FPL GW26 Tips - Best Midfielders, BGW26 Planning & More

Welcome to Insanely Football’s Dilemmas blog for Gameweek 26 of the FPL 2023/24 season. This blog will break down all the popular Dilemmas FPL managers have this week and offer FPL GW26 tips that will help you address the key dilemmas and maximize your FPL points.

The blog is written by Insanely Football. Do subscribe to his YouTube channel Insanely Football for more FPL-related content. You can also follow him on I nstagram for daily FPL updates.

Let’s dive right into it. We will start with the first one.

Link to all our FPL GW26 blogs including Buy, Hold, Sell analysis, Differentials, Captaincy metrics, Scout picks, Wildcard Drafts, Tips, and more. Completely free to access as well!

FPL GW26 Tips – Key Questions/Dilemmas Answered

1) Do we need to use the ‘Free Hit’ chip this week?

Is it okay to play the Free Hit ahead of FPL GW26?

Many FPL managers have players from Chelsea, Liverpool, Luton and Tottenham in their respective teams. All these teams don’t play this week, and managers are struggling to field a strong playing XI.

You can avoid dealing with these players and play the Free Hit this week. The most significant advantage of a Free Hit this week is that you can easily field XI players without taking any hits and try to go aggressive by doubling/tripling on teams like Man City, Wolves and Manchester United, who all have excellent fixtures this week.

It’s an excellent way to attack this week, but it may come at a cost. Depending on your current players, you may be left with a not-so-ideal team for GW29 and a Blank Gameweek for a few teams. We have yet to know the exact fixtures, so it is unknown.

It ultimately depends on your team. If your team is stacked with double/triple-ups from Chelsea, Liverpool, Luton and Tottenham, taking multiple hits might not help you reach an ideal team. In that scenario, play the Free Hit this week. In other scenarios, see if you can field 10/11 players with a couple of hits. If you can, save the chip for a later week.

Note: Other gameweeks to use the Free Hit are GW34 and GW37. The latter, in particular, is likely to be a huge Double Gameweek, and saving the chip for it may be ideal.

Further Read: 2023/24 FPL Chip Strategy Guide – Best Windows and Analysis (Must read)

2) What to do with Liverpool players ahead of Blank Gameweek 26

What to do with Liverpool players this week?

Some of the Liverpool players were popular transfers last week. Still, with them blanking this gameweek, managers are struggling to understand whether to sell/hold them.

We will start with the defence first. Trent Alexander-Arnold will likely miss the Carabao Cup final between Liverpool and Chelsea. He already missed both games in the Double Gameweek 25. With quite a few defensive options available, he is a sell for me.

It’s not straightforward for players like Bradley, Van Dijk and Robertson. If you can afford to bench them and still field XI players this week, I’d hold them and sell them for a different defensive option.

You can get an Arsenal defender this week. They are a decent defence and great from set pieces, so the points potential is relatively high. They are likely to blank in GW29; you may want to choose a different pick. Aston Villa plays in GW26 and GW29, and Pau Torres can be a good and safe pick. He is back from injury and will likely be one of the starting CBs for the team.

Coming to midfielders/attackers. I would sell Jota, as he picked up an injury against Brentford in the first game of the Double in GW25. He will likely be out long-term and is an easy sell. I have covered the replacements in detail in the section below!

Suppose you were one of those who punted on Salah or kept him all this while. It’s okay to hold him. He is likely to be fit for the game in GW27, and I’d only recommend selling him if he is your route to getting Haaland or you sold Saka earlier and now want him back. In all other scenarios, I’d hold Salah.

Darwin is a tricky one! He is okay holding if you can bench and still have 11 playing players. But if selling him helps you get to Solanke (Doubles in GW28), you can sell him this week. Also, if Darwin is your route to get back Watkins, I’d be okay selling for the latter this week.

Further Read: FPL GW26 Scout Picks- Top Picks based on Stats and Matchups

3) Who are the best replacements for Diogo Jota ahead of FPL GW26?

As mentioned in the section above, Liverpool’s Diogo Jota is expected to be out for months. It’s an easy sell, but who are the best replacement options?

Bukayo Saka (ARS)

This is an obvious one! If you were one of the managers to sell Saka for a Double Gameweek player in GW25, you could quickly get him back this week. It’s a great strategy if you have additional funds and want to play it safe. Saka has had 3 double-digit hauls in the last 4 weeks and has scored 6 goals at the same time.

Leon Bailey/Douglas Luiz (AVL)

Leon Bailey has only started 12 games this season but has 14 attacking returns to show. (7G+7A). Of the last 12 games for Villa, he has started the last 10 and has played well across these games. His goal involvement numbers are impressive, and Bailey will surely score more FPL points. The issue with him is still his game time and the fact that he rarely gets bonus points.

