Joao Pedro of Chelsea celebrates scoring his team’s third goal during the Premier League 2026/27 match between Chelsea FC and Brighton & Hove Albion at Stamford Bridge on August 30, 2026 in London, England
Joao Pedro during Chelsea's clash against Brighton(Image: Photo by Darren Walsh/Chelsea FC via Getty Images)
View Image
Fantasy Premier League managers across the world are frantically trying to sort out their teams ahead of the Gameweek 5 deadline at 6:30pm (UK time) on Friday. The deadline comes just 90 minutes before Brentford vs Chelsea kicks off at the Gtech Community Stadium.
Ahead of the match, FPL players are trying to decide what to do with Joao Pedro. The striker withdrew from the Brazil squad earlier this week with what was described as an injury by the national team. However, Xabi Alonso said on Thursday it was a "possibility" he would feature at against Brentford this evening.
The 24-year-old has been in sensational form for the Blues this season and already has three goals and three assists in four Premier League games. Currently priced at £7.8million in Fantasy Premier League, the Brazilian has 33 points in total so far, which is the joint most among the strikers along with Erling Haaland (£15.6million).
FOLLOW OUR CHELSEA FB PAGE! Latest Blues news, analysis and much more via our dedicated Facebook page
Joao Pedro is currently in 72 per cent of teams, so is highly owned. His 8.2 points per match is best among the strikers in the game and in Gameweek 4 he scored 12 points, grabbing himself a goal and assist against Hull.
What has Xabi Alonso said?
So, is Joao Pedro fit and what should FPL managers do? Well, let's take a look at what Alonso said at his pre-match press conference. The Spaniard was rather coy when giving injury updates for his Chelsea squad, despite reporters specifically asking about Joao Pedro a number of times.
"In terms of injuries and in terms of the squad, we are having the last training session tomorrow so no one is ruled out for us for Friday so I prefer to be cautious and we will wait until tomorrow to take the final decision on every player.," Alonso first said when asked about the Brazilian. The former Real Madrid boss was then asked if he can specify the injury, to which he replied: "No."
When asked if Joao Pedro could feature against Brentford, Alonso said: "It is a possibility." Then, asked about if the striker was disappointed he has missed out on another Brazil squad after he did not go to the World Cup, Alonso said: "He has moved on from the summer, from the World Cup. He has shown this desire, this determination to have a great season so far. The summer is far away now."
The last question about Joao Pedro was whether the striker was training on Thursday. Alonso said: "We will see tomorrow if he is ready to play and we will take a decision."
Chelsea have since released a batch of training images and football.london could not see Joao Pedro in the images. This does not mean he did not train, but at the moment, given that and Alonso's comments, it's unlikely he will be involved against Brentford. In FPL, he is yellow flagged with the game giving him a 75 per cent chance of playing against Brentford due to an 'unspecified injury'.
Potential replacements
With Joao Pedro yellow flagged and potentially out of the game against Brentford, many managers will be looking to replace the Chelsea man in their teams. But who should be considered?
Interestingly, Yoane Wissa (£6.2million) is the most transferred in striker in the game, with more than 200,000 managers bringing in the Newcastle man ahead of their home clash against Hull. Alexander Isak (£9.1million) is a little bit more expensive but could be a shout ahead of Bournemouth vs Liverpool, while Thierno Barry (£5.6million) and Dominic Calvert-Lewin (£6million) are options as their teams face Ipswich and Crystal Palace, respectively, at home.
Another option could be Gonzalo Garcia (£6million) of Fulham who face a Manchester United team who just conceded three goals at home against Brighton, while Igor Thiago (£7.8million) is yet to get going at Brentford this season but could get managers off to a good start in the Friday night clash against Chelsea.