Last Update: September 12th (09:00 AM BST)
This is the 2020/21 guide. For the 2021/22 guide, go here.
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It’s been a weird year and a weird launch to the 2020/21 Fantasy Premier League season, but we’re finally here. All prices are official, new players are available for selection and you can finally start tinkering with your GW1 squad. Here are a couple of The VideoScopes suggestions for how you can build your first squad of the season:

Once again, most of the squads presented here have some sort of gimmick, so the best suggestion is probably to mix and match some players from each selection of players. A popular way of selecting a squad is sticking pretty close to the template squad with 2-3 differential picks, but there are plenty of ways to be a successful FPL manager.

This time we’ll also update the suggested squads as we get closer to the deadline, unlike previous years.

It made no sense that Pope and Henderson didn’t make a single of our 5 squad suggestions last year, seeing as I started the season with both of them in my GW1 squad (and should have stuck to that the whole season…)

So read up on some of the suggestions, mix and match with the suggested squads and find a GW1 team that suits you. However, if you are too lazy to do the work yourself and swear on just picking either one of these teams, then you might want to consider:

The Template Squad

If you can’t beat them, copy them

Mathew Ryan held firm for a while, but it’s pretty clear now that Alex McCarthy is the £4.5 option to go for in goal now. Southampton have a better team and better fixtures than Brighton. With the addition of Mohamed Salisu at the back, Southampton might be this year’s bargain defense. Ørjan Nyland is the favorite £4.0 option in goal, with Tom Heaton out injured.

In defense, Trent Alexander-Arnold is not surprisingly an FPL favorite yet again. The best FPL defender two years running is “only” £7.5, which has to be considered a bargain for a likely 200+ point scorer. The only teams without TAA are going for Andy Robertson for a cheeky differential. Matt Doherty has always been an FPL favorite and with his transfer to Spurs with good fixtures to boot, he’s a popular pick once again. £4.5 defenders are very popular among the FPL faithful and Kyle Walker-Peters is an FPL bandwagon once more. Ruben Vinagre is also looking to become another FPL favorite. Starting instead of the injured Jonny Otto, Vinagre is a cheap way into a solid Wolverhampton defense should he stay. James Justin should also be a cheap way into a top half defense, even after the signing of Timothy Castagne, who should figure as a left back to start.

With so many premium midfielders to choose from, the fixture reveal without a GW1 for Manchester United or City shook up the midfield template. One thing stays the same, however, and that is Mohamed Salah, who is always a top 3 points-getter. With neither Bruno Fernandes nor Kevin de Bruyne playing in GW1, the focus has shifted to Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang. The Arsenal… midfielder, has two easy opening gameweeks before a transfer to KdB seems likely for many FPL managers. Heung-min Son is the favored way into the Tottenham offense, with decent opening fixtures and an easy way to fund a Chelsea midfielder once Christian Pulisic and Hakim Ziyech are confirmed fit to start. Allan Saint-Maximin has been receiving a lot of love throughout pre-season, deservedly so. His opening fixture against a shaky West Ham defense also looks enticing. For the £4.5 midfield fodder, FPL managers have wisened up and picked Yves Bissouma now over the usually popular Dale Stephens. Bissouma is the starer for Brighton and does get more forward than his benched teammate.

Up front Timo Werner makes all the sense in the world with good fixtures and a price of £9.5. That should be easy money for Chelsea’s likely top scorer and pen taker. Strikers are cheaper this time around and the lethal German striker looks to be one of the more popular newcomers for an exciting Chelsea offensive. Aleksandar Mitrovic started strong last time Fulham were in the Premier League and many will hope he repeats that this time. For £6.0 he’s not too pricey for a potential 15+ goals striker. The same can be said for Che Adams, who many hope will be decent cover for his striking partner Danny Ings. After the restart he was more than decent cover, as he outscored Ings to end the season.

If you like to stand out and go for differentials if you wanna get a player hardly anyone has and create your own bandwagons, then the following team’s players might be more suited for you:

The Gambler Squad (Differentials!)

Do you think you can beat them? Bet on it!

New team, new goalkeeper. That’s why we’re going with Aaron Ramsdale as he takes over as the starting GK for Sheffield United after Dean Henderson. The first five gameweeks look solid for a solid Sheffield defense and Ramsdale has shown he can rack up saves too. As his backup, we’re going with Jed Steer, who many Aston Villa fans claim is preferred over the more popular FPL pick Nyland.

We tried for as long as we could to keep the RAMA defense alive, but it has no future. But we don’t look back, cause sharks don’t have necks and we’re getting in some pretty tasty differential picks, starting once again with Andy Robertson. Robbo is cheaper than TAA and finished last season stronger. We take a gamble on a double Liverpool defense with Joe Gomez, who looks a sure starter next to Virgil van Dijk. Stuart Dallas looked to become an FPL favorite once it was clear Leeds had gone up, but as time has gone by, Dallas’ star has faded. He’s still a great option. As is Jamal Lewis who should be an offensive full-back for a defensively sound Newcastle. Tyrick Mitchell starts the season at £4.0 and will get good points the first few gameweeks.

The same logic for Robertson over Alexander-Arnold applies to Sadio Mané over Mohamed Salah. Salah is seen as the better FPL option despite the players being priced the same. Mané tends to start the season stronger, however, so this gamble might pay off. Mason Greenwood could become an absolute bargain for £7.5 as long as Jadon Sancho doesn’t join Man Utd anytime soon. Harvey Barnes should similarly stake is claim as a clear starter on the wing for Leicester. We tipped Diogo Jota to break out last year, but might have been a year too early. The Portuguese international looked great for Portgual last week. Bukayo Saka finished our midfield of potential world beaters, as the Arsenal man has been given number 7 after numerous impressive performances.

Harry Kane is cheaper than he has been since he broke through and with good fixtures, he might be the premium target you should go for. A pen taker and main man for Spurs with Mourinho at the helm during the manager’s famously good 2nd season. Jamie Vardy might prove to be the steal of GW1 and beyond for a 2nd season in a row as well, with the fixtures falling kindly for Leicester. Callum Wilson is back for Newcastle and is likely to continue to haunt West Ham in GW1.

Kevin’s No Bench Squad

Bench, what is it good for? Absolutely nothing

The VideoScope’s esteemed co-writer Kevin (@KevNissanka) knows what he wants. A strong starting XI. Take it away Kevin:

As you might know about me now, I usually go with the strategy of the strongest XI possible with hardly any subs that work (except for Aaron Wan-Bissaka, you absolute £4.0m legend!) Think about it, you have the best team ever, stacked with a bunch of premium midfielders! Who cares about defenders anyways?

In goal I have Alex McCarthy who is going to be a part of the Ralph Hasenhüttl revolution, who we’ve predicted could be the sneaky goalkeeper pick of the season. McCarthy is a value pick at £4.5m and could be this year’s Deeeean Hendersoooon. As a second goalkeeper, I’ve decided to go for Ørjan Nyland who could be a decent back-up keeper at £4.0m as long as Tom Heaton is out injured and if Aston Villa doesn’t buy a new GK.

So to have premium midfielders, you’re gonna have to give something up, so who cares about Alexander-Arnold when you can have Stuart Dallas! The Northern-Ireland international is known for his ability to cross the ball from practically anywhere and could be a decent fantasy prospect for you to have. Another player that makes up this defenders list is William Saliba who should become a starter for Arsenal and a decent FPL option going forward. While he might not be a full-back, he could easily get some bonus points as he has that bit of something special. Kyle Walker-Peters has already shown glimpses of greatness under Ralph Hasselhoff’s guidance last season. To round off the defenders I’ve also gone with Tyrick Mitchell and Ben Johnson as both players have shown promise and will likely get starts in the upcoming season.

I do not need to say much about this midfield as it speaks for itself. The striker turned midfielder Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang is guaranteed goals as he’s always on top of the scoring charts for both Arsenal and in Premier Leauge. He will continue down this warpath to finally win the Golden Boot in his lonesome. Who might stop him? Mohamed Salah of course. No need to talk about him, we all know what the Egyptian King can do. Raheem Sterling might end up with the most FPL points when it’s all said and done! 30% less ownership than Kevin de Bruyne is way too much. The monster midfield also includes Heung-min Son who will do bits once again for Tottenham. To round off this midfield is Allan Saint-Maximin, speed merchant, assist king, and could potentially get even more goals and assists if Newcastle do end up getting sold!

As someone who has followed Timo Werner‘s career for a long time, he could easily win the Golden Boot, especially if he strikes up a partnership with Ziyech. Che Adams is the best £6.0 forward option (not you Mitrovic) and started banging in goals left and right for Southampton after the restart. Last but not least, I think a lot of  Premier League clubs will look into loaning Rhian Brewster who isn’t just ready to play for Liverpool but is more than capable to give it a go in the Premier League after spending time in the Championship with Swansea City. Let’s go for broke, guys!

The Wildcard Squad

The key to a good FPL season is a good start. Here it is.

