With some Fantasy Premier League (FPL) managers looking to use the Bench Boost in Gameweek 36, here we pick out some of the best cheap options available.

Many of those ‘boosting’ will already have their budget players in place, of course. A majority would have set their teams up accordingly on a Gameweek 35 Wildcard.

But for those managers needing to top up their squad, say, because of an unexpected injury, here are a few suggestions.

We’ve not included Crystal Palace players in this piece, as we’ve covered their best options elsewhere.

GOALKEEPERS + DEFENDERS (UP TO £4.5m)

Bart Verbruggen (£4.5m)/Ferdi Kadioglu (£4.4m) – Wolverhampton Wanderers (h)

Outside of the ‘doublers’, our Rate My Team (RMT) tool fancies Brighton and Hove Albion’s backline as the highest-scoring goalkeepers and defenders for Gameweek 36.

But let’s be honest, we don’t need an algorithm to tell us that. To misquote Sir Alex Ferguson: “Lads, it’s Wolverhampton Wanderers.”

Wolves are the division’s lowest scorers (25), by quite some distance. Their one goal in the last four Gameweeks, indeed, only came once Gameweek 35 opponents Sunderland went down to 10 men.

As for the Seagulls, only the top two have shipped fewer goals than them (42). They’ve got better defensively as the season went on, too, with a joint-league-best four clean sheets in the last nine Gameweeks.

Jan Paul van Hecke (£4.6m) falls just outside our self-imposed price cap, so we’ll focus on two of his teammates.

We might be looking at a mere six points with Bart Verbruggen (£4.5m), given the lack of attacking threat posed by Wolves.

The odds would be on a similar return for Ferdi Kadioglu (£4.4m). He is no Marcos Alonso, with just three attacking returns all season. He’s also met the DefCon threshold just twice. But he does at least rank among the leading defenders for shots in the last six Gameweeks (below), one of which found the back of the net against Chelsea:

As much as anything else, it’s the security of starts. Verbruggen is ever-present, while Kadioglu is on an unbroken 31-match starting run in the league.

Antonin Kinsky (£3.9m)/Kevin Danso (£4.2m) – Leeds United (h)

Roberto De Zerbi is getting a tune out of his Tottenham Hotspur squad. Spurs have banked seven points from the last three games, producing positive performances against Brighton and Aston Villa in particular. Villa didn’t have a single shot in the first 60 minutes on Sunday.

Next up is Leeds United. The Whites are also in form, of course, on a six-match unbeaten run. But the odds are that Daniel Farke’s side will be mathematically safe, or as good as, come Monday’s game. Should Arsenal beat West Ham United on Sunday, Premier League safety is assured for Leeds. Even a point for the Gunners all but ensures that, with Leeds’ goal difference so superior to the Hammers. Will that diminish Leeds’ focus, or perhaps allow them to play with the shackles off? You could make a case for either argument.

Either way, Spurs have the league’s lowest expected goals conceded (xGC) tally (3.17) since De Zerbi took charge.

Kevin Danso (£4.2m) also offers a decent chance at DefCon points, with his contributions-per-90-minutes average (below) among the league’s best. He’s delivered on that front in five of his last six starts.

Antonin Kinsky‘s (£3.9m) inclusion is obviously contingent on Guglielmo Vicario (£4.7m) being ruled out again in Thursday’s presser. Regardless, Kinsky has been excellent in the last month, resurrecting his Spurs career from the nadir of Madrid.

Michael Keane (£4.5m) – Crystal Palace (a)

Will Crystal Palace still have their minds on the UEFA Conference League when they entertain Everton on Sunday? While the ‘quantity over quality’ mentality leads many of us to Palace defenders, could the Toffees instead be the ones emerging with a clean sheet from Selhurst Park?

Palace, indeed, have failed to find the net in three of their last five Premier League matches.

Even if the shut-out falls, Michael Keane (£4.5m) can compensate with defensive contribution points and perhaps even a goal.

Averaging a very healthy 10.65 defensive contributions per 90 minutes, Keane is outdoing centre-back partner James Tarkowski (£5.7m) in 2025/26.

While a goal is less likely to arrive, he does have three – a good total for a centre-half – to his name already.

Keane also posed a threat against Palace in the reverse fixture:

Above: The matches in which Michael Keane has had the most shots this season

Villa defenders – Burnley (a)

This is a tricky one.

