Blake Hurst

Blake Hurst reveals an aggressive Gameweek 1 Fantasy Premier League squad without Erling Haaland. The strategy reallocates Haaland’s £15.5m price into midfielders including Bruno Fernandes, Bryan Mbeumo, Antoine Semenyo and Phil Foden, with Fernandes planned as captain for the first two gameweeks. The squad also targets favorable opening fixtures, Tottenham defensive coverage and a potential early Bench Boost in Gameweek 2. Haaland is intended to return via a Gameweek 3 Free Hit for Manchester City’s match against Coventry, while the Wildcard is being held for Gameweek 5 or 7. The approach accepts the risk of Haaland punishing non-owners in exchange for greater squad depth and flexibility.

Five goalkeeper strategies are highlighted for the opening Fantasy Premier League gameweek. Antonín Kinský and Bart Verbruggen are recommended as a rotating £4.5m pairing, while Senne Lammens offers a £5.0m balance of save potential and clean-sheet upside. David Raya is identified as the safest premium set-and-forget choice despite his higher cost, and Alex Palmer is presented as a potential £4.0m enabler whose starting role remains uncertain because of competition from Kjell Scherpen at Ipswich.

Five low-cost Fantasy Premier League options are recommended for the 2026/27 season: Sunderland midfielder Enzo Le Fée, Coventry defender Milan van Ewijk, Sunderland defender Trai Hume, Ipswich defender Leif Davis and Sunderland centre-back Dan Ballard. Their appeal comes from attacking roles, set pieces, out-of-position potential or defensive contribution, allowing managers to fund premium players. The article notes risks including uncertain roles, difficult fixtures and inconsistent clean-sheet prospects.

Fantasy Premier League managers are advised to avoid five common errors: relying solely on attacking defenders despite the new DEFCON scoring system, using chips impulsively, chasing the previous Gameweek’s points, planning too far ahead, and making transfers too early. The recommended approach is to target reliable defensive returns, prepare flexible chip and transfer strategies around fixture swings, assess form and underlying data over several matches, and wait for late injury, rotation and team-news updates before making moves.

Early Fantasy Premier League success depends on building a balanced squad rather than chasing immediate points. Managers are advised to prioritize defenders capable of reaching the DEFCON threshold, nailed starters with favorable fixtures, regular 90-minute players and penalty takers. Reliable premium players such as Erling Haaland and Bruno Fernandes are recommended as early captaincy choices, while risky differentials should be used sparingly. Chip planning is also important, with Gameweek 1 or 2 suggested for a possible Bench Boost and Gameweeks 4 or 6 identified as sensible points to consider a first Wildcard once minutes, injuries, tactics and emerging players become clearer.

Germany are Group E favourites at the 2026 World Cup but face pressure after consecutive group-stage exits. Ecuador and Ivory Coast are identified as credible dark horses with strong chances of reaching the knockout rounds, while debutants Curacao are expected to struggle but could create a major surprise. Jamal Musiala is highlighted as Germany's principal creative threat, Amad Diallo as Ivory Coast's key player, and Moises Caicedo as Ecuador's standout talent. The predicted final table places Germany first, Ecuador second, Ivory Coast third and Curacao fourth.

With Fantasy Premier League Gameweek 38 representing the final opportunity to improve mini-league rankings, five recommended buys are Danny Welbeck, Konstantinos Mavropanos, William Osula, Morgan Gibbs-White and Bruno Guimarães. The selections prioritize attacking upside, differential ownership and recent statistical output over safety, with favorable or potentially open fixtures providing the main rationale. Gibbs-White and Guimarães are highlighted as especially explosive options, while Mavropanos offers defensive and attacking returns and Welbeck and Osula are higher-risk attacking punts.

Fantasy Premier League managers are advised to sell Dominic Calvert-Lewin, Marcus Tavernier, Maxence Lacroix, Joachim Andersen and Ollie Watkins before Gameweek 37. The recommendations are based on poor fixtures, possible rotation, motivation concerns and Andersen’s suspension. Watkins is singled out as a particularly weak premium option because Aston Villa face Liverpool and Manchester City and may rotate before the Europa League final; Viktor Gyökeres is suggested as a replacement, while managers without three Arsenal players are encouraged to consider adding another.

With only two fixtures remaining in Fantasy Premier League Gameweek 37, the article recommends five transfer targets for managers seeking either reliable points or rank-changing upside: Jarrod Bowen, Alexander Isak, Harry Wilson, Viktor Gyökeres and Iliman Ndiaye. Bowen and Wilson offer creative and set-piece involvement, Isak is a high-risk differential, Gyökeres combines elite recent shooting numbers with major haul potential, and Ndiaye has several scoring routes against vulnerable opponents. Kieran Dewsbury-Hall is suggested as a cheaper alternative to Ndiaye.

