Fresh from a superb second half of the season under Michael Carrick, Manchester United will no doubt pique the interest of Fantasy Premier League (FPL) managers in 2026/27.
The Red Devils are the focus of our latest team preview.
Here, we discuss their best FPL picks for the upcoming campaign. We’ll also attempt to predict the line-up for Gameweek 1, review pre-season, look at their set-piece takers and more.
REASONS TO BE CHEERFUL
OPENING FIXTURES
One of the main draws of Manchester United players in Gameweek 1 is a favourable opening set of fixtures, including newly-promoted Hull City and Ipswich Town up first.
In fact, it’s only really the Manchester derby in Gameweek 4 that looks off-putting, right through until the end of October.
It gives Carrick a decent chance to maintain the momentum that United finished the 2025/26 season with, now that he’s secured the permanent position at Old Trafford.
MIDFIELD REINFORCEMENTS
United have added some much-needed quality in the middle of the park this summer, with the arrivals of Andrey Santos (£5.0m) and Youri Tielemans (£6.0m) from Chelsea and Aston Villa, respectively.
Solid in duels, Santos will add some bite out of possession, while Tielemans brings progressive passing ability.
They probably need a third midfielder to balance it all out, but it’s a promising start nonetheless.
The duo should complement No 10 Bruno Fernandes (£12.0m), who was FPL’s best performer after Carrick took over in Gameweek 22, with four goals and 16 assists in 17 matches.
REASONS TO BE FEARFUL
BACK IN EUROPE
Will playing twice a week affect Man Utd players in FPL this season?
United return to the UEFA Champions League in 2026/27, of course, with the schedule ramping up after Gameweek 3, so it’s a consideration once those first couple of fixtures are out of the way.
That first European encounter has a potentially tricky trip to Everton and the Manchester derby on either side, too.
Remember, United only played 40 matches in all competitions in 2025/26, so Europe will certainly test the depth of United’s squad.
WAS HIRING CARRICK THE RIGHT CHOICE?
Is Carrick really the right man for United?
After a promising start at his former club Middlesbrough, momentum stalled, leading to criticism that he was too wedded to a 4-2-3-1 formation and that he lacked a viable ‘Plan B’.
There are some concerns about the direction that United’s underlying numbers have taken under his leadership, too, with their non-penalty expected goals (xG) dropping down after his appointment – and expected goals conceded (xGC) going up:
The back four certainly had its issues in pre-season.
MAN UNITED: SUMMER TRANSFER ACTIVITY
Key Transfers In:
| MID | Andrey Santos | Chelsea (£48m) |
| GK | Karl Darlow | Leeds United (free) |
| MID | Youri Tielemans | Aston Villa (£35m) |
Key Transfers Out:
| DEF | Tyrell Malacia | Released |
| MID | Jadon Sancho | Released |
| MID | Casemiro | Released |
| FWD | Rasmus Hojlund | Napoli (£38m) |
| GK | Andre Onana | Trabzonspor (loan) |
| GK | Altay Bayindir | Celta Vigo (loan) |
- READ MORE: Man Utd bag goalkeeper Darlow as Lammens back-up
- READ MORE: Man Utd continue midfield overhaul by signing Tielemans + Santos
MAN UNITED: PRE-SEASON FPL REPORTS
| Jul 18 | Manchester United 0-1 Wrexham (n) |
| Jul 24 | Rosenborg 0-5 Manchester United (a) | Lacey (Zirkzee assist), Zirkzee (Amass assist), Devaney (Armer assist), Amass (Kamason assist), Williams (Collyer assist) |
| Aug 1 | Manchester United 2-1 Atletico Madrid (n) | Mbeumo pen (Lacey assist), Mbeumo (J Fletcher assist) |
| Aug 8 | Manchester United 1-1 Paris Saint-Germain (n) | Mbeumo (Diallo assist) |
| Aug 12 | Manchester United 1-1 Leeds United (n) | Zirkzee (Mbeumo assist) |
| Aug 15 | Manchester United 2-4 AC Milan (n) | Maguire (Fernandes assist), Dorgu |
Form Players: Mbeumo (3 goals, 1 assist), Zirkzee (2 goals, 1 assist), Lacey (1 goal, 1 assist), Amass (1 goal, 1 assist)
OPENING FIXTURES
We’ve already discussed the (mostly) favourable opening fixtures in the first section, so it’s worth a gander at what lies beyond – and it’s not pretty:
Gameweek 14 is an anomaly, and it’s a Free Hit candidate week, as there’s a north London derby and Chelsea v Liverpool also taking place. Temporarily jumping back on the Red Devils for one week only is an option here.
