Fantasy Football Scout contributors Az, Sam, Neale and Tom assemble for the first time this season to pick out their favoured Fantasy Premier League (FPL) players for the upcoming Gameweek.

Our weekly Scout Squad feature always takes the form of a ‘Free Hit’-type selection which is especially appropriate for the start of the season, where the unthinkable can be thought and any combination could be the key to a flying start.

All of our panelists have put forward an 18-man long-list of Fantasy assets and will explain their notable inclusions and omissions below.

The players listed will then be narrowed down to a squad of 15 (with the starting XI not exceeding a total cost of £83.0m) for the weekly Scout Picks selection ahead of the deadline at 18:30 BST on Friday.

Each writer must meet the following requirements:

• At least one goalkeeper costing £5.0m or less
• At least one sub-£5.0m defender
• At least one midfielder listed at £6.5m or below
• At least one forward priced at £7.5m or lower
• No more than three players from the same club

SCOUT SQUAD PICKS

Most popular picks: Emiliano Martínez, Robert Sánchez, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Luke Shaw, Mohamed Salah, Bruno Fernandes, Danny Ings, Ivan Toney (four), Edouard Mendy, Lucas Digne, Michail Antonio (three)

AZ SAID…

I’ve gone for an attacking quartet at the back, with clean sheets hard to predict in the first Gameweek of the season. I’ve seen a few downgrading Trent Alexander-Arnold to Kostas Tsimikas but Andrew Robertson’s injury makes the England international even more appealing for me, with perhaps attacks being more focused down the right-hand side and the monopoly of set pieces for the Englishman.

“Template” picks of Vladimir Coufal, Lucas Digne and Luke Shaw all have potential at both ends of the pitch and I’ve added in Ben White, whose arrival at Arsenal should make the Gunners a better defensive side – had their been no budget restrictions, Kieran Tierney would have been my preference.

Aston Villa and Everton have the best fixtures to me on paper, against newly-promoted Watford and a Southampton side in transition yet again. Emiliano Martinéz and Jordan Pickford look the most likely goalkeepers to keep clean sheets in my eyes.

In midfield, the inclusion of Mohamed Salah, Bruno Fernandes and Sadio Mané is unlikely to raise eyebrows. It’s an awful first set of games for Norwich, who will likely be bottom of the league come Gameweek 5.

I really like the look of Harvey Barnes against a seemingly gung-ho Wolves side under their new manager. I think he can do real damage on the counter. Fellow mid-price pick Hakim Ziyech would also have made my picks after his fine pre-season but a shoulder injury seems to have put paid to his availability, so I return to Arsenal to select the budget-friendly Emile Smith Rowe and his growing reputation.

Up front, Danny Ings continues to catch the eye especially with the creative talent behind him that Villa have signed, while Michail Antonio remains the only fit striker at West Ham somehow and Jamie Vardy looks set to keep his place versus the aforementioned Wolves.

There’s a bit of an injury doubt around Dominic Calvert-Lewin but I’ve taken the risk that he’ll play against what looks to be a Southampton side in trouble this season. Ivan Toney also makes the cut, mostly due to a lack of decent strikers, but I still think he can get a goal against Arsenal as Brentford embark on their first outing in the Premier League.

SAM SAID…

It’s hard to choose a goalkeeper for Gameweek 1 as there are a number with excellent fixtures. On the back of some outstanding appearances in the Copa America and as a result of his incredible performances in the 2020/21 season, Emiliano Martinez looks like a good option especially given Watford returned the least attacking returns of all of the promoted sides last season.

Brighton sit top of the fixture ticker which makes Robert Sanchez a great pick for Gameweek 1 but the attacking potential that Veltman has means that I think he has huge potential over the first five Gameweeks, and especially in Gameweek 1. Whilst Veltman only registered one goal and one assist last season, he could easily have had more than that.

Liverpool’s fixture against Norwich means that, for me, Trent Alexander-Arnold is worth every penny. His summer of recovery alongside the two goals and eight assists last season coupled with the fixture means that he could return big in Gameweek 1. His corner-taking duty also adds to the appeal.

Mohamed Salah has scored in every opening-day fixture since he has been a Liverpool player. Owning him and doubling up with teammate Diogo Jota feels very sensible. At £7.5m, if Jota starts as we are anticipating, he could be the bargain of the season.

I really fancy Brentford to make an attacking start to the Premier League season, hence doubling up with Bryan Mbeumo and Ivan Toney. Mbeumo managed eight goals and 11 assists mostly from right wing last season and while Arsenal have strengthened defensively, with Ben White’s arrival and Kieran Tierney back from injury, the opening fixture is nearly always really high scoring and I suspect the Brentford duo will both return.

Danny Ings signing for Aston Villa feels like the transfer that FPL managers needed. With Emiliano Buendia, Leon Bailey and Ollie Watkins also among the ranks, the Villa attack will create plenty of opportunities for Ings and he has the quality to finish those opportunities.

NEALE SAID…

Gameweek 1 picks are always a bit of a shot in the dark, given the lack of meaningful recent form to base our selections on. Last season’s returns and pre-season displays may not be reliable barometers for the campaign ahead but it’s pretty much all we have to go off at this stage, along with the decidedly unsound ‘gut feeling’.