GW5 is the first gameweek after the transfer deadline ends and should give you enough time to figure out which bandwagons are worth jumping onto. For this squad, we are trying to maximize our returns for the first 4 gameweeks before wildcarding into an entirely different team.

I am once again telling you to get Alex McCarthy in as your goalkeeper. The Southampton stopper still seems like the best GK option for only £4.5, for a good team with decent fixtures. Whether Ørjan Nyland or Jed Steer end up starting in GW1 for Aston Villa is still up in the air, but for the wildcard team we are choosing the latter. At a lower ownership, he is less susceptible for price drops before we wildcard in GW5.

In defense, we’re gonna go with Robertson over Alexander-Arnold for cost cutting reasons. Robbo ended last season better, has more competition for his spot with the signing of  Kostas Tsimikas and if we start to miss TAA too much, we can just easily wildcard him in for GW5 as we plan to do with this team. Kiernan Tierney has 2 fantastic opening fixtures, before we prepare a double Arsenal to Man City swap, more on that later. Ben Davies should start for Spurs at left back and the North London side have decent opening fixtures. We also take advantage of Leicester’s kind opening fixtures by getting James Justin, who should keep the right back spot while Pereira is out, with new boy Castagne playing at left back. Tyrick Mitchell isn’t a better long term option than Ferguson, but seeing as he’s fit to play from the start while Patrick van Aanholt is out, he is our £4.0 starter of choice.

Aubameyang won’t survive until the wildcard in GW5, as he is part of the double swoop for de Bruyne along with Tierney for Aymeric Laporte in GW3 after a transfer-less GW2. Auba will do a lot of damage in the first two games anyway. New boys Kai Havertz and James Rodriguez could also be off to flying starts and with Chelsea and Everton having 3/4 good fixtures to start, they both make sense. Saint-Maximin could dazzle for many points in the opening two gameweeks and also has major potential. Chris Wilder has hinted at Oliver Burke playing as a striker, making him a potential £4.5 OOP bargain. If not, he’s easy bench fooder.

Up front we’re once again backing Leicester to start the season right, behind their star striker Jamie Vardy. Vardy was having a party to starty last season, and might do it once again. We also just can’t escape Werner, despite a tough GW2 against Liverpool. Great fixtures otherwise and the myriad of reasons above leads to this easy choice. Richarlison can take advantage of some brilliant new Everton signings and with especially kind fixtures from GW2-4, he could be a good differential.

For 4 gameweeks this squad will give you a headstart, before you wildcard before GW5, and tinker with all the new information and possibly new players all over again.

If you don’t like to keep up with FPL as much and tend to forget deadlines and possibly FPL entirely, then this next team might be what you seek:

The Whole Season Squad (Zombie Team)

If you’re gonna forget about FPL early on, you best come prepared

Do you typically forget about Fantasy Premier League a couple of weeks into the season? Then this might be the squad and tactic for you. You can actually win your mini-league in Fantasy Premier League without doing a damn thing. Does that sound appealing to you?

In the end, “The Bulldozers” officially won Fantasy Premier League last season, with 2557 points, but if you had picked out this team at the start of last season, you’d end up winning the whole thing with 2600 points, without even doing a single change!

Total Cost (Start of season): £100m

2251 points from the starters, 315 points coming off the bench, and 34 sweet Vice-Captain points from FPL Legend Alonso in the four gameweeks de Bruyne didn’t play. No Triple Captain, no Bench Boost, no Wildcards, no nothing. It would still be more than enough to win every mini-league and even the whole damn thing.

So how can we replicate this astounding Zombie Squad?

Before we dive into the squad, we gotta set up some ground rules. Setting up a squad for the whole season, a set and forget squad, comes with certain guidelines about what to look out for. There is no planning for bench boost, captain changes or getting in players for an easy run of fixtures. Instead, there are some precautions you need to take:

1. Avoid too many injury-prone/January Transfer players

2. Have a strong bench with explosive players

3. fixture proof Potential blank gameweeks

You lose the advantage of being able to sell players who get injured or get sold in January, which means that injury-prone players like Aguero, Antonio, and Sheamus Coleman are less enticing options, while a popular transfer target like Raul Jimenez or someone who might get buried on the bench if a new arrival comes in, like Greenwood, might not be the best bet either.

Injuries and strange omissions will happen though, so you can’t go with the cheapest possible bench and hope it works out. The bench for the 2019/20 Zombie Team accounted for a grand total of 55 appearances, which netted 315 extra points. That is a whole lot.

Preparing for which gameweeks Alexander-Arnold will get rested or when Aguero will miss out for some odd reason is impossible to do before the season, but what you can do is prepare for the likely blank gameweeks in GW18, GW26, GW29, and GW32. Teams with easy fixtures in these gameweeks will probably be good bench options for this Zombie Team.

With that out of the way, let’s see if we can learn from the zombie teams of the season from 17/18, 18/19, and 19/20. Maybe we can replicate them and win everything there is to win in FPL without doing a single transfer:

Goalkeepers

17/18 GKs: Pope (Elliott)
18/19 GKs: Ederson (Pickford)
19/20 GKs: Henderson (Pope)

If you play Fantasy Premier League like normal every week, you have the option of either having a cheap rotating GK pair or a more expensive set and forget shot-stopper. Seeing as this is a set and forget team, the decision is already made.

That doesn’t mean that your backup should be a £4.0 goalie without a chance to play, because there is a good chance your starting GK won’t play all 38 gameweeks as we can see from the best zombie teams from the past three seasons.

Last season, as I’ve mentioned before, I started with the best GK pairing of Dean Henderson and Nick Pope, who both started the season at a cost of £4.5. That’s not the case anymore.

Many FPL managers have adopted getting a £4.5 goalkeeper to start the season and the explanation is quite simple. There’s not much difference in terms of scoring between £4.5 and say a £5.5 goalkeeper. Compare Mat Ryan, a £4.5 GK last season and this season to the other highly priced goalkeepers. He got more points than Ederson in 19/20.

Hugo Lloris was a tough omission and a revitalized Spurs is still on the table, but we’ll go for Alex McCarthy instead. Southampton are in for a great season and McCarthy is confirmed to be the #1 in goal, after improving a lot last season. He’s not Nick Pope level good, but he can get pretty close in terms of scoring. Alphonse Areola is a better goalkeeper, but plays for a worse team. Also, he has good fixtures in the potential blank gameweeks 26 and 29.

20/21 GKs: McCarthy (Areola)

Defenders

17/18 Defenders: Azpilicueta, Otamendi, Davies, (Lascelles, Mariappa)
18/19 Defenders: Alexander-Arnold, Robertson, Van Dijk, Alonso, Laporte
19/20 Defenders: Alexander-Arnold, Robertson, Lundstram, Alonso, Boly

Going with both TAA and Robbo looks enticing when looking at the past two seasons, but not a single player has made the ultimate zombie team for three straight seasons. Look for Alexander-Arnold to break the mold yet again, as he simply cannot be denied a team of the season spot, especially when priced at only £7.5. Liverpool are favorites to defend their Premier League title and TAA might be their most important player due to his set-piece threat and wonderful crossing.

Matt Doherty was very tempting for £6.0, but Aymeric Laporte keeps getting overlooked. He’s still City’s best centre back and in his only full injury free FPL season, he made it into the Zombie team. The Frenchman is still waiting for his first international cap for France, but the double gameweek good shouldn’t have to wait for long after another fantastic injury free season behind him.

Our only Spurs-related right back is Kyle Walker-Peters, after his move to Southampton was made permanent. As mentioned, we’re tipping Ralph Hasenhüttl’s side to have a great season, with plenty of returns for Walker-Peters both defensively and offensively. The 23-year-old is primed to take a leap and is outstanding value for £4.5.

Jamal Lewis has also swapped teams, leaving the relegated and leaky Norwich defense to join a Newcastle team who look to be on the up without a new dictator in charge of the club. Lewis is one of the many new exciting signings and especially the prospect of the offensive youngster playing left wingback in a 3-5-2 formation is enticing.

The £4.0 options in defense are scarce, but Nathan Ferguson should be the presumptive starter for Crystal Palace once he fully heals from his knee injury. Crystal Palace usually are defensively sound and with some new offensive talents in Eberechi Eze and Michy Batshuayi, they might not have to defend all game either.

20/21 Defenders: Alexander-Arnold, Laporte, Walker-Peters, Lewis, (Ferguson)

Midfielders

17/18 Midfielders: Salah, Sterling, Mahrez, Groß, (Milivojevic)
18/19 Midfielders: Sterling, Hazard, Pogba, (Deulofeu, Milivojevic)
19/20 Midfielders: de Bruyne, Salah, Martial, (Traoré, Cantwell)

Here we go… trying to fit in all the expensive options in midfield. Salah and one of KdB or Sterling have been a part of pretty much every zombie squad in seasons past and one of them gets selected for this year’s Zombie team as well.

