The 5 best FPL tips for Gameweek 27
Normal service resumes on Fantasy Premier League this weekend with a full round of fixtures taking place after a reduced gameweek last time out.
We are right in the thick of chip playing season and while it is unlikely you will want to activate your Free Hit, Triple Captain or Bench Boost in Gameweek 27, you may wish to soon with double and blank gameweeks looming on the horizon.
For instance, if you haven’t played the Triple Captain yet you may be tempted to entrust Dominic Solanke with the honours in Gameweek 28 when Bournemouth have two appealing home fixtures against relegation-threatened Sheffield United and Luton.
And if you still have the Free Hit handy Gameweek 29 looks like an optimal time to use it given there are currently only three league fixtures definitely taking place due to the FA Cup quarter-finals being held over the same weekend. Most FPL squads will have more holes in them than a block of Emmental cheese.
i‘s top scorers in Gameweek 26
- Bukayo Saka – 10 points vs Newcastle: Our newsletter captain scored twice as many points as the most popular captain Erling Haaland after scoring a goal, keeping a clean sheet and earning two bonus points.
- Ollie Watkins – 9 points vs Nottingham Forest: Aston Villa’s Mr Consistent produced another goal and assist in an entertaining clash at Villa Park. A nine-point score maintains his place at the top of the FPL scoring charts, one point ahead of Saka.
- Jose Sa/Pascal Gross – 7 points vs Sheffield Utd/Everton: Sa kept a third clean sheet in his last seven appearances as Wolves hung on against the Blades at Molineux, while Gross provided an added time assist for Lewis Dunk’s equaliser against Everton.
Includes players selected in i‘s Fantasy Football newsletter
The headline fixture this weekend is the Manchester derby on Sunday and not for the first time in recent years it is City that come into it with greater momentum having won eight of their last nine league matches. United, on the other hand, will be aiming to bounce back from a disappointing home defeat to Fulham.
The Gameweek 27 deadline is at 1.30pm on Saturday 2 March.
This is an extract of i’s Fantasy Premier League tips. Sign up here to receive the newsletter every week this season for our full 11-player team, advice on the best captain and more!
Gameweek 27 fixtures
Saturday 2 March
*3pm kick-off unless otherwise stated
- Brentford vs Chelsea
- Everton vs West Ham
- Fulham vs Brighton
- Newcastle vs Wolves
- Nottingham Forest vs Liverpool
- Spurs vs Crystal Palace
- Luton vs Aston Villa (5.30pm)
Sunday 3 March
- Burnley vs Bournemouth (1.30pm)
- Man City vs Man Utd (3.30pm)
Monday 4 March
- Sheffield Utd vs Arsenal (8pm)
Kai Havertz (Arsenal)
At the time of writing, 13 Arsenal players are in more FPL squads than Kai Havertz is (including Aaron Ramsdale who has made one Premier League appearance since September) and he is the seventh-most transferred in Gunner ahead of Saturday’s deadline.
It seems as though Havertz’s reputation as a profligate finisher precedes him as he has been in excellent FPL form over the past couple of gameweeks. The 24 year old has provided a goal and assist in each of his last two matches ahead of Arsenal’s meeting with bottom-of-the-table Sheffield United on Monday night. Indeed, his total of 26 points since Gameweek 25 is higher than any other player in the game.
Havertz has benefited from a recent change of role which has resulted in him linking up with Martin Odegaard in attack and having more opportunities to score than previously. Considering he is currently in less than two per cent of FPL squads, Havertz looks a great differential option this week against the worst defence in the division.
Price: £7.1m Points: 89 Gameweek 27 fixture: Sheffield Utd (a)
Marcos Senesi (Bournemouth)
If you’re looking for exciting short-term investments, Bournemouth are the team to target. The Cherries face each of the bottom three in the next two gameweeks, a run that includes a mouthwatering double gameweek against Sheffield United (h) and Luton (h).
Solanke is the priority purchase from their attack, while Marcos Senesi is the obvious pick from Bournemouth’s backline. The centre-back has amassed 68 points so far, which is 19 more than Ilya Zabarnyi, Bournemouth’s next highest-scoring defender.
The Argentine has proven to be a significant set-piece threat with three goals already this season, level with fellow top-scoring defenders Gabriel Magalhaes, Lewis Dunk, Fabian Schar and Cristian Romero. He can add to that tally against a Burnley side that has conceded the second-most set-piece goals (with 14) in the league.
Price: £4.5m Points: 68 Gameweek 27 fixture: Burnley (a)
Son Heung-min (Spurs)
Tottenham endured a disappointing defeat against Wolves in their last Premier League fixture but have had two weeks to prepare for their next assignment against Oliver Glasner’s Crystal Palace. It’s a fixture that suddenly looks tougher than it might have been a few weeks ago with the Austrian getting off to a flyer as the Eagles thrashed Burnley.
Nevertheless, Spurs have a strong record against their London rivals down the years, as does their captain Son Heung-min. The South Korean has scored eight goals in 15 league matches against Palace, only netting more against Southampton (10 goals) and Leicester (nine) in the competition.
Another benefit to buying Son is that Spurs are one of the few sides to play Gameweek 29 when they face Fulham at Craven Cottage. If you are planning to attack that gameweek without using the Free Hit it is imperative to target assets from clubs with a game that weekend.
Price: £9.6m Points: 142 Gameweek 27 fixture: Crystal Palace (h)
Rodrigo Muniz (Fulham)
Budget-friendly striker Rodrigo Muniz has started Fulham’s last four league games and has posted some extremely encouraging statistics in that time. The 22-year-old is second only to Erling Haaland for shots among forwards in that period (Haaland has had 26, Muniz 18) and the Norwegian had an extra fixture courtesy of City’s double gameweek.
Although Muniz failed to convert any of his five attempts during Fulham’s impressive win at Old Trafford last Saturday, he has been in clinical form scoring four goals in his last four appearances, which is level with Rasmus Hojlund and Ollie Watkins at the top of the forward’s leaderboard in that period.
Fulham will be in confident mood after recording their first away victory at Manchester United in over two decades and will be optimistic about their chances of scoring against Brighton. Besides the bottom three, the Seagulls have kept the fewest number of clean sheets (three) in the top-flight.
Price: £4.4m Points: 43 Gameweek 27 fixture: Brighton (h)
Phil Foden (Man City)
Phil Foden ended a run of three successive blanks by scoring the winner as City maintained their ominous, title-challenging form. With Erling Haaland missing chances and City as a collective not quite at their best, Foden’s output has been extremely welcome.
The England international already has 16 direct goal contributions for the campaign (nine goals, seven assists) and is just two away from matching his previous best, set in 2022-23. Foden is thriving after being given a more central role and therefore, more responsibility, by Pep Guardiola since the end of last year.
Next up for City is the small matter of the Manchester derby at the Etihad, a fixture that both Foden and Haaland scored hat-tricks in last season. Considering how impactful his recent performance have been, Foden has nudged his way into the captaincy conversation this weekend.
Price: £8.1m Points: 143 Gameweek 27 fixture: Man Utd (h)
