Things are gradually settling down after Monday’s Fantasy Premier League (FPL) launch, meaning we’re able to get early ideas on who the most-picked Gameweek 1 players might be.
Of course, these numbers are currently skewed by Auto Pick. In the tense race for managers to secure a low team ID, they’ll often click that button and leave such squad untouched until nearer the time.
But some managers are already making actual drafts and devising chip strategies.
As of Wednesday evening, let’s pick out the highest player ownerships
GOALKEEPERS
Bought to replace Mark Flekken at Brentford, Caoimhin Kelleher (£4.5m) has a sizeable lead over the rest. There’s a player and staff overhaul at the Bees, but early fixtures look fairly kind.
Next up is David Raya (£5.5m) and Matz Sels (£5.5m), the joint winners of last season’s Golden Glove award. Although Jordan Pickford (£5.5m) ended both 2023/24 and 2024/25 as the top-scoring FPL goalkeeper.
DEFENDERS
Flying full-backs Jeremie Frimpong (£6.0m) and Rayan Ait-Nouri (£6.0m) have arrived at Liverpool and Manchester City respectively.
Leverkusen’s three previous Bundesliga seasons have seen Frimpong collect a freakish 28 goals and 35 assists, while Ait-Nouri ended the latest campaign as FPL’s best defender for attacking returns (11). That happened at Wolverhampton Wanderers.
Meanwhile, wing-back Aaron Wan-Bissaka (£4.5m) assisted three times in the final four matches and Gabriel (£6.0m) has been a template pick for several years.
Also in over a fifth of squads are Ezri Konsa (£4.5m) and Marc Cucurella (£6.0m).
MIDFIELDERS
Despite the hike in price, it’s hard to argue against Mohamed Salah (£14.5m). Last season, he broke the all-time FPL points record that had previously been set by himself in 2017/18.
Perhaps Cole Palmer‘s (£10.5m) popularity is a little tougher to explain. 2023/24’s best player for points took a huge nosedive since late January – one goal and three assists in 16 league matches.
Either alongside or as a cheaper alternative to teammate Salah, there’s plenty of excitement over British record signing Florian Wirtz (£8.5m). We’ve also seen Mohammed Kudus (£6.5m) make the rare move from West Ham United to Tottenham Hotspur.
Other new signings with a high percentage include Bryan Mbeumo (£8.0m), Matheus Cunha (£8.0m), Rayan Cherki (£6.5m) and Anthony Elanga (£7.0m).
FORWARDS
Auto Pick usually favours a bunch of £6.0m to £7.5m outfielders, which might explain João Pedro‘s (£7.5m) eye-watering ownership. He joins Chelsea as a rotation risk, although he did score three times in two recent matches on American soil.
Elsewhere, Alexander Isak (£10.5m) was last season’s number one forward thanks to 23 goals and 211 points.
And Jarrod Bowen (£8.0m) is the only player to switch from midfielder to forward – not that it’s putting managers off. He has a nice-looking trip to Sunderland in Gameweek 1.
As for Erling Haaland (£14.0m), he’s in roughly one-sixth of squads, as it’s difficult to own both him and Salah without making sacrifices in other areas.
Dominic Solanke (£7.5m) has a new manager, Beto (£5.5m) has a new stadium and Chris Wood (£7.5m) was arguably 2024/25’s biggest FPL bargain. He netted 20 times for Nottingham Forest.