But first, we gotta talk about Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang. Often known as a differential in FPL, the Arsenal goalgetter is now the talk of the town with two good opening fixtures and being listed as a midfielder. It’s that last part that makes us go for him for the Zombie team. With striking partener Laca set to to leave, Aubameyang might play as an out and out striker while picking up extra points as a mid. He’s too good to ignore and is our prediction for golden boot winner.

Raheem Sterling is our only cover from Manchester City and Liverpool, as he has consistently brought home the bacon the last three seasons, despite several missed chances like the one he blew in the Champions League semi-final against Lyon. Even so, the English winger is constantly in amongst the goals, and will feature a whole lot in City’s final 3rd. Kevin de Bruyne had a career year and some regression is expected, while Liverpool’s heavy hitters will be hard-pressed to follow up a title-winning campaign with a successful title defense.

Chelsea have a completely revamped offense, but Christian Pulisic ends up as our only Chelsea option. Not so much because he is “already proven in the Premier League”, as we think Ziyech and Werner will dominate from the start, but because the American winger almost played as a de facto striker at the end of last season and looked lethal. Chelsea will score a lot of goals, so accompanying Pulisic with one of his new teammates is also an option, but cash is getting tight.

We still have enough for another cracking midfield signing, just like Everton, who surprisingly picked up James Rodriguez. It’s a long time since the Colombian set the World (Cup) alight in 2014, but the former Madrid man still has something special about him. £22 mill was a steal for Everton and £7.5 is a steal in FPL, especially considering he very likely could be on penalties and take several set pieces too.

Rodriguez is great value for money and so is Tomáš Souček for only £5.0. Pigeon-holed as a defensive midfielder, the Czech internationals price stayed the same despite scoring 3 goals post restart. He has followed that up with 2 goals in pre-season, where he has proven once again that he likes to go forward. He also gets in the box on set pieces and will be closer to 10 than 0 goals this year, which is crazy for a £5.0 midfielder.

19/20 Midfielders: Sterling, Aubameyang, Pulisic, Rodriguez, (Soucek)

Forwards

17/18 Forwards: Kane, Firmino, Vardy
18/19 Forwards: Jimenez, Wilson, (King)
19/20 Forwards: Vardy, Jimenez, (Ings)

Timo Werner is no doubt a good pick, but instead of Bruno Fernandes and Werner, we’ve opted for Pulisic and Anthony Martial in order to save £2.5. The Frenchman finally realized his full potential once Fernandes arrived in Manchester in January and is the clear choice at striker for a Manchester United team that have already proven that they can score a bunch of goals. No need to settle in.

We also believe Callum Wilson will settle in quickly for Newcastle, especially as he is flanked by Ryan Fraser once again, like the good old Bournemouth days. In 18/19 Wilson played well enough to get into the best Zombie team that season and was priced at £8.0 for the last FPL campaign. Now priced at £6.5 and potentially on penalties, this FPL “troll” seems like an absolute bargain.

Whether we’ll be tricked or served a treat by Rhian Brewster this season remains to be seen, but the Liverpool youngster looks set to go to a different Premier League team and make him a huge option for £4.5. Even if he stays with Liverpool, he might get a few games as a starter with a potential to haul, making him a good candidate for our last bench spot regardless.

20/21 Forwards: Martial, Wilson, (Brewster)

Full Team:

When Should You Use Your Chips?

If you do plan on staying active on FPL throughout the season, then you need to figure out when to use the extra tools at your disposal. If it’s your first time playing FPL you’ll also need to know what your extra tools – chips – can do for you.

Along with the standard 1 free transfer per gameweek, you’ll get five more helpful ways to either change or enhance your squad. Two wildcards, a free hit, triple captain, and bench boost. Here’s the quick rundown of what all of those chips do:

The Wildcard allows you to make unlimited transfers for the week you’re using it, to permanently change your squad. Free Hit does the same thing, except the squad you pick out using the Free Hit only lasts the gameweek you use it for before it reverts to your old squad the gameweek after. Triple Captain does what it says; it triples the number of points your captain gets instead of just doubling them. Bench Boost allows you to get points for your whole 15 man squad the gameweek you use it. PS: You cannot use two chips in the same gameweek, regardless of how tempting it is to use a Wildcard/Free Hit and Bench Boost at the same time.

Now that you know what each of the chips does, you need to figure out when to use them for maximum effect:

First Wildcard:

In the previous three seasons, the transfer window would close when the new FPL season started, but because of the delayed start to this season, that is not the case in 20/21. With FPL starting September 12th, the teams in the Premier League get almost a full month before the transfer window shuts on October 5th.

This might also affect when you wanna use your first wildcard, especially after the fixtures got released and it turns out both Manchester teams don’t play in GW1. With popular players like Raheem Sterling, Anthony Martial, de Bruyne, and Fernandes among others not playing in GW1, wildcarding early to get some of them in quickly makes sense.

If you wildcard early, you might get the chance to add some fresh new signings as well. The transfer window ends right after GW4, so wildcarding going into GW5 might prove to be a popular option. The deadline for using your first wildcard is GW16, a bit earlier than usual.

That said, saving your first wildcard for as long as possible, tends to be what the FPL managers at the very top of the overall standings usually do. That’s because the 2nd wildcard you get in 2021 is usually best saved towards the final stages of the season when blank gameweeks start popping up again. If you wildcard in October, the wait until around March to use your 2nd wildcard might cost you a lot of points.

Here’s why you’d probably be best served to use your 2nd wildcard that late in the season:

Second Wildcard:

While it’s tempting to use your first wildcard early on, your second wildcard should probably be saved for the last couple of gameweeks, where both blank gameweeks and double gameweeks are more common. Sure, you can use it right after the January transfer window and get some big new stars in like Bruno Fernandes last season, but it will leave you very vulnerable towards the end of the 20/21 campaign.

Using it in conjunction with your other remaining chips like Free Hit, Triple Captain, and/or Bench Boost at the end is optimal, but of course, a wildcard is a safety option, so use it if you are ever in a pinch. Saving it for around Gameweek 31-36 however, is the most popular and probably smartest option.

Free Hit:

Speaking of in a pinch, the Free Hit chip comes in very handy for the gameweeks where you are suddenly left with a squad with only 6-7 players involved in the action.

This season has an unusual setup for Matchweeks 18 and 19. Matchweek 18 will be played with half the games before GW19 and half the games after, indicating that GW18 is partially blank, while GW19 is a double gameweek. Loading up on players with a double gameweek in GW19 and using your Free Hit to have 11 starters for GW18 will be a popular option.

Free Hit is often best used as a bridge before a double gameweek. The chip tends to be very useful towards the end of the season when your team value should be higher as well.

Last season, the blanks and double gameweeks at the end never came because the coronavirus completely changed the schedule. Many managers were able to use it the final gameweek to great effect, however, taking advantage of the team news for the usually goal-filled GW38.

But fingers crossed, corona won’t make any more adjustments to the FPL schedule this time around. Saving your Free Hit for in between the blanks and double gameweeks from around GW30 onwards might once again be the best option.

Last season I used it to great effect in GW32+, when sudden injuries and suspensions gave me a chance to further assess my team before using my 2nd wildcard, but many used it the very last gameweek with early team news in mind with all fixtures starting the same time. This season, the FPL deadline is 30 minutes earlier than the usual hour before, so no early team news can help you.

Triple Captain:

The best way to maximize your Triple Captain chip is by using it in a double gameweek. The last two seasons, using it on popular players with a double gameweek around the time the League Cup final came around in late February or March would have worked a treat.

Triple Captaining Aguero in 18/19 when he scored a hat-trick vs Arsenal and played against Everton in a sweet double gameweek resulted in a lot of points. The same could be said for those who triple captained Salah in GW24 during the 19/20 campaign, who got 48 points after a haul against West Ham on top of playing Wolverhampton.

Beware, however, as popular picks in the same gameweeks like Sané in 18/19 and Mané in 19/20, ended up flopping with only 3 points total even with the Triple Captain chip in play. Stay away from Kané as Triple Captain this season.

Or, if you are the patient type, you can save it until the very last gameweek of the season. GW38 won’t be a double gameweek, but it is usually filled with goals where players are chasing Golden Boots or are desperate to stay up. For the first time, I used my Triple Captain in GW38 this past season and i was rewarded… with absolutely nothing.

I was sitting pretty and was about to Triple Captain Salah ahead of an easy final game against Newcastle, but then team news broke that he was benched. In a hurry, I Triple Captained Son, who I knew my mini-league rival wouldn’t have. Of course, he blanked and I got 6 measly points for it.

Had I not been chasing and used the chip on my Vice Captain, de Bruyne, or used it on Aubameyang as I had planned before desperation set in, I would have gained a whole lot of points. Going with Aubameyang in the final Gameweek tends to be a smart choice, so if you wanna TC in GW38 this season, my early bet is on the Gabonese legend.

