Our next Fantasy Premier League (FPL) 2026/27 team preview focuses on Manchester City, now under the guidance of Enzo Maresca.

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.

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REASONS TO BE CHEERFUL

High scorers

Yes, Arsenal ended as champions, but Man City were top for expected goals (xG, 71.58) by some distance. They were also ranked number one for goals (77) and big chances (120).

The world-class Erling Haaland (£15.5m) was supported well by Jeremy Doku‘s (£7.5m) wing play, the creativity of Rayan Cherki (£7.5m) and a few magical Phil Foden (£7.0m) displays. Then, in January, the club added Antoine Semenyo (£8.5m) to all this.

Even City’s defence ranked generally well, coming second for clean sheets (16), letting in goals (35), allowing shots (369), and expected goals conceded (xGC, 44.20).

Maresca knows the club

Following an all-time great’s epic 10-year stint is an unenviable task, but Maresca offers a smooth(ish) transition.

• READ MORE: Will Man City still have FPL appeal under Enzo Maresca?

He has similar tactics and principles to Pep Guardiola, showcased when in charge of Man City’s victorious 2020/21 Elite Development Squad.

“Probably the reason why I’m here is also because the idea from the Club is to maintain the same style of football, the same idea and we’re going to try to do the most important thing in football which is [to] try to win, [and] to achieve important things. Then the day-by-day is also going to dictate the way I will work.” – Enzo Maresca, speaking to the Man City website

Once a short spell managing Parma’s first team didn’t work out, Pep brought him back as an assistant.

REASONS TO BE FEARFUL

End of an era

Then again, Maresca only has one-and-a-half seasons of top-flight management to his name. Although he can respond by pointing to a pair of Conference League and Club World Cup trophies.

Adding to this loss of experience are the departures of Bernardo Silva, John Stones and 2024 Ballon d’Or winner Rodri.

Tijjani Reijnders has gone, Savinho (£6.5m) looks set for Tottenham Hotspur, and Nico Gonzalez (£5.5m) is being linked with Newcastle United.

The midfield suddenly looks very light, suggesting imminent incomings and a fairly transitional year.

Community Shield humbling

Initially conceding after 44 seconds, a 28th-minute goal pretty much handed Arsenal their Community Shield win. By the 50-minute mark, it was 3-0.

Of course, this can be mitigated by the vast number of late World Cup returnees. Wembley brought the first pre-season appearances of Haaland, Doku, Cherki, Nico O’Reilly (£6.5m), Marc Guehi (£6.0m) and Elliot Anderson (£6.5m).

• READ MORE: Pre-season Minutes, Goals + Assists Tracker
• READ MORE: Eight FPL things we learned from the Community Shield

None of them played more than an hour, making the starting XI’s current fitness levels a big concern.

MAN CITY: SUMMER TRANSFER ACTIVITY

Key Transfers In:

Key Transfers Out:

MAN CITY: PRE-SEASON FPL REPORTS

Form Players: Semenyo (5 assists), Mubama (2 goals, 1 assist), Ait-Nouri (2 goals), Marmoush (2 goals), Reijnders (1 goal, 1 assist)

OPENING FIXTURES

First up is Bournemouth, who finished sixth last time and haven’t lost in 18 competitive matches. It’s the longest unbeaten run throughout the ‘big five’ European leagues.

• READ MORE: Who has the best early 2026/27 fixtures?

However, as a whole, Man City’s first seven outings rank well on our free-to-all Fixture Ticker. What’s slightly irritating is that attractive home meetings against Coventry City, Sunderland and Ipswich Town are separated by tough trips to Manchester United and Liverpool.

PENALTY + SET-PIECE TAKERS

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PENALTIES

Across multiple 2025/26 competitions, Haaland took all six spot kicks, making this fairly straightforward.

Nobody else has stepped up since Omar Marmoush‘s (£7.0m) 2025 FA Cup final miss. With the Egyptian set to join Savinho at Spurs, who will the alternative be?

