Ahead of a huge weekend coming up which includes our second north London derby of the season, Fantasy Premier League returns for Gameweek 27.
We have an opportunity to quickly turn the page after our draw at Wolverhampton Wanderers on Wednesday, with a visit to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium providing a chance to secure another league double over our rivals.
HINCAPIE HAULS DGW POINTS
Our away draws with Brentford and Wolves were part of FPL’s first Double Gameweek (DGW) of 2025/26, and as a result, four of our players were able to scoop double-figure hauls, with Piero Hincapie (£5.1m) leading the charge with a total of 15. The Ecuadorian netted his first Premier League goal at Molineux, and while owned by just 0.6% of managers, he could be an interesting differential bet.
Declan Rice (£7.6m) added another 14 points to his total, having assisted Bukayo Saka at Wolves, and secured DefCon bonuses in each of our two GW26 fixtures. Saka (£9.8m) himself earned 13 points, thanks in no small part to his headed goal on Wednesday.
The other big points-hauler in our Double Gameweek was Noni Madueke (£6.8m), who opened the scoring last week against Brentford with a tidy looping header. Noni claimed 13 points in GW26, just one short of his GW24 total of 14 when he bagged his first Premier League goal for us at Leeds United.
Sunday brings a titanic showdown across north London when we face Tottenham, who we dispatched 4-1 at Emirates Stadium back in November. The derby will be the first match in charge for Spurs’ new boss Igor Tudor, as they fight for Premier League survival with a five-point gap to the relegation zone.
Despite their lowly league position, Spurs have had one success story in Fantasy football this season - namely defender Micky van de Ven (£4.5m), who stands on 100 points. The Dutch defender is owned by 23.6% of FPL squads, having returned at both ends of the pitch this term for a reasonable price.
Their next-highest FPL scorer has been midfielder Joao Palhinha (£5.5m), with 84 points despite an ownership of just 0.8%, while FPL-wise, the most in-form Spurs player over the last five games has been Dominic Solanke (£7.2m), the striker scooping 12 points in GW24 against Manchester City.
IN-FORM BARGAINS
There are plenty of potential bargain buys who are likely to serve your team well, and perhaps no more appealing than Bournemouth defender James Hill (£4.0m). Having previously dropped below the £4.0m fee into ultra-bargain territory, Hill has justified his 3.5% of managers’ faith with 29 points in the last four Gameweeks.
Hill’s Cherries teammate Amine Adli (£5.4m) is also an intriguing outside shot, twice claiming double-figure totals within the last four matches, playing in an advanced role despite being registered in-game as a midfielder. Bournemouth have three fixtures rated a ‘2’ difficulty level in their next four, making Adli and Hill strong differential options.
Another side to have turned up a notch of late is West Ham United, as they continue their battle for safety. Captain Jarrod Bowen (£7.6m) has shone and could help fill your forward line, averaging 6.8 points over his last five. This form is only bettered by one teammate, Crysencio Summerville (£5.6m) - a Fantasy midfield option out on the wing who has delivered 36 points between GW22 and GW25. An asterisk for the Hammers is that they do face both Liverpool and Man City among their upcoming four fixtures.
On the verge of reaching 100 points is the Reds' Dominik Szoboszlai (£6.7m), still reasonably priced given the Hungarian is prominent on free-kicks and other set-piece opportunities, and an encouraging run of upcoming matches. The caveat with Szoboszlai is that he is occasionally deployed at right-back, but remains ineligible for four-point clean sheet bonuses due to his registration as a midfielder.
Having previously seen his FPL totals drop off, causing a mass sale among the FPL community, Man City’s Nico O’Reilly (£4.9m) is once again a prized option. O’Reilly, in contrast to Szoboszlai, is registered as a defender but is being increasingly utilised in midfield, thus bolstering his chances of attacking returns. The young Englishman is now owned by fewer than 5% of teams.
PLANNING AHEAD
Due to participation in the latter stages of cup competitions and the difficulty in rearranging fixtures due to European commitments, there will be several more DGWs and Blank Gameweeks (BGWs).
It is already confirmed that in Gameweek 31, towards the late stages of March, neither ourselves nor City will feature due to the Carabao Cup final, consequently rendering both Wolves and Crystal Palace with a BGW alongside us. Should your squad be packed with players from any of these four clubs, there is a major risk of having to field an incomplete XI.
This is where chips come in very handy, and why you shouldn’t feel concerned that you have not yet found an ideal Gameweek to deploy them.
Using chips in back-to-back Gameweeks is very common, and in fact often recommended. Here’s an example strategy: If you play a Free Hit in GW31 - enabling you to temporarily dispense with your Arsenal and Man City assets - you could then play a Wildcard in GW32, focusing your team on any future DGWs and BGWs that may have been confirmed to take place by this point. Your Arsenal and City players will also have returned for the run-in.
If there is a DGW in Gameweek 33 for instance, your previously-played Wildcard can help fill your squad with players with two matches, and you can then slap down your Bench Boost - leaving you with up to 30 opportunities for points throughout your squad, which will have 15 players active in that week. This plan would also give you clarity by letting you plan only your current team from now until GW30 in mid-March.
Whatever you decide to do, whether long- or short-term, make sure you complete your transfers before this week’s deadline on Saturday, February 21, at 1:30pm UK time!