What happened in Gameweek 38?
A quick round-up of the main numbers and noteworthy moments from FPL Gameweek 38, which has been completed.
Sunday’s events brought the 2023/24 season to an end. Manchester City took an early lead and didn’t let it slip, thus securing the Premier League title for a fourth consecutive year. Arsenal eventually overcame Everton but it wasn’t enough.
Elsewhere, Luton’s relegation was mathematically confirmed, Chelsea won again to ensure a sixth-placed finish and Newcastle won 4-2 to clinch seventh. Whether that means European football for the Magpies depends on how Man United fare in the FA Cup final.
GAMEWEEK 38 NUMBERS
MOST POINTS
| 20 | Mateta (CRY) |
| 18 | Eze (CRY) |
| 16 | Guimaraes (NEW), Kulusevski (TOT) |
| 15 | Foden (MCI), Dalot (MUN), Wilson (FUL), Quansah (LIV) |
| 14 | Isak (NEW), Porro (TOT) |
| 13 | Wood (NOT), Jimenez (FUL) |
| 10 | Odegaard (ARS), Bernardo (MCI), Munoz (CRY), Traore (FUL), Caicedo (CHE), Gueye (EVE) |
Although in-form Crystal Palace were backed to beat an Aston Villa side already guaranteed fourth spot, to win 5-0 wasn’t quite anticipated. Jean-Philippe Mateta (£5.1m), Eberechi Eze (£6.0m) and Daniel Munoz (£4.5m) all scored big, as did several Newcastle and Spurs assets.
GOALS + ASSISTS + CLEAN SHEETS
| GOALS | ASSISTS | CLEAN SHEETS |
|---|---|---|
| 3 – Mateta | 2 – Isak | Tottenham |
| 2 – Eze | 2 – Odegaard | Liverpool |
| 2 – Foden | 2 – Guimaraes | Crystal Palace |
| 2 – Wood | 2 – Wilson | Man United |
| 2 – Kulusevski | 2 – Bernardo | |
| 2 – Jimenez | 2 – Ogbene |
The Mateta hat-trick came alongside an assist, with four other names bagging three returns – Eze, Alexander Isak (£8.4m), Bruno Guimaraes (£5.8m) and Harry Wilson (£5.3m).
Continuing the final-day tradition, it was a high-scoring occasion. 37 goals was above the season’s Gameweek average of 32.79, with four clean sheets slightly below the usual 4.13.
ATTEMPTS + CREATION
| ATTEMPTS | |
|---|---|
| 9 | Havertz (ARS) |
| 7 | Salah (LIV) |
| 6 | Foden (MCI), Olise (CRY), De Bruyne (MCI) |
| 5 | Eze (CRY), van Dijk (LIV), Gakpo (LIV), Kulusevski (TOT), Joao Pedro (BRI), Odobert (BUR) |
| CHANCES CREATED | |
|---|---|
| 7 | Odegaard (ARS), Robertson (LIV) |
| 5 | Foden (MCI), De Bruyne (MCI), Munoz (CRY), Maddison (TOT), Martinelli (ARS), Elliott (LIV) |
| 4 | Palmer (CHE), Son (TOT), Guimaraes (NEW), Gross (BRI), Tavernier (BOU) |
Meanwhile, the Eze and Phil Foden (£8.5m) braces came from expected goals (xG) tallies of just 0.28 and 0.30 respectively. Add in Eze’s assist, his three returns came from a 0.42 expected goal involvement (xGI).
On the other hand, those who liked the idea of differential Mohamed Salah (£13.4m) being a final transfer were unlucky. He didn’t score from seven shots and 1.07 xG. Only Joao Pedro (£5.2m) underachieved by more (1.13).
The most-bought player of Gameweek 38 was Kai Havertz (£7.6m). Many will be relieved by his late winner, considering he had nine shots, nine inside the box and three big chances. Both Arsenal goals were set up by Martin Odegaard (£8.6m).
TEAM NEWS
Those predicting there’d be some surprise team news were right. Injury doubts Bukayo Saka (£8.8m) and Anthony Gordon (£6.4m) weren’t named in the matchday squads, with Jarrod Bowen (£7.6m) too ill to play.
Cheap Chelsea defender Malo Gusto (£4.3m) was restricted to a cameo appearance and a Bruno Fernandes (£8.5m) withdrawal took place after 59 minutes.
