Fantasy Premier League tips gameweek 38: James Maddison, Mohamed Salah, Rico Lewis and more

Here we are! The end of the road in Fantasy Premier League this season - gameweek 38.

Twenty teams, ten games all kicking off at 4.30pm GMT and one final chance to get some points in before the FPL league tables are finalised.

With that in mind, here are five essential picks for your team this week:

(All prices accurate as of Thursday 25 May)

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Consider bringing in Sam Johnstone to stand between the sticks.

With Nottingham Forest now safe, expect Steve Cooper's side to take their foot off the gas in their final game against Crystal Palace.

The English shot-stopper has averaged over four points per game in his 12 appearances in the League this season, and Palace's recent form, which includes three clean sheets in their last seven, should give you hope that Johnstone could punch above his averages. Crucially, at just £4.4m, Johnstone would allow you to re-direct funds from goal to more important areas of the squad.

The Egyptian winger has enjoyed yet another astonishing season in terms of output, which has perhaps slipped under the radar given the exploits of Erling Haaland and Liverpool's struggles. Against an already relegated Southampton, the dynamic forward is an essential pick and is a strong candidate for captaincy.

Cometh the hour, cometh the man?

Leicester's talisman simply must perform against West Ham if his side have any chance at staying up.

His (and Leicester's) attacking output has actually been quite respectable (currently his second-best season for goals in the Premier League), despite their league position, and the maverick midfielder grabbed a goal in the reverse fixture at the London Stadium.

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A favourite of The Independent’s FPL newsletter, it just feels wrong to leave out the inspired Eberechi Eze for this final gameweek.

Whilst sentimentality may have had a small part to play, the English midfielder's numbers speak for themselves, with Eze standing as the top-scoring Crystal Palace asset this season - no mean feat, given competition from the likes of Wilfried Zaha, Michael Olise, Vicente Guaita and Jordan Ayew.

His final fixture is a kind one, too, as outlined above for our goalkeeper pick this week - Forest need to be wary of the threat Eze poses if they stand any chance.

An outside choice - but why not consider the ridiculously cheap Rico Lewis for the final day?

City proved that a clean sheet with a much-rotated XI (we daren't use the words 'weaker' and 'Manchester City' in the same sentence) is possible against Chelsea in GW37, and we should expect to see a similar number of fringe players in the squad for the Brentford game.

As much as selection is a guessing game with Pep Guardiola, Lewis seems like a strong candidate to start, given the upcoming FA Cup and Champions League finals for City.

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