The best £8m midfielder options

Here we pick out the best £8m midfielder options. Using the Fantasy Football Scout Members Area we compare the best picks using underlying stats and fixture difficulty. At the end we will see who dominates the most important factors to see who comes out on top.

The £8m midfielder bracket could be a very important part to FPL managers season coming up. The same category dominated periods of last season so being able to pick out the best option could give us the early edge ahead of the competition.

The options

Mason Mount (Chelsea)
Luis Diaz (Liverpool)
Maddison (Leicester)
Foden (Man City)
Mahrez (Man City)
Kulusevski (Tottenham)
Saka (Arsenal)
Bowen (West Ham)

The basics

Before we cover assist and goal threat lets take a look at the basic stats form last season. Like with every other category they will all be ranked from first to eighth.

Minutes played

Mason Mount (Chelsea) – Fourth
Luis Diaz (Liverpool) – Eighth
Maddison (Leicester) – Third
Foden (Man City) – Fifth
Mahrez (Man City) – Sixth
Kulusevski (Tottenham) – Seventh
Saka (Arsenal) – Second
Bowen (West Ham) – First

All important for their teams but Bowen and Saka proving absolutely essential for their teams last season. Kulusevski and Diaz were new signings which have to be factored in. Mahrez and Foden seem light on minutes considering they’ve been fit for most of the season.

Total points 21/22

Mason Mount (Chelsea) – Fourth
Luis Diaz (Liverpool) – Eighth
Maddison (Leicester) – Second
Foden (Man City) – Fifth
Mahrez (Man City) – Sixth
Kulusevski (Tottenham) – Seventh
Saka (Arsenal) – Third
Bowen (West Ham) – First

Bowen tops the list with Maddison and Saka close behind again. Mahrez and Foden finish near the bottom. Kulusevski and Diaz were new signings so their position is understandable.

Points per 90 minutes

Mason Mount (Chelsea) – Fourth
Luis Diaz (Liverpool) – Sixth
Maddison (Leicester) – Third
Foden (Man City) – Seventh
Mahrez (Man City) – First
Kulusevski (Tottenham) – Second
Saka (Arsenal) – Eighth
Bowen (West Ham) – Fifth

Mahrez shows that he is very effective when he does play with new signing Kulusevski up there as well. Saka and Foden sink to the bottom.

Underlying stats

Lets now take a dive into the data. We’ll take a look at things like goal threat, assist potential and expected data to further highlight assets in different areas. We’ll also make it as fair as we can by including per 90 minute stats for each key data point.

Distribution-Chances Created

Mason Mount (Chelsea) – Second
Luis Diaz (Liverpool) – Sixth
Maddison (Leicester) – Third
Foden (Man City) – Fifth
Mahrez (Man City) – Sixth
Kulusevski (Tottenham) – Sixth
Saka (Arsenal) – First
Bowen (West Ham) – Fourth

Saka and Mount prove to be top in chances created for their teams. Diaz and Kulusevski naturally coming at the bottom as they have played the least minutes.

Chances created per 90 minutes

Mason Mount (Chelsea) – Second
Luis Diaz (Liverpool) – Fourth
Maddison (Leicester) – Sixth
Foden (Man City) – Seventh
Mahrez (Man City) – First
Kulusevski (Tottenham) – Fifth
Saka (Arsenal) – Third
Bowen (West Ham) – Eighth

Mahrez showing again how effective he can be when he does play. Mount and Saka impressively remain two of the best creators here even per 90 minutes.

Big chances created

Mason Mount (Chelsea) – Second
Luis Diaz (Liverpool) – Fifth
Maddison (Leicester) – First
Foden (Man City) – First
Mahrez (Man City) -Fourth
Kulusevski (Tottenham) – Third
Saka (Arsenal) – Second
Bowen (West Ham) – Second

Its all a bit tight here but Foden takes this one with Maddison. The players with the fewer minutes coming close to the bottom again.

Big chances created per 90 minutes

Mason Mount (Chelsea) -Fourth
Luis Diaz (Liverpool) – Seventh
Maddison (Leicester) – Third
Foden (Man City) – First
Mahrez (Man City) – Fifth
Kulusevski (Tottenham) – Second
Saka (Arsenal) – Sixth
Bowen (West Ham) – Sixth

Foden remains top highlighting the fact he creates a lot of big chances for potential assists. Kulusevski not far behind in second. Saka and Bowen come bottom.

Assists

Mason Mount (Chelsea) – First
Luis Diaz (Liverpool) -Fifth
Maddison (Leicester) – Second
Foden (Man City) – Fourth
Mahrez (Man City) – Fourth
Kulusevski (Tottenham) – Second
Saka (Arsenal) – Third
Bowen (West Ham) – First

You can see that although Foden creates a lot of big chances his team mates fail to put them away. Mount and Bowen come top here with Kulusevski close behind, impressive considering the latter played a lot less minutes.

Assists per 90 minutes

Mason Mount (Chelsea) – Second
Luis Diaz (Liverpool) – Fifth
Maddison (Leicester) – Fourth
Foden (Man City) – Sixth
Mahrez (Man City) – Fourth
Kulusevski (Tottenham) – First
Saka (Arsenal) – Sixth
Bowen (West Ham) – Third

Mount showing again a top provider as he dominates the assists category. Kulusevski a huge provider again. Saka shows he needs more minutes to get assists in comparison.

