<p><em><strong>Should we buy Ismaila Sarr in FPL?</strong> In this edition of Breaking the Template, <a href="https://twitter.com/Hibbo_FPL">@Hibbo_FPL</a> examines the merits of buying the Watford FC talisman ahead of Gameweek 6. This article will provide FPL tips to help managers to break the template and achieve that desired top 10k finish.</em></p>
<p>Don&#8217;t forget to check out our <a href="https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/fantasy-premier-league-ultimate-guide/"><strong>Ultimate FPL Gameweek 6 Guide</strong></a>, which has everything you could ever need to be a successful FPL manager, including strategy articles, <a href="https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/fpl-player-comparision-tool/"><strong>tools</strong></a>, <a href="https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/opta/"><strong>stats</strong></a>, <a href="https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/fantasy-premier-league-team-reveals/"><strong>expert team reveals</strong></a> and much, much more…</p>
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<h2>Ismaila Sarr: the Data so far</h2>
<p>With five gameweeks of the FPL season elapsed <strong>Ismaila Sarr (£6.1m)</strong> has staked his claim as the game’s value midfielder. Sarr has scored three goals in his opening five, producing underlying numbers that keep pace with the best midfielders in the division at this early stage.</p>
<p><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="aligncenter wp-image-38877 size-full" src="https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/Sarr.png" alt="Should we buy Ismaila Sarr in FPL" width="798" height="652" srcset="https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/Sarr.png 798w, https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/Sarr-300x245.png 300w, https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/Sarr-768x627.png 768w, https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/Sarr-610x498.png 610w" sizes="(max-width: 798px) 100vw, 798px" /></p>
<p><span data-preserver-spaces="true">Amongst midfielders, Sarr ranks joint seventh for shots (13) with the vast majority occurring inside the box (11). The Senegalese international could be described as highly efficient with respect to his shooting with Sarr ranking joint second for shots on target (9) bettered by only his African counterpart, </span><strong><span data-preserver-spaces="true">Mohamed Salah (£12.6m)</span></strong><span data-preserver-spaces="true">.</span></p>
<p><span data-preserver-spaces="true">The out-of-position right-wing deployment of Ismaila Sarr sees him rank joint fifth amongst all players for touches in the box (31). Particularly strong one v one, Sarr breaks the lines with electrifying dribbles ranking joint-third amongst all players for successful take-ons (16).</span></p>
<p><span data-preserver-spaces="true">To establish a true measure of Sarr’s worth he should be compared to alternative midfield options priced £8m or under. When compared with popular &amp; high performing midfielders at his price point, such as </span><strong><span data-preserver-spaces="true">Diogo Jota (£7.7m)</span></strong><span data-preserver-spaces="true"> &amp; </span><strong><span data-preserver-spaces="true">Mason Greenwood (£7.7m)</span></strong><span data-preserver-spaces="true">, Ismaila Sarr is dominant ranking first for minutes (450), expected goals xG (2.75), and expected point xPts (30.2).</span></p>
<h2><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="aligncenter wp-image-38878 size-large" src="https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/Sarr-Midfield-PP-Sample-1024x224.png" alt="Should we buy Ismaila Sarr in FPL" width="1024" height="224" srcset="https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/Sarr-Midfield-PP-Sample-1024x224.png 1024w, https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/Sarr-Midfield-PP-Sample-300x66.png 300w, https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/Sarr-Midfield-PP-Sample-768x168.png 768w, https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/Sarr-Midfield-PP-Sample-610x134.png 610w, https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/Sarr-Midfield-PP-Sample.png 1060w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></h2>
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<h2>The Fixtures:</h2>
<p>In terms of fixtures, Sarr holds huge short term appeal for those planning a strategic Gameweek 8 wildcard. In the immediate Gameweek 6, Watford has undoubtedly the plum fixture of the round when playing host to an abject Newcastle United.</p>
<p><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="aligncenter wp-image-38879 size-large" src="https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/Watford-Fixtures-1024x385.png" alt="Should we buy Ismaila Sarr in FPL" width="1024" height="385" srcset="https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/Watford-Fixtures-1024x385.png 1024w, https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/Watford-Fixtures-300x113.png 300w, https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/Watford-Fixtures-768x289.png 768w, https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/Watford-Fixtures-610x229.png 610w, https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/Watford-Fixtures-1080x406.png 1080w, https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/Watford-Fixtures.png 1501w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></p>
<p><span data-preserver-spaces="true">The Magpies rank worst in the division for shots conceded (93), big chances concedes (17), and expected goals conceded (12.4). Furthermore, it is noteworthy that Newcastle rank four worst in the division for chances conceded from the left flank (26).</span></p>
<p><span data-preserver-spaces="true">Watford travels to face a Leeds United side in Gameweek 7 who thus far have demonstrated a touch of the second season syndrome. On season data to date, Leeds ranks joint-worst for shots in the box conceded (62) and worst for shots on target conceded (35).</span></p>
