The Scout on the key takeaways from the first three Gameweeks of 2025/26 Fantasy Premier League.
Joao Pedro quickest to settle among new forwards
While the summer transfer market was dominated by a host of moves for forwards, it’s Chelsea’s Joao Pedro (£7.7m) who has made the fastest start. Playing as a No 10 in the absence of Cole Palmer (£10.4m) against West Ham United in Gameweek 2, the Brazilian showed his versatility with a bumper 15-point haul.
Joao Pedro is already the most-owned player in Fantasy, found in 63 per cent of squads, and his influence on the Blues suggests his popularity will only continue to grow.
Revived Grealish the Everton talisman
Two assists and a double-figure haul in both his starts since joining Everton on loan have made Jack Grealish (£6.7m) the must-have player ahead of Gameweek 4, with 770,000+ managers rushing to bring him in.
Toffees boss David Moyes has bought wisely in the transfer window and Grealish, along with fellow midfielder Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall (£5.0m), has the chance to revive his Fantasy career.
Three home matches in the next four – against Aston Villa, West Ham and Crystal Palace – give Grealish and Everton the chance to build on their early-season momentum.
Arsenal defence back to their best
It took a Dominik Szoboszlai (£6.5m) wonder goal to prevent Arsenal from heading into the international break on the back of three clean sheets.
Despite visiting both Manchester United and Liverpool over the first three Gameweeks, the Gunners are the only side who are yet to concede a single big chance, or a situation where the player is expected to score.
Arsenal have a great schedule from Gameweek 7 onwards, and with rotation in the full-back positions a concern, investing in goalkeeper David Raya (£5.5m) or one of the centre-backs – Gabriel and William Saliba (both £6.1m) – looks a safer option.
Haaland hits the ground running
It’s three goals in the first three Gameweeks for Erling Haaland (£14.1m), with the Manchester City star sitting just two points behind Joao Pedro on 24 points.
Certainly, the numbers look very promising for the Norwegian – his 14 shots and 13 shots in the box are both league-leading totals.
Furthermore, Haaland’s six big chances are TWICE every other player apart from the five of AFC Bournemouth’s Antoine Semenyo (£7.4m).
Liverpool’s 4-2-3-1 formation is hampering Salah
On the surface of it, Mohamed Salah (£14.5m) has enjoyed a reasonable start to the season – the Liverpool star has a goal, an assist and just one blank, at home to Arsenal.
Yet it’s worth noting that each of those attacking returns came when both Florian Wirtz (£8.4m) and Hugo Ekitike (£8.7m) had already been replaced late on in matches.
In complete contrast with Haaland, Salah has had ZERO big chances and Liverpool themselves have a total of only five, indicating Arne Slot’s new 4-2-3-1 formation is taking time to gel.
Senesi and Van den Berg the budget defensive contribution stars
Everton’s James Tarkowski (£5.5m) would have been the top-scoring defender in Fantasy for defensive contributions in each of the last four seasons, so it’s no real surprise to learn he is one of three defenders who boast a 100 per cent record for the brand-new metric.
Bournemouth centre-back Marcos Senesi (£4.6m) and Brentford’s Sepp Van den Berg (£4.5m) have both matched Tarkowski’s run to lift their appeal as the standout budget defenders.
Of the two, the Cherries' schedule makes Senesi one of the very best sub-£5.0m assets right now – Bournemouth have four home matches and a visit to Leeds United across the next six Gameweeks.
Bournemouth's next six matches
| GW | Opponent | FDR* |
|---|---|---|
| 4 | Brighton (H) | 3 |
| 5 | Newcastle (H) | 3 |
| 6 | Leeds (A) | 2 |
| 7 | Fulham (H) | 3 |
| 8 | Crystal Palace (A) | 3 |
| 9 | Nott'm Forest (H) | 3 |
*1 = easiest, 5 = hardest
Be flexible
Chelsea’s recent loan recall of Marc Guiu (£4.4m) from Sunderland has immediately shown why managers must always be flexible with their plans.
Many had opted for a 3-5-2 formation to start the season, with Guiu’s ultra-low price allowing you to sit him on your bench in case of emergencies.
But an injury to Liam Delap (£6.4m) in Gameweek 3 has forced the Blues to cancel Guiu’s loan deal, forcing many managers to already reassess their tactics.
If you're looking to move to 3-4-3, midfielder Josh King (£4.5m) has started all three of Fulham's matches as a No 10.
Promoted clubs proving tougher at home
In the last two seasons in particular, managers have heavily profited from backing attackers who face the promoted clubs.
But this season’s contingent – Burnley, Leeds and Sunderland – have proven tougher nuts to crack in their home matches.
Indeed, the trio have conceded a combined one goal across five such contests so far, winning four and drawing one.
Man Utd offering a greater attacking threat
Results have been somewhat mixed for Man Utd, with a win, a draw and a defeat over their first three matches.
The attacking data does offer plenty of encouragement, though, with Ruben Amorim’s side ranked top for both shots and shots in the box so far.
Despite the arrival of Matheus Cunha and Bryan Mbeumo (both £8.1m) over the summer, it's Bruno Fernandes (£9.0m) who remains the go-to pick – the Portuguese has kept penalty duties and has collected two defensive contribution points in two of his first three outings.