Fantasy Premier League: 11 players that have changed position for FPL 2023-24

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When Fantasy Premier League (FPL) relaunched for the 2023-24 season, it wasn’t just player prices that were of interest.

A total of 11 players have had their position reclassified, some of which have boosted their appeal to managers. Some have had the opposite effect…

In the past, we’ve seen iconic FPL campaigns from John Lundstram (2019-20 defender), Stuart Dallas (2020-21 defender) and Michu (2012-13 midfielder) where they’ve been labelled as one position but, in reality, played higher up the pitch.

Let’s see if any of these 11 offer some out-of-position potential for FPL managers.

MIDFIELDER – Diogo Jota (£8.0m, Liverpool)

FORWARD – Cody Gakpo (£7.5m, Liverpool)

Two Liverpool attackers have swapped around and they may offer an alternative route to those who can’t afford to squeeze Mohamed Salah (£12.5m) into their team.

Cody Gakpo started 17 of the 21 league games since his January arrival, scoring on seven occasions, whilst Diogo Jota didn’t net until Gameweek 31. He quickly made up for lost time though, bagging three braces during the final nine matches.

However, this duo’s main problem is the fierce competition for starting spots. Luis Diaz (£7.5m) is back from injury and Darwin Nunez (£7.5m) is already on three goals and an assist from two pre-season friendlies.

MIDFIELDER – Bryan Mbeumo (£6.5m, Brentford)

FORWARD – Yoane Wissa (£6.0m, Brentford)

Similarly, the two main attackers in Ivan Toney’s (£8.0m) absence have also switched positions. Both Bryan Mbeumo and Yoane Wissa exceeded 100 points last season but 14 of their 29 goal involvements (48.3%) arrived in the five Toney-less outings.

Now that the England international is suspended until January, Brentford’s strong early fixtures make them very appealing picks. Currently, 23.5% of managers include Mbeumo in their drafts – far more than Wissa’s 3.9% – but he was mostly used out wide in Thomas Frank’s 4-3-3 formation, rather than as a 3-5-2 forward like in their debut Premier League campaign.

Whereas Wissa seems to be their lead forward, with the advantage of being priced £0.5m cheaper. Opting instead for this route instantly relieves the midfield competition for FPL managers – Mbeumo and his penalties are hard to resist but so are many others.

A third Brentford name has changed position in squad player Sergi Canos (£5.0m), moving from defence to midfield.

MIDFIELDER – Julio Enciso (£5.5m, Brighton)

Meanwhile, it was an explosive end to the season for Brighton’s 19-year-old Julio Enciso. He started seven of the Seagulls’ closing nine matches, delivering four goals and three assists.

Priced £1m less than Kaoru Mitoma (£6.5m) and Solly March (£6.5m), the Paraguayan is a tempting way to cover last season’s leaders for attempts (613) and shots on target (225). Especially with four of their first six fixtures being at home.

It’s just that he’s less nailed on to start. Adam Lallana (£5.0m) was liked by Roberto De Zerbi pre-injury and was in the stronger XI for last Sunday’s friendly against Chelsea.

How much should Julio Enciso be in #FPL next season? 🤔 🏷️ pic.twitter.com/Mdkl7D6mJR

— Fantasy Football Scout (@FFScout) June 20, 2023

MIDFIELDER – Kai Havertz (£7.5m, Arsenal)

Perhaps the most surprising positional change belongs to Kai Havertz, considering he really was Chelsea’s main forward of last season.

Then again, new boss Mikel Arteta has already said “he will bring a huge amount of extra strength to our midfield” and maybe that’s what weighed on the minds of those at FPL Towers.

Already on the scoresheet during Arsenal’s 5-0 over MLS All-Stars, he’s expected to join Bukayo Saka (£8.5m), Martin Odegaard (£8.5m) and Gabriel Martinelli (£8.0m) in playing behind Gabriel Jesus (£8.0m).

Havertz is cheaper than all of them, with the potential of being up front whenever Jesus momentarily drops deep. On the other hand, he had the league’s worst goals versus non-penalty expected goals (NPxG) record of last season, being -4.81 worse off.

MIDFIELDER – Richarlison (£7.0m, Tottenham)

Down from the previous £8.5m starting price, Richarlison was without a league goal for Spurs until Gameweek 34 but there’s a chance he could be asked to play up front should Harry Kane (£12.5m) depart. At least temporarily, like when he scored a hat-trick in Wednesday’s friendly against Lion City Sailors.

It’s a new start under Ange Postecoglou, with a nice run pairing them with Bournemouth (a), Burnley (a) and Sheffield United (h) between Gameweeks 3 and 5.

MIDFIELDER – Brennan Johnson (£6.0m, Nottingham Forest)

Tentatively linked with both Aston Villa and Brentford, wide forward Brennan Johnson has been moved into midfield thanks to the late-season 3-4-2-1 formation that put him behind Taiwo Awoniyi (£6.5m).

His slow start of two goals from 17 outings ended with a respectable eight strikes but the poor team stats of Nottingham Forest need considering before he’s picked. No team mustered fewer shots inside the box or on target, Forest also having the league’s worst away record.

READ: Fantasy Premier League: Five promoted players to consider for your FPL 2023-24 team

DEFENDER – Lewis Hall (£4.5m, Chelsea)

Youngster Lewis Hall is very highly-regarded at Chelsea. He’s progressed as a midfielder but was asked to fill in at either left-back or left wing-back during his eight starts.

Both Ben Chilwell (£5.5m) and Marc Cucurella (£5.0m) likely block that route, so it’s mainly a question of whether Mauricio Pochettino sees Hall’s future to be in midfield. Such uncertainty rules him out as a serious Fantasy option.

MIDFIELDER – Matt Ritchie (£4.5m, Newcastle)

Finally, saving the best for last (not really), Matt Ritchie. The extension of his contract raised many eyebrows, as he’s only offering dressing room leadership to the first team.

No league starts took place last season and just one of the seven cameos exceeded 15 minutes in length.

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