There is one obvious omission from my Gameweek 1 Fantasy Premier League squad: Erling Haaland.
This is not because I think Haaland is a bad pick. He remains one of the highest-ceiling players in FPL and could easily punish anyone who goes without him if Manchester City start the season quickly.
But Gameweek 1 is not just about picking the best individual players. It is about building the best squad for the opening fixtures, the captaincy options available and the decisions you are likely to make in the weeks ahead.
My current draft is built around flexibility. Rather than committing 15.5m to Haaland from the start, I am spreading the money across midfield, taking a few calculated differentials and backing Bruno Fernandes as captain for the first two Gameweeks.
The plan is not necessarily to avoid Haaland all season.
It is simply to make him wait.
Goalkeepers : Building Towards Gameweek 2:
The goalkeeper pairing is based on fixtures, rotation and an eye on the Bench Boost.
Senne Lammens is tempting, but I prefer Robin Roefs and Antonín Kinský. The pair rotate well into the first half of the season and give me two goalkeepers I can start without spending premium money at the position. More importantly, they fit the Gameweek 2 plan.
I am seriously considering using Bench Boost early in Gameweek 2, and this goalkeeper combination gives me a better chance of fielding 15 good fixture assets.
The Tottenham double-up is also intentional. From Gameweek 32 onwards last season, Spurs were the league’s best side for expected goals conceded, and the club have strengthened defensively over the summer.
There is always danger in doubling up on one defence, especially at the start of a new campaign. But the upside is clear if those strong defensive numbers turn into clean sheets.
Defence : Short-Term Upside:
My defence is not built around five season-long holds. It is built around opening fixtures, DEFCON threat and players who can be moved on quickly if team news or early performances go against them.
Harry Maguire is the clearest example. Manchester United have an appealing opening run, including two matches against newly promoted teams, and Maguire is a major set-piece threat at 5.0m. Hull and Ipswich conceded 16 and 12 non-penalty set-piece goals respectively last season. With Casemiro gone, Maguire could become even more important as an aerial target. He showed that in pre-season against AC Milan, scoring from a Bruno Fernandes corner. He is not necessarily a long-term pick. He is a short term fixture play with the potential to deliver an early goal.
Jan Paul van Hecke is another Tottenham defensive pick, although he is arguably the most uncertain place in the squad. Final team news could easily move me towards Kristoffer Ajer, Dan Ballard or Luka Vuskovic instead. That is exactly why I am not locking the team in too early.
Riccardo Calafiori gives me Arsenal defensive coverage while I wait to see whether Ezri Konsa becomes a stronger option. Arsenal should offer clean-sheet potential, and Calafiori allows me to access it without overspending.
Marco Palestra is the upside swing. At 5.5m, he could become much more valuable than a standard defender in that price range if his attacking involvement is as strong as expected. If the early numbers are promising, he could become an easy hold.
Milan Van Ewijk is primarily there for Gameweek 2. Hull is a fixture I want to target for the Bench Boost, and having a playable 4.0m defender on the bench makes the chip much more attractive.
Midfield : Bruno Leads The Way:
The money saved by avoiding Haaland has mostly been invested in midfield.
Fernandes is the foundation of this team. He is my planned captain for Gameweeks 1 and 2, and he offers several routes to returns: goals, assists, penalties, bonus points and constant involvement in Manchester United’s attacking play.
That captaincy is the biggest reason I am comfortable going without Haaland. If Haaland were the obvious standout captain in Gameweek 1, I would be much less willing to take the risk. But Fernandes provides a genuine alternative, making the opportunity cost of leaving out Haaland more manageable.
Bryan Mbeumo is my preferred second Manchester United attacker. There are other options around that attack, including Matheus Cunha and Marcus Rashford, but Mbeumo is the one I favour for his current trajectory and potential importance to United.
Antoine Semenyo is another player I am keen to start with. Without Haaland, he looks like the most secure Manchester City attacking pick in my squad. Guaranteed minutes and explosive potential are exactly what I want from an 8.5m midfielder.
