa, it is hard to see Watkins going anywhere.

Alongside Watkins, Dominic Solanke (£7.1m) cements his place in the Consensus XI. According to Opta Stats Sandbox, no player has had more shots (66) than the Bournemouth striker this season. He is also the joint-second top scorer with Son (12), with only Salah and Haaland (both 14) able to better him.

The current Consensus XI draft is liable to change as our Elite XI managers tinker with their squads in the run up to the Gameweek 22 deadline. If you want to keep up to date with our Elite XI managers’ moves, you can sign up to email alerts, or push notifications in the Elite XI: Team Reveal section of the website.

By Matt Whelan

You can check out the Elite XI: Team Reveal tool by clicking HERE.