We have put together an early draft of our Scout Picks for Gameweek 9 of Fantasy Premier League (FPL).
As ever, we will finalise our selection much closer to Friday’s deadline.
Naturally, plenty can change between now and then.
The upcoming Scout Squad nominations will help shape our final Scout Picks. The midweek European ties and the pre-match press conferences will also influence our thinking.
But this ‘bus team’, at the very least, offers an insight into the players and teams who will be under consideration.
ABOUT THE SCOUT PICKS ‘BUS TEAM’
There are, as ever, certain restrictions for our squad:
- An £83.0m budget for our starting XI
- An overall squad limit of £100.0m
- No more than three players per team
GAMEWEEK 9 FIXTURES
Above: The Gameweek 9 fixtures sorted by difficulty on our Season Ticker.
THE LIKELY LADS
Erling Haaland (£14.6m) currently sits atop the FPL points table after the opening nine Gameweeks. Having scored 11 times already, he has nearly doubled the goal output of any other player in the 2025/26 season so far.
Manchester City’s opponents, Aston Villa, are on an upward trajectory, having won five in a row in all competitions, but there won’t be any reservations about including Haaland in the Scout Picks.
An Arsenal defender seems likely, too.
Crystal Palace will offer a threat (they scored twice in this fixture last season), but Mikel Arteta’s side have conceded just three goals and five big chances in eight league matches this season. Therefore, an Arsenal defensive asset will once again be central to this week’s selection.
For now, we’ve settled on Gabriel Magalhaes (£6.3m), but a midweek breather for Jurrien Timber (£5.9m) and/or Riccardo Calafiori (£5.8m) would undoubtedly enhance their credentials.
Above: Teams sorted by big chances conceded (BC) in 2025/26
Bruno Fernandes (£8.9m) produced his first assist of the season against Liverpool on Sunday, and the penalty-taking playmaker will surely be in the Scout Picks running alongside Bryan Mbeumo (£8.0m) this week. Manchester United face Brighton and Hove Albion, who are one of just three teams yet to keep a clean sheet.
Elsewhere, Nottingham Forest are bottom for big chances conceded so far, so Antoine Semenyo (£8.0m) will fancy his chances. Additionally, defensive contribution (DefCon) magnet Marcos Senesi (£5.0m) is also included in the ‘bus team’. Will a new Forest manager, Sean Dyche perhaps, bring the bounce with them, however?
IN CONTENTION
Chelsea assets ought to be in the conversation this week, but they do face an opponent who may cause them a problem or two. Sunderland share the same record as Enzo Maresca’s team after the first eight matches, having won four, drawn two and lost two. They’ve also kept four clean sheets.
That said, with Malo Gusto (£4.9m) suspended, Reece James (£5.4m) is a possible candidate. He’s FPL’s joint-leading defender for goals and assists combined this season, and with Sunderland 18th for key passes conceded from their left flank, he will be pushing hard for inclusion.
Above: FPL’s leading defenders for attacking returns in 2025/26
Enzo Fernandez (£6.7m), provided he is fit, and Joao Pedro (£7.5m) are also in the mix; however, the Brazilian’s lack of goal threat, with only three shots in his last five matches, raises concerns. He should at least start, as he’ll miss Wednesday’s European tie against Ajax due to suspension.
Elsewhere, representation from Newcastle United seems likely. With doubts around Joachim Andersen’s (£4.5m) fitness, this could be a good time for Nick Woltemade (£7.4m) to face Fulham. The German has scored in four of his five Premier League starts since his move from VfB Stuttgart, and notably, no Newcastle player has had more shots in the box in that timeframe.
Additionally, Nick Pope (£5.2m), Dan Burn (£5.1m) and Kieran Trippier (£5.0m) are of interest at the back.
In midfield, Bukayo Saka (£10.0m) and Cody Gakpo (£7.4m) have both got strong cases this week. Saka was Arsenal’s most dangerous attacker at Craven Cottage on Saturday and now has 15 points in his last two matches, while Gakpo has five attacking returns in eight appearances this season. He’s also Liverpool’s leader for both shots and chances created in 2025/26.
At this early stage, it certainly feels like these two are ahead of others at Arsenal and Liverpool, such as Eberechi Eze (£7.6m), Viktor Gyokeres (£9.0m), Mohamed Salah (£14.4m), Alexander Isak (£10.6m) and Hugo Ekitike (£8.7m).
Above: No FPL midfielder has registered more shots than Cody Gakpo in 2025/26
El Hadji Malick Diouf (£4.4m) and Jarrod Bowen (£7.8m) are on the radar against a Leeds United outfit that have scored just four goals on home turf so far. A poor West Ham United performance against Brentford on Monday could potentially boost the appeal of Leeds’ budget-friendly assets, however.
Meanwhile, Wolverhampton Wanderers v Burnley is a tricky one to call. Vitor Pereira’s side are in really poor form, and given Jorgen Strand Larsen’s (£6.4m) fitness issues, which you can read more about here, it’s maybe likelier that a Clarets defender or Jaidon Anthony (£5.7m) make the Scout Picks cut.
THE LONGER SHOTS
There probably won’t be too many takers in Virgil van Dijk (£6.0m), given Liverpool’s ropey recent form, but the Dutchman has at least produced DefCon points in three of his last four appearances.
In-form striker Jean-Philippe Mateta (£7.6m) could feature, and it’ll be interesting to see how the Scout Squad panel view him, but this fixture at Arsenal is about as tough as it gets.
Danny Welbeck (£6.3m), Iliman Ndiaye (£6.5m), Jack Grealish (£6.9m) and Mohammed Kudus (£6.8m) all have their merits, without being stand-out Scout Picks candidates.
Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester United defenders carry some potential, but they probably won’t dislodge the options currently selected in our ‘bus team’.
GAMEWEEK 9 EARLY SCOUT PICKS