Fantasy Premier League managers are advised to sell Igor Thiago, Cole Palmer, Pascal Struijk, Jean-Philippe Mateta and Dominik Szoboszlai before Gameweek 36. The recommendations are based on difficult fixtures, poor recent returns, rotation risk and limited attacking upside. Bukayo Saka is presented as a direct upgrade for Palmer, while Leeds defenders and the Crystal Palace forward options are viewed as particularly unreliable for the final weeks.

With Fantasy Premier League Gameweek 36 serving as the season’s final double gameweek, the recommended targets are Danny Welbeck, Jan Paul van Hecke, Rayan Cherki, Bukayo Saka and Maxence Lacroix. Welbeck is backed for his fixtures and shooting numbers, Van Hecke offers defensive consistency and differential appeal, Cherki provides high-upside creativity for Manchester City, Saka appears close to full fitness and offers premium returns, and Lacroix is considered Crystal Palace’s safest defender because of his secure minutes and strong defensive statistics.

With four Fantasy Premier League gameweeks remaining, managers are encouraged to make aggressive differential selections. Rayan Cherki, Danny Welbeck, Marcus Tavernier, Morgan Rogers and James Hill are recommended for their form, underlying statistics, favorable fixtures or budget value. Bournemouth’s schedule is highlighted as particularly useful, while rotation concerns are noted for Morgan Rogers because of Aston Villa’s Europa League commitments.

Blank Gameweek 34 is identified as the final opportunity of the season for Fantasy Premier League managers to use a Free Hit, with six teams absent from the schedule. The recommended five one-week targets are Tottenham’s Xavi Simons and Pedro Porro, West Ham’s Jarrod Bowen, Nordi Mukiele and Aston Villa’s Ollie Watkins. Simons and Porro are backed because of Tottenham’s fixture at Wolves and their attacking roles, Bowen offers set pieces, penalties and defensive contribution potential against Everton, Mukiele provides value through defensive statistics and matchup appeal, while Watkins is highlighted for scoring six goals in his last five games and ranking highly for big chances.

The article recommends five low-owned players for Fantasy Premier League Double Gameweek 33: Danny Welbeck, Marcus Tavernier, Pascal Struijk, James Hill and Rayan Aït-Nouri. Welbeck offers attacking upside but carries a minutes risk, while Tavernier is praised for his penalty involvement, underlying numbers and favorable Bournemouth fixtures. Struijk and Hill are highlighted as defensive value picks with strong fixtures, defensive-contribution potential and set-piece upside. Aït-Nouri is the highest-risk option, becoming particularly attractive if Manchester City confirm Nico O'Reilly is unavailable.

The article recommends selling five Fantasy Premier League players ahead of Gameweek 32: Raúl Jiménez, Bryan Mbeumo, Morgan Rogers, Enzo Fernández and Jurriën Timber. The main reasons are difficult fixtures, cooling form, rotation risk, selection uncertainty and the loss of potential double-gameweek upside. Arsenal defender Gabriel is preferred over Timber, while Cole Palmer and João Pedro are identified as the preferred routes into Chelsea’s attack.

The article recommends five Fantasy Premier League players for Gameweek 32 wildcard teams: Bruno Fernandes, Dominic Calvert-Lewin, João Pedro, Pascal Groß and Jan Paul van Hecke. Fernandes is presented as the essential premium midfielder, while Calvert-Lewin offers short-term value for managers planning a Wildcard 32, Bench Boost 33 and Free Hit 34 sequence. João Pedro is backed by strong recent underlying numbers, and Brighton players Groß and van Hecke are highlighted as low-owned options with favorable fixtures, set-piece involvement, defensive potential and a Gameweek 33 double.

The article recommends selling five popular Fantasy Premier League players before Gameweek 30: Erling Haaland, James Tarkowski, Viktor Gyökeres, Daniel Muñoz and Declan Rice. Haaland and Rice are especially vulnerable because Manchester City and Arsenal blank in Gameweek 31, while Champions League fixtures may also lead to rotation. Tarkowski faces difficult matches, Gyökeres has a challenging fixture and possible managed minutes, and Muñoz is an injury doubt. The suggested strategy is to move early into players with better fixtures and guaranteed minutes, potentially using Haaland's funds to buy Mohamed Salah.

The Gameweek 30 FPL analysis recommends bringing in Mohamed Salah, whose recent goals and favorable fixtures against Tottenham and Brighton offer high-risk, high-reward potential. João Pedro is highlighted as the strongest mid-priced forward option, while Marcus Tavernier and Morgan Gibbs-White are presented as promising low-ownership differentials. Bruno Fernandes is endorsed as a reliable, fixture-proof captaincy candidate because of his creativity, set pieces and penalty duties. Managers are advised to account for the upcoming blank Gameweek 31, with sacrificing Erling Haaland potentially enabling Salah’s return.