[THREAD]
Mid-Priced Midfielders

Following my thread on low-priced midfielders (£5.0m-£6.5m), I have put together a thread on the top 10 best mid-priced midfielders (£7.0m-£9.5m). I have also included some others worth mentioning.

Top 10, in price order:
1. Rashford MUN £9.5m
2. Son TOT £9.0m
3. Mahrez MCI £8.5m
4. Pulisic CHE £8.5m
5. Ziyech CHE £8.0m

6. Willian ARS £8.0m
7. Greenwood MUN £7.5m
8. Maddison LEI £7.0m
9. Barnes LEI £7.0m
10. Grealish AVL £7.0m

Marcus Rashford MID MUN
Price: £9.5m
Playing position: LW
Appearances: 31
17 goals 7 assists
Per game: 2.5 shots 1.1 KPs
9 big chances created

Rashford was United’s joint top goalscorer and assister in the PL 19/20. This helped him to become the 6th highest point-scoring MID. Despite missing 7 games through injury, his 95 shots, 44 shots on target and 29 big chances were all team-leading totals for the Red Devils.

Heung-Min Son MID TOT
Price: £9.0m
Playing position: LW
Appearances (starts): 30 (28)
11 goals 10 assists
Per game: 2.1 shots 1.4 KPs
12 big chances created

Spurs have one of the kindest runs of opening opponents, facing just one of last season’s top eight sides in the first eight Gameweeks.

Son was Spurs’ best player under Mourinho in 19/20. He averaged 5.9 ppm from GW13 onwards following the Portuguese's arrival. Son was involved in 46% of their goals for Mourinho, more than any other player. He also created the most BCs, and equalled Kane for total shots (62).

Riyad Mahrez MID MCI
Price: £8.5m
Playing position: RW
Appearances: 33
11 goals 9 assists
Per game: 1.5 shots 1.9 KPs
18 big chances created

Mahrez was the 7th highest-scoring MID in FPL 19/20. When selected, he was involved in 38% of City’s goals. That is more than the 37% of Sterling (£11.5m) and just behind the 41% of De Bruyne (£11.5m). If Mahrez can become a more regular starter, he could be a great differential.

Christian Pulisic MID CHE
Price: £8.5m
Playing position: LW
Appearances (starts): 25 (19)
9 goals 4 assists
Per game: 1.9 shots 1.2 KPs
6 big chances created

Pulisic performed very well following the restart. He produced attacking returns in 7 of the Blues’ final 9 fixtures, with 4G & 5A. Limited to 25 appearances due to injury, he managed an impressive 5.1 ppm. However, he is likely to miss the first 1/2 GWs with a hamstring injury.

Hakim Ziyech MID CHE
Price: £8.0m
Playing position: RW / CAM
Appearances (starts): 21 (21)
6 goals 12 assists
Per game: 3.2 shots 3.9 KPs
23 big chances created
* statistics from Eredivisie

Ziyech recorded some incredible numbers in the Eredivisie 19/20. No one created more big chances, and only Tadic made assists than him. Ziyech also had the highest KPpG and 2nd highest SpG in the league. He is expected to be Chelsea’s first-choice taker of free-kicks and corners.

Willian MID ARS
Price: £8.0m
Playing position: RW
Appearances (starts): 36 (29)
9 goals 7 assists
Per game: 1.3 shots 2.1 KPs
12 big chances created

Willian joined ARS from CHE on a free transfer this summer. He made more assists and created more BCs than any Arsenal player in the PL 19/20. However, he has competition with Pepe (£8.0m) for the RW. FPL managers could be interested to see ARS’s set-up in the Community Shield.

Mason Greenwood MID MUN
Price: £7.5m
Playing position: RW
Appearances (starts): 31 (12)
10 goals 1 assist
Per game: 1.0 shots 0.5 KPs
1 big chance created

Greenwood’s average of 131 mins/goal was quicker than any FPL MID with >1 goal in 19/20. His prospects may ultimately depend on whether Solskjaer adds a new signing to his attacking options. But if Greenwood continues to be a regular starter, he offers better value than Rashford.

