Another Tuesday FPL deadline is upon us. Ahead of this, we have selected three budget differential options.
For gameweek 21, we have a defender, a midfielder and a forward all priced £5.0m or under for your consideration.
Antonee Robinson
Ownership in FPL: 0.7% Price: £4.9m Position: Defender Team: Fulham
It is somewhat surprising that a defender who managed double-digit assists in the 24/25 season is so lowly owned. This can be explained by Robinson’s lack of starts up until gameweek 16. As a result of his late start to the season, Fulham’s left back is flying completely under the radar.
To remind us of his assist potential, Robinson has created the most chances of any defender since gameweek 16. He has ten in that time, which puts him amongst the likes of Foden and Saka.
He has also completed 9 successful crosses since his return. He could be considered slightly unlucky not to have picked up any assists in this spell, but they could be in his horizon.
Robinson’s excellent distribution sets him up strongly in the bonus points system. He has recorded four bonus points already since his return. If Fulham keep a clean sheet, which they have done twice since his comeback, he is likely to end up amongst the top three for the bonus points on offer.
Encouragingly, despite his injury issues, he has started and completed 90 in every game since gameweek 16. Perhaps his late start to the season will mean his energy levels are higher and can sustain his form longer into the season.
Reliable minutes will be useful, especially as Fulham move into a good long run of fixtures.
Aside from the away fixture at Manchester City, you could start Robinson in any of his games up to and including gameweek 31.
With so many injuries across the league, having someone in the team like Robinson who you can rely on for starts for such a long spell is invaluable. His 0.7% ownership could see a big jump if he starts to deliver on his creative potential.
Adam Wharton
Ownership in FPL: 0.9% Price: £5.0m Position: Midfielder Team: Crystal Palace
The budget midfield options have delivered some big hauls this season. Players such as Stach, Ayari, Garner and Dewsbury-Hall have all come away with double-digit totals already. Perhaps next in line for a similar monster week is Adam Wharton, who has all the ingredients needed to make this happen.
Wharton has a good share of free kicks and corners, which is the first feather in his cap. Palace have generated just over nine expected goals (xG) from set pieces this season, putting them in the top five in the league. They have underperformed in terms of goals from these situations, so if they can improve this, then Wharton will stand to benefit directly.
It is not just through set pieces that Wharton can generate assists. He has open play potential also. So far, he has created seven big chances for his teammates and is in the top five across the league for expected assists (xA). He can be considered unlucky to have only picked up two assists on the season so far.
To accompany his creative potential, Wharton records his fair share of defcon. He has recorded just under 11 per 90 so far, hitting the threshold on six occasions.
If there is a chance for him to combine all these facets of his game into a big performance, his long-term fixtures offer encouragement.
At only £5.0m, Wharton is a differential you could plug in and play as needed in many of these matches. As Palace get more players back from injury and AFCON, there is every chance Wharton joins the list of budget midfielders with double-digit hauls this season.
Matheus Mane
Ownership in FPL: 0.4% Price: £4.5m Position: Forward Team: Wolverhampton Wanderers
The forward landscape has been hit or miss this season, with only Haaland and Thiago breaking the 100-point mark so far. As such, some managers may be looking to downgrade one of their forward spots to afford upgrades elsewhere. In Matheus Mane, we now have a promising option at that budget price point.
At just £4.5m, 18-year-old Mane could be the perfect differential to have as your 8th attacker. Having started the last three, Mane showed what he was capable of in gameweek 20, winning a penalty and scoring a well-taken goal himself.
His manager heaped praise on him as well, saying that he is a ‘little bit of a leader’ and ‘someone that we should be really excited about’.
Since Rob Edwards took charge, Wolves have shown improvement despite their difficult run of fixtures. They have lifted themselves to mid-table in terms of expected goals against and have gone from 20th to 15th for xG. These signs of life are encouraging for Mane’s prospects for the rest of the season.
You can never expect too much from a £4.5m forward, but Mane is currently offering good minutes and showing he has the potential to chip in with the occasional attacking return. As he is such a differential, if you do ever need to start him, you can be sure that any points will be almost all yours and yours alone.
FPL Gameweek 19 Differentials: Round Up
Antonee Robinson £4.9m offers excellent creativity from left back for a team about to embark on a great fixture run 0.7% Ownership.
Adam Wharton £5.0m has a lot of strings to his bow with set pieces, assist potential and defcon 0.9% Ownership.
Matheus Mane £4.5m gives you minutes and some attacking potential at the barren budget forward price point 0.4% Ownership.