PENALTY + SET-PIECE TAKERS
PENALTIES
Bruno Fernandes (£12.0m) has been United’s main penalty taker for several years. He took all six Premier League penalties for the Red Devils in 2025/26.
Despite missing twice from the spot last autumn, he remained first in line and converted his next three penalties.
There have been two further aberrations from the spot (including shootouts) in pre-season, however!
SET PIECES
Fernandes also took five of United’s six direct free-kicks, while it was he and Bryan Mbeumo (£8.0m) on the bulk of corners (90 and 49 respectively).
Amad Diallo (£6.0m) only sporadically chipped in last season but has, along with Bruno and Mbeumo, taken corners in recent friendlies.
MAN UNITED: PREDICTED FPL GAMEWEEK 1 LINE-UP
Unlike some other managers, Carrick actually might make a tweak or two from the final pre-season friendly line-up.
Mbeumo, surely, comes back; he had started twice already last week before being benched at the weekend. Matheus Cunha (£8.0m), who looked off the pace, may miss out.
It could be any one of Diogo Dalot (£5.0m), Noussair Mazraoui (£4.5m) or Leny Yoro (£5.0m) at right-back. The latter has featured there in pre-season.
*This predicted line-up was made on August 19. Check out our team news tab for a more up-to-date prediction closer to Gameweek 1.
MAN UNITED: BEST FPL OPTIONS
It’s the Bryan Mbeumo (£8.0m) and Bruno Fernandes (£12.0m) show as we approach Gameweek 1. A number of FPL managers are considering a double-up, indeed, with two newly promoted sides up first. It’s a policy that many of the algorithms and ‘solvers’ agree with.
If it’s an either/or, it’s worth pointing out how close the pair’s non-penalty xGI was last season; Mbeumo considerably underachieved, Bruno massively overachieved.
Above: The leading midfielders for NPxGI in 2025/26
Of course, that’s conveniently ignoring spot-kicks. Bruno had six of them last season, scoring four. So long as he retains them, he’s going to be hard to top.
However, even factoring those in, the gap in points should have been a lot closer – 15, not 44:
| 2025/26 | Mbeumo | Fernandes |
|---|---|---|
| Actual points from goals (inc pens) + Opta assists | 64 | 108 |
| Expected points from goals (inc pens) + Opta assists | 76.1 | 91.1 |
Bruno will no doubt outscore Mbeumo this season, but the Cameroon international, currently to be found playing up top, does have the potential to chisel away at the margin of lead. That could be significant given the price difference.
At the rear, it’s not a star-studded bunch. Harry Maguire (£5.0m) somehow banked DefCon points in 46.7% of his matches under Carrick, despite a so-so rate of contributions (8.79 per 90). On six of the seven times he managed it, he crept over the threshold with 10 or 11.
Above: Man Utd defenders sorted by DefCons per 90 mins since Michael Carrick took charge
With goal threat minimal – although you feel like Maguire should score more than he does – there’s a temptation to just invest for the first 2/3 Gameweeks before moving on. Maguire may soon have Matthijs de Ligt (£5.0m) for competition, too, but he should be fine for the first few weeks (and maybe a long way beyond) while the Dutchman gets back up to speed.
He’s about the best of a mediocre bunch for now. Luke Shaw (£4.5m) offers starts, but little else: he was an ever-present in 2025/26. How will he, and others, cope with the extra demands of the Champions League in the autumn? Goalkeeper Senne Lammens (£5.0m) probably becomes the go-to guy at that point.
MAN UNITED: ONES FOR THE FPL WATCHLIST
It’s still early days, but Andrey Santos (£5.0m) hasn’t so far shown in the pre-season friendlies that he’s going to be a DefCon monster in midfield. He’s been roughly hovering around the 9/10 mark (per 90 mins) this summer, short of the 12 needed.
Matheus Cunha (£8.0m) meanwhile hasn’t really come to the boil yet since his move last year. Carrick has even preferred Patrick Dorgu (£6.0m) (when fit) to him on the left flank at times, so now’s not the time to be looking at him, considering that Dorgu has had a full pre-season and Cunha was late back from the World Cup.
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