Fantasy Premier League has now launched into action following last weekend’s start to the 2025/26 league campaign, and several Gunners have already made a lightning impact.
Having headed our first goal of the new season against Manchester United last Sunday, Riccardo Calafiori has led the way in our squad early on with a superb 13-point haul for Gameweek 1.
Our goalscoring hero only saw his tally bettered by a Hale End graduate in Dan Ballard (17 points) - who netted on his Premier League debut for Sunderland against West Ham United - and Bournemouth’s Antoine Semenyo (15 points) after his brace at Liverpool.
David Raya also joined Riccardo on double digits inside the first Gameweek, bagging 10 points via his clean sheet and numerous key saves, as William Saliba secured a healthy nine points with 14 defensive contributions (DefCon).
ins and outs
Following their teams’ fortunes on the opening weekend of 2025/26, FPL managers are shuffling their squads ahead of GW2, when we take on Leeds United in our Emirates opener.
Leeds replicated our weekend scoreline when they overcame Everton 1-0 on their top-flight return on Monday night, with several cheaply-priced Whites defenders earning points for thousands of FPL competitors.
Referenced in our column for Gameweek 1, Manchester City summer arrival Tijjani Reijnders (£5.6m) scored on his debut against Wolves, bagging a 10-point debut haul. As a result, his price has already risen, with many managers feeling mistaken for not having included the Dutchman from the start as a crafty budget option. By the weekend, in excess of one million FPL bosses are anticipated to have captured the midfielder, with City hosting Tottenham Hotspur next up.
Fellow price risers include Semenyo (£7.1m) and Liverpool striker Hugo Ekitike (£8.6m), while Ezri Konsa of Aston Villa (£4.5m) has been transferred out by almost 300,000 managers within just 72 hours of his red card against Newcastle United. However, due to Konsa’s offence of a last-man foul, the England defender will be available again in GW3 after a one-match suspension.
Florian Wirtz of Liverpool, alongside Man City’s Josko Gvardiol, currently lead the way for FPL team sales as of Wednesday. Chris Wood of Nottingham Forest (£7.6m) has emerged as a new buy for over 350,000 teams even by Tuesday night ahead of GW2, in the wake of his goal against Brentford.
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CAPTAINCY contenders
Choosing your captain is one of the most vital aspects of FPL from week to week. While only a select plucky few skippered high-scorers Ballard or Semenyo - with some Gooners masterfully handing Calafiori or Raya the armband - many opted for the two most expensive premium picks, Erling Haaland and Mohamed Salah, who fired in 13 and eight points respectively (26 and 16 as captain).
This week, the appeal has risen for FPL managers to move towards a Gunner leading their side for double points, with Bukayo Saka (£10.0m, 16.8% selections) and Viktor Gyokeres (£9.0m, 24.9% selections) popular choices, but an intriguing approach could be to captain a defender due to both clean sheet and DefCon potential. Two of Saliba’s nine-point total in GW1 came from the newly-introduced rule where a combined total of over 10 clearances, blocks, interceptions or tackles will add a tidy bonus.
Elsewhere, Haaland has been backed again to continue his scoring run against Spurs, whom he has five goal contributions in his last six games. Salah faces a tricky trip to Newcastle on Monday, but has a monumental record against the Magpies, with 10 goals and eight assists in their last 17 meetings.
Slightly more rogue captain picks include Ollie Watkins of Aston Villa (£9.0m), who blanked in GW1 but faces his former side Brentford this weekend, off the back of six goals and an assist in his last seven returns against the Bees, while popular pre-season selections Cole Palmer and Joao Pedro, both of Chelsea, take on West Ham on Friday night.
TEMPTED FOR AN EARLY CHIP?
Having been granted two of each chip in 2025/26 - once each before GW19 and again in the second half of the season - FPL managers are now seeking out the most ideal opportunities to enhance their points tallies having often previously waited until the campaign’s closing months.
Some FPL managers are taking bold plunges this week even with Wildcard selections, which could be incredibly knee-jerk after just one frustrating Gameweek, but could yet prove a masterstroke.
A more common temptation for GW2 is the Bench Boost chip. While some FPL bosses have opted for strong starting XIs with cheaply-supplemented substitutes, others have budgeted their 15-man squad far more evenly, aiming for 15 fairly assured starting players. It is these who would be better off slamming down the Bench Boost card early, having used GW1 for clearer intel on whom each Premier League club’s starting XI is likely to feature.
Expect to see plenty of Bench Boosts across your leagues this weekend, and don’t be afraid to play it yourself if you have 15 likely starters - it could benefit your long-term plans just to get it out of the way for now.
UPCOMING FIXTURE RUNS
The Premier League - and in particular FPL - is nothing if not unpredictable from one Gameweek to the next, meaning it can be outrageously difficult to plan ahead even if a team’s set of upcoming matches looks appealing.
With the Gunners looking to maximise points from a tough start which includes Liverpool, Man City and Newcastle within our next five, some FPL bosses could overlook a few in red and white - which could make various players excellent differential options to bag mini-league points where others will miss out
Using the FPL’s fixture difficulty formula for the next six games, it is Sunderland, Aston Villa and Brentford ranked with the most ideal runs at this stage of the campaign in terms of delivering points.
The Black Cats’ win over West Ham raised some eyebrows, and there is some potentially supreme value among the side who take on Burnley next - Reinildo Mandava (£4.0m) and Simon Adingra (£5.5m) could be particularly useful in a Bench Boost. Martin Dubravka and Maxime Esteve, both £4.0m, could likewise appeal in a Burnley jersey.
With Villa and Brentford meeting, Watkins is expected to be a popular new pick and an outside bet as captain for some, while Matty Cash’s eight points led the way in claret and blue in GW1, and he is available at just £4.5m. For Brentford, Igor Thiago (£6.0m) could be an ideal budget selection up top, having confirmed his status as first-choice penalty taker by slotting in their consolation against Nottingham Forest.
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