James Maddison MID LEI
Price: £7.0m
Playing position: CAM
Appearances (starts): 31 (29)
6 goals 3 assists
Per game: 1.4 shots 2.5 KPs
8 big chances created

Maddison was one of the most creative players in the PL 19/20, averaging the 3rd highest KPpG. Despite missing the final 6 games with a hip injury, only Vardy (£10.0m) created more big chances for the Foxes. Maddison is expected to be fit for the start of the new season.

Harvey Barnes MID LEI
Price: £7.0m
Playing position: LW
Appearances (starts): 36 (24)
6 goals 8 assists
Per game: 1.3 shots 1.0 KPs
6 big chances created

Barnes averaged only 58mins per game in the PL 19/20, which explains his fairly low underlying stats. However, in his run of starts (GW 22-30), Barnes averaged 2.2 SpG and 1.4 KPpG. He only started 3 of the Foxes’ final 8 games, often making way for Iheanacho in a 4-4-2 or 5-3-2.

Jack Grealish MID AVL
Price: £7.0m
Playing position: LW / CAM
Appearances (starts): 36 (36)
8 goals 6 assists
Per game: 1.5 shots 2.5 KPs
8 big chances created

Grealish scored 149 points in 19/20, which helped him finish 10th place among FPL midfielders. His underlying stats suggest he can still be worth the rise in price this term.
Grealish created 91 chances in the previous campaign, bettered only by De Bruyne (137).

Others:
1. Havertz CHE £8.5m?
2. Alli TOT £8.0m
3. Zaha CRY £7.0m

Kai Havertz MID CHE
Predicted price: £8.5m
Playing position: CAM / RW
Appearances (starts): 30 (29)
12 goals 6 assists
Per game: 1.6 shots 2.0 KPs
15 big chances created
* statistics from Bundesliga

Havertz’s transfer is to Chelsea is yet to be announced, but @FabrizioRomano has reported that Chelsea and Leverkusen have signed an agreement for €100m (including add-ons).

Havertz was Bayer Leverkusen’s talisman throughout the 19/20 season. He was their top goalscorer, and only Volland recorded more assists. At Leverkusen, he also created the most big chances and had the 2nd most shots, again only beaten by Volland.

Dele Alli MID TOT
Price: £8.0m
Playing position: CAM
Appearances (starts): 25 (21)
8 goals 4 assists
Per game: 1.4 shots 0.9 KPs
6 big chances created

Alli exceeded his xG & xA, and was behind Son in all underlying stats last term. This makes Son the much better option to take advantage of Spurs’ very appealing opening fixtures. For the same price, Willian and Ziyech could both be better options, despite having tougher starts.

Wilfred Zaha MID CRY
Price: £7.0m
Playing position: LW
Appearances (starts): 38 (37)
4 goals 3 assists
Per game: 1.0 shots 1.0 KPs
4 big chances created

Zaha achieved 12+ goal involvements in each of the last 3 PL seasons, prior to 19/20. However, he struggled to hit form last term. His underlying stats are no consolation either. Playing in a team that scored the 2nd fewest goals in 19/20, Zaha isn’t the FPL asset he once was.

The best mid-priced midfielders:
1. Son TOT £9.0m
2. Pulisic CHE £8.5m
3. Greenwood MUN £7.5m

Son is the most appealing, with a kind run of opening games. Kane could be a good alternative, but he’s £1.5m more, and gets 1 less point for a goal and no CS points. Pulisic’s late return to the PL due to an injury, and Greenwood’s blank in GW1 saves a team selection headache.

Thanks for taking the time to read my thread. Retweets and feedback are appreciated. As always, thanks to @AllAboutFPL, @FPLGOAT7, @FPL_Elite and @pedpax for their continued support in growing my audience.

I will be posting a thread on the best low-priced forwards (£5.5m-£6.5m) tomorrow.