The Scout's panel of Fantasy Premier League experts are revealing their current 15-man squads for the start of the 2023/24 season.
Pras (@Pras_FPL)
Goalkeepers
Lukasz Fabianski (£4.5m) and Alphonse Areola (£4.0m): Getting two goalkeepers from the same team for £8.5m is a great strategy and guarantees a starter every week. Over the past two seasons West Ham United have been reasonably solid defensively, so for now this combination stands out.
I am looking closely at the goalkeeper situations at Brighton & Hove Albion and Brentford, and may switch if a £4.5m 'keeper nails a spot there.
Defenders
Pervis Estupinan (£5.0m): There are a lot of great options in the £5.0m bracket. I like Arsenal's defenders the most, but given my squad has three Arsenal attackers, I have gone for Estupinan, who starts with three great fixtures against Luton, Wolverhampton Wanderers and West Ham.
Luke Shaw (£5.5m): Shaw is the standout pick for £5.5m. I expect Manchester United to be stronger defensively if they can buy a goalkeeper who is better on the ball. Shaw should continue mostly as a left-back where he is a big part of chance creation and set-pieces.
Ben Chilwell (£5.5m): After facing Liverpool in Gameweek 1, Chelsea go on a run of seven matches where they play Luton Town, Nottingham Forest, AFC Bournemouth, Fulham and Burnley. I am expecting Mauricio Pochettino to make the team more solid in possession and thus a better defensive unit. Chilwell’s attacking output, if fit, is of course well known.
Sven Botman (£4.5m): He comes in at a great price for a starting Newcastle United defender. He also rotates well with Estupinan, as Brighton have trickier fixtures after Gameweek 4 and Newcastle’s run improves substantially.
Jordan Beyer (£4.0m): An enabler who started 33 matches in the Championship last season, the Burnley defender will be largely used as my second bench option for emergency cover.
Midfielders
Bukayo Saka (£8.5m) and Gabriel Martinelli (£8.0m): Arsenal have had a terrific transfer window and I expect them to push on from their impressive campaign last season. Martinelli’s attacking numbers are exceptional when playing with Gabriel Jesus (£8.0m), while Saka, with penalties, is a great option.
Marcus Rashford (£9.0m) and Bruno Fernandes (£8.5m): With five home matches in the first eight Gameweeks, Man Utd have a reasonably kind start. Last year they struggled to convert their chances, but in the few that they did, Rashford and Fernandes were involved.
I expect them to get even better if Man Utd sign a striker. Both are also good price points to move around if needed as other bandwagons emerge from Manchester City midfielders, James Maddison (£7.5m), Raheem Sterling (£7.0m), etc.
Solly March (£6.5m): Brighton’s attacking numbers last season were on a par with Man City and Arsenal's. £6.5m is a good price for one of their main attacking outlets.
Forwards
Gabriel Jesus (£8.0m): There is so much value in Arsenal's attack that I want to triple up and then swap one or two of them out for other players in the same price bracket who may emerge later, such as Christopher Nkunku (£7.5m).
Erling Haaland (£14.0m): No explanation required - even at £14.0m, he is in.
Sam Surridge (£4.5m): Sometimes you need a budget £4.5m forward to balance the team. Rather than burning the slot by picking someone who won't play, I’ve gone for Surridge. He got 306 minutes last season and I’m unlikely to want to use all three Nottingham Forest slots so he won’t block any signings I might want to make.
Also in this series
Part 2: Nick Harris's FPL squad
Part 3: Harry Daniels's FPL squad
Part 4: Lee Bonfield's FPL squad
Part 5: Utkarsh Dalmia's FPL squad