Bench Boost:

Yet again a chip you should reserve for a tasty double gameweek, we’re you can hopefully have close to 15 players with 2 matches each. You’ll more likely get that if you use your second wildcard the gameweek prior, providing you yet another reason to save your wildcard.

I always flirt with the option of using my bench boost in GW1 to start the season on a high, however. This season that would have gained me 4 points off the bench, so luckily I didn’t do it when my GW1 punt of Trossard didn’t play.

Instead, I saved the Bench Boost and used it for the return with unlimited transfers in GW30+. That gained me 24 points thanks to clean sheets from Leno and Boly, while my new favorite player Saint-Maximin scored and got 10 points off the bench. Success!

So yeah, saving your Bench Boost chip for later on in the season, when you can wildcard in 15 potential starters and have more team value to get a good bench, is generally a good idea. Just like with all the other chips, the key is patience and resisting the temptation to use a chip because you are bored or feel like you have to catch up.

Remember, it’s a marathon, not a sprint. Take your time. Unlike the busy bastards who skipped right to this tl;dr chip guide right here:

tl;dr:

1st Wildcard: Either around GW5 after the transfer window shuts or hold onto it for as long as possible.
2nd Wildcard: Hold off until double and blank gameweeks between GW30-37.
Free Hit: Use it as a bridge to navigate the double and blank gameweeks either for GW18/19 or towards the end of the season.
Triple Captain: When a star player gets a favourable double gameweek.
Bench Boost: After your 2nd Wildcard with as close to 15 double gameweek players you can get.

While there are plenty of huge signings and newcomers from the Championship to read up on down below, there are also some January signings we’d be remiss not to mention.

January 2020 signings recap

Bruno Fernandes is obviously the standout option among the bunch, coming in to transform Manchester United and delivering more FPL points per match than anyone else last season. You already have plenty of reasons to consider him.

Albeit in a less dramatic fashion, Stephen Bergwijn showed a little bit of what he’s all about, as a quick and lethal winger. The same could be said about Jarrod Bowen, who along with a new permanent signing, Tomáš Souček, helped West Ham stay up. More under the radar on the wing was Wolves’ Daniel Podence, but he’ll get more noticed this season, bank on it.

Liverpool will hope the same could be said of Takumi Minamino, who had a bit of a difficult start at Anfield. He’s had an impressive pre-season. Sheffield United’s Sander Berge also struggled at the start but got more involved in the Lord Lundstram role after the break. More involved can be said of Brighton’s potential solution at right-back Tariq Lamptey too. He’ll hope Brighton’s newest addition Joël Veltman plays more as a center-back. More on the Dutchman and the other newcomers right here:

Kostas Tsimikas – Liverpool

This Greek left-back impressed last season at Olympiakos, securing an unlikely win against Arsenal at the Emirates and sending them through in the Europa League. Tsimikas is known for his crazy pace, good crossing ability, and great determination as he makes very intelligent runs. The only thing holding back this quite sublime defender is his weaker foot as he is known to be quite one-footed. Of course, there is also the issue of having Andy Robertson as your teammate, so don’t expect many starts for Liverpool’s newest signing.

FPL Position: Defender
Projected Games started: 5
Goal projections: 0-2
Assist projections: 0-4
Clean Sheet projections: 1-5
Bonus potential: High
Injury risk: Low
Set Pieces: None

Price: £5.0

Ferran Torres – Manchester City

City has done yet another madness by turning a profit by replacing Leroy Sané with the equally rapid Ferran Torres. The Spaniard is known for his blistering pace, off the ball moves, and for being an intelligent runner, but is quite lacking in defensive contributions. He’s basically replacing the type of production they got in year one from Sané four years ago (5 goals, 3 assists), being four years younger than the German as well. In his debut season, he might contribute most to make the Pep roulette even tougher to predict, but this youngster is not too costly and is bursting with talent!

FPL Position: Midfielder
Projected Games started: 16
Goal projections: 4-8
Assist projections: 4-7
Bonus potential: Low
Injury risk: Low
Set Pieces: None

Price: £7.0

Donny van de Beek – Manchester United

Many Premier League fans have no idea what’s in store for them. DVDB is a genius midfielder who can genuinely play in all positions in the midfield. Known for his goals against big clubs, the Dutch international can fill any role needed from him and give Bruno Fernandes some rest at times. He will mainly serve in a midfield two with Paul Pogba behind Fernandes because of his good tackling instincts.

FPL Position: Midfielder
Projected Games started: 30
Goal projections: 4-7
Assist projections: 3-7
Bonus potential: High
Injury risk: Low
Set Pieces: None

Price: £7.0

Timo Werner – Chelsea

Chelsea fans have been begging for a longterm goalscoring striker since they lost Didier Drogba in 2015. Tammy Abraham has looked promising, but he’s a step below their new German Talisman, Timo Werner. While he is prone to missing a sitter, there’s no doubt that Werner oozes class as he actually amassed 47 points in 45 matches last season, with 34 goals and 13 assists! Werner has rapid pace and can finish with both feet, so with players like Hakim Ziyech and Kai Havertz passing him the ball, he will for sure score several goals and be a dark horse for the Golden Boot!

FPL Position: Forward
Projected Games started: 31
Goal projections: 10-23
Assist projections: 4-8
Bonus potential: High
Injury risk: Low
Set Pieces: None

Price: £9.5

Hakim Ziyech – Chelsea

Ziyech truly makes the hardest of passes and shots seem like a breeze and thus thoroughly deserves the title of the “Moroccan Wizard”. There are questions about his physicality, but he makes up for it with a high football IQ. He can miss easy chances from time to time, but also has crazy finesse shots that can go in from anywhere. Ziyech biggest strength is probably his assists and on the ball, he’ll make Chelsea fans forget about Eden Hazard. Ajax’ finest for the last 3-4 years is just that good of a dribbler.

FPL Position: Midfielder
Projected Games started: 28
Goal projections: 3-9
Assist projections: 6-15
Bonus potential: High
Injury risk: Medium
Set Pieces: Free kicks and corners

Price: £8.0

Kai Havertz – Chelsea

Kai Havertz is a special talent who can literally do it all. Imagine a taller, German and left-footed version of Bruno Fernandes, without the set pieces. That sums him up quite well and if he gets the ball rolling quickly at Chelsea, he could easily become a household name in your FPL lineup. Keep an eye out for this super talent!

FPL Position: Midfielder
Projected Games started: 28
Goal projections: 7-13
Assist projections: 6-12
Bonus potential: High
Injury risk: Medium
Set Pieces: None

Price: £8.5

Thiago Silva – Chelsea

Chelsea fans should be excited to finally get a new center-back. While I think Thiago Silva is a great signing, it has to be mentioned that he is 35 years old, and not exactly the right signing Chelsea needed to shore up the defense for many years to come. They do however get an absolute machine, even if it’s for a year.

FPL Position: Defender
Projected Games started: 32
Goal projections: 0-3
Assist projections: 0-2
Clean Sheet projections: 8-15
Bonus potential: High
Injury risk: Medium
Set Pieces: None

Price: £5.5

Timothy Castagne – Leicester

This offensive Belgian full-back is certainly more adept at going forward than defending, as he showed with the Italian Champions League sensation Atalanta. While primarily a right-back, Castagne can also play on the left or as a wing-back as he did for Atalanta. He always looks to bomb forward, at the cost of leaving plenty of space behind him.

FPL Position: Defender
Projected Games started: 27
Goal projections: 1-3
Assist projections: 1-5
Clean Sheet projections: 6-12
Bonus potential: Medium
Injury risk: Medium

Price: £5.0

Marçal – Wolves

This Brazilian left-back who can also play center-back is nothing special in terms of Fantasy capabilities. Very reminiscent of Willy Boly, just a stud in the back. Marçal will not give you much added points like some full-backs normally do!

FPL Position: Defender
Projected Games started: 21
Goal projections: 0-1
Assist projections: 0-2
Clean Sheet projections: 6-12
Bonus potential: Medium
Injury risk: Low
Set Pieces: None

Price: £5.0

Gabriel Magalhães – Arsenal

Arsenal is finally addressing their defensive woes by signing the mega-talented Gabriel Magalhães. Known for being a towering center-back, he and William Saliba could become a dream center-back pairing for Arsenal. Don’t expect crazy goals and assists from Gabriel but expect a lot of bonus points!

FPL Position: Defender
Projected Games started: 35
Goal projections: 0-4
Assist projections: 0-3
Clean Sheet projections: 9-13
Bonus potential: High
Injury risk: Low

Price: £5.0

Ethan Ampadu – Sheffield United

While Ampadu has a lot of talent and potential, he’ll still find it hard to break into a settled Sheffield United defense that took the Premier League by storm a season ago. Either as a ball playing CB or a defensive midfielder, Ampadu will be a great option for Wilder to sub in later on in games, but the Chelsea loanee will struggle for regular starts.