Last season, Semenyo (two) and Anderson were trusted at their previous clubs.

• READ MORE: Who are the penalty takers at all 20 Premier League clubs?

SET PIECES

Man City had the most attempts from corners (113) and ranked sixth for resulting goals (11).

These and free kicks were usually split between Foden, Cherki, Bernardo and Reijnders. As mentioned, the latter two have departed, though newbie Anderson took many for Nottingham Forest.

MAN CITY: PREDICTED FPL GAMEWEEK 1 LINE-UP

Maresca has confirmed that Doku won’t make Gameweek 1, having been pictured with an ice pack on his calf once substituted at half-time.

Matheus Nunes (£6.0m) is fine. He had been a concern after suffering an injury in the Wembley warm-up and had to withdraw.

“At the moment, the only one [out] is Jeremy Doku. Matheus [Nunes] is back. The rest, they are all okay.” – Enzo Maresca, in Friday’s press conference

Forgotten man Grealish, interestingly, came on for Doku at the interval, so he is a possibility to deputise. Another left-wing option is defender Rayan Ait-Nouri (£5.5m).

MAN CITY: BEST FPL OPTIONS

Despite lasting a mere 53 minutes at Wembley, Erling Haaland is still hugely popular, owned by 69.4% heading into Gameweek 1.

After all, he was 2025/26’s best for goals (27), points (239), attempts (126), shots on target (59) and more, including a lull of three goals in 13.

Remember, the Norwegian loves these early weeks. Adding together the first six matches of all four of his Man City campaigns, he’s scored 37 times in 24 games, collecting five hat-tricks and 11 double-digit hauls. Going without Haaland to spread his funds elsewhere is a risky strategy.

As for Antoine Semenyo, the Ghanaian settled in quickly and carried over his Bournemouth form, ending as the best midfielder for goals (17) and penalty area attempts (61). Mind you, nobody outdid their xG by more (+5.91). But five summer assists have caught the eye.

Defender Nico O’Reilly felt essential in the final months of 2025/26. From Gameweek 26 onwards, he contributed a whopping four goals, 20 box shots, 11 attempts on target and seven big chances in his final 10 matches. Add in five clean sheets, and that’s 73 points.

There’s even a chance that Maresca deploys the 21-year-old in midfield, but he may still need to build match fitness.

While he and Marc Guehi were recovering from England’s deep World Cup run, Josko Gvardiol (£5.5m) played a lot. Maybe the first couple of fixtures don’t appeal defensively, but the FPL community still recalls his attacking threat from the end of 2023/24. Four goals, two assists and 68 points from his seven outings.

MAN CITY: ONES FOR THE FPL WATCHLIST

Even when ready to start, 17.7%-owned Guehi seemingly has to break the Gvardiol and Ruben Dias (£5.5m) partnership. Right-back Matheus Nunes was FPL’s finest defender for assists (eight).

Further up the pitch, a summer report claimed that Maresca sees Phil Foden as one of his team’s three central pillars, alongside Gvardiol and Haaland. But the unreliable attacker will need to gain the trust of FPL managers before investments are made.

You see, there was a glorious purple patch between Gameweeks 13 and 16. Six goals and four consecutive double-digit hauls, adding up to 55 points. Yet very little else happened.

Similarly, Rayan Cherki had a great run of autumn assists. He hit some more form near the end but, just as FPL managers snapped him up en masse, Guardiola began benching the Frenchman. Not that it stopped him from being the season’s second-best for big chances created (19) and expected assists (xA, 8.65).

Once back from his knock, Jeremy Doku will be one to watch. He finished as the leader for take-ons (148) and number two when it came to touches inside the box (195).

Whereas Elliot Anderson was FPL’s DefCon king, averaging 13.94 actions per 90 and receiving extra points in 70.3% of starts. Can he maintain this data at a title-chasing team?

Well, he’s more than that. A frequent crosser (176), the midfielder actually delivered four goals and five assists.

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