It has been a long time since FPL managers have had to worry about which players to buy or captain and with the European Championship and Paris Olympics to keep us busy it has likely been a case of out of sight and out of mind for most.
Not anymore, with the 2024-25 Premier League season beginning on Friday when Manchester United host Fulham at Old Trafford.
That means there is a sneaky deadline, so make sure you’re locked and loaded before then.
For those who have completely switched off from FPL over the summer there are a couple of changes to note.
Managers can now accumulate five free transfers, up from two previously, and there is a new “Mystery Chip” which will come into play at the start of next year.
BEST FPL TEAM AHEAD OF GAME WEEK 1
FORMATION: 3:5:2
GOAL KEEPER: Dean Henderson
Dean Henderson was not included in best FPL goalkeepers list a couple of weeks ago, but that was only because it was unclear whether he or Sam Johnstone would start the campaign.
With Johnstone now expected to leave Crystal Palace, Henderson’s place is secure and he provides good value at £4.5m. Henderson kept four clean sheets and averaged 3.2 saves per game in 18 matches last term.
DEF: Josko Gvardiol
City have the next-best defence based on last season’s data and while there is little to separate Arsenal’s three main stoppers White, Saliba and Gabriel in FPL, Josko Gvardiol is far and away the best defensive pick from the reigning champions.
The Croat had a steady debut season until exploding into life in the final weeks by scoring four goals and providing two assists in his final seven appearances.
DEF: Pedro Porro
Tottenham are anything but solid at the back but Pedro Porro‘s attacking threat is difficult to ignore.
The full-back ranked top among defenders for shots (with 53) and fifth for chances created (51), last season and reached the double-figure mark for direct goal involvements, combining three goals with eight assists.
DEF: William Saliba
Arsenal posted by far the best defensive numbers in the Premier League last season. Mikel Arteta’s side kept 18 clean sheets and conceded only 29 goals.
Selecting at least one member of their back four is a must and pick is William Saliba. The Frenchman played every minute of Arsenal’s last Premier League campaign, is £0.5m cheaper than Ben White and is more nailed on to start than Gabriel Magalhaes, who has added competition for his place following the arrival of Riccardo Calafiori.
MID: Saka
Arsenal’s Bukayo Saka looks certain to get close to 90 minutes in Gameweek 1 despite a busy summer, as Mikel Arteta refuses to rest his star man, with minutes in their last two friendlies. Declan Rice appeared to be favourite for corner duties in the Emirates Cup but Saka has plenty of routes to points – he had 21 big chances on goal last season and created 16 big chances for his team-mates, plus he’s on penalties.
MID: Cole Palmer
Chelsea have had a tricky pre-season and face a daunting test in Gameweek 1 with Manchester City the visitors to Stamford Bridge, but it takes a brave FPL manager to go without Cole Palmer after his exploits last season.
Palmer finished top of the FPL rankings after scoring 22 goals and providing 13 assists, having started the campaign priced at just £5m. His value has more than doubled since then, but that hasn’t deterred people from buying him: he is currently the most-backed midfielder in the game.
MID: Eberechi Eze
It may be a surprise to see the £7.0 million budget friendly pick Eberechi Eze mixing with the premium players, but when you look at Crystal Palace’s pre-season form and kind opening fixtures, he becomes an obvious pick. He will be dominant across all set pieces following the departure of Michal Olise in the window. He finished last campaign with five goals and three assists in his last eight games
MID: Heung-min Son
Heung-min Son is the only Spurs player to make the top ten, and crucially ahead of popular new signing Dominic Solanke, who comes in a bit cheaper. Son plays one of his favourite opponents on Monday night, with nine Premier League goals against the Foxes, in a fixture which traditionally delivers goals. It’s unclear whether Son keeps spot-kick duties with the arrival of Solanke, but Spurs should benefit from a focal point.
FWD: Erling Haaland
Tough as it is to go without Salah, it would be harder to leave out Erling Haaland. The Norwegian could easily plunder a hat-trick on any given gameweek.
It’s a huge price tag, of course, but Haaland can certainly back it up. In two Premier League seasons, he has scored 63 goals and provided 19 FPL assists in only 66 games, which works out at 1.2 direct goal involvements per game.
FWD: Alexander Isak
Isak is the most owned player in the game heading into Gameweek 1, with a home game against Championship Play-off winners Southampton to get his season underway. He is the undisputed number nine for Newcastle United while Callum Wilson misses the start of the season through injury and he’s on penalties. He’s had a full pre-season and finished last campaign strongly, with 13 goal involvements in the last ten.
FWD: Alejandro Garnacho
Alejandro Garnacho who made a goalscoring start to his campaign in last weekend’s Community Shield defeat to Manchester City. The Argentine was directly involved in 14 league goals last season with seven goals and FPL assists apiece.
