We recap two more of Saturday’s matches as we continue to rattle through our Gameweek 5 Scout Notes.
This time, it’s Wolverhampton Wanderers 1-3 Leeds United and Fulham 3-1 Brentford.
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STACH HAULS AS LEEDS FIND CLINICAL TOUCH
Leeds had impressed defensively in the opening four Gameweeks, keeping two clean sheets and being minutes away from a third against Fulham. Reservations about the Whites had instead been about their attack.
Before Saturday, Leeds hadn’t scored a single goal from open play. Their only strike, indeed, had come from the penalty spot in Gameweek 1.
So what an indictment of Wolves’ backline that Daniel Farke’s side were able to score three goals at Molineux without breaking much sweat.
Dominic Calvert-Lewin (£5.5m) nodded in from Jayden Bogle‘s (£4.5m) fine cross to equalise after Wolves’ opener. Anton Stach (£5.0m) lashed in a superb free-kick to give the visitors the lead. And, finally, Noah Okafor (£5.5m) latched onto a Stach pass to round off the scoring. Three summer signings, three first Leeds goals.
Those goals constituted half of the Whites’ six shots, the fourth-lowest total of Gameweek 5. They had only one attempt in the second half, albeit the onus wasn’t on them to attack.
So, forgive us for doubting that Leeds’ attack turned a corner. Wolves are dreadful right now, the worst side in the league, and this result owed a debt to their sheer awfulness. Farke’s troops go from facing 20th on Saturday to 4th next weekend, so let’s see how they fare against high-flying Bournemouth.
What is less in doubt is Stach’s appeal as a budget asset. He’s been on our Watchlist for several weeks now and, going into Gameweek 5, he was the only FPL midfielder to reach double figures for shots and chances created. On corners and free-kicks, possessing a fierce shot and able to rack up defensive contribution (DefCon) points, his all-round ability earned him 15 points in Gameweek 5. He probably won’t reach that score again this season (his two returns came from 0.14 xGI on Saturday!) but he’ll chip away nicely with 4-5 points on a semi-regular basis.
CAN £4.0M DARLOW KEEP HIS PLACE?
Karl Darlow (£4.0m) again performed solidly between the posts on Saturday, making five saves. His best was a sharp reflex stop from Marshall Munetsi (£5.5m) to keep Leeds 3-1 up.
Will he be lining up again between the posts come Gameweek 6? Lucas Perri (£4.5m) is not guaranteed to be back; all Farke said last Friday was that he would “have a clearer picture” on the Brazilian goalkeeper after the Wolves game.
If Perri is fit, it’ll be interesting to see if the Leeds boss takes out a goalkeeper who has performed very well in Gameweeks 4 and 5.
Meanwhile, Farke might be forced into changing a member of his defence for the first time in 2025/26 in Gameweek 6. Bogle limped off with a foot injury late on, so James Justin (£4.0m) will be on standby.
Farke says it’s too early to provide a firm update on Bogle. Opponent studs landed on his foot and it’s very swollen. Hopeful it’s not bad, but won’t know more until next few days. #lufc
— Beren Cross (@BerenCross) September 20, 2025
‘OOP’ KREJCI SCORES + STRAND LARSEN RETURNS – BUT POSITIVES END THERE
Wolves gave another start to FPL defender Ladislav Krejcí (£4.5m) in central midfield and the young Czech netted his first goal after finishing off a fine team move. That was very much out of keeping with what was to follow…
Ropey at the back and lacking creativity in attack (there were 16 shots but only one ‘big chance’, Krejci’s goal), it’s difficult to know how Pereira gets Wolves out of this rut.
He’s already used more players (22) in his starting XI than any other Premier League club. One of just three ever-present starters, Emmanuel Agbadou (£4.5m), is having a rotten season after looking so good last year. It was his giveaway that led to Leeds scoring their third.
“If I ask what our best first XI is, can you say? I am trying to find it. I’m trying to find the balance in the team.” – Vitor Pereira, via the Express and Star
A boost was Jorgen Strand Larsen‘s (£6.4m) return from injury as a substitute but even he looked lost in the second half.
SILVA HAILS KING DESPITE ERROR
Saturday’s match at Craven Cottage was a thoroughly deserved win for Fulham. Even the early goal they conceded to Brentford, dispatched by Mikkel Damsgaard (£5.9m), was self-inflicted, thanks to a horror pass from Josh King (£4.5m).
Goals from Alex Iwobi (£6.5m) and Harry Wilson (£5.4m) soon overturned that lead, with an Ethan Pinnock (£4.4m) own-goal rounding off the scoring. Fulham even saw a fourth goal, lashed in by Rodrigo Muniz (£5.5m), harshly disallowed. Brentford barely summoned a response thereafter.
King has been the only reliable £4.5m starting midfielder in 2025/26, and he’s seen his ownership go up fivefold since Gameweek 1.
This error might have given his owners jitters but the youngster bounced back well enough and was given backing by Marco Silva after full-time.
“I like the way the players support Josh King straight away. It was a difficult moment for him. The reaction from him was top.
“I’m very pleased with him. He knows the trust we have in him. He’s working very hard. He’s a top talent. I like his maturity, as well.
“He’s playing because he deserves it.” – Marco Silva on Josh King
It was maybe no surprise that Iwobi put in such a good shift, either, with potential positional rival Kevin (£6.0m) so impressive in a cameo last weekend. The two can still be accommodated in the same team, of course, with Iwobi versatile enough to play on the right, as a ’10’, or as an ‘eight’.
Joachim Andersen (£4.5m) meanwhile banked DefCon points for the fourth time in five Gameweeks.
As for the Bees, this was probably their worst showing of the season in the circumstances, as the Gameweek 1 loss at the City Ground featured a second-string frontline.
Such inconsistency is to be expected with a new manager in charge and an attack trying to adapt following the loss of Messrs Mbeumo and Wissa. Igor Thiago (£6.0m) is certainly yet to convince he’s going to fill those boots.
