FPL Players To Avoid in Your GW1 Drafts | 2025/26 FPL Season

Ahead of every FPL season, many managers flock to certain players. These players have a certain pull to them, whether it be their performances from the season before or their performance for a different team in a different league, or just crowd wisdom. However, some of these players are never able to live up to their expectations, hence, in order to have a successful FPL season, you need to be ahead of the curve and know which of these FPL players you should avoid. This article attempts to list some of the players who have a clear red flag vibe to them, while also currently having a high ownership.

Link to all our 2025/26 Pre-Season articles including all team pre-season friendly updates, team previews, fixture analysis, position-wise analysis, differentials, players to target, budget enablers and more. Completely free to access as well!

FPL Players to Avoid Ahead of GW1

Note: All the players mentioned in this article as “Players to avoid for GW1” are the author’s opinion based on stats and analysis. Have a read and decide for yourselves.

Bryan Mbeumo – £8.0m

Currently owned by 19.3% of all FPL players, Mbeumo is our first player on the list of FPL players to avoid ahead of GW-1. Despite scoring 20 goals, giving 9 assists and outperforming his xG by almost 8, Mbeumo will be an avoid going into the new season for a few reasons.

Firstly, his role at Manchester United remains unclear. Will the team revolve around him? Especially with the club looking to sign another attacker, will he be the focal point of the attack? These questions still remain unanswered. He also took penalties at Brentford, but with Bruno’s importance to Manchester United and his track record in penalties, it does not look like Ruben Amorim will change his penalty taker.

He also overperformed his xG by a lot, 2nd highest in Europe last season, will he do the same again is another question that needs answering.

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Eberechi Eze – £7.5m

The Crystal Palace Tailsman had 16 goal contributions last season, split evenly between goals and assists. However, in the first half of the season, he only had 4 goal contributions, a trend that was seen in 2023/24 too, when 12 of his 16 goal contributions came after GW20.

He is also linked with a transfer away from Crystal Palace, with both Arsenal and Chelsea hovering around for his signature. Even if he ends up staying at Palace, the early fixtures for the Eagles are Chelsea (A), Nottingham Forest (H), and Aston Villa (A), which are tricky to say the least. If you’re the 8.4% of players who own him or are looking to buy him, I would suggest you to avoid him and look at other players in the same price bucket.

Further Read: Best £4.0 Million FPL Defenders for the 2025/26 FPL Season

João Pedro – £7.5m

The highest owned player in the game right now (almost 60% ownership) is the next on the list of FPL players to avoid before GW1. Despite having 16 goal contributions last season, Pedro is at a new club, and despite good signs early on, he will be competing with Liam Delap and Nicolas Jackson (if he stays) for a starting spot.

With Palmer still at the club, he will also be the first choice for penalties. Even if he does start, he will probably have reduced minutes. Chris Wood is a better option with higher xMins in a similar price range.

Further Read: FPL Rotational Pairs & Combinations for the 2025/26 FPL Season

Jordan Pickford – £5.5m

The Everton and England number is the next FPL player to avoid on the list. Despite a mammoth 12 clean sheets and 122 saves last season, at 5.5 million, Pickford is a player to avoid this season. In FPL, successful goalkeepers don’t usually have a lot differentiating them in terms of points, and if you’re able to save that extra 0.5 or 1m in your overall budget, you can reallocate that for better use elsewhere.

If Everton’s defence is of interest to you, you can target one of Mykolenko or Tarkowski, and if for a goalkeeper, you can target the 4.5 million priced Kelleher or the 5 million priced Sels.

Further Read: Initial FPL GW1 Drafts for the 25/26 FPL Season with Pros & Cons

Raul Jimenez – £6.5 million

The ex-Wolves man had a decent season last year with Fulham, scoring 12 times and assisting thrice. However, he is one of the FPL players to avoid going into the new season. He has been playing CONCACAF Gold Cup for Mexico up until the 7th of July, where he even scored in the final to win it for Mexico.

Because of his international commitments, he is likely to miss a large chunk of Fulham’s pre-season preparations, and there’s also no guarantee on whether he starts the season with Muniz being well-rested and competing for a starting spot. Fulham’s starting fixtures are tricky with Brighton (A), Manchester United (H), and Chelsea (A).

Further Read: Best £4.5 Million FPL Defenders for the 2025/26 FPL Season

Heung Min Son – £8.5 million

A man who has been one of the key players for Tottenham Hotspur for as long as I can remember, Son is a FPL player I would avoid before GW1. In Spurs’ last 10 games in the Premier League last season, Son