Aston Villa, along with Brighton, probably have the best chance of a clean sheet this weekend.

But what sort of side will Unai Emery send out?

He deployed the reserves last Sunday, but that decision backfired with a 1-2 reverse at home to Spurs. With the chasing pack closing in on Villa in fifth, can Emery afford any more slip-ups?

Either way, it’s worth waiting till after Thursday’s Europa League clash with Forest is out of the way to see if there are any injuries picked up or line-up clues offered.

Left-back and left-sided centre-half have been two of the more changeable positions in Villa’s XI, so perhaps boring old Ezri Konsa (£4.4m) is the safest route. Even he got benched last weekend, but you’d imagine Emery goes back to something approaching first choice with a free midweek to follow next week.

Still, with DefCon points few and far between, Villa defenders are lower down the priority list than they ought to be this weekend.

Above: Teams whose players have returned the fewest DefCon points this season

MIDFIELDERS (UP TO £5.5m)

Jack Hinshelwood (£5.1m) – Wolverhampton Wanderers (h)

Back-to-back goals for Jack Hinshelwood (£5.1m) haven’t come out of nowhere.

His two strikes have been backed up by some strong underlying numbers. In fact, over the last six Gameweeks, no midfielder can better Hinshelwood’s totals of six big chances, 3.08 expected goals (xG) and 4.42 expected goal involvements (xGI):

Fabian Hurzeler’s decision to move him into a more advanced number 10 role in March has elevated his goal threat, with the rewards belatedly coming in his last two outings.

Saturday’s opponents Wolves have kept just one clean sheet on the road all season. They’ve also conceded nine goals in their last three away outings.

Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall (£5.2m)/James Garner (£5.2m) – Crystal Palace (a)

Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall (£5.2m) averages an attacking return roughly once every other game this season, with eight goals and six assists arriving from 27 starts.

No surprise, then, that he tops the pile for points per start among his similarly priced peers:

Above: The leading £5.5m-and-under midfielders for points per start (minimum of 10 starts)

James Garner (£5.2m) hasn’t half done well, too. While not offering the same goal threat as his teammate, he has delivered more DefCon points (38) than any other midfielder in this price pool.

A share of corners has helped him to seven assists, as well.

As with Keane above, can Everton catch Palace cold after Thursday’s European exertions?

“Today the tank was empty. We could see it. The players tried and the second half was much better, it was a game on the same level. First half it was too much. We couldn’t get the turnaround from Thursday evening. The players tried, but I could see it at set plays and the easy mistakes we made. It’s not to blame anyone. It was just really overwhelming for us, this experience and the win against Shakhtar. Overall, Bournemouth were much the better team.” – Oliver Glasner, speaking after the 3-0 loss to Bournemouth last Sunday

FORWARDS (UP TO £5.5m)

Will Osula (£5.4m) – Nottingham Forest (a)/Eli Kroupi Junior (£4.6m) – Fulham (a)

It’s slim pickings in the £5.5m-and-under forward pool. For a bit more cash, the preferences would be Danny Welbeck (£6.3m) at home to Wolves, or even Dominic Calvert-Lewin (£5.7m)/Richarlison (£6.3m) in Monday’s clash in north London.

Sticking with the sub-£5.5m bracket, however, and Will Osula (£5.4m) and Eli Kroupi Junior (£4.6m) are about the best on offer.

Osula has started Newcastle’s last four league matches, scoring three goals in that time. He’s up there with the leading lights for big chances, too:

Eddie Howe seems happy.

“I’ve said many times, I don’t pick the team based on transfer fees. I pick the team based on training session performances. The last game, we got quite a lot of information that we can use to try and pick. And, of course, our opponent plays a part in that, who you think is suited to playing against this opponent.

“I thought Wills [Osula] deserved to stay in the team, he scored two goals in three games before this one. That’s three in four now, a really healthy return. Not only that, he’s got real pace, and defenders don’t like to play against that. I thought he was really good in the first half, with Joe Willock, I thought they both played really well.” – Eddie Howe

As for Kroupi, his excellent 12-goal breakthrough season is made all the more remarkable given the limited number of minutes he’s played. He’s only started 18 matches, indeed.

But now he’s very much part of Andoni Iraola’s first-choice XI, and seemingly nudging ahead of Marcus Tavernier (£5.4m) in the penalty-taking pecking order.

Above: The leading FPL forwards for minutes per goal in 2025/26