FPL Position: Defender
Projected Games started: 13
Goal projections: 0-1
Assist projections: 0-2
Clean Sheet projections: 3-8
Bonus potential: High
Injury risk: Medium

Price: £4.5

James Rodriguez – Everton

Holy S**t! What a huge signing for Everton! James is exactly what Everton needs ever since Ross Barkley and Gylfi Sigurdsson left Everton (he has lost all his Viking Powers). Everton under manager Carlo Ancelotti (who will now have coached Rodriguez at 3 different clubs) might be the perfect place for the Colombian talisman to revitalize his career.

FPL Position: Midfielder
Projected Games started: 32
Goal projections: 6-11
Assist projections: 7-14
Bonus potential: High
Injury risk: Medium
Set Pieces: Penalties and free kicks

Price (Projected): £8.0

Allan – Everton

Holy S**t! What a huge signing for Everton! (Deja Vu). While he might not be the best Fantasy option, he is exactly what Everton has been lacking since the departure of Idrissa Gana Gueye. Considered as one of the best Serie A midfielders and a leading player in Europe, it might be the type of signing that will help the Ancelotti revolution come into fruition and help Everton reach the Europa League again. Crazy signing!

FPL Position: Midfielder
Projected Games started: 30
Goal projections: 2-4
Assist projections: 2-5
Bonus potential: High
Injury risk: Medium
Set Pieces: None

Price: £5.5

Eberechi Eze – Crystal Palace

Wow, wow, wow! We’re delighted to finally see Eberechi Eze in the Premier League! This highly talented attacking midfielder can genuinely play all over the pitch and has the dribbling capabilities of both former Crystal Palace man, Yannick Bolasie, and Eze’s current teammate, Wilfried Zaha. Eze also has great vision as seen in many of his assists and passes. Due to his blistering pace, Eze also creates a lot of chances and goes on marauding runs that usually end in goals or assists (has a rocket for a right foot too!). We genuinely can’t stop gushing about this signing!

FPL Position: Midfielder
Projected Games started: 28
Goal projections: 5-12
Assist projections: 3-9
Bonus potential: Low
Injury risk: Medium
Set Pieces: Possibly penalties and free kicks

Price: £6.0

Nathan Ferguson – Crystal Palace

Here it is, your best bet for a £4.0 starting defender in FPL this season. Nathan Ferguson impressed in the first half of the season for West Bromwich last year, before he got a devastating injury that has kept him out until the start of this season. He still impressed enough to get a transfer to Crystal Palace, where he likely takes over at right back once fit.

FPL Position: Defender
Projected Games started: 30
Goal projections: 0-2
Assist projections: 0-4
Clean Sheet projections: 6-12
Bonus potential: Low
Injury risk: Medium
Set Pieces: None
Price: 4.0

Joël Veltman – Brighton

As massive Graham Potter fans, it’s fantastic to hear Brighton shore up their defense with the versatile Joel Veltman. The Dutchman can play both as a right-back and as a center-back and offers something different than the towering center-backs Brighton usually use. It’s good to have a mobile player like himself, who can dribble too. Veltman might be perfect for the back 3 when Potter plays his 3-5-2 formation.

FPL Position: Defender
Projected Games started: 22
Goal projections: 0-2
Assist projections: 0-4
Clean Sheet projections: 5-9
Bonus potential: Medium
Injury risk: Medium
Set Pieces: None
Price: 4.5

Tomáš Souček – West Ham

This is cheating somewhat, as Souček came on loan in January and has already proven himself in the Premier League. His 3 league goals after the restart should tell you something about this seemingly defensive midfielder getting involved in the box. A major threat on set pieces, he started scoring a lot of goals for Slavia Prague before West Ham brought him in. Still, with 3 goals (and 1 disallowed) after the restart, he’s yet again priced at £5.0. Bargain.

FPL Position: Midfielder
Projected Games started: 33
Goal projections: 4-9
Assist projections: 2-4
Bonus potential: High
Injury risk: Low
Set Pieces: None

Price: £5.0

Matty Cash – Aston Villa

The man with the funny name could be Aston Villa’s answer at right back. As a converted winger, Cash has been marauding up and down the side for Nottingham Forest, giving him plenty of experience at only 23 years of age. His former position also means that he likes to get forward and can chip in with some goals and assists as well. With stamina for days and a tireless work rate, he’ll be a popular man among the Villa fans.

FPL Position: Defender
Projected Games started: 28
Goal projections: 2-4
Assist projections: 1-5
Clean Sheet projections: 5-11
Bonus potential: Medium
Injury risk: Low
Set Pieces: None
Price: £5.0

Rodrigo – Leeds

Wow. Leeds broke their transfer record to sign dwindling La Liga striker Rodrigo. The change of scenery might be exactly what this once highly talented striker needs, but it has to be said that we have our reservations. Hopefully, he proves us wrong as Raúl Jiménez did so many years ago.

FPL Position: Striker
Projected Games started: 28
Goal projections: 4-10
Assist projections: 3-6
Bonus potential: Medium
Injury risk: Low
Set Pieces: Possibly penalties
Price: £6.0

Patrick Bamford – Leeds

Patrik Bamford is not an amazing striker by any stretch of the imagination but is a vital cog in Bielsa’s tactics. Don’t believe us? Bamford featured in 45 out of 46 matches for Leeds in the Championship. The striker is known for missing his chances and got a fairly low goal return last season (16 in 45 matches) however, so with the signing of Rodrigo, we’d stay well clear of Bamford. He likely starts the season as the main striker but looks set to be an FPL zero once again.

FPL Position: Striker
Projected Games started: 16
Goal projections: 2-7
Assist projections: 0-4
Bonus potential: Medium
Injury risk: Low
Set Pieces: Possibly penalties
Price: £5.5

Pablo Hernandez – Leeds

Hernandez is a magical CAM who can score goals for fun, hit a pass from anywhere, and is one of the main reasons that Leeds have come as far as they have. While his advanced age might hurt his cause a bit, don’t expect anything short of some magic moments in the Premier League. James Milner, David Silva, Fernandinho, Gary Cahill, and Joao Moutinho are proof enough that class is permanent, so expect nothing less from Hernandez.

FPL Position: Midfielder
Projected Games started: 23
Goal projections: 3-7
Assist projections: 4-10
Bonus potential: High
Injury risk: Low
Set Pieces: Some free-kicks and corners
Price: £6.0

Mateusz Klich – Leeds

Mateusz Klich is a god damn workhorse. Yet another outfield player who only missed a single match in Leeds successful 2019/20 Championship season and was vital for Leeds thanks to his partnership with his fellow midfielder, Kalvin Phillips. He can play everywhere in midfield, sometimes as attacking mid, sometimes as defensive mid. He took the last pen of the season with Bamford on the pitch, so Klich might be a sneaky addition to your squad.

FPL Position: Midfielder
Projected Games started: 37
Goal projections: 3-7
Assist projections: 4-6
Bonus potential: Medium
Injury risk: Low
Set Pieces: Possibly penalties

Price: £5.5

Stuart Dallas – Leeds

Lucas Digne, Andy Robertson, Marcos Alonso, and Benjamin Mendy. All Left-backs, all FPL legends. Stuart Dallas could become the next defender to reach these heights. Similarly to Matt Doherty, Dallas can take to this level straight away. With an eye for an assist and goal, it seems like Stuart Dallas could be a sneakily good pick for the 20/21 FPL season. Leeds might get a new LB, however, which would possibly push Dallas further up the pitch, but might limit his game time. If he starts regularly as a mid, step aside John Lundstram, there’s a new sheriff in town!

FPL Position: Defender
Projected Games started: 28
Goal projections: 2-7
Assist projections: 3-7
Clean Sheet projections: 7-12
Bonus potential: High
Injury risk: Medium
Set Pieces: None

Price: £4.5

Luke Ayling – Leeds

If Dallas is Doherty, then Luke Ayling is an energetic Jonny Otto. He might be a more sure starter than Dallas playing as a right-back and also likes to get forward. While he got four goals and four assists in the Championship, Ayling also managed to get nine yellow cards, which is a red flag. He was on fire from the start of 2020 until the corona break however and is worth monitoring.

FPL Position: Defender
Projected Games started: 32
Goal projections: 1-4
Assist projections: 2-5
Clean Sheet projections: 7-12
Bonus potential: Medium
Injury risk: Low
Set Pieces: None

Price: £4.5

Robin Koch – Leeds

Leeds managed to beat out Tottenham to sign the talented Robin Koch, whose versatility makes him an asset for any club as he can play both as a central defensive midfielder and as a center-back. While he put in some good performances at SC Freiburg, it might take some time for the defender to acclimatize to the Premier League but we reckon he’ll put a good shift in.

FPL Position: Defender
Projected Games started: 35
Goal projections: 0-4
Assist projections: 0-3
Clean Sheet projections: 7-12
Bonus potential: Medium
Injury risk: Low

Price: £4.5

Ilian Meslier – Leeds

This young French goalkeeper took over as Leeds’ shot-stopper after some controversies around Kiko Casilla and the 20-year-old took his chance. He looks set to be the starting goalkeeper as a promising Leeds defense hopes to keep it tight at the back in their PL return. Might be a cheap alternative to have, similar to Dean Henderson last season.

