We’ve put together our Scout Picks ‘bus team’ for Gameweek 5 of Fantasy Premier League (FPL).
The upcoming Scout Squad nominations, as well as the pre-match press conferences, will help shape our finalised picks.
However, this early draft, at the very least, offers an insight into the players and teams who are under consideration.
There are, as ever, certain restrictions for our squad:
- An £83.0m overall budget for our starting XI
- An overall squad limit of £100.0m
- No more than three players per team
A reminder, too, that the Scout Picks are for the upcoming Gameweek in isolation.
GAMEWEEK 5 FIXTURES
Using our free-to-all ticker, here is the Gameweek 5 difficulty ranking:
THE LIKELY LADS
Recognising Hull City’s stunning results and the seven goals of a decent-looking Ipswich Town, Gameweek 4’s fixture to target is Nottingham Forest at home to Coventry City.
Talisman Morgan Gibbs-White (£7.9m) is starting this season just as strongly as he ended 2025/26. On penalties, he’s also the league’s number one for big chance creation (four), setting up seven attempts on Saturday – including Igor Jesus‘ (£5.8m) winner. The opener was scored by Liam Delap (£5.5m), who fired out six efforts at Villa Park.
The Sky Blues remain pointless and goalless, so an attack-minded wing-back like Neco Williams (£5.0m) or Daniel Munoz (£5.4m) could feast. They are part of a backline that’s conceded merely five big chances this term.
At the Hill Dickinson Stadium, it isn’t essential to own an Everton defender, considering such Ipswich goals. But James Tarkowski (£6.1m) has delivered a goal, a clean sheet and/or defensive contribution (DefCon) points in all four Gameweeks. If our Scout Picks team needs more money, centre-back partner Jarrad Branthwaite (£5.5m) and full-back Vitalii Mykolenko (£4.5m) are cheaper.
At least one of the Toffees’ attackers should make the XI, whether it be Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall (£6.5m) or Thierno Barry (£5.6m). Neither has produced since scoring on the opening day, but the former ranks third for successful passes into the penalty area (17), while the striker is massively underachieving (-1.98) in comparison to expected goals (xG, below).
In fact, the only player to have more xG, box shots (13), and big chances (five) is Erling Haaland (£15.5m). The machine malfunctioned on opening weekend but, since the Gameweek 2 software patch, he’s scored four times, always bringing in nine or more points.
Hosting Sunderland might not be worth a triple-up, but Manchester City are seeking a third consecutive clean sheet, so defensive coverage is likely.
Josko Gvardiol (£5.7m) boasts at least one return from all four Gameweeks, adding an assist to Sunday’s Manchester derby shutout. Due to the other appealing defenders, we may pick goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma (£5.5m) instead.
We’ll also surely be considering Leeds United assets at home to Crystal Palace. The Eagles’ latest few matches have all featured exactly five goals, a leakiness that Dominic Calvert-Lewin (£6.0m) and Anton Stach (£6.0m) can benefit from.
IN CONTENTION
Those who bought Rayan Cherki (£7.8m) ahead of Gameweek 3 have been massively let down so far. Nothing versus Coventry, then removed at half-time for the impactful Iliman Ndiaye (£5.9m). Still, Phil Foden’s (£7.0m) red card should mean a start for the Frenchman, who leads the way for expected assists (xA, 1.41).
Before the weekend, having a Manchester United attacker against Fulham seemed straightforward. But the Cottagers surprisingly drew 0-0 at Liverpool, and Bruno Fernandes (£12.0m) is suddenly on three blanks from four.
Maybe the much cheaper Bryan Mbeumo (£7.9m) will make our XI, knowing he outdoes Fernandes for big chances (5 v 3) and xG (2.79 v 2.29).
Meanwhile, the fixture ticker places Newcastle United on top. But, against all odds, Hull are experiencing a brilliant start: unbeaten, alongside three clean sheets. The Magpies, meanwhile, have just been thumped at Leeds.
FPL managers bought Lewis Hall (£5.2m) and Yoane Wissa (£6.2m) with this match in mind. Harvey Barnes (£6.0m) is also worth a mention, though the Magpies’ attack is low on attempts, netting an unsustainably high rate of shots on target (six from eight). When millions piled in on Chelsea assets at home to Hull, at least the data justified this.
Speaking of the Blues, a Friday night trip to Brentford isn’t easy. Of course, it’s hard to back against Joao Pedro (£7.8m) right now, after seeing him both score and assist in three of the four outings. Teammate Morgan Rogers (£7.7m) hasn’t hauled, but is yet to blank.
Elsewhere, the supreme Arsenal defence squeezed out a clean sheet at Sunderland, their third. The likes of Ezri Konsa (£4.5m) and Riccardo Calafiori (£5.8m) feel fixture-proof, but bear in mind that opponents Brighton and Hove Albion are the league’s highest scorers, on 13 goals.
Bukayo Saka‘s (£9.5m) stoppage-time penalty secured the win on Wearside and, although the 25-year-old’s 2025/26 minutes were carefully managed, he has started all four this time, netting on three occasions.
THE LONGER SHOTS
After a deflatingly poor performance at home to a supposedly leaky Fulham, are Liverpool assets really going to get a look-in this week? Opponents Bournemouth, have, it should be said, yet to keep a clean sheet, but there are surely more appealing fixtures elsewhere this week.
Speaking of sides without a shut-out to their name, here’s Chelsea. Could the in-form Kevin Schade (£6.0m) make a late dash for Scout Picks inclusion?
North London rivals Tottenham Hotspur are on successive shutouts. They’ll host an Aston Villa side on one goal, plus a league-low 33 attempts, six shots on target and four big chances. Antonin Kinsky (£4.5m) might come into the goalkeeping conversation, at a push.
GAMEWEEK 5: EARLY SCOUT PICKS
