Best FPL Players 2026/27: Top Picks by Position
The players worth building your GW1 squad around — position by position, with real launch prices, last season's returns and live pre-season ownership. A shortlist to work from before form and fixtures settle the final calls.
The pre-season template is Haaland (£15.5m, 74% owned) and Bruno Fernandes (£12.0m, 48%), with João Pedro (£7.5m) and Szoboszlai (£7.0m) the most-backed mid-price picks. Gabriel (£8.0m) leads the defenders and Raya (£6.0m) the goalkeepers. The best value sits in the £6.0m–£8.5m band.
Prices are the official 2026/27 launch prices. Points and points-per-game (PPG) are 2025/26 returns from the FPL API — some earned at a different club after summer transfers. Ownership is live pre-season selection (late July 2026) and will move before the GW1 deadline.
Three things that shape the 2026/27 picks
- No Salah. For the first time in nine years, Mohamed Salah isn't in the game. That removes the two-premium dilemma and makes a single Haaland easy to structure around.
- A reshuffled top end. Big summer moves changed the landscape — Isak to Liverpool, Semenyo, Guéhi and O'Reilly to Man City, João Pedro and Rogers to Chelsea. Check a player's new club before you assume last season's role.
- 11 position changes. Several defenders are now midfielders and a couple of midfielders are now defenders — see our full 2026/27 changes guide for the complete list.
Best forwards
Haaland is the only forward above £9.0m, so most squads run " Haaland plus two cheaper strikers". João Pedro at £7.5m is the runaway mid-price pick — already owned by nearly half the game.
| Player | Team | Price | Own | 25/26 pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Erling Haaland | MCI | £15.5m | 74% | 239 |
| João Pedro | CHE | £7.5m | 48% | 177 |
| Igor Thiago | BRE | £8.0m | 17% | 181 |
| Ollie Watkins | AVL | £8.0m | 13% | 167 |
| Alexander Isak | LIV | £9.0m | 12% | 41* |
| Viktor Gyökeres | ARS | £7.5m | 14% | 128 |
| J-P. Mateta | CRY | £6.5m | 8% | 114 |
*Isak's low tally reflects an injury-hit 2025/26 before his move to Liverpool — he's priced on pedigree, not last season's return.
Best midfielders
The deepest position in the game. Bruno is the one true premium now Salah's gone; below him, Szoboszlai (£7.0m) and Rogers (£7.5m) are the heavily-backed value plays, and Foden at £7.0m is the low-owned differential.
| Player | Team | Price | Own | 25/26 pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bruno Fernandes | MUN | £12.0m | 48% | 235 |
| Antoine Semenyo | MCI | £8.5m | 20% | 202 |
| Bukayo Saka | ARS | £9.5m | 11% | 157 |
| Morgan Gibbs-White | NFO | £8.0m | 13% | 188 |
| Dominik Szoboszlai | LIV | £7.0m | 43% | 160 |
| Morgan Rogers | CHE | £7.5m | 34% | 169 |
| Elliot Anderson | MCI | £6.5m | 12% | 180 |
| Phil Foden | MCI | £7.0m | 5% | 131 |
Best defenders
With defensive contribution points still in play, ball-playing centre-backs and attacking full-backs are top value. Gabriel is the marquee premium; Guéhi at £6.0m (now at City) is the standout mid-price defender.
| Player | Team | Price | Own | 25/26 pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gabriel | ARS | £8.0m | 25% | 209 |
| Marc Guéhi | MCI | £6.0m | 25% | 179 |
| Nico O'Reilly | MCI | £6.5m | 25% | 160 |
| Virgil van Dijk | LIV | £6.5m | 15% | 175 |
| James Tarkowski | EVE | £6.0m | 10% | 170 |
| Adrien Truffert | BOU | £5.5m | 5% | 165 |
| Konsa / Shaw (enablers) | AVL/MUN | £4.5m | ~19% | 100 / 113 |
Best goalkeepers
Goalkeeper is where you save money. Raya at £6.0m is the premium option, but most managers pair a mid-price starter with a nailed budget keeper — and Dúbravka at £4.0m is the popular enabler.
| Player | Team | Price | Own | 25/26 pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| David Raya | ARS | £6.0m | 30% | 162 |
| G. Donnarumma | MCI | £5.5m | 11% | 135 |
| Senne Lammens | MUN | £5.0m | 20% | 109 |
| Bart Verbruggen | BHA | £4.5m | 17% | 130 |
| Martin Dúbravka | TOT | £4.0m | 25% | 96 |
Pre-season template watch
If you want to know what "everyone" is picking, the most owned players heading into GW1 are Haaland (74%), Bruno Fernandes and João Pedro (~48% each), Szoboszlai (43%), Rogers (34%), Raya (30%), and Gabriel, Guéhi, O'Reilly and Dúbravka all around 25%. Owning the core protects your rank; leaving one out is where you take a calculated differential.
Best value picks (points per million)
By last season's points per million, the best value across the squad were Truffert (£5.5m), Guéhi (£6.0m) and Elliot Anderson (£6.5m), with Szoboszlai and João Pedro offering premium output at mid-price. On top of that, the position changes create cheap coverage: defenders reclassified as midfielders like Patrick Dorgu (£6.0m) and Keane Lewis-Potter (£5.5m) keep clean-sheet minutes while scoring at the midfield rate. Get one or two of those slots right and you free the budget for a Haaland-led attack.
Related reading
FAQs
- Who are the best FPL players to pick for 2026/27?
- The most-picked building blocks are Erling Haaland (£15.5m) and Bruno Fernandes (£12.0m) at the premium end, with João Pedro (£7.5m) and Dominik Szoboszlai (£7.0m) the standout mid-price picks — both owned by over 40% of managers in pre-season. Gabriel (£8.0m) is the top premium defender, and David Raya (£6.0m) the most-owned goalkeeper. The best value sits in the £6.0m–£8.5m band.
- Who is the most owned FPL player in 2026/27?
- Erling Haaland, selected by roughly 74% of managers in pre-season. Bruno Fernandes and João Pedro follow at around 48% each, then Szoboszlai (43%) and Morgan Rogers (34%). These figures are live pre-season ownership and will shift before the GW1 deadline on 21 August.
- Which cheap FPL players are worth picking in 2026/27?
- For points-per-million, Adrien Truffert (£5.5m), Marc Guéhi (£6.0m) and Elliot Anderson (£6.5m) were among the best-value outfielders last season. For pure enablers, Martin Dúbravka (£4.0m) is the go-to budget goalkeeper, and Ezri Konsa and Luke Shaw (£4.5m) are popular starting defenders. The reclassified midfielders — Patrick Dorgu (£6.0m) and Keane Lewis-Potter (£5.5m) — add cheap midfield coverage.
- Who is the most expensive midfielder in FPL 2026/27?
- Bruno Fernandes at £12.0m. With Mohamed Salah having left the Premier League, Bruno is the only true premium midfielder and scored 235 points last season. Phil Foden, by contrast, starts at just £7.0m — his cheapest since 2020/21 — making him a low-owned differential at around 5%.
- Should I start with Haaland in FPL 2026/27?
- Most managers will — he's owned by about 74% pre-season and remains the default captain after a 239-point season. With Salah out of the game, a single Haaland no longer forces a second-premium trade-off. The main reason to fade him is to spread that £15.5m across mid-price attackers like João Pedro, Igor Thiago and a premium midfielder instead.