FPL Position: Goalkeeper
Projected Games started: 35
Clean Sheet projections: 7-12
Bonus potential: Medium
Injury risk: Low

Price: £4.5

Matheus Pereira – West Brom

If you don’t know who Matheus Pereira is, you are in for a treat. This Brazilian born player from Sporting was probably the most electrifying man in all of the Championship last season, along with then-teammate Grady Diangana. Pereira is very quick on his feet and will dribble past several Premier League defenders, but his left foot might be the most dangerous, accounting for most of the 20 assists he got in the Championship.

FPL Position: Midfielder
Projected Games started: 35
Goal projections: 4-8
Assist projections: 7-15
Bonus potential: High
Injury risk: Low
Set Pieces: Free kicks and corners

Price: £6.0

Semi Ajayi – West Brom

West Brom might not have Gareth McAuley MBE anymore, but maybe Semi Ajayi can somewhat fill that set-piece goal hole in your heart? The former Arsenal man grew into his own in his first season at West Bromwich Albion and scored 5 goals to boot. He’s a mainstay at the heart of Slaven Bilic’s defense with a goal threat, so even at 5.0, he might be worth it.

FPL Position: Defender
Projected Games started: 35
Goal projections: 1-4
Assist projections: 0-2
Clean Sheet projections (if defender/GK): 6-11
Bonus potential: High
Injury risk: Low
Set Pieces: None

Price: £5.0

Sam Johnstone – West Brom

West Brom’s clear number 1 is a saving machine that kept 14 clean sheets throughout the club ascent to the Premier League. Dean Henderson’s predecessor at Man Utd might be his successor in terms of cheap and good goalkeeper options.

FPL Position: Goalkeeper
Projected Games started: 38
Clean Sheet projections: 6-11
Bonus potential: High
Injury risk: Low
Set Pieces: None

Price: £4.5

Josh Onomah – Fulham

It is honestly refreshing to see the highly touted Josh Onomah doing well at Fulham, after several years of people questioning his talent. Thanks to his efforts despite a few injury setbacks, he helped Fulham win the promotion play-off back to the Premier League. He is a physical player who is capable of beating his opponents with silky skills and has a decent shot but doesn’t always put away his chances. Keep an eye out for only 5.0, as he continues to blossom under Scott Parker’s guidance.

FPL Position: Midfielder
Projected Games started: 28
Goal projections: 2-8
Assist projections: 2-5
Bonus potential: Low
Injury risk: Medium
Set Pieces: None

Price: £5.0

Joe Bryan – Fulham

Say what you will, but no one can knock Joe Bryan after that performance against Brentford in the promotion-playoff match! The left-back managed to score twice in the game, bag himself a 94 rated Fifa Ultimate Team card, and probably a price rise to 5.0 to start the season. He gets competition at LB from the next guy on this list, but that could also move him further forward.

FPL Position: Defender
Projected Games started: 25
Goal projections: 1-3
Assist projections: 2-8
Clean Sheet projections: 5-11
Bonus potential: High
Injury risk: Medium
Set Pieces: Some corners and free kicks

Price: £5.0

Joe Bryan – Fulham

Say what you will, but no one can knock Joe Bryan after that performance against Brentford in the promotion-playoff match! The left-back managed to score twice in the game, bag himself a 94 rated Fifa Ultimate Team card, and probably a price rise to 5.0 to start the season. He gets competition at LB from the next guy on this list, but that could also move him further forward.

FPL Position: Defender
Projected Games started: 25
Goal projections: 1-3
Assist projections: 2-8
Clean Sheet projections: 5-11
Bonus potential: High
Injury risk: Medium
Set Pieces: Some corners and free kicks

Price: £5.0

Kenny Tete – Fulham

Kenny Tete has been a solid defender for Lyon for several years but is honestly, not the best choice in FPL full-backs as he usually only gets an assist a season. He is however usually always up for a scrap as he’s a no-nonsense defender. Fulham wanted to add stability and have done a decent job picking up Kenny Tete!

FPL Position: Defender
Projected Games started: 15
Goal projections: 0-1
Assist projections: 0-1
Clean Sheet projections: 4-8
Bonus potential: Low
Injury risk: Low
Set Pieces: None

Price: £4.5

Ola Aina – Fulham

This former Chelsea academy product can play both full-back positions and also further up the pitch. He is also capable of getting a decent amount of assists in comparison to Kenny Tete. So if we were going to suggest one out of the two then look no further than Ola Aina.

FPL Position: Defender
Projected Games started: 25
Goal projections: 0-1
Assist projections: 1-3
Clean Sheet projections: 4-10
Bonus potential: Medium
Injury risk: Low
Set Pieces: None

Price: £4.5

Antonee Robinson – Fulham

Somewhat surprisingly, Fulham brought in a very promising left-back ahead of Everton and Sheffield United, after the young American speedster didn’t secure his move to AC Milan. Robinson has shown his pace time and time again at Wigan, marauding down the wing with his noticeably upright running style. For now, we’ll be cautious and put Robinson as Bryan’s backup, but this 23-year-old has enough potential to win a starting LB position eventually.

FPL Position: Defender
Projected Games started: 13
Goal projections: 0-2
Assist projections: 1-3
Clean Sheet projections: 3-6
Bonus potential: Medium
Injury risk: Medium
Set Pieces: None

Price: £5.0

Alphonse Areola – Fulham

How on earth did Fulham manage to sign World Cup winner, Alphonse Areola? His track record is playing for PSG and Real Madrid and now he’s between the sticks at Craven Cottage. Are you kidding me? Huge signing for Fulham and we still don’t get how Fulham managed to pull this loan signing off. Incredible. Might be the reason you don’t captain Aubameyang GW1.

FPL Position: Goalkeeper
Projected Games started: 38
Clean Sheet projections: 6-11
Bonus potential: High
Injury risk: Low
Set Pieces: None

Price: £4.5

Marcelo Bielsa – Leeds

Leeds fans all around the world are pinching themselves, but the dream has finally been realized. Leeds are back in the Premier League! Premier League football will be returning to Elland Road and Leeds will hope to emulate their past success and maybe even return to the Champions League (where they once reached the semi-finals back in 2001). Is it that crazy to dream about these things? Not really, considering they have the ever-charismatic Marcelo Bielsa at the helm! Affectionately known as “El Loco” Bielsa has enjoyed a 30-year career as a manager and is one of the most well-liked. Several managers have named him their inspiration including Mauricio Pochettino, Diego Simeone, Zinedine Zidane, and even Pep Guardiola.

Formation(s):

3-3-1-3 (morphs into a 4-1-4-1)

In a huge percentage of Leed’’s matches, they used the 3-3-1-3 formation which helped to employ Bielsa’s vision of offensive possession-based football. This formation is used so the players can look to make some direct passes and to be able to go against man-marking. Due to this possession-based tactic, the team rarely play long balls, due to there being too high of a risk of losing possession, so attacks are instead started from the back, which is similar to teams like FC Barcelona, Ajax, and Manchester City. Due to how the players are also spread out across the pitch, they are constantly on the move hoping to break down the other team’s defense.

Rotation

Bielsa stuck to his favorites last season and there is hardly any rotation in this team. Most of the players played at least 75% of all matches, which means that besides any new signings, you can expect a bunch of players to continuously play in the Premier League. His tactics might be similar to that of Guardiola, but no Pep roulette here. “El loco” even used to give out his lineups at press conferences at the start of his Leeds career.

Goalkeeper:

Despite the various controversies surrounding Kiko Casilla, he is likely to feature for the side throughout their Premier League comeback. He is one of the club’s highest earners and has a lot more experience than 19-year-old backup, Illan Meslier.

Defenders:

Leeds’ defense stayed pretty consistent, with captain Liam Cooper at the heart of the defense with Ben White, who is now staying at parent club Brighton. Robin Koch comes in to replace him. Luke Ayling and Stuart Dallas are the two full-backs, who could get a lot of goal contributions as both players are quite good at getting assists and goals. Expect most of these players to start but it wouldn’t be so surprising if Leeds bought some defensive players to become a bit more ready for the jump to the Premier League. Leeds kept the most clean sheets by far in the Championship, keeping the nil in 22 out of 46 matches.

Midfielders:

Kalvin Phillips is amazing and it still surprises me that a bunch of clubs hasn’t tried to sign the English CDM. He is normally a Regista which has him helping with both offensive and defensive duties, such as starting attacking movements with direct passes and also dropping back to help his defenders, very akin to what Barcelona does with Sergio Busquets. Jack Harrison and Helder Costa are the wingers who feature all the time for Leeds, who both help the team tick with their pace and good crosses. Of course, no Bielsa team goes without an Enganche, which is an Argentinian footballing term to describe an attacking midfielder/playmaker. This is exactly what Pablo Hernandez has been doing for several years, scoring and assisting so frequently and when Leeds needs him most!

