Gameweek 5 is here, and the fixtures have given FPL managers plenty to think about.
Manchester City have the standout home matchup against Sunderland, Nottingham Forest welcome Coventry City, Newcastle United host Hull City, while Arsenal travel to Brighton with Bukayo Saka already enjoying an excellent start to the campaign.
This week, we’re leaning heavily into form, fixture quality, expected minutes and attacking involvement rather than simply chasing last week’s points.
We’ve also built this Scout
Picks squad around the full £100.0m FPL budget, making sure no club is represented by more than three players.
Our final squad comes in at £99.5m, leaving just £0.5m in the bank.
Our FPL Gameweek 5 Scout Picks
Formation: 3-4-3
Goalkeeper: Bart Verbruggen
Defenders: Josko Gvardiol, James Tarkowski, Neco Williams
Midfielders: Bruno Fernandes, Morgan Gibbs-White, Bukayo Saka, Harvey Barnes
Forwards: Erling Haaland (C), Dominic Calvert-Lewin, Yoane Wissa
Bench: Michael Zetterer, Bobby Thomas, Nobel Mendy, Jules Ahoka
Bart Verbruggen — Brighton — £4.5m
This is a budget decision that allows us to strengthen the outfield positions while still having a £4.5m goalkeeper with save-point potential. Verbruggen is also one of the £4.5m goalkeepers highlighted as a useful budget option for the 2026/27 season.
Brighton’s fixture against Arsenal is not an easy one, but we’re comfortable taking the calculated risk here.
- GW5 fixture: Arsenal (H)
Josko Gvardiol — Manchester City — £5.7m
Gvardiol is one of the first names into the defense. He’s already produced attacking returns this season and has shown that he can get forward from City’s back line.
The bigger attraction is the fixture. Manchester City welcome Sunderland to the Etihad, and City are expected to dominate possession and territory.
Gvardiol gives us access to that defensive upside without paying the premium required for some of the game’s most expensive defenders.
- GW5 fixture: Sunderland (H)
James Tarkowski — Everton — £6.1m
Tarkowski is the expensive defender in this squad, but there’s a reason for it.
He’s a consistent defensive-contribution threat and carries genuine set-piece danger. His ability to collect points through clearances, blocks, interceptions and tackles adds another route to returns beyond a clean sheet.
Everton’s home matchup with Ipswich also makes him particularly appealing this week. Current FPL projections have Tarkowski among the stronger defensive options over the upcoming run.
- GW5 fixture: Ipswich (H)
Neco Williams — Nottingham Forest — £5.0m
This is one of our favorite value picks. Forest host Coventry, a team that has failed to score in its opening four Premier League matches.
Williams’ role is particularly attractive because Forest’s 3-4-3 system gives their wing-backs opportunities to get forward. At £5.0m, we’re getting both clean-sheet potential and attacking upside.
Forest also have one of the more favorable fixture runs coming up, making Williams more than just a one-week punt.
- GW5 fixture: Coventry (H)
Bruno Fernandes — Manchester United — £12.0m
Bruno is expensive, but he earns his place. The Manchester United captain remains heavily involved in his team’s attacking play and set pieces, giving him several different routes to FPL points.
He’s already among the leading midfielders for attacking involvement this season, and his £12.0m price reflects the expectation that he will continue to produce big hauls.
He finished 2025/26 with 235 FPL points, including nine goals and 24 assists, and has once again been priced as one of the game’s premium midfielders.
- GW5 fixture: Fulham (A)
Morgan Gibbs-White — Nottingham Forest — £8.0m
Gibbs-White might be the midfielder we’re most excited about outside of the obvious premiums. He’s already produced one goal and two assists in the opening four Gameweeks and has been heavily involved in Forest’s chance creation.
The underlying numbers are encouraging too. Gibbs-White’s creativity and his league-leading tally for big chances created at this stage of the season, makes him a stand out option. At £8.0m, he gives us an excellent combination of price, role and fixture.
And yes, we’re very interested in having him against Coventry.
- GW5 fixture: Coventry (H)
Bukayo Saka — Arsenal — £9.5m
Saka is another premium midfielder who doesn’t need a perfect fixture to make our XI. He has already scored 30 FPL points this season, including three goals, and his underlying numbers remain strong. His current FPL price of £9.5m makes him easier to accommodate than the very top-tier premiums.