Safe pairs of hands are therefore advisable on the opening weekend, and I’ll waste little time in justifying the inclusion of Mohamed Salah, Bruno Fernandes, Trent Alexander-Arnold et al.

As the resident Scout Squad contrarian, it’s my job to introduce a few leftfield names that I ultimately won’t have the cojones to pick in real life but who are very much worthy of mention for those Fantasy managers who like to venture outside of the samey Scout/Twitter template.

Dwight McNeil is one such curveball name: he has really, really impressed in Burnley’s warm-up games, even if two attacking returns in 395 minutes of football does rather sum him up as a Fantasy asset. Nevertheless, Brighton’s (usually solid) right-hand defensive side could be there for the taking should we see Enock Mwepu or Pascal Gross again stationed at wing-back, while Ben White’s exit and very late pre-season returns for Lewis Dunk and Adam Webster may mean that the Albion backline takes a little while to settle.

Everton’s hammering at Manchester United rather dampened expectations for the Toffees’ Fantasy assets after a slow-and-steady start under Rafael Benitez. Still, the blue half of Merseyside could be encountering a side in even greater disarray, with Southampton set to be without the core spine of last season’s team (Jannik Vestergaard, James Ward-Prowse, Danny Ings) in Gameweek 1. Alongside Lucas Digne I’ve plumped for Demarai Gray, who has shone in his outings for Everton so far, could be on penalties and may even get a run-out as an ‘out of position’ striker depending on the fitness of Dominic Calvert-Lewin and Richarlison.

Completing my trio of mid-price midfielders who were in eye-catching nick in pre-season is Said Benrahma. The Algerian has been electric over the summer and that form will almost certainly see him start against Newcastle, even though longer-term concerns about David Moyes’ visceral mistrust of the winger still exist. The Magpies’ change to a more attacking shape in Gameweek 30 of last season has left them looking vulnerable at the back, so Michail Antonio also makes an appearance.

The dearth of proven sub-£7.0m performers in the forward pool almost makes Ivan Toney a selection by default for the token budget striker slot but I’ve a feeling that Arsenal will be bully-boy party-poopers at the Brentford Community Stadium on Friday, as they were against Fulham on the opening weekend last season. Kieran Tierney is an FPL asset in hiding and I wonder if the new right-hand side combination of Kristoffer Ajer and Sergi Canos/Mads Roerslev could take a little while to gel, as it was from that zone that Brentford conceded in their final pre-season match against Valencia.

TOM SAID…

Edouard Mendy is my first-choice goalkeeper in Gameweek 1. Thomas Tuchel’s introduction of a back three turned Chelsea into one of the best defensive sides in Europe, as the Blues produced 11 clean sheets and conceded just 13 goals during the second half of the campaign, both league-leading totals. It’s a theme I see continuing in 2021/22, which is why I’m comfortable adding a second option from Tuchel’s backline, Antonio Rüdiger, to the squad.

I’ve also included Emiliano Martínez, who could turn in one of his multi-save specials if Aston Villa’s new system leaves them too open, plus Robert Sánchez.

In defence, Trent Alexander-Arnold is unsurprisingly my top pick. The right-back, who missed England’s EURO 2020 campaign with a thigh injury, played all of the Reds’ friendly against Athletic Bilbao on Sunday and looks raring to go. He’s joined by team-mate and bargain-bin enabler Kostas Tsimikas. The Greek has just a couple of Premier League appearances under his belt, but has caught the eye throughout pre-season and now looks set to start in the absence of Andrew Robertson.

Elsewhere, Luke Shaw may get some joy from dead-ball situations against Leeds United, with Ryan Bertrand completing the picks at the back.

Further forward, I’m expecting Mohamed Salah to start strongly against a Norwich City side who have encountered plenty of pre-season issues, including a COVID-19 outbreak and the loss of key players Emiliano Buendía and Oliver Skipp. It’s just a shame I can’t include a fourth Liverpool asset in the Scout Squad, as Diogo Jota is another attacking option who could explode.

Bruno Fernandes is a simple inclusion, while Kai Havertz is a nice mid-price option to cover Chelsea’s favourable match-up against a Crystal Palace defence with much to prove. Longer-term, Havertz’s potential may be impacted by the imminent arrival of Romelu Lukaku, but that shouldn’t be an issue this weekend, and when on the pitch under Tuchel he has thrived.

Meanwhile, Ivan Toney is undeniably Brentford’s chief goal threat. He hit 33 goals en route to promotion via the play-offs last season, and confidence should be high after a solid pre-season that has included a win over La Liga outfit Valencia and a draw at Manchester United. Encouragingly, the striker has already hinted that he wants to score more than 20 goals this year. I was also impressed with Danny Ings’ run-out against Salernitana last weekend, and am excited about the prospect of him spearheading Aston Villa’s new-look attack.

I’ve also doubled-up on West Ham United, via Saïd Benrahma and Michail Antonio. The Algerian has arguably been the Hammers’ stand-out performer of the summer, and we all know what Antonio is capable of when fit. It feels like now is the time to back David Moyes’s side, too, prior to their UEFA Europa League commitments kicking in next month.

The list is completed by Riyad Mahrez, Callum Wilson and Patrick Bamford.