FPL pre-season lessons: Managers make moves after weekend matches

The Scout highlights the main takeaways for managers in Fantasy Premier League from the latest pre-season friendlies.

Manchester City’s Erling Haaland (£15.0m) and Brighton & Hove Albion’s Valentin Barco (£4.0m) are proving popular targets after the final weekend of pre-season began on Saturday.

Despite his blank in their FA Community Shield win over Manchester United, Haaland is Man City’s top scorer over the summer with five goals. 

He can now be found in almost 44 per cent of squads and it’s only a matter of time before he usurps Aston Villa’s Ollie Watkins (£9.0m) as the second most-selected forward. 

With a home clash with Ipswich Town in Gameweek 2, going without Haaland looks a dangerous tactic to adopt at the very start of 2024/25.

Haaland’s appeal as the go-to Man City attacker for the start of the season was enhanced further after Phil Foden (£9.5m) failed to feature against the Red Devils.  

Foden is among a host of Man City assets - along with his England compatriots Kyle Walker and John Stones (both £5.5m), and Spain’s Rodri (£6.5m), who have not been involved in pre-season due to their UEFO EURO 2024 commitments. 

Pre-match, Pep Guardiola gave an update on the absentees which also alluded to the dreaded “R” word – rotation. 

“The England players and Rodri will come back [to training] next week”, he said.

“What we like to give them is what it is, don’t think about the schedule. What’s next, training sessions, it’s just step by step, the next game, try to be smart enough to the training and the right amount of time, so be fresh in the mind.

“So rotate the players as much as possible, and game by game we’ll see what happens.”

Barco impact

At the very opposite end of the price scale, Barco’s return to the Brighton first XI against Villarreal, has made a big impact on the budget defender ownerships.

The Argentinian is now the most-picked £4.0m defender in Fantasy, with his ownership more than doubling from a pre-weekend seven per cent to 15 per cent after he recovered from a niggle to secure his place in Fabian Hurzeler’s final line-up of pre-season.

Left-back Barco has also been handed a share of set-pieces by the Seagulls’ new head coach and is shaping up to be a budget gem - with his rival Pervis Estupinan (£5.0m) injured for the opening few matches, he looks assured of early starts. 

Smith Rowe turns heads in budget midfielder bracket

Another narrative over Saturday’s matches was, once again, the strong form of the budget midfielders in Fantasy.

Haaland’s Man City team-mate Oscar Bobb (£5.0m) has a team-high six goal involvements over the summer on the back of his assist for Bernardo Silva’s (£6.5m) equaliser against Man Utd.

Barco’s Brighton team-mate Yankuba Minteh (£5.5m) delivered a goal and an assist in the 4-0 win over Villarreal and has three goals and two assists to his name. 

However, it is Emile Smith Rowe (£5.5m) who is turning the heads of managers in Fantasy after an impressive start to his career at Fulham.

His effort in the Cottagers’ 2-0 win over German side Hoffenheim means the midfielder has now scored in both his appearances for his new club. 

Smith Rowe's goal v Hoffenheim

And that is reflected in the players ownerships – Smith Rowe is now the third most-selected midfielder priced at £5.5m and under, found in almost eight per cent of squads. 

Certainly, Fulham’s early schedule suggests investment in their attack can pay off quickly. They face back-to-back encounters with promoted pair Leicester City and Ipswich in Gameweeks 2-3.

Smith Rowe’s new team-mate Alex Iwobi (£5.5m) should not be ignored – a pair of assists on Saturday took his tally to two goals and three assists over Fulham’s four friendlies.

Monitor Bournemouth pair

Finally, AFC Bournemouth’s budget midfielders Luis Sinisterra and Justin Kluivert (both £5.5m) are worth monitoring after getting on the scoresheet in a 3-2 win over Italian side Girona.

Their output was partly helped by Dominic Solanke’s (£7.5m) move to Tottenham Hotspur; winger Sinisterra played up front while Kluivert was handed penalty duties.

Bournemouth’s tough early start to the season does curb any enthusiasm here, though, and with Andoni Iraola likely to reinvest the Solanke funds in attack before the transfer window closes, it’s a case of “wait and see” for now. 

Timely reminder from Gordon

Anthony Gordon (£7.5m) immediately found his form on his return to action with a goal in Newcastle United’s 4-0 win over Girona on Friday evening. 

The winger is the latest star to enjoy his first taste of pre-season following an extended summer break due to his international commitments.  

Gordon started and played a planned 45-minutes as he steps up his fitness ahead of the Magpies’ home clash with Southampton in Gameweek 1 next weekend.

He has recently dropped in popularity in Fantasy, from the second to the fourth most-owned midfielder.

Yet his strike was a timely reminder of Gordon’s outstanding consistency at St James’ Park in 2023/24. He was the second top-scoring midfielder in home matches Fantasy last term, claiming 133 points thanks to nine goals and 13 assists.

Gordon blanked just TWICE in 18 appearances.

There was plenty for managers to take from the Newcastle encounter, with Aleksander Isak (£8.0m), the most-owned player in Fantasy, extending his run of returns.

Although he did miss a penalty, the Swede laid on Gordon’s goal to take his tally to three goals and an assist over pre-season.

Isak can be found in over 55 per cent of squads and his form at home makes him one of the standout armband picks for Gameweek 1. He scored 14 of his 21 goals in home matches, while his 25 big chances in those fixtures was a league-high.

Isak has, nonetheless, been overshadowed by Newcastle winger Jacob Murphy (£5.5m) over their batch of friendlies.

The cut-price midfielder’s strike on Friday takes him to five goals and three assists – no other player in Fantasy has been involved in more goals than Murphy.

Forest appeal

Nottingham Forest’s Chris Wood (£6.0m) boasts strong form ahead of a kind early run of opponents.

The forward was involved in three of his side’s goals in a 4-3 win over Olympiacos, taking his tally to three goals and two assists this summer.

According to the Fixture Difficulty Ratings (FDR), five of Nott’m Forest’s first six matches score only two.

That could also raise the appeal of their budget midfielders Callum Hudson-Odoi and Anthony Elanga (both £5.5m), who combined for their side’s four goal.

Both have now scored once, although Hudson-Odoi also has three assists to his name compared with Elanga’s one.