Brighton away isn’t an ideal fixture, but Saka’s role and consistency make him difficult to leave out.
- GW5 fixture: Brighton (A)
Harvey Barnes — Newcastle United — £6.0m
This is our value play in midfield. Barnes was priced at £6.0m at the start of the season and has been handed an important attacking role following Anthony Gordon’s departure.
He scored twice during Newcastle’s preseason preparations and has remained an attractive FPL option because of his direct attacking style and relatively modest price.
The fixture is the big selling point. Newcastle host Hull at St James’ Park, giving Barnes a chance to contribute to what should be a high-volume attacking performance.
- GW5 fixture: Hull (H)
Erling Haaland — Manchester City — £15.5m
Captain
We’re not overthinking this one. Haaland gets the armband.
The Norwegian is the most expensive player in FPL history at £15.5m, but he’s also coming off another outstanding start to the campaign.
He has scored in each of his first four Premier League appearances and already has four league goals. More importantly, Manchester City now have a home fixture against Sunderland.
When you combine Haaland’s form, his role as City’s primary goalscorer and the fixture, he’s the obvious captain for our team.
Considering previous Haaland’s remarkable early-season record, with the forward finishing as FPL’s top scorer after the first six Gameweeks in each of his first four Manchester City seasons.
- GW5 fixture: Sunderland (H)
Captain: Erling Haaland
Dominic Calvert-Lewin — Leeds United — £6.0m
Calvert-Lewin provides the budget-friendly forward option we need alongside Haaland and Wissa. At £6.0m, he allows us to spend heavily on premium midfielders without completely sacrificing our forward line.
The matchup with Crystal Palace is also appealing. Palace have been involved in some high-scoring matches already this season, creating the kind of environment in which a striker can produce a surprise haul.
Calvert-Lewin isn’t expected to match Haaland’s output, but at this price, we’re looking for one thing: A goal or two that can separate our squad from the crowd.
- GW5 fixture: Crystal Palace (H)
Yoane Wissa — Newcastle United — £6.2m
Wissa rounds out the starting XI. He’s already shown his goal threat since arriving at Newcastle and remains one of the more interesting mid-priced forwards in FPL.
The fixture is again doing a lot of the work here. Hull travel to St James’ Park, and Newcastle should have plenty of opportunities to attack.
Current Gameweek 5 projections have Wissa among the leading forward options, with his £6.2m price offering useful value.
- GW5 fixture: Hull (H)
The Bench
We’re keeping the bench cheap, as you should generally do when building a squad around premium players.
Michael Zetterer — Leeds — £4.0m
Zetterer is our backup goalkeeper at the minimum £4.0m price.
The idea is simple: don’t waste money on a backup goalkeeper when those funds can be invested into your starting XI.
Bobby Thomas — Coventry — £4.0m
Thomas is one of the more interesting £4.0m defenders because of his defensive-contribution potential. He is specifically identified as one of the standout budget defenders at the start of the season.
He’s primarily here to provide emergency cover.
Nobel Mendy — Hull — £4.0m
Another £4.0m defensive enabler. Mendy’s defensive workload could make him useful when called upon, but we’re not expecting him to start ahead of our stronger defensive options in Gameweek 5.
Jules Ahoka — Sunderland — £4.5m
Ahoka completes the bench. At £4.5m, he gives us the minimum-cost forward option needed to complete the squad while preserving enough money for our premium starting XI.
Haaland is the centerpiece. His price is enormous, but so is his ceiling, and Sunderland at the Etihad is exactly the type of fixture where managers want their premium striker.
Gibbs-White is our Forest midfielder of choice, while Neco Williams gives us exposure to Forest’s defense and their attacking wing-back system.
Saka and Bruno provide premium midfield coverage, while Barnes and Wissa give us Newcastle exposure against Hull without breaking the bank.
The key to making this squad work financially was resisting the temptation to fill the bench with expensive players. FPL itself recommends using cut-price bench options so more of the £100m budget can be concentrated on the starting XI.
And that’s exactly what we’ve done.
Haaland wears the armband. Saka gets vice-captain duties.
Now let’s see what Gameweek 5 has in store.
- READ MORE: FPL Gameweek 5 Differential Picks: 10 Players Who Could Haul
