The Scout assesses the best way to invest in Liverpool in Fantasy Premier League for their Double Gameweek 25 (DGW25).
The Reds are set for a second successive Double Gameweek in Fantasy after the second match of their Double Gameweek 24 (DGW24) ended with a 2-2 in the Merseyside derby on Wednesday night.
In DGW25, Liverpool host Wolverhampton Wanderers at Anfield on Sunday before visiting Aston Villa three days later.
Villa also have a DGW25, entertaining Ipswich Town in their first match on Saturday.
Both Liverpool and Villa will, however, have a Blank Gameweek 29 (BGW29), along with Newcastle United and Crystal Palace, after the Magpies booked their place in the EFL Cup final, where they will face Liverpool.
DGW25 fixtures
| Club | Matches |
|---|---|
| Aston Villa | IPS (H), LIV (H) |
| Liverpool | WOL (H), AVL (A) |
Time to play Triple Captain or Assistant Manager chip?
DGW25 offers those Fantasy managers who have yet to play their Triple Captain chip the opportunity to use it on Mohamed Salah (£13.7m).
Liverpool’s talisman delivered 10 points against Wolves and 14 against Villa earlier in the season – that’s 72 points using the Triple Captain chip.
Alternatively, you could use the new Assistant Manager chip on Arne Slot (£1.5m) to take advantage of the schedule.
See: All you need to know about Assistant Manager chip
The Assistant Manager chip allows you to pick a manager and earn points from their club’s results for three Gameweeks in a row. So if you use it on Slot in DGW25, you would profit from FOUR matches across three Gameweeks, as it would also include Liverpool’s visit to Manchester City in Gameweek 26 and home match against Newcastle in Gameweek 27.
Notably, Slot has amassed 198 points this season – more than any player in Fantasy apart from Salah.
Alternatively, you could transfer out Slot in Gameweek 26 ahead of those tough two matches and replace him with a manager who has kinder fixtures, such as AFC Bournemouth’s Andoni Iraola (£1.1m). The Cherries host Wolverhampton Wanderers in Gameweek 26 before visiting Brighton & Hove Albion in Gameweek 27.
Elsewhere for Liverpool, it’s fair to say there had already been significant interest in Cody Gakpo (£7.6m) prior to the confirmation of Liverpool’s DGW25.
The Dutchman was the most-bought player in DGW24, with a massive 1.2million transfers in lifting his ownership to 22 per cent. And as of 12:00 GMT on Friday 14 February, he was the second most-bought forward ahead of the DGW25, attracting a further 235,000 new owners.
However, in his Friday pre-match press conference, Slot revealed that Gakpo is an injury doubt ahead of the Wolves match. The Liverpool head coach stated that the forward had to be substituted against Everton due to a knock and that he will be assessed on Friday.
At the back, Trent Alexander-Arnold (£7.4m) is the most-owned defender in Fantasy and is selected by 32 per cent.
One goal, six assists, nine clean sheets and 13 bonus points show the multiple routes to returns offered by the England star. Alexander-Arnold was fit enough to come off the bench to play 29 minutes against Everton.
Expect rotation
Liverpool’s busy schedule across all competitions certainly suggests that Slot will have to rotate a number of players. Indeed, there was heavy rotation of the squad for the FA Cup tie against Plymouth Argyle.
They have four league fixtures to play over the span of just 11 days, starting on Sunday.
Why Alexander-Arnold has huge potential for assists
A look at the data shows why Alexander-Arnold’s potential for points at both ends of the pitch makes him the best Liverpool player to pick alongside Salah.
The right-back’s six assists and nine clean sheets are both one more than his respective totals from all of last season.
Alexander-Arnold has created 45 goalscoring opportunities for his team-mates, with 14 of those deemed “big chances created” – situations where the player is expected to score.
Those two totals are second only to Salah for the Reds and are each more than any other defender in 2024/25 Fantasy.
Liverpool’s top creators 24/25
| Player | Assists | Chances created | Big chances created |
| Salah | 14 | 54 | 18 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alexander-Arnold | 6 | 45 | 14 |
| Gakpo | 4 | 30 | 7 |
| Szoboszlai | 6 | 33 | 7 |
| Mac Allister | 4 | 31 | 5 |
| Robertson | 0 | 30 | 5 |
| Diaz | 3 | 28 | 3 |
Elsewhere at the back, both Alisson (£5.5m) and Virgil van Dijk (£6.4m) have started every league match they have been available for, an indication they are more likely to be immune to rotation than the rest of the Liverpool squad during this period.
Is Gakpo still the best attacker to pick alongside Salah?
If you’re keen to double up on Liverpool’s attack, it’s hard to ignore Gakpo. Although investing now is a risk due to the forward being an injury doubt.
He has started each of Liverpool’s last 13 league matches, since Gameweek 12, in a run which has considerably lifted his output in Fantasy.
Indeed, his 72 points are second only to Salah, with Alexander-Arnold claiming third on 61 points.
Liverpool’s top points-scorers, GW12-24
| Player | G + A | CS* | PPS** | Pts |
| Salah | 22 | 4 | 11.9 | 144 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gakpo | 10 | N/A | 5.5 | 72 |
| Alexander-Arnold | 6 | 4 | 5.4 | 61 |
| Szoboszlai | 7 | 4 | 6.0 | 55 |
| Mac Allister | 6 | 5 | 4.5 | 51 |
| Diaz | 4 | 5 | 4.2 | 44 |
*Clean sheets: Goalkeepers and defenders in FPL earn four points for a clean sheet, while midfielders get one point and forwards get none
**Points per start
Liverpool could look to Darwin Nunez (£7.0m) or Diogo Jota (£7.2m) in attack, with the latter only recently returning from injury, if Gakpo does not recover in time for the match against Wolves.
So, who are the best Liverpool picks?
Salah and Alexander-Arnold are far and away the best two Liverpool picks over the coming period, with the Egyptian offering a great Triple-Captain option in DGW25.
The Assistant Manager chip certainly lifts the appeal of picking Slot in DGW25 then replacing him ahead of the Man City match in Gameweek 26.
Gakpo‘s injury doubt lessens his appeal and means that either Alisson or Van Dijk are now better third picks than the forward, given their cost and security of minutes.