Tom Hadley – a one-time world number one in Fantasy Premier League (FPL) – is one of our regular contributors who has returned for 2026/27.
He’ll again be providing data-driven articles regularly this season, usually around defensive contribution points (DefCon).
In this piece, his focus is on budget FPL midfielders.
We are in the era of the budget asset, and money has never been less of an issue in Fantasy Premier League (FPL).
In this article, I’m going to dive into the wealth of midfielders that offer season-long value and provide the perfect platform to enable so much more elsewhere.
THE DIFFERENT TYPES OF BUDGET MIDFIELDER
First of all, I want to divide all the midfielders under £6.5m into two categories and highlight why both aspects are extremely valuable when planning teams and targeting fixtures.
(1) Lower floor, higher upside picks
(2) Higher floor, lower upside picks
Both categories are valuable, and both categories are worth factoring into all teams.
LOWER FLOOR, HIGHER UPSIDE PICKS
Let’s start with the first type.
This is the FPL pick everyone is familiar with and something we’ve been choosing for years. The guy with the form or the fixtures and a simple goal to jump on and off to hit the big hauls.
This season, we have so many viable options in this bracket, so many players that are either extremely integral to their team and have incredible involvement or individuals that are just far too cheap whilst playing in great teams. I’m just handpicking the ones that are most appealing over the next few weeks.
MARCUS TAVERNIER
Marcus Tavernier (£6.1m) is the standout budget upside pick at present. He’s not only started the season off fantastically, but the fixtures only get better and stay good right up until the festive period. He has three goals already and he had an incredible seven shots on target in his last two games alone. He just appears to be the main beneficiary of the majority of the Bournemouth attacks.
Gameweek 7 is probably most people’s entry point for Bournemouth assets but there aren’t too many reasons why now can’t be a good time to buy, either. Bournemouth have Liverpool, Chelsea and Manchester United amongst their next four games before the best run starts in Gameweek 9. But you could very easily argue that these three sides haven’t exactly been inspiring defensively. It’s more than fine just to buy him now, especially if on a Wildcard.
I suppose the main reason to wait and see with him is to get a little more information about what his minutes will look like around the European fixtures. He was subbed off with 10 minutes to go at the weekend, maybe it’s worth seeing what the minutes look like this weekend following the game against Sociedad.
HARVEY BARNES
Harvey Barnes (£6.0m) is the next man on my list for the immediate future. He has always been a player capable of big hauls and long streaks of returns.
One of the main issues in the past was the uncertainty of minutes. However, he hasn’t played less than 89 minutes in a game yet and doesn’t have too much competition for his spot in the side. The great fixtures really start now for Newcastle United, and whilst Hull City have been impressive, that home game next up in Gameweek 5 is still an extremely targetable entry point.
Newcastle didn’t play too great against Leeds United but Barnes did miss a big chance and create another gilt-edged opportunity. I feel like he’s a potentially fun asset to own for at least the next five weeks with a fantastic upside.
JOSH KING
The ultimate upside differential to jump on and straight off is Josh King (£5.5m) for Fulham. With the Cottagers facing all three promoted sides back to back from Gameweeks 6-8, it’s definitely worth considering a player from the Fulham attack.
King ticks a lot of boxes too because not only is he priced at a very modest £5.5m, he’s easily been the standout player in the Fulham side so far this season. He has almost identical xG stats to Cole Palmer (£9.7m), too.
The minutes have also been great; three 90-minute run-outs and only one slightly earlier sub around 75 minutes. I don’t think you can go too wrong with a short-term punt at this price, given the fixtures.
Gameweek 6 is the ideal entry point but again, it’s fine to go a week early, given how suspect Manchester United have looked.
HONOURABLE MENTIONS
Some honourable mentions and their best entry point:
- Kiernan Dewsbury Hall (£6.5m) – Gameweek 5
- Julio Enciso (£5.5m) – Gameweek 6
- Justin Kluivert (£6.0m) – Gameweek 7
TWO EXCEPTIONAL CASES
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