It’s that time again! With the English Premier League resuming today, it’s time to prep your FPL squads. While it might sound like a cliché, this season is truly going to stand out from the rest. For one, there have been some big changes announced for the FPL this year. So, before we dive into strategies for the season ahead, let’s quickly review these changes because they’re definitely going to affect how we play: **Changes to points-scoring** - Penalty saves for goalies will be reduced from 15 to 9 Bonus Points. - Goalkeepers and defenders conceding a goal will be worth -4 Bonus Points. - A goal line clearance will be worth 3 Bonus Points. - A foul won will be worth 1 Bonus Points. - A shot on target will be worth 2 Bonus Points. **Bank Five Free Transfers** - In previous seasons, you could only save a maximum of two free transfers. Now, you can hold on to five, giving you more flexibility for long-term planning. Plus, when you use your Wild Card or Free Hit, your saved transfers stay intact and won’t reset to zero like they used to in past seasons. Now that we have that cleared up, let’s get into how you should go about setting up your team this season. The obvious approach is having a balanced team. This balanced team has to compose of three types of players; Premium Players, Mid-Range Assets and Budget Enablers. - **Premium Players:** These are the few top-priced players who are consistent point-scorers. The popular examples of this are Erling Haaland and Mo Salah. These players should be your captains and vice-captains. - **Mid-Range Assets:** Players who offer good value and are likely to play regularly (e.g., players from mid-table teams with favourable fixtures). Players like Jarrod Bowen and Diogo Jota are excellent examples here. - **Budget Enablers:** These are cheap players who will start most games and allow you to allocate more funds to premium assets. They are also players who are on the cusp of having breakout seasons, and so will have to be grabbed early.
With that in mind, here’s my team for the upcoming season. Spoiler alert: At a whopping £15, Erling Haaland is just too pricey for me. I’ve opted to spread my budget across other areas of the pitch instead.
**Goal Keepers** **David Raya (£5.5)** Raya might not be the flashiest goalie in the game, but he plays behind the best defense in the league and that’s all that matters. The Spaniard is coming off a season where he kept a league-high 16 clean sheets and won the Golden Glove award. **Łukasz Fabiański (£4.0)** The reasoning here is simple; pick the least expensive goalie with the highest chance to play. That’s West Ham’s Fabiański. **Defenders** **Gabriel Magalhães (£6.0)** Arsenal defenders are definitely the top choice going into the season. They’re dependable when it comes to keeping clean sheets and are always a threat during set pieces. This year, my pick is Gabriel. Last season, the Brazilian defender had an impressive 31 goal attempts, far outshining his teammate William Saliba, who had 10. If he can replicate his last season form, I’ll be over the moon. **Manuel Akanji (£5.5)** Manuel Akanji has become a key player in Man City’s defense. Last season, he appeared in 30 of their 38 games, helping secure clean sheets in 10 of them. Another easy pick. **Pedro Porro (£5.5)** Spurs’ defense was shaky throughout the season, but Pedro Porro stood out in the final third. With 3 goals and 7 assists, he delivered an impressive return for a defender. Plus, he ranked 4th in shots on target among defenders, making him a pick I really like. **Ezri Konsa (£4.5)** Konsa featured in 35 of Aston Villa’s 38 league games as they made their long-awaited return to the Champions League after over four decades. While he’s not a major contributor in the attacking third, he’s solid for clean sheets. **Vitaliy Mykolenko (£4.5)** Despite an 8-point deduction that brought a ton of uncertainty and pressure, Everton kept 13 clean sheets in the league. Mykolenko was a big part of that, featuring in 28 games and helping to keep 10 of those clean sheets. At just £4.5, the Ukrainian defender offers great value for your team. **Midfielders** **Cole Palmer (£10.5)** Priced at £10.5, Chelsea’s Cole Palmer is a must-have this season. Not only that, he should be your captain. He had an outstanding debut season last year, scoring 22 goals and adding 11 assists in 34 games. He was a big hit for our online betting community as he produced on a weekly basis amid an underwhelming Chelsea season. With Palmer continuing as the main penalty and free-kick taker, he’s definitely a player you want on your team.
**Bukayo Saka (£10.1)** Arsenal’s Bukayo Saka is another great pick as a premium player. Like Cole Palmer, Saka is the main set-piece taker for the Gunners. Plus, his impressive fitness is a big bonus for us. Away from FPL, we believe the Arsenal star will lead the Gunners to reclaim the Premier League after 21 years, and we have the best odds for that.
**Bruno Fernandes (£8.4)** Bruno Fernandes ticks all the boxes for an FPL player; he scores, he assists, he handles penalties, free kicks and corners. Last season, he ranked 8th in shots on target with 41. Even though he hasn’t had the best start to the season, United’s next cluster of games after this weekend has some winnable fixtures, vs Southampton (Away) and vs Crystal Palace (Away). His price drop makes him even more appealing as you can get in an established FPL asset for cheaper than usual! **Noni Madueke (£6.5)** An Instagram story, wrongly posted from what the player assumed was his “burner” account, might have just sparked Chelsea’s right flank to life. Ahead of the Wolves game, Chelsea winger, Noni Madueke posted an unflattering story about the city of Wolverhampton. While the story was hastily deleted, the damage was done, and his every touch was met with derisive boos from the home crowd. Unfortunately for the hecklers, that only spurred him on to score a hat trick that made him the highest-scoring player last weekend. _“Don’t fix what’s not broken” _is an adage we suspect Enzo Maresca will stick with this weekend and if Madueke has another good game against Crystal Palace this weekend, that right wing slot could be his to lose. **Amad Traore (£5.0)** This pick is all about freeing up your budget. We’re backing Amad Traore to have a breakout season for Manchester United, and at just £5.0, one goal and 9 FPL points already, he’s a risk worth taking. Other budget-enablers to keep in mind include West Ham’s Tomáš Souček (£5.0) and Brentford’s £4.9-rated Fabio Carvalho.
**Nicholas Jackson (£7.6)** Nicholas Jackson is an intriguing player. Last season, he showed off the best parts of his game – relentless pressing, quick bursts in behind an opposing defence and held up play for the likes of Cole Palmer excellently. However, he was also wasteful in front of goal. This season, he has embodied both again – squandering a couple of chances against City and leading the line excellently against Wolves. Chelsea’s inability to agree a deal with Osimhen means that he’s the clear favorite to lead the line for the Blues this season. With 12 points already, he could be a reliable source of FPL points, especially since he’ll be fed with chances by the likes of Cole Palmer and Reece James (when the Chelsea captain can get on the pitch) **Jean-Philippe Mateta (£7.5)** The Crystal Palace forward was a must-have in the second half of last season. After a slow start, he came alive in 2024, scoring 14 goals and providing 2 assists in just 18 league games, including a hat-trick on the final matchday. However, a word of caution – Mateta is still getting back to full match fitness after his exertions at the Paris Olympics with France. So, what do you think? Which of these players can boost your FPL team AND also win you money this weekend? [Sign up with us today](https://m.betking.com/account/registration) to find out and try out the [best betting apps](https://m.betking.com/l/mobile-app/) in the market as well!