Rotating players – in order to get a favourable run of fixtures – is a ‘Marmite’ strategy in Fantasy Premier League (FPL).
Just this afternoon, we’ve had site users Conners and Funkyav take different positions on the approach.
For those FPL managers who are a fan of fixture-led rotation, we thought we’d take a look at some stand-out pairings over the next eight, 10 and 12 Gameweeks.
We’ll be doing this using our new ‘Rotation Finder’ feature in our FPL Toolkit.
Full of filters, it can help us find cheap assets that managers can switch around to (theoretically!) maximise returns.
USING THE ROTATION TOOL
Sorting teams by either fixture difficulty, clean sheet odds or projected goals, users also have the option of excluding ‘Big Six’ outfits – though that seems overly complimentary to Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester United, in particular!
Meanwhile, the clever tool automatically identifies pairings of (at most) £4.5m defenders and £5.0m midfielders. Scrolling down allows you to customise such price limits, then search for your player’s perfect partner.
Furthermore, it also looks into ‘two from three’ triplet rotations.
NEXT 8 GAMEWEEKS
PLAYERS
A rotation between Coventry City and Fulham – who’ll face each other in Gameweek 8 – suggests that Bobby Thomas (£4.0m) and Antonee Robinson (£4.5m) go nicely together, though Timothy Castagne (£4.5m) has assisted twice and David Affengruber (£4.5m) has a 100% DefCon rate since debuting.
Cottagers defenders also pair nicely with whoever is most nailed in Aston Villa’s backline. Unlike Matty Cash (£4.4m) – benched in Gameweek 5 – we’ve seen Victor Lindelof (£4.5m) start every Villa encounter.
Elsewhere, Andrew Robertson (£4.4m) was similarly a substitute in Gameweek 3, so those wanting Tottenham Hotspur coverage may prefer the Antonin Kinsky (£4.5m) route. The goalkeeper combines snugly with Bernd Leno (£4.5m).
In midfield, it’s hard to recommend any Coventry player, considering none of them has an attacking return. Villa’s John McGinn (£5.4m) dovetails well with a Fulham asset, however.
- READ MORE: How should FPL managers invest in Fulham?
Josh King (£5.5m) is the team’s leading FPL points scorer (24), boasting 11 close-range attempts and seven shots on target. Only three top-flight players have more of the latter.
NEXT 10 GAMEWEEKS
PLAYERS
Between Gameweeks 6 and 15, pairing Kinsky with either Leno or Brighton and Hove Albion’s Bart Verbruggen (£4.5m) still works, as do those Villa and Fulham couplings,
The main difference here is that Bournemouth get introduced into the fray. Djordje Petrovic (£4.5m) is an interesting budget-friendly goalkeeper, but a bad error allowed Kevin Schade (£6.2m) to score in Gameweek 4. Does loanee Michele Di Gregorio (£4.5m), Juventus’ first-choice during 2024/25 and 2025/26, now get given a chance?
Cherries teammates Antonio Silva (£5.0m) and Marcus Tavernier (£6.1m) are alternatives. Silva can pair with Robinson or attacking Ipswich Town left-back Leif Davis (£4.0m), while penalty-taking Tavernier goes well with an aforementioned Fulham midfielder, or even Julio Enciso (£5.5m).
The Ipswich attacker is shooting loads, albeit usually from distance. A regular on ‘Goals Imminent’, he’s the second-unluckiest when comparing non-penalty goals with the expected goals (xG) location of shots on target (-1.34).
NEXT 12 GAMEWEEKS
PLAYERS
Criss-crossing Bournemouth with either Fulham or Ipswich still stands out until Gameweek 17. Silva, or a cheaper option like right-back Adam Smith (£4.5m), go well with Robinson, Davis, or DefCon collector Issa Diop (£4.0m).
Over a dozen rounds, we get glimpses of Brentford and Nottingham Forest, which adds Michael Kayode (£4.6m), Kristoffer Ajer (£4.5m) and Neco Williams (£5.0m) into the mix. In fact, low-cost midfielder Vitaly Janelt (£5.0m) is currently the league’s number one for DefCon actions (64), alongside two goals.
Paraguayan colleagues Enciso and Diego Gomez (£5.0m) intertwine quite well, although Seagull Pascal Gross (£5.8m) is still classed as cheap despite three price rises. In such form, not many will consider benching FPL’s top-scoring individual at all.