Goal threat- Shots in the Box

Mason Mount (Chelsea) – Third
Luis Diaz (Liverpool) – Seventh
Maddison (Leicester) – Sixth
Foden (Man City) – Fourth
Mahrez (Man City) – Fifth
Kulusevski (Tottenham) – Eighth
Saka (Arsenal) – First
Bowen (West Ham) – Second

Saka and Bowen very active when it comes to shots in the box. Mount continues to be up there amongst the top. The Man City boys stay average here.

Shots in the box per 90 minutes

Mason Mount (Chelsea) – Sixth
Luis Diaz (Liverpool) – Second
Maddison (Leicester) – Eighth
Foden (Man City) – Fourth
Mahrez (Man City) – First
Kulusevski (Tottenham) – Seventh
Saka (Arsenal) – Third
Bowen (West Ham) -Fifth

Saka stays one of the most active for shots in the box. Maddison stays close to the bottom. Mahrez shows once again how effective he can be in 90 minutes.

Big chances total

Mason Mount (Chelsea) – Fourth
Luis Diaz (Liverpool) – Sixth
Maddison (Leicester) – Fifth
Foden (Man City) – Third
Mahrez (Man City) – Second
Kulusevski (Tottenham) – Seventh
Saka (Arsenal) – Fifth
Bowen (West Ham) – First

Mahrez continues to be dangerous considering these are not per 90 minute stats that he tends to dominate. Bowen tops the list staying consistently dangerous.

Big chances total per 90 minutes

Mason Mount (Chelsea) – Fifth
Luis Diaz (Liverpool) – Third
Maddison (Leicester) – Sixth
Foden (Man City) – Fourth
Mahrez (Man City) – First
Kulusevski (Tottenham) – Sixth
Saka (Arsenal) – Eighth
Bowen (West Ham) -Second

No surprise that Mahrez is the most dangerous in 90 minutes. Diaz rises close to the top for the first time showing he can be dangerous when he plays.

Goals

Mason Mount (Chelsea) – Second
Luis Diaz (Liverpool) – Fifth
Maddison (Leicester) – First
Foden (Man City) – Third
Mahrez (Man City) – Second
Kulusevski (Tottenham) – Fourth
Saka (Arsenal) – Second
Bowen (West Ham) – First

Considering Mahrez played less minutes than the rest this is impressive. It was all quite tight at the top suggesting players like Mahrez and Foden with more minutes could have a better output.

Goals per 90 minutes

Mason Mount (Chelsea) – Third
Luis Diaz (Liverpool) – Fifth
Maddison (Leicester) – Second
Foden (Man City) – Fourth
Mahrez (Man City) – First
Kulusevski (Tottenham) – Seventh
Saka (Arsenal) – Eight
Bowen (West Ham) – Sixth

Another great showing by Mahrez. Maddison also impressive who shows he needs less chances to score. Kulusevski clearly lacking in goal threat.

Fixtures

You can see using the fixture ticker below where teams rank in the first eight game weeks. Using the first eight game weeks is a great period because it is likely most managers use their first wildcard around this period. Lets take a look where the options stack up.

Mason Mount (Chelsea) – Fourth
Luis Diaz (Liverpool) – Third
Maddison (Leicester) – Seventh
Foden (Man City) – Second
Mahrez (Man City) – Second
Kulusevski (Tottenham) – Fifth
Saka (Arsenal) – First
Bowen (West Ham) – Sixth

Mount

Not only did Mount do well with most underlying data in terms of assist and goal threat potential the actual goals and assists were there to back it up. His fixtures are mixed but with new arrival Sterling there to help put away even more chances he could be a great differential early on.

Luis Diaz

Its hard to judge based on the stats above due to him being a new arrival. The fixtures are very good for Diaz and with the departure of Mane we could well see him nailed in terms of minutes too. He doesn’t jump out of the stats but he plays for Liverpool and so could be a great option to start the season with.

Maddison

Did very well on goals and assists but the data suggests he could either have overperformed last season or be very clinical. His fixtures are the worst on the fixture ticker so it feels difficult to go there.

Foden

Created a lot of big chances but seemed to have been let down by his team mates. This could well change with the arrival of Haaland to put them away but his colleague Mahrez could be an even better option.

Mahrez

With the departure of Jesus and Sterling, Mahrez could play a lot more minutes this season. He could lose penalties due to the arrival of Haaland but the stats show that may not matter. Dominating a lot of the per 90 stats and with the second best fixtures Mahrez could be a great option.

Kulusevksi

Seems to be lacking in goal threat and could have his minutes managed by new arrival Richarlison. Could be one to just monitor for now.

Saka

A fantastic season for Saka in 21/22. Has lots of shots but tends to need a lot to score. New arrival could reduce Saka’s chances to shoot but his early fixtures are great. Jesus is popular however and I’m not sure FPL players will want both.

Bowen

A great player but fixtures could really put a lot of FPL managers off. It is likely that Bowen could be a wait and see.

Check out our article picking out the best £4.5m defenders here to help enable those mid priced assets.