<p><span data-preserver-spaces="true">Recently Leeds have endured a defensive personnel crisis through a combination of injury and suspension. </span><strong><span data-preserver-spaces="true">Diego Llorente (£4.5m) &amp; Luke Ayling (£4.5m)</span></strong><span data-preserver-spaces="true"> has suffered muscle and knee injuries respectively while </span><strong><span data-preserver-spaces="true">Pascal Struijk (£4.4m)</span></strong><span data-preserver-spaces="true"> received a red card and three-match ban for his tackle on </span><strong><span data-preserver-spaces="true">Harvey Elliot (£5.5m)</span></strong><span data-preserver-spaces="true"> in the match against Liverpool.</span></p>
<p><span data-preserver-spaces="true">The rear-guard for both Newcastle and Leeds makes for dismal reading when we examine their underlying expected defensive data from last season. With relegated sides excluded from the sample, Leeds ranked worst for non-penalty expected goals conceded (59.7) and expected clean sheets (8.3). Newcastle faired just marginally better ranking second-worst against all three metrics.</span></p>
<p><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="aligncenter wp-image-38880 size-large" src="https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/Defensive-Data-20-21-1024x412.png" alt="Should we buy Ismaila Sarr in FPL" width="1024" height="412" srcset="https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/Defensive-Data-20-21-1024x412.png 1024w, https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/Defensive-Data-20-21-300x121.png 300w, https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/Defensive-Data-20-21-768x309.png 768w, https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/Defensive-Data-20-21-610x246.png 610w, https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/Defensive-Data-20-21-1080x435.png 1080w, https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/Defensive-Data-20-21.png 1348w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></p>
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<h2>Penalty Duty:</h2>
<p><span data-preserver-spaces="true">Prospective owners could be swayed by the high probability that should Watford be awarded a penalty Sarr should assume responsibility. Competition for spot-kicks duties last season in the EFL championship took the form of </span><strong><span data-preserver-spaces="true">Troy Deeney and Joao Pedro (£5.4m)</span></strong><span data-preserver-spaces="true">.</span></p>
<p><span data-preserver-spaces="true">Troy Deeney has left the club Watford and is currently plying his trade with Birmingham City and due to injury, Joao Pedro is yet to see the pitch this season. It is noteworthy that the Brazilian has recently returned to full training for the Hornets.</span></p>
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<h2>The Opportunity:</h2>
<p><span data-preserver-spaces="true">The Ismailia Sarr conundrum revolves around a lack of an available slot given how entrenched the elite level template is in midfield. Those that gambled on a boost for the expected minutes of </span><strong><span data-preserver-spaces="true">Diogo Jota (£7.7m)</span></strong><span data-preserver-spaces="true"> in the short term can count themselves unlucky not to have gained rank.</span></p>
<p><span data-preserver-spaces="true">The Portuguese starlet has suffered consecutive blanks since deputising for <strong>Roberto Firmino (£8.8m)</strong> whose return to training damages Jota’s long term minutes. A rest for Jota in EFL Cup action against Norwich bodes well for a start against Brentford and despite some defensive solidity from the Bee’s selling beforehand looks premature.</span></p>
<p><strong><span data-preserver-spaces="true">Mason Greenwood (£7.7m)</span></strong><span data-preserver-spaces="true"> blanked in Gameweek 5 having returned in each of his opening four matches. While the addition of Champions League football and the return of <strong>Marcus Rashford (£9.4m)</strong> puts stress on Greenwood’s minutes the Bradford youngster is a hard sell given current status and production.</span></p>
<p><strong><span data-preserver-spaces="true">Said Benrahma (£6.5m)</span></strong><span data-preserver-spaces="true"> and </span><strong><span data-preserver-spaces="true">Raphinha (£6.5m)</span></strong><span data-preserver-spaces="true"> both defied injury doubts to score and with juicy fixtures ahead selling would represent a high-risk move. In my opinion, barring a late injury to the aforementioned quartet, an opportunity exists for owners of midfielders outside the elite template to attack the fixtures and move for Sarr.</span></p>
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<h2>Conclusion:</h2>
<p><span data-preserver-spaces="true">Ismaila Sarr represents the perfect storm of recent high-level performance, hugely appealing short term fixtures, and rock bottom ownership earning him that template-breaking differential moniker. A move from a player entrenched in the elite midfield template is fraught with risk and not one that I would advise unless an injury strikes.</span></p>
<p><span data-preserver-spaces="true">For owners of alternate options such as <strong>Ferran Torres (£7.1m) or Adama Traore (£6.0m)</strong>, this move appears a no-brainer especially for those chasing the upside before a Gameweek 8 wildcard. Given the recent early team leaks, I advise keeping your transfer powder dry until the deadline to gain a potential information advantage over the field.</span></p>
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<h2><b>Check out our Fantasy Premier League 2021/22 Ultimate Guide</b></h2>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Our </span><a href="https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/fantasy-premier-league-ultimate-guide/"><b>Ultimate FPL 2021/22 Guide</b></a><span style="font-weight: 400;"> has everything you could ever need to be a successful FPL manager including guides, team previews, player picks, strategy articles, tools, <a href="https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/opta/" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c="1" title="FPL Stats by OPTA - Player and Team Stats">stats</a>, expert team reveals and much much more…</span></p>
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<p>For those that have read, thank you. Keep an eye out for more articles through-out the season and drop me a follow on Twitter <a href="https://twitter.com/Hibbo_FPL">@Hibbo_FPL</a>.<br />
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Should we buy Ismaila Sarr in FPL? | Breaking The Template | Gameweek 6

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