RADIO
Welcome to Gameweek 26 FPL Staff Roundtable, RotoBallers! Following back-to-back double gameweeks, we're back to some semblance of normality with just the 10 games this week. However, it is followed by another full set of fixtures in midweek.
The weekend's action is headlined by table-topper Liverpool's trip to the Etihad to face a Manchester City side looking to build on last weekend's big win. Sunday also sees two Champions League hopefuls clash with Nottingham Forest visiting Newcastle United, both coming off disappointing losses.
The Gameweek 26 deadline for the 2024-25 Fantasy Premier League season is Friday, February 21, at 1:30 p.m. EST, when Leicester City hosts Brentford. Also, check out the rest of our excellent soccer coverage as the squad gets you all set for every EPL and UCL slate with our DFS lineup picks and betting picks.
Fantasy Premier League Staff Roundtable - Gameweek 26 Preview
The Staff Roundtable is an attempt to get you inside the minds of our FPL writers. Our top soccer writers will answer questions each gameweek to give you an idea of how they view the games. So, without further ado, let’s kick off Gameweek 26!
Green Light for the Reds?
Following back-to-back double gameweeks, Liverpool has two difficult fixtures soon followed by a blank. With most FPL teams rostering three Liverpool players, what are your plans for Reds assets in the coming weeks?
Jamie Steed: I'm holding. There's certainly no reason to bail on Mo Salah (£13.7m) during his record-breaking season. Ideally, by the time its blank gameweek rolls around, I'll have just two Liverpool players and can easily bench them. That still allows a bit of flexibility in my team selection.
The FPL Manual (Wale): The best course of action for FPL managers with three Liverpool assets would be to hold on until blank Gameweek 29. After which it’s best to activate the Free Hit chip.
However, if you are in my shoes and don’t have a free hit chip available, then it’s advisable to roll your free transfers from this weekend. That allows you room to replace your Liverpool boys easily.
Cold Palmer
Cole Palmer (£11.2m) has now blanked in three of his last four games. With Chelsea also struggling in attack right now, are you looking at moving on from the England international?
Gone cold... 🧊
Cole Palmer has just one attacking return in his last four matches 📉#FPL #BHACHE pic.twitter.com/4wagx1bTlh
— Fantasy Premier League (@OfficialFPL) February 14, 2025
Jamie: If there weren't so many outstanding alternatives, I'd say Palmer is a 100 percent hold. However, I'm concerned that his supporting cast is holding him back and I'm not sure that changes anytime soon. Chelsea lacks a true striker with Nicolas Jackson (£7.7m) out for a few weeks.
If there's another high-priced player you're looking at bringing in and need to find some savings somewhere, Palmer would be the one expensive star I'd consider moving on from.
Wale: It seems like a waste of resources when our favorite Chelsea FPL asset, "Ice Cold" Palmer, stays quiet while other cheaper assets are delivering huge FPL points weekly. Regardless, I’m a bit unmoved to ship out the Englishman.
That's thanks to Chelsea’s next three fixtures against Aston Villa, Southampton, and Leicester City. There is a huge prospect of Cole Palmer banging in goals soon, and I won't like to pass up that chance and consider him a HOLD for the next three gameweeks.
Shopping for a Bargain
Amad Diallo (£5.5m) is set to miss a few weeks through injury. Is there another midfielder priced at £5.5m or less you want to directly replace the Manchester United player with?
ℹ️ We can confirm that Amad has sustained an ankle injury in training that is expected to keep him out for a number of weeks.
Setbacks are set-ups for comebacks, @AmadDiallo_19 — we know you’ve got this 💪❤️#MUFC
— Manchester United (@ManUtd) February 16, 2025
Wale: Bournemouth’s Dango Ouattara (£5.1m) added to his goal tally last time against Southampton and has now contributed five attacking returns in his last four outings. He has benefited largely from a position switch as he plays up front for the Cherries.
For FPL managers searching for a Diallo replacement, I believe Ouattara to be an ideal cheap asset you can rely on and a solid differential pick who is in form for the club.
