As we head into the break for the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar, it is time to look back on the West Ham United players who have performed the best across the first part of the Premier League season.
There is still time to make your transfers ahead of the Gameweek 16 deadline of 11am Saturday 12 November.
1st – Łukasz Fabiański (50 points)
A fair few Hammers might be surprised to see the No1 at the top of the FPL points scoring charts, but, in truth, it has been an impressive start to the season for the former Poland shot-stopper.
Fabiański has started in every one of West Ham United’s 14 Premier League fixtures, providing a welcome experience and composure between the sticks.
The No1 has also returned a healthy FPL points total considering his price tag of £5m and ownership of just 1.3%. The veteran has kept three clean sheets this campaign against Aston Villa, Wolverhampton Wanderers and AFC Bournemouth.
The 37-year-old also recorded a save bonus against Southampton, Tottenham Hotspur and Nottingham Forest – and tops the best FPL performers in Claret and Blue ahead of the Irons’ final fixture before the 2022 FIFA World Cup.
2nd – Kurt Zouma (46 points)
Like Fabiański, three clean-sheet bonuses have seen Zouma surge into second-placed on the list of highest FPL points-scoring Hammers ahead of today’s match with Leicester City.
The France centre-back’s best performance came in GW13 against AFC Bournemouth. Zouma towered over his opponents to put David Moyes’ men ahead with his first goal since West Ham United defeated Liverpool 3-2 in November 2021.
Zouma also showed his presence at the other end of the pitch, as a clean-sheet bonus alongside points for appearance and a bonus took his Gameweek total to 15. Incredibly, almost a third of his total points came in GW13.
3rd – Jarrod Bowen (45 points)
After reaching the 200 FPL points mark for the first time in his career last season, it is no surprise to see Bowen sit in the top-three highest-scoring Hammers ahead of the mid-season break.
Compared to Bowen’s return of 12 goals and 17 assists last year, it has been a quieter start to 2022/23 for the No20. But the third-highest-scoring midfielder in FPL 2021/22 is only five points short of a half-century ahead of the Irons’ final fixture before the 2022 FIFA World Cup, and there is plenty of season left to make up for lost time.
This season, Bowen’s best Gameweek came in a 2-0 win over Wolverhampton Wanderers at London Stadium in October. The £8.1m-priced midfielder picked up points for an assist, a goal, a clean sheet, a bonus and an appearance to take his GW9 total to 14 points. He continued that form the following week with a goal in a 3-1 win over Fulham in GW10.
Opposition One to Watch: Danny Ward
With Kasper Schmeichel departing Leicester City this summer, FPL bosses were quick to note that a £4.0m-priced goalkeeper, who would start regularly, would be available. From the off, Ward got the nod over Daniel Iversen, also priced at £4.0m, and has found his top form in recent weeks.
The Wales international has returned five clean sheets in his last seven games, conceding just three goals across that period.
As such, Ward has returned 49 points ahead of the Foxes’ trip to east London. And while many will have him as their reserve goalkeeper due to his price bracket, an ownership of 26.5% shows that FPL bosses have more than taken note of the keeper’s form.
What happens to FPL during the FIFA World Cup break?
A packed Premier League fixture schedule will take a welcome pause for the 2022 FIFA World Cup. After the Hammers host Leicester City today, the next deadline will be ahead of our Boxing Day fixture at Arsenal.
But the gap provides a chance for FPL bosses to reset their teams. Between the GW16 deadline and GW17 deadline at 11am GMT on 26 December, managers have unlimited transfers. This means you can change your team as much as you want, as any extra transfers will not cost you any points.
Of note is that player prices will be frozen during this period. You can still play all your chips during this break – except for the Wildcard (as they would be no point!).
How to join the WHU Supporter’s FPL League?
All you need to do is visit fantasy.premierleague.com/leagues/join/public and use the code jiymp8.
Congratulations to Aidan Dempsey-MacKillop and his team Cucurella’s Slipper, who collected 466 points to win the October Manager of the Month award.
Overall, Conor Harris’s Pique Blinders lead the way with 953 points.