Forwards:

Look, we get it. People don’t like Patrick Bamford, but he was actually the reason Leeds’ attack works the way it does. There’s a reason why a bunch of strikers never got a chance and why Bamford only missed a single game in the Championship. Bamford is essentially their target man, who occupies space up front, layoffs for other players, and bullies defenders. He usually one-touch passes with the wingers and gets the whole team involved in the attack. Leeds strengthened with Rodrigo, who at his best is a huge improvement on Bamford, but the consistency of the Englishman might edge out Rodrigo if he fails to adapt to the Premier League.

Conclusion

It will be interesting to see how Marcelo Bielsa and his Leeds will fare in the Premier League. Will it be a short-lived session like Norwich or will they become a Premier League mainstay like Leicester? You can honestly say that Marcelo Bielsa could be the guy to keep them up and running and even get them back to the Champions League. With the enigmatic owner Andrea Radrizzani at the helm, they might finally make the right transfers to keep them afloat too. Expect a lot of goals, a lot of action, and some fun football now that Leeds are back!

Scott Parker – Fulham

Fulham went back up to the Premier League for the first time asking and a lot of the credit has to go to their young new manager Scott Parker. The former Football Writers’ Association Footballer of the Year has instilled a hard-nosed mentality with this Fulham side, that should be better equipped to survive in the Premier League than in their 2018/19 campaign. The playoff final against Brentford is not an anomaly, cause Parker’s team has been good at countering their oppositions strengths, a handy quality to ensure Premier League survival. Still, Fulham finished with the 2nd highest average possession in the league behind Leeds.

Formation(s):

4-2-3-1 (4-3-3)

Starting the season in a 4-3-3 formation, Parker finished the season often using a 4-2-3-1 formation following the rapid improvement of Josh Onomah, who blossomed in a role right behind the striker under Parker’s leadership. This also pushed Tom Cairney further back on the pitch, where he controlled the action along with Harrison Reed. Regardless of which of his two favorite formations he used, Parker introduced more pace on the winger positions and taking advantage of possibly the best player in the Championship, lone striker Aleksandar Mitrovic.

Rotation

Apart from right back and the three players closest to starting striker Mitrovic, Parker played a pretty consistent XI once Michael Hector arrived and bossed it at center-back. The improvement of Onomah along with long time bit-part player Neeskens Kebano means that Parker has a lot of options in the attacking options around Mitrovic. A new right-back is expected to be brought in for the Premier League, while a new CB has also been rumored. They won’t go on a £100m spending spree this time, however, as Parker claims they have learned from their mistakes last time around. “You can’t build teams with drastic changes and drastic swings of players, you can’t do that,” Parker has said.

Goalkeeper:

In goal, Parker decided to bench long time goalie Marcus Bettinelli with a younger Fulham youth prospect in Marek Rodák. The Slovak had a successful loan spell at Rotherham the year prior and instantly proved a success with Fulham when given the chance. Rodák might have taken his chance, but seeing as Fulham got Alphonse Areola in on loan, the Slovakian goalkeeper has to bide his time again. Areola might be the player to keep Fulham up.

Defenders:

As mentioned, Michael Hector came in and became a mainstay at the heart of this Fulham defense. Drawing comparisons to Virgil van Dijk, the 28-year-old London-born Jamaican international will be nailed, starting most games along with overlapping left-back Joe Bryan who proved his worth in the playoff final. Tim Ream might lose his spot despite starting almost every game last season, while new boys Kenny Tete and Ola Aina will fight over the spot at right back.

Midfielders:

Tom Cairney might be an FPL fraud, but he stays a very important player in Fulham’s midfield. Fulham have retained the services of Harrison Reed, who should couple Cairney in the middle of the park. A different Reid, the versatile Bobby Decordova-Reid, should also feature in various positions including in attack on some occasions.  The wingers, usually Knockaert, Cavaleiro and Kebano, tend to be quick and direct inward wingers who can fire off a shot. A double up on the side with overlapping full-backs is something Parker’s team uses a lot, with a threat of either shooting or crossing it to big bad Mitrovic up front.

Forwards:

Mitrovic is the clear starter at center-forward and for good reason. The Championship top scorer is a Premier League level striker and is back where he belongs. As a lone striker in Parker’s system, he serves his role well, holding up the ball and being a menace in the box. Whether he is at the end of a cross or combines with the likes of Onomah or Bryan in front of goal, as seen in the playoff final, Mitrovic’s role as a target man will be vital for Fulham’s Premier League survival.

Conclusion

With a very traditional way of playing football, Parker’s hard-nosed team should be able to get some results in the Premier League this season. Mitrovic is clearly the star man here, being the center of everything Fulham build towards. Don’t be surprised if their defense holds up a hell of a lot better than last time, especially with some new signings to complement Bryan and Hector. Other than that, the rest of the FPL points will be shared between a bevy of attacking options behind Mitrovic and the odd long shot goal from Cairney.

Starting Lineups:

NB:

1. These are not GW1 lineups, but predicted XI’s for the whole season.

2. The number on the kit are predicted starts/nailed-on-ness on a scale from 0-38.

3. This will be updated until the GW1 deadline arrives.

4. Any tips/help welcome. Take a look at your favorite team and tweet me @Maefteda if you find any errors.

Arsenal:

XI Contenders (Starts): Luiz (19), Nketiah (18), and Torreira (15)

Other Potential Starters: Guendouzi

Last Season XI Nailed-on-ness: 23.72 out of 38 matches

Additional Notes:

• Bukayo Saka seems to have cemented his place in the XI. Laca drops out.
• Lacazette might leave. More chance for Nketiah and more Aubameyang up front.
• New-look defense, with David Luiz the biggest threat for Saliba.

Aston Villa:

XI Contenders (Starts): El Ghazi (20), Nakamba (18), and Wesley (14)

Other Potential Starters: None

Last Season XI Nailed-on-ness: 25.81 out of 38 matches

Additional Notes:

• Tom Heaton should be back pretty early in the season and start again.
• Watkins is the 3rd new striker in the past year. Let’s see if he has more success.
• Matty Cash completes a revitalized defense that kept more clean sheets post restart.

Brighton

XI Contenders (Starts): Pröpper (24), Veltman (22) and Groß (18)

Other Potential Starters: Webster

Last Season XI Nailed-on-ness: 29.18 out of 38 matches

Additional Notes:

• Potter will fluidly switch between a 3-5-2 and 4-2-3-1 system.
• Got about 5 good center-backs and no proper left-back. Weird.
• Lallana likely to start when fit. Still got plenty left at 32 years old.

Burnley:

XI Contenders (Starts): Pieters (26), Brownhill (22), and Barnes (20)

Other Potential Starters: Lowton

Last Season XI Nailed-on-ness: 29.81 out of 38 matches

Additional Notes:

• Sean Dyche has a pretty settled XI, but full-backs and right-wing still a ?
• Brownhill could break into the team at center mid or right-wing.
• Pieters likely to start a lot, but in several positions, including on the wing.

Chelsea:

XI Contenders (Starts): Mount (23), Rüdiger (23), and James (18)

Other Potential Starters: Jorginho

Last Season XI Nailed-on-ness: 25.90 out of 38 matches

Additional Notes:

• Lampard rotates A LOT and that will be even more the case with all the new signings.
• Edouard Mendy should be arriving shortly and be the team’s new starting GK.
• Rüdiger seems to have lost favor with Lampard, but could still edge out Zouma.

Crystal Palace:

XI Contenders (Starts): Ayew (22), Cahill (19), and Schlupp (15)

Other Potential Starters: None

Last Season XI Nailed-on-ness: 28.72 out of 38 matches

Additional Notes:

• Eze and Zaha will provide a lot of pens for Milivojevic.
• Outside of Milivojevic, the midfield is lackluster.
• Sakho should still be a starting CB, a slight edge for Tomkins to partner him.

Everton:

XI Contenders (Starts): Gomes (23), Iwobi (18), and Davies (16).

Other Potential Starters: None

Last Season XI Nailed-on-ness: 27.18 out of 38 matches

Additional Notes:

• Richarlison is a striker and Ancelotti wants 30 goals from him.
• STRONG center midfield now. Gomes will feature a lot too.
• Jonjoe Kenny returning after a decent spell in Germany. Won’t start over Coleman unless injuries happen.

Fulham:

XI Contenders (Starts): Reid (22), Knockaert (21), and Tete (15)

Other Potential Starters: Anguissa, Robinson, Mawson

Last Season XI Nailed-on-ness: 34.54 out of 46 matches

Additional Notes:

• Hector stepped right next to Ream from January onwards. Sorry, Mawson.
• Mitrovic is an FPL option up front, behind him there are no sure things.
• Lots of options in midfield, but Cairney and Reed brought them to the PL.