Jamie: I agree with Wale and would look to bring in Dango Ouattara. Favorable fixtures and an advanced role have Ouattara as a real potential breakout star in the coming weeks. He's already bagged five goal involvements in his last four games.
I will add a caveat that I'd consider all my options first. If there's someone else you need to replace (like Kai Havertz £7.8m), bringing in a cheaper forward and replacing Diallo with a more expensive midfielder is something I'd be looking at closely.
Heroes or Villains?
Aston Villa’s form has been poor. With a difficult schedule that also includes a blank gameweek, are there any Villa players you want to continue rostering over the remainder of the season?
Jamie: With Jhon Duran out of the picture, Ollie Watkins (£8.9m) is the main man for Villa. While he's not having as prolific a season as last year, Watkins is still the fifth-highest points-scoring forward in FPL. He's been in decent form and will continue to chip in with goals over the remainder of the season.
Wale: No, I'm currently not interested in Aston Villa assets. I did highlight last gameweek how the appeal for players like Morgan Rogers (£5.7m) seemed unattractive due to these aforementioned factors. And a possible two-match ban as he is on the suspension watch list.
It's an early call to make, but who knows? Anything can happen in the coming weeks. Let’s see if Unai Emery’s boys pick up form soon and change the narrative.
Cherry Picking
Meanwhile, Bournemouth’s form has been excellent and it finds itself in the top five. A fantasy-friendly set of fixtures awaits it, so how many Cherries are you rolling with?
Returns for five of Bournemouth's midfielders in Gameweek 25 🍒
Are you looking to bring in any of these assets?#FPL pic.twitter.com/fXVUIhdodW
— Fantasy Premier League (@OfficialFPL) February 17, 2025
Jamie: I'd want a pair of Bournemouth players. And given its fixtures, I'd try to capitalize at both ends of the pitch. We've already covered Dango Ouattara as the attacking Cherry I'd want. At the other end, I'm going with Milos Kerkez (£5.0m) given he's already provided five attacking returns.
Wale: I'd love to have at least two Bournemouth assets on my fantasy team for the upcoming run of fixtures. Justin Kluivert (£6.0m) and Milos Kerkez are my top two favorites to target. If I were to add a third pick, it would be between Antoine Semenyo (£5.7m) and Dango Ouattara as the final Cherry on the cake.
Who is Keeping a Clean Sheet in Gameweek 26?
Wale: After keeping its ninth clean sheet of the season, I’ll be backing Arsenal this week to do the same against West Ham United. The Gunners have what it takes to shut out the Hammers. Graham Potter’s side has struggled to score in recent games, scoring two goals in their previous four outings.
This should be a good week for clean-sheet points for FPL managers who own Arsenal defensive assets.
Jamie: I also like the Gunners' chances of keeping a clean sheet. They'll need to rack up plenty of them in the coming weeks if they are to maintain pressure on Liverpool. But I'm also throwing out Brighton to get a clean sheet on the road at Southampton.
The Seagulls were walloped 7-0 by Forest in their last away game. But they bounced back with a clean sheet against Chelsea last week, not allowing a shot on target. Southampton's blanked in five of its 12 home games this season, three of which have come in its last five home games.
What Defensive Player is Providing Attacking Returns?
Jamie: Josko Gvardiol (£5.9m) will likely face off against Trent Alexander-Arnold (£7.4m). The Liverpool man's defending has been under the spotlight for much of the season and Gvardiol will fancy his chances of beating the England right-back in the air (or on the ground).
I can see a situation where the City full-back beats Alexander-Arnold to a cross or loose ball and fires in his sixth league goal of the season.
Wale: Doubling down on Arsenal assets this week and selecting Gabriel Magalhaes (£6.1m) to get an attacking return. It’s been a while since the Corner Kings grabbed a goal from set pieces. I anticipate Gabriel will be on the end of a cross in the opposition box, netting his fourth Premier League goal of the season.
🥁 Introducing our Player of the Month for January...