Then there is Phil Foden. At 7.0m, Foden is one of the biggest upside plays in the draft. The concern is clear: minutes. But that uncertainty also explains his lower ownership. If he starts regularly and looks close to his best, he could be one of the best-value midfielders in the game. If he does not start, he is an easy transfer out.
Mamadou Sangaré of Brentford completes the midfield. He is not the most glamorous pick, but he could become an excellent value option if his DEFCON potential translates into the premier league. He also has enough attacking potential to be more than a simple enabler.
The midfield gives me several different routes to upside: Fernandes’ reliability, Mbeumo’s form, Semenyo’s minutes, Foden’s ceiling and Sangaré’s value.
Attack: Ownership, value and a differential
Each forward serves a different purpose. João Pedro is the selection where I am happy to follow the crowd. He is likely to be popular, but I am not interested in avoiding a good pick simply to be different. He has been on fire in pre-season and I expect a standout season from the Chelsea attacker.
Igor Thiago is a different kind of pick. Following a breakout season, he looks like a genuine goalscoring threat with strong early fixtures, 90 minute security and penalty responsibility. At 8.0m, that is a powerful combination. He is not just a budget forward. He is a proper number nine who can score heavily if the chances arrive, offering a useful balance between safety and upside.
Alexander Isak is the major differential. It is difficult to fit Isak into a squad that also includes Haaland and Fernandes, which makes him a natural way to move away from the most common Gameweek 1 structure. If he begins the season strongly, he has the potential to become one of the game’s top-scoring forwards.
That comes with risk. There are several attractive forward options, and choosing Isak means committing meaningful budget to a player many managers will not own.
But if he explodes early, I have him before the ownership rises. If he does not, I have a straightforward route to restructure.
Why no Haaland?
I do not think Haaland will fail.
I just do not think I need him immediately.
Manchester City carry some uncertainty, while Fernandes offers a captaincy route I am happy to trust through the first two Gameweeks. That gives me the chance to attack the opening fixtures in a different way from the majority of the game.
Removing Haaland also gives me more strength across the squad. Instead of concentrating 15.5m in one forward, I can own Mbeumo, Semenyo, Foden and Igor Thiago – four players with genuine upside at different price points.
Of course, there is an ownership risk. If Haaland scores a Gameweek 1 hat-trick, my rank will take a hit. That is the price of going against a popular premium.
But the upside also matters. If Haaland blanks, the advantage is immediate. And if he hauls, I am not trapped without a plan.
The Chip Plan
This is an aggressive early-season strategy, and it may change once final team news arrives. But the intended route is clear.
Gameweek 2: Bench Boost
The squad has been designed with Gameweek 2 in mind. Roefs and Kinský rotate well, Van Ewijk has a target fixture and the squad contains enough playable options to make Bench Boost a genuine 15-player chip.
Gameweek 3: Free Hit
The Haaland plan comes together in Gameweek 3.
The current intention is to Free Hit and bring Haaland back for Manchester City’s fixture against Coventry. This means I do not need to permanently dismantle the squad after one Gameweek just to own him for a fixture I want to attack.
In simple terms: no Haaland for Gameweeks 1 and 2, Bench Boost in Gameweek 2, then Free Hit him in for Gameweek 3.
Wildcard: Gameweek 5 or 7
The Wildcard remains flexible.
Gameweek 5 is the aggressive option if early results offer enough information to justify a major reshuffle. Gameweek 7 is the patient route, allowing more time to assess rotations, new signings and which Gameweek 1 picks deserve to stay.
The important thing is not forcing a Wildcard because the original plan says so. The opening weeks will tell me what this squad needs next.
Final thoughts:
This is not a team trying to predict the final best FPL squad for the season. It is a team built around options.
I have Fernandes as a captaincy alternative. I have a deep midfield with multiple price points. I have short-term defensive picks, Tottenham coverage, Foden as a high-upside differential and Isak as a potential early-season separator. Most importantly, I have a route back to Haaland without destroying the structure.
Going without him is a risk. But Gameweek 1 should be about balancing risk with opportunity – not simply building the safest possible team.
For now, I am backing Fernandes, spreading the budget, attacking Gameweek 2 and making Haaland wait.