Leeds:

XI Contenders (Starts): Bamford (16), Shackleton (15), Douglas (13)

Other Potential Starters: Casilla

Last Season XI Nailed-on-ness: 39.09 out of 46 matches

Additional Notes:

• Koch in as new CB, partners Cooper in the heart of defense.
• Casilla might very well leave and Meslier looks set to replace him regardless.
• Rodrigo might be eased in for Bamford, but should be the starting striker eventually.

Leicester:

XI Contenders (Starts): Iheanacho (18), Gray (18) and Praet (16)

Other Potential Starters: None

Last Season XI Nailed-on-ness: 31.09 out of 38 matches

Additional Notes:

• Castagne slots in at left-back, but Justin and Thomas can both feature.
• Harvey Barnes should cement his place on the wing.
• Iheanacho got some burn towards the end of the season, impact sub with Gray.

Liverpool:

XI Contenders (Starts): Keita (22), Oxlade-Chamberlain (17), and Minamino (15)

Other Potential Starters: None

Last Season XI Nailed-on-ness: 30.81 out of 38 matches

Additional Notes:

• No huge XI contenders other than Keita, who is showing signs of breaking out.
• Henderson, despite player of the year plaudits, only started 26 matches last season.
• Wijnaldum on the last year of his contract. Might favor Keita over him.

Man City:

XI Contenders (Starts): Jesus (22), Foden (22) and Torres (16)

Other Potential Starters: Mendy, Fernandinho, Gundogan

Last Season XI Nailed-on-ness: 24.63 out of 38 matches

Additional Notes:

• Pep rotation is still in full effect.
• Foden will step into the David Silva role, including the sporadic starts.
• Aké and Laporte can and will play together, despite both naturally being LCBs.

Man Utd:

XI Contenders (Starts): McTominay (21), Matic (20), James (15)

Other Potential Starters: None

Last Season XI Nailed-on-ness: 28.54 out of 38 matches

Additional Notes:

• Henderson will stay and challenge de Gea for a starting spot.
• Donny van de Beek can and will play deep next to Pogba.
• Brandon Williams has an outside shot at taking over at left-back.

Newcastle:

XI Contenders (Starts): S. Longstaff (22), Ritchie (20), and Hendrick (17)

Other Potential Starters: None

Last Season XI Nailed-on-ness: 26.09 out of 38 matches

Additional Notes:

• Callum Wilson solves Newcastle’s striker problem. More incoming players inbound.
• Almirón and Saint-Maximin will be vital for Newcastle offensively again.
• Dubravka is out injured, while Fraser needs more matches to get match-fit.

Sheffield United:

XI Contenders (Starts): Mousset (18), Lundstram (16) and Osborn (16)

Other Potential Starters: Ampadu

Last Season XI Nailed-on-ness: 32.27 out of 38 matches

Additional Notes:

• He’s Norwegian and he’s gonna play a lot this season. It’s Sander Burghe (Berge).
• Striker spot the only question mark. Mousset will try to win back a spot. Sharp a bit-part player.
• Most new signings are squad depth with good potential. Ampadu could become starting CB/DM.

Southampton:

XI Contenders (Starts): Djenepo (22), Stephens (20), and Obafemi (19)

Other Potential Starters: Smallbone

Last Season XI Nailed-on-ness: 27.81 out of 38 matches

Additional Notes:

• Che Adams got into his own towards the end of the season, but Obafemi lurks too.
• Armstrong and Redmond look nailed, but Djenepo is very very talented.
• Smallbone might very well start next to the ever-present Ward-Prowse.

Tottenham:

XI Contenders (Starts): Moura (22), Winks (20), Sissoko (18)

Other Potential Starters: None

Last Season XI Nailed-on-ness: 25.81 out of 38 matches

Additional Notes:

• Bergwijn comes in to edge out Moura, but the Brazilian will feature a lot, also off the bench.
• Dier has been given the armband in pre-season and a new contract. Nailed.
• Lo Celso should get a bigger role this year, Højbjerg likely starts over Winks and Sissoko.

West Bromwich Albion:

XI Contenders (Starts): Grosicki (20), Austin (18), and Robinson (17)

Other Potential Starters: None

Last Season XI Nailed-on-ness: 34.09 out of 46 matches

Additional Notes:

• GRADY DIANGANA. That’s all.
• Dara O’Shea took over the RB spot at the end of the season, Gibbs LB for now.
• Callum Robinson could be the starting striker over Robson-Kanu and Austin.

West Ham:

XI Contenders (Starts): Haller (23), Yarmolenko (18) and Snodgrass (16)

Other Potential Starters: Anderson

Last Season XI Nailed-on-ness: 27.90 out of 38 matches

Additional Notes:

• NO GRADY DIANGANA. That’s sad. Felipe Anderson and Lanzini can also play left-wing.
• Ben Johnson seems to have wasted his chance of becoming a starter in pre-season.
• Haller will get quite a few games up front with Antonio or by himself. Lots of potential.

Wolves:

XI Contenders (Starts): Dendoncker (26), Podence (19) and Marçal (18)

Other Potential Starters: Vitinha

Last Season XI Nailed-on-ness: 32.63 out of 38 matches

Additional Notes:

• Should sign a Doherty replacement at RWB, pushing Traoré further up.
• Plenty of good wingers to choose from with Jota, Neto, Podence, and Traoré.
• Jonny Otto sadly out for 6-9 months. Young Ruben Vinagre gets his chance.

Credit: Big shout out to buildlineup.com for providing a great XI maker. Several team subreddits, whoscored.com ++

Credit: Fantasy Football Scout, BenchBoost, VGLive, studying set-piece goals on YouTube.

The first and most obvious place to start when finding FPL accounts to follow is FPL’s own official account. In the last few years, the account has also started posting FPL advice, along with being the first to let you know whenever a new player is added or a fixture is officially rescheduled to a different Gameweek.

Follow @OfficialFPL

Going hand in hand with FPL is the fantastic Fantasy Football Scout. It’s the FPL site everyone checks out for FPL articles, pre-season updates, and weekly picks. If you want a place to start when it comes to helpful FPL tips and dialogue, this is it.

Follow @FFScout

Staying up to date on injuries is vital when keeping up your FPL squad. Injury info used to be hard to come by and often you’ll need people who can figure out what “indefinitely” possibly means. Ben Dinnery is the man to do it. An expert on injuries and injury data who will be more helpful than you can imagine, trust me.

Follow @BenDinnery

Dinnery is also in charge of physioroom, which posts official news and statements regarding Premier League injury news.

Follow @https://twitter.com/physioroom

Do you wanna know the latest FPL status updates? Match updates, bonus points, statistics, and availability, then this account should help keep you up to date.

Follow @FPLStatus

The deadline for FPL gameweeks has been moved 30 mins earlier than usual, which means Rockstar probably won’t spoil any starting lineups before the deadline this upcoming season. Still, give this man a legacy follow for his efforts last season when plenty a FPL manager refreshed his feed 5-10 minutes before the deadline.

Follow @FPL_Rockstar

You can’t prepare for the next gameweek without looking at what happened in the last one and that’s where AbuBakar Saddiq comes in. His gameweek reviews are top-notch and will catch you up on all the finer details from each game in the previous gameweek. Keep it up BigManBakar!

Follow @BigManBakar

Yet another helpful Ben, this time by the name Crellin. When everyone was confused about where we’d get double or blank gameweeks, Ben Crellin and his spreadsheets got us all on top of things. Essential for when you need to plan how to use your chips.

Follow @BenCrellin

FPL player prices are stagnant now before the season, but once it starts on September 12th, the prices will fluctuate. FPLPriceChanges keeps you up to date on all the prices that have gone either up or down. To keep up with potential price changes in real-time, make sure to visit fplstatistics.co.uk as well and stay on top of things.

Follow @FPLPriceChanges

FPL isn’t quite the same without this man’s voice and background music. FPLTips is a helpful and user-friendly YouTuber who goes through his thought process before every gameweek. I guarantee the background music will be stuck on your mind.

Follow @_FPLtips

If you prefer his FPL tips and more in written form however, FFPundits is the way to go. As well as collaborating with FPLTips himself, FFPundits create interesting articles on all things FPL. It’s worth checking out.

Follow @FFPundits

He might not be an FPL champion, but he is the champion of FPL content. Let’s Talk FPL, or Andy as he is known among his loyal viewers, consistently puts out great FPL content with live streams and update videos each week throughout the season. That Harry Maguire goal will come soon Andy, just have some faith!

Follow @LetsTalk_FPL

—

Lastly, why not follow the fine folks who made and will continue to update this FPL guide? As well as providing thoughts and analysis for FPL throughout the season, we will be posting more FPL articles leading up to the first deadline.

Follow @Maefteda

Follow @KevNissanka

Last Update: September 12th (9:00 AM BST)
Squad Updates: Template Squad, Gambler Squad, Wildcard Squad and Zombie Team
New Players Review: Ferguson, Tete, Aina, Areola
Starting XIs: Double checked all 20 XIs and fixed any errors
Set piece takers: Added Wilson/Fraser to Newcastle
Any donations welcome <3