If you’re in a rush and need some last-minute Fantasy Premier League (FPL) advice, here’s a quick round-up of what you need to know about Gameweek 5.
Don’t forget to check out our brand-new Stats Centre, which offers a crazy amount of data, defensive contributions (DefCon) information, points projections and more.
WHEN IS THE FPL GAMEWEEK 5 DEADLINE?
90 minutes before the first match. In this case, all transfers and team selections need to be done by 18:30 BST on Friday 18 September.
FPL GAMEWEEK 5 PROJECTIONS
Our Chief Scout data has identified which teams have the best clean sheet and goal-scoring potential:
As well as the players likeliest to grab an attacking return:
- Erling Haaland (1.06)
- Yoane Wissa (0.71)
- Morgan Gibbs-White (0.69)
- Bruno Fernandes (0.69)
- Harvey Barnes (0.69)
These odds can change, of course, so it’s worth checking out our all-new FPL Market Watch page for the latest odds!
WHO TO BUY + SELL
The above numbers are from Friday lunchtime. Our ‘Buy, Keep or Sell’ article explains some of these in more detail.
BEST FPL GAMEWEEK 5 PICKS
All four of our in-house Scout Squad team unanimously back Morgan Gibbs-White (£8.0m), Igor Thiago (£7.8m) and Dominic Calvert-Lewin (£6.0m) to do well.
As for the weekly Scout Picks selection – which is essentially a Free Hit in all but name – there is a triple-up on Nottingham Forest, who are at home to Coventry City.
There are three suggested differential picks here.
PREDICTED LINE-UPS
We’ve predicted the starting XIs of all 20 Premier League teams.
TALKING POINTS
IS JOAO PEDRO INJURED?
The loveliness of some straightforward Gameweek 5 decisions was thrown into turmoil on Wednesday, when it was announced that Joao Pedro (£7.8m), FPL’s most owned player, has withdrawn from the latest Brazil squad.
Does this mean he’ll miss the trip to Brentford? Xabi Alonso was being purposely vague about it.
“It’s a possibility.” – Xabi Alonso on whether Joao Pedro can play on Friday
If so, FPL Meerkat thinks his top replacements are Calvert-Lewin, Gonzalo Garcia (£6.0m) and Thierno Barry (£5.6m). One of the Leeds United striker’s two Monday night goals was originally credited to Jayden Bogle (£4.6m), but the correction came too late for an FPL adjustment.
Alternatively, this could be a good time to Free Hit. Our on-site draft goes heavy on Nottingham Forest, including ‘Goals Imminent’ entry Gibbs-White. They were one of five teams not to be seen in midweek.
MIDFIELD TARGETS
Elsewhere, when replacing the suspended Phil Foden (£6.9m) or otherwise, Tom Hadley’s favourite budget midfielders are Harvey Barnes (£6.0m), Kevin Schade (£6.1m), Marcus Tavernier (£6.1m) and Pascal Gross (£5.7m).
The latter’s 17 points were the highest of Gameweek 4, before he and Maxim De Cuyper (£4.9m) delivered once again during Brighton and Hove Albion’s EFL Cup comeback win over Manchester United.
Dominik Szoboszlai (£7.0m) netted the previous night for Liverpool, frustrating four million owners who are currently debating whether to hold onto or ditch the Hungarian.
WILDCARD
However, Brighton must next face the champions. Penalty joy for Bukayo Saka (£9.5m) and David Raya (£6.0m) helped Arsenal overcome Sunderland, so we’ve tried to figure out what the best Gunners triple-up looks like.
Our latest Wildcard draft says Saka, Raya and Ezri Konsa (£4.5m), alongside a trio of Everton assets about to begin a favourable schedule. Toffees centre-back James Tarkowski (£6.1m) is featured in ‘Buy, Keep or Sell’ and, as part of his weekly Q&A, Tom Freeman thinks Wildcarders should also target Forest, Fulham and Newcastle United’s appealing fixtures.
On the other hand, many managers will see the upcoming long international break as a better time to activate it. Though 44% of our 18 ‘Great and Good’ experts have already used three of their four chips.
BEST FPL GAMEWEEK 5 CAPTAIN
Wondering who should get the armband? Check out our Captain Sensible article and what our Rate My Team (RMT) algorithm thinks.
EXPERT TEAM REVEALS
- Three-time top 500 finisher FPL General
- Hall of Famer Dan Wright
- 10-time top 50k finisher FPL Milanista
So, whatever you decide to do, good luck with FPL Gameweek 5!