🥇 Gabriel
— Arsenal (@Arsenal) February 7, 2025
Best Midfielder or Forward Who Isn't Rostered
Who is rostered in 10 percent of teams or less who can grab those FPL points?
Jamie: Kaoru Mitoma (£6.3m). Remember him? The Brighton midfielder has been transferred out of over two million FPL teams since the season began and is now on just 6.5 percent of FPL rosters. He's finding his form again with three goals and an assist in his last five EPL games.
Mitoma's last five matches:
3 goals
1 assist
5 bonus pointsAre you considering him for your #FPL team?
— Fantasy Premier League (@OfficialFPL) February 18, 2025
I've already mentioned that I expect Brighton to keep a clean sheet at Southampton and the Saints' defensive record at home is worse than their attacking numbers. They've conceded 33 goals in 12 home games, shipping in 25 goals in their last seven games at home.
Wale: Last week, we saw Man City’s new January signing, Omar Marmoush (£7.1m), net a hat trick against Newcastle. This week, I have my eyes on another January addition but representing Spurs and that player is Mathys Tel (£6.0m). The 19-year-old Frenchman amassed a total of 0.73 xGI (expected goal involvement) against Man United in Gameweek 25.
He produced seven total shot attempts and had nine touches in the opposition box. With Spurs slowing in picking up form, a 0.1 percent ownership to his name, and set to take on Ipswich next, Tel has the prospect to be the ultimate differential to have in our fantasy team this weekend.
Who is a Player You Want But Can’t Get for Gameweek 26 in FPL?
Jamie: I don't like knee-jerk transfers so I resisted bringing in Justin Kluivert following his hat trick at Newcastle. He's bagged three goal involvements in the three games since and now faces a Wolves side with the second-worst defensive record in away games.
I feel like a Bournemouth player is going to fill up the stats column this week, and while I'd love it to be Ouattara, I'm worried Kluivert will burn me instead.
Wale: Presently, I would love to replace Ibrahima Konate (£5.2m) with Arsenal’s Gabriel (£6.3m) but don’t have enough funds in the bank to make this move. This would likely require a points hit and I’m not sure if I can afford to take more hits at this junction of the season.
Let’s see how things turn out before the Gameweek 26 deadline.
Who’s Getting the Captain’s Armband?
Wale: Rinse and repeat! Mohamed Salah gets the armband this weekend. The Egyptian King has scored 12 goals in 22 outings against Manchester City and will likely add to his goal record in the heated rivalry clash against the Cityzens.
Double-figure hauls in away matches this season 👇👑
11 - Salah
10
9
8
7
6
5
4
3 - Palmer, Jackson, Isak, and Gibbs-White#FPL pic.twitter.com/O2S9L2s5kl— Fantasy Premier League (@OfficialFPL) February 19, 2025
Jamie: I'm getting bored of it but Salah is my pick. Some might pivot away from him given Liverpool travels to The Etihad this weekend. But Salah has seven goals and four assists in his last 10 EPL starts against Man City and hasn't blanked in any of the last eight.
What’s Your Bold Prediction for Gameweek 26?
Jamie: Ethan Nwaneri (£4.5m) bags a goal involvement and maximum bonus points as he inspires Arsenal to another hard-fought win. And Beto (£4.9m) continues his impressive recent form with a match-winner for Everton that heaps more pressure on Ruben Amorim and Manchester United.
Three consecutive starts, four goals ⚽️⚽️⚽️⚽️
Beto has found his scoring touch for an in-form Everton 🔵#FPL pic.twitter.com/ue3Iho3q0T
— Fantasy Premier League (@OfficialFPL) February 18, 2025
Wale: Bournemouth secures a 3-0 victory over Wolves, while the Manchester City vs. Liverpool game ends in a 2-2 draw. Regarding FPL returns, Brentford’s Bryan Mbeumo (£7.9m) delivers a double-digit haul against Leicester while Ollie Watkins gets an attacking return against Chelsea.
Stick around for more 2024-25 Fantasy Premier League content coming soon. Hit us up on X @RotoBaller. We would love to hear your feedback and ideas!
