The Brighton players you will want in your Fantasy Premier League squad

The start of the 2020-21 Premier League season is now just days away, so it is time to delve a little deeper into the fantasy football prospects of key Brighton players.

We will be assessing the Albion assets worth considering and those from elsewhere in the top flight who ought to be featuring in your Fantasy Premier League squad.

Mat Ryan (£4.5 million)
10 teams kept more clean sheets than the nine the Seagulls managed last term, while the same number of sides conceded fewer goals overall. But that didn’t stop Brighton goalkeeper Maty Ryan from putting in an excellent fantasy league shift for his owners last time out.

He scored 135 points, placing him eighth in FPL among keepers, thanks in part to the 117 saves he made – only three keepers bettered that total.

Goalkeepers in FPL are awarded a point for every three saves they make in a match, so busy stoppers can still do the fantasy business even if clean sheets are in relatively short supply. A high level of saves also helps them earn bonus points – Ryan’s total of 14 extra points last season put him fourth among keepers.

Brighton’s first ten fixtures this year are a mix of the good (West Bromwich Albion at home, Aston Villa away), the bad (Manchester United, Tottenham Hotspur and Liverpool) and the ugly (Crystal Palace). But Ryan has the pedigree to score well even when the team is struggling.

That’s a happy state of affairs that almost – almost – makes him fixture-proof. And at £4.5 million, there aren’t many keepers out there offering more in that price bracket, which explains why he’s currently in over 21% of all FPL teams.

Tariq Lamptey (£4.5 million)
Unlike goalkeeper, defenders don’t get points for saves to bump up their tallies, so those in teams with less reliable rearguards need some measure of attacking threat to catch the fantasy eye.

Goal scoring defenders are few and far between – Adam Webster (£4.5 million) and Lewis Dunk (£5 million) managed three apiece to lead the way at the Amex last season – but full or wing-backs providing assists are far more common. That could make Tariq Lamptey a decent points prospect this campaign.

Now that Martin Montoya and Ezequiel Schelotto have moved on, Lamptey has a bit less competition for the right-back slot. Even taking into account his manager’s liking for rotation, that should mean he’ll start a lot more matches.

Becoming a regular in Graham Potter’s starting XI towards the end of the season, the youngster boasted the best minutes-per-chance-created average of Albion’s current crop of FPL defenders.

Potential doesn’t always equate to points, but Lamptey looks well-placed to have a breakthrough season this year – as the WAB team highlighted in our 2020-21 predictions earlier in the week.

Leandro Trossard (£6 million) and Adam Lallana (£6.5 million)
Rotation is one of the dirtiest words in fantasy football, so Potter’s willingness to change both personnel and system from league match to league match makes unearthing reliable Brighton points scorers a bit trickier.

But even though he was put in, taken out and his position chopped and changed last year, Leandro Trossard still emerged as the side’s major midfield contributor in FPL, with five goals, four assists and 104 points to his name. The fact that three Brighton midfielders played more minutes than him only makes his final tally more impressive.

If – and it’s a big one – Potter sticks more than he twists with his selections and strategies this season, Trossard is likely to be a major beneficiary.

Consistency was an issue with the Belgian during his debut Premier League season. Starting his second term strongly could persuade Potter to put more faith in the winger and, at £6.0 million, he’ll then attract a good deal of fantasy attention.

The wildcard in Brighton’s midfield could well be Adam Lallana. The new man’s best days might well be behind him, but he has proven pedigree – nine goals and as many assists in 2013-14 and eight and seven in 2016-17.

He’s also the highest-paid player at the club, which suggests Potter will be giving Lallana plenty of opportunities to justify that outlay, so security of starts shouldn’t be an issue.

Trossard is cheaper and potentially more dynamic, especially if his boss leaves him be to strut his stuff on the left flank, aided and abetted by Lallana in a more central midfield role. One could well spark the other into a fine season. Both will need monitoring.

Neil Maupay (£6.5 million)
Up front, there’s little point in having anyone but Neil Maupay in your side if a Brighton striker is top of your fantasy league wish list.

10 goals and three assists meant he was directly involved in a third of all Brighton’s strikes last season, and the 96 attempts he had was more than double his closest teammate’s total from that man Trossard.

Maupay also started 30 of Brighton’s 38 games last season, and made substitute appearances in a further seven. As a result, he is by far the most secure option among Brighton’s forwards and, indeed, across much of the rest of the side.

Elsewhere…
One of the joys of early-season FPL is the uncertainty surrounding newcomers to the league. Frequently big money and big name signings are selected but with no guarantees they’ll fall on their feet when it comes to Premier League life.

One player who looks better equipped than most to start with a bang is Chelsea striker Timo Werner. The Blues banged in 69 goals last year – only the top two managed more – despite never having a consistently in-form striker.

Werner looks like he will be just that, and even if the Seagulls keep him quiet, a 10-match opening schedule involving only Liverpool and Manchester United of the supposed ‘big teams’ suggests a strong start for the German international is a good bet.

Oh captain, my captain
Double points from your FPL skipper can make or break your gameweek, so it would be a good idea to nail your captaincy choice from the get-go.

There are a few fixtures catching the eye in gameweek one, but we’re likely to hand the armband to Arsenal’s Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (£12 million).

He was one shy of Jamie Vardy’s (£10 million) Golden Boot-winning 23 goals last year, despite spending much of the time cutting in from the left flank.

That has been recognised in this season’s FPL by a position change to midfielder, which means he’ll score an extra point every time he finds the net compared to last term, and he’s started early with a goal in the Community Shield.

A trip to newly-promoted Fulham looks like a fine fixture – the Cottagers let in 48 goals during their promotion-winning season, which was the worst record among the top four in the Championship and 13 more than champions Leeds United allowed.

You can pick up expert advice throughout the 2020-21 Fantasy Premier League season with Fantasy Football Scout