An alternate could be Douglas Luiz, a regular in the Aston Villa team. He is on penalties and is the 2nd highest FPL points scorer for Villa after Ollie Watkins. Whichever player you go for, both are good picks, as they have a game in GW29 where most other teams/players are expected to blank.

Jarrod Bowen (WHU)

Coming to the pricier end of the replacement options, we have Jarrod Bowen from West Ham. Bowen started well, scoring 11 goals in his first 17 games of the season. He has not scored since then but could do in the upcoming fixtures. Lucas Paqueta is expected to return soon, and their partnership will only benefit Bowen. Plus, he is one of the few on this list with a fixture in GW29. In case you are not Free Hitting in GW29, he is a great option to get in right now.

Hwang Hee-chan (WOL)

If you already have Saka, you can go for Hwang Hee-chan. The Wolves attacker will probably be one of the most obvious replacements for Jota after Saka. He has 13 attacking returns in 18 starts. He is likely to be on penalties for the team and possesses excellent goal threat.

Pedro Neto (WOL)

He is the other budget replacement for Jota from Wolves. Neto has 4 attacking returns in the last 4 games and is a sure-shot starter in the Wolves team. If you are unconvinced with Hwang, Neto is a decent alternative for the Wolves team.

Alejandro Garnacho (MUN)

Manchester United’s Alejandro Garnacho is a tremendous cheap enabler if you are looking for a Jota replacement and don’t want to spend a lot of money. He is just costing £5m and is owned by around 10% of managers. Man Utd has improved in attack in recent games, and Garnacho is a massive part of it. 2 of the following three fixtures are against Fulham and Everton, and there is good points potential here.

Pascal Groß (BHA)

Pascal Groß is a consistent FPL player who ticks along nicely every year. It’s just difficult to predict when he is going to go big. That can very well happen in the upcoming favourable run for Brighton. The Seagulls play Everton, Fulham and Forest in the next three, and there is a good chance he will continue his good points-scoring run simultaneously.

Further Read: FPL GW26 Transfer Targets & Watchlist Based on Eye Test & Stats

4) Is it time to sell Kevin De Bruyne?

Kevin De Bruyne played 90 minutes but blanked against Chelsea in the first game of the Double Gameweek 25. He didn’t feature at all in the second game, and many managers are considering selling him, especially with Salah getting minutes for Liverpool in the same duration.

So what do we do?

The latest update on KDB (at the time of writing this article) given by Pep was:

“Today, we can’t use Kevin because he has a niggle in his hamstring, and we didn’t want to take any risks. He’s okay. It’s more prevention than anything. The doctor said it’s a little uncomfortable, so after five months out, we don’t want to take any risk.”

– Pep Guardiola on why Kevin De Bruyne was benched against Brentford.

I expect KDB to feature against Bournemouth, and he is still worth holding for me. The Man City attacker has only blanked once in five games since returning from his injury.

Bournemouth has done okay in the Premier League this season. Their defence is leaky and ranks 4th worst for goals conceded across the season. I expect Man City to score a few, and unless we get confirmed news about KDB being out for the game, I believe he is a hold for GW26.

That will be all from my side for this week! I wish you all the best for FPL Gameweek 26, and I will see you all next week.

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Further reads from ALLABOUTFPL ahead of FPL GW26

Confirmed & Likely FPL Double/Blank Gameweeks | 23/24 Season
Top FPL Gameweek 26 Captain Picks Based on Analysis & Metrics
FPL GW26 Scout Picks- Top Picks based on Stats and Matchups
Best FPL GW26 Differential Picks(<10% TSB)
FPL Gameweek 26 Transfer Tips: Two Players to Buy, Hold & Sell
FPL GW26 Transfer Targets & Watchlist Based on Eye Test & Stats
FPL GW26 Tips – Best Midfielders, BGW26 Planning & More
2023/24 FPL Chip Strategy Guide – Best Windows and Analysis (Must read)
FPL GW26 Free Hit Guide- Pros, Cons and Best Drafts
Impact of FA Cup Results on FPL Blank Gameweek 29 | FPL BGW29
FPL GW26 Ultimate Guide: Tips, Differentials, Captaincy & More

Link to all our FPL GW26 blogs including buy, hold, sell analysis, differentials, captaincy metrics, transfer targets, and more. Completely free to access as well!

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What’s next from ALLABOUTFPL ahead of FPL Gameweek 26 of the 2023/24 FPL Season?

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