The Scout uses the Fixture Difficulty Ratings (FDR) to identify the clubs and players with the best and worst schedules over the next six Gameweeks in Fantasy Premier League.
Who has the best fixtures?
Liverpool
Liverpool's kind upcoming schedule makes their players key targets for Fantasy managers at both ends of the pitch.
According to the FDR, where the difficulty of each match is ranked from one to five - with one being the easiest possible match and five being the hardest - the Reds have the best schedule over the next six Gameweeks.
All of the Reds' matches in that spell score three or below, with an average of 2.5.
Clubs with the best fixtures, GW27-32
| Club | FDR average | Matches scoring 2 or 1 in FDR |
| Liverpool | 2.5 | 3 |
|---|---|---|
| Brentford | 2.7 | 2 |
| Aston Villa | 2.7 | 3 |
| Bournemouth | 2.8 | 3 |
| Fulham | 2.8 | 2 |
| Sunderland | 3.0 | 1 |
*Scroll across to see full table
Liverpool begin their appealing run with a trip to Nottingham Forest, who haven't won any of their last five home games and have just made their fourth managerial change of the campaign, with Vitor Pereira taking charge.
Their upcoming run also includes home matches against West Ham United and Fulham, as well as a meeting with bottom side Wolverhampton Wanderers, each rated at only two in the FDR.
Liverpool's next six matches
| GW | Opponent | FDR* |
|---|---|---|
| 27 | Nott'm Forest (A) | 3 |
| 28 | West Ham (H) | 2 |
| 29 | Wolves (A) | 2 |
| 30 | Spurs (H) | 3 |
| 31 | Brighton (A) | 3 |
| 32 | Fulham (H) | 2 |
*1=easiest possible fixture, 5=hardest possible fixture
Virgil van Dijk (£5.9m) is the most-popular Liverpool recruit for the next round of matches. The defender has been snapped up by over 100,000 FPL managers ahead of Saturday's deadline.
The Dutchman delivered his best points total of 2025/26 Fantasy in Gameweek 26 as Arne Slot's side became the first team to win at Sunderland this season. Van Dijk scored, kept a clean sheet, earned two defensive contribution points and maximum bonus points for a huge 17-point haul.
In attack, Florian Wirtz's (£8.4m) total of 63 points across the last 10 Gameweeks places him first for Liverpool, while his four double-figure hauls in that time rank joint-top among all players, level with Newcastle United's Bruno Guimaraes (£7.0m).
Also vying for our attention is Mohamed Salah (£14.0m) and Hugo Ekitike (£8.9m).
Forward Ekitike dominates Liverpool's goal threat stats this season, with his 10 goals, 57 shots and 18 big chances all being team-leading totals.
Salah, meanwhile, is looking a much happier figure since his return from the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON), earning praise from Slot following the 3-0 win over Brighton & Hove Albion in the FA Cup, in which he scored and provided an assist.
For a player with such a high ceiling, three assists in four Premier League matches doesn't sound especially impressive but his 13 shots in the box during that period are the most of any player in Fantasy.
Could form and fixtures combine to make Salah - currently at his lowest ownership (14.2 per cent) in Fantasy since joining Liverpool in 2017 - an explosive differential?
Brentford
Brentford lie second for ease of fixtures over the next six Gameweeks.
That could see Igor Thiago (£7.0m) return to the fore after being shipped out by more than 1.5million people over the last three Gameweeks. The Brazilian currently sits second in the race for the Premier League Golden Boot on 17 goals, five adrift of Erling Haaland (£14.9m).
Thiago scored three goals in the reverse fixtures against his next two opponents, Brighton and Burnley, earlier in the campaign.
Dango Ouattara (£5.8m) is another name to consider, with his 4.3 points per match bettered only by Thiago among Brentford players.
AFC Bournemouth
If we were to narrow our focus to the next four Gameweeks only, AFC Bournemouth would rise to the top of the rankings for the best fixtures. Their FDR average in that time is a mere 2.3, with three of those fixtures rated at just two.
The Cherries face West Ham, Sunderland, Brentford and Burnley in their next four matches.
Bournemouth defender James Hill (£4.0m) is currently the best-value player in Fantasy based on recent form.
Since breaking into the starting XI in Gameweek 19, he's racked up 40 points, a total unsurpassed by any of his team-mates. That run has seen the cut-price defender combine three assists with a clean sheet, two bonus points and 14 defensive contribution points.
Further forward, injuries to Justin Kluivert (£7.0m) and Marcus Tavernier (£5.3m), coupled with Antoine Semenyo's (£8.0m) departure to Man City, have handed opportunities to Junior Kroupi (£4.7m), Amine Adli (£5.4m) and new signing Rayan (£5.5m). All three have taken their chance.
Adli has produced either a goal or an assist in four of his last five matches, notching two double-digit hauls, while Rayan has produced attacking returns in each of his three Premier League appearances to date.
However, with David Brooks (£5.0m) regaining fitness and Tavernier not far behind him, there is set to be increased competition for places in Andoni Iraola's side. Tavernier, in particular, is one to have on the watchlist. Costing just £5.3m, he's taken - and scored - each of Bournemouth's last two Premier League penalties.
Aston Villa
Villa rank third for the best fixtures over the next six Gameweeks. But are there reliable players to invest in?
Ollie Watkins (£8.6m) has mustered just one shot on target across his last two outings and has blanked in four of his past five appearances. With fellow forward Tammy Abraham (£6.0m) joining in the January transfer window, Watkins could see his game time reduced.
Villa's best performer, Morgan Rogers (£7.6m), has one goal in nine matches, although his 26 shots in that time frame offer encouragement to his owners.
Leeds at home, followed by Wolves away, mean it is worth keeping Rogers for now, but injuries to key midfielders including Youri Tielemans (£5.9m) and John McGinn (£5.4m) haven't helped Villa's attack overall.
Who has the worst fixtures?
Arsenal and Wolves
Without a fixture in Blank Gameweek 31 due to the EFL Cup final, both Arsenal and Wolves see their average for Gameweek 27 to 32 suffer as a result.
But there's no rush to sell Arsenal players, who can be held up until the Blank Gameweek, especially considering they have encounters with Brighton and Everton directly beforehand.
Clubs with the worst fixtures, GW22-27
| Club | FDR average | Matches scoring 4 or 5 in FDR |
|---|---|---|
| Wolves | 3.5 | 1 |
| Arsenal | 3.5 | 0 |
| Newcastle | 3.4 | 3 |
| Spurs | 3.4 | 3 |
| West Ham | 3.4 | 3 |
*Scroll across to see full table
Newcastle, Spurs, West Ham
Trips to Man City and Chelsea over the next four Gameweeks, coupled with having to play two UEFA Champions League play-off matches, will curtail any interest in Newcastle players - and the influential Guimaraes will be out until April with a hamstring injury.
Spurs' new head coach Igor Tudor doesn't have an easy start to life at Tottenham Hotspur, with games against Arsenal and Liverpool among his opening four fixtures.
Cristian Romero (£5.0m) is suspended for the first three of those, while full-backs Pedro Porro (£5.1m) and Destiny Udogie (£4.3m) - together with midfielder Mohammed Kudus (£6.4m) - form part of a lengthy injury list.
Meanwhile, West Ham play three teams with a difficulty rating of four over their next five matches.
But the Hammers are in good form thanks to three wins in their last five matches, suggesting their star performers during that run, Jarrod Bowen (£7.6m) and Crysencio Summerville (£5.6m), could be worth keeping provided you can bench them for the contests against Liverpool and Man City.
Summerville has four goals and 39 points from five matches, while Bowen has 30 points from the same period.