The Scout uses the Fixture Difficulty Rankings (FDR) to identify the clubs and players with the best and worst schedules over the next four Gameweeks of Fantasy Premier League.
Who has the best schedule?
Crystal Palace top the FDR chart between Gameweeks 21 and 24, with several of their players finding form at just the right time to take full advantage of that run.
According to the FDR, three of the Eagles’ next four matches score a mere two, with one being the easiest possible fixture and five being the hardest possible in the rankings.
Palace face Leicester City, West Ham United and Brentford to begin that spell, followed by a trip to Manchester United.
Eberechi Eze (£6.6m) has a goal and assist across his past two matches, while Jean-Philippe Mateta (£7.2m) ended a scoring drought by netting against Chelsea in Gameweek 20. Ismaila Sarr (£5.9m) – who delivered a 17-point haul in Gameweek 16 – comes in slightly cheaper, for those facing more budget constraints.
Meanwhile, full-backs Daniel Munoz (£4.7m) and Tyrick Mitchell (£4.8m) offer points potential at both ends of the pitch.
Elsewhere, Brighton & Hove Albion, Newcastle United and Fulham have among the best fixtures across the rest of the league based on FDR.
Clubs with the best fixtures in FDR
| Club | No. of matches scoring 2 in FDR | FDR average |
|---|---|---|
| Crystal Palace | 3 | 2.25 |
| Brighton | 2 | 2.50 |
| Newcastle | 2 | 2.50 |
| Fulham | 2 | 2.75 |
| Chelsea | 2 | 2.75 |
| Man Utd | 1 | 2.75 |
Three of Newcastle’s next four matches are at home, with their sole away encounter being a visit to bottom-side Southampton in Gameweek 23.
Newcastle’s Alexander Isak (£9.3m) is in fine form, scoring in seven successive matches and tallying nine goals and two assists in that time. AFC Bournemouth and Fulham in Gameweeks 22 and 24, respectively, may test his ability to continue that run, but Wolverhampton Wanderers up next followed by Saints a few weeks later are – on paper at least – some of the kindest fixtures a forward can ask for.
From their midfield, players such as Anthony Gordon (£7.5m), Jacob Murphy (£5.1m) and Joelinton (£6.0m) are all promising picks at varying price points. Gordon has blanked only once since Gameweek 12, Murphy has eight returns in his last six matches, and Joelinton has 24 points across his previous three appearances.
Defensively, the Magpies have kept four clean sheets in their last five, with Lewis Hall (£4.9m) also offering attacking threat; he has three assists in that time.
Brighton’s average FDR score over their next four fixtures – trips to Ipswich Town, Man Utd and Nottingham Forest as well as hosting Everton – comes out the same as Newcastle’s.
Carlos Baleba (£5.0m) could become an under-the-radar budget midfielder, having started each of Brighton’s last seven matches, while Joao Pedro (£5.7m) – who also boasts the advantage of spot-kick duties – has just delivered back-to-back nine-point hauls against Aston Villa and Arsenal, courtesy of two assists and a goal.
Four teams are then tied in their average upcoming FDR: Fulham, Chelsea, Man Utd and Southampton.
Fulham have had decent fixtures for a few weeks already, yet have only one win in their last six. Still, Raul Jimenez (£5.7m) has three goals in his last two appearances thanks to a pair of penalties against Ipswich last time out, with that form likely minimising the threat of Rodrigo Muniz (£5.5m) replacing him for now.
Jimenez’s second penalty v Ipswich
̶J̶a̶v̶i̶e̶r̶ ̶H̶e̶r̶n̶á̶n̶d̶e̶z̶ ̶ Raúl Jiménez. ??Now the highest scoring Mexican in @premierleague history. ? pic.twitter.com/tiiNhjWO11
— Fulham Football Club (@FulhamFC) January 5, 2025
Alex Iwobi’s (£5.9m) recent purple patch came to an end over the festive period, but Harry Wilson (£5.2m) has three returns in as many matches and started four of Fulham’s last five matches. There’s also Antonee Robinson (£5.0m), who may only have three clean sheets all season but has racked up seven assists – the most among all FPL defenders.
Cole Palmer (£11.4m) is comfortably the best pick from Chelsea’s bunch ahead of their promising upcoming run, having reached 20 attacking returns already this season thanks to his goal against Palace in Gameweek 20.
The hot streak enjoyed by Enzo Fernandez (£5.1m) a month ago has gone cold lately, though, and Nicolas Jackson’s (£8.1m) output has also tailed off, but the two do remain reasonably nailed on minutes-wise. Levi Colwill (£4.6m) is likely the most assured starter in the Blues’ backline, but Marc Cucurella (£5.2m) offers slightly more attacking threat for a little extra outlay.
Also keep an eye on Josh Acheampong (£4.0m), who impressed on his first start – against Palace last time out – and could present a cut-price route into Chelsea’s defence if he nails down a position in their XI.
Man Utd have kept just one clean sheet in their nine league matches since head coach Ruben Amorim arrived, meaning interest in players such as Andre Onana (£5.1m) and Diogo Dalot (£5.0m) has understandably cooled lately.
However, the visit of Southampton in Gameweek 21 could raise their appeal once more.
There’s also Lisandro Martinez (£4.4m), who in the last five Gameweeks has scored and assisted against Liverpool and Manchester City, respectively.
From the Red Devils’ attack, Amad (£5.4m) continues to be a standout option after his goal at Anfield. That snapped a run of three consecutive blanks, before which the cheap young winger had seven returns in six appearances.
For those with a little extra cash lying around, Bruno Fernandes (£8.3m) brings the bonus of penalty-taking duties.
Lastly, Southampton’s fixtures score the same as Fulham, Chelsea and Man Utd on the FDR, but may prove to be more difficult than they appear for the league’s bottom side – particularly the first three matches in this run.
Who has the worst schedule?
Several of the league’s top teams face tougher tests over their upcoming matches, including Liverpool and Arsenal.
Arne Slot’s Reds average out at 3.0 on the FDR over their next four encounters, a run which features trips to Forest, Brentford and Bournemouth as well as a kinder-looking home encounter against Ipswich.
That’s the same as Villa, who travel to Everton and Arsenal before what should be easier matches against West Ham, at home, and a short trip to Wolves.
The Gunners, meanwhile, have an average FDR of 3.25, as they face Spurs, Villa and Man City at home despite also playing Wolves in Gameweek 23.
Leicester’s FDR average is the same, but the Foxes have zero matches scoring two, while Forest’s average FDR – also 3.25 – is skewed somewhat by their Gameweek 21 showdown with table-toppers Liverpool, with their schedule easing up a little after that.
A few more clubs have even higher average FDR scores than the aforementioned teams, such as Bournemouth, Brentford, Wolves, Man City and Spurs.
Clubs with the worst fixtures in FDR
| Club | No. of matches scoring 2 in FDR | FDR average |
|---|---|---|
| Bournemouth | 0 | 4.00 |
| Brentford | 0 | 4.00 |
| Wolves | 0 | 3.75 |
| Man City | 1 | 3.75 |
| West Ham | 0 | 3.50 |
| Ipswich | 1 | 3.50 |
| Spurs | 1 | 3.50 |
Though many of those teams boast popular and in-form FPL assets, the trickier immediate fixtures may raise questions for managers looking to re-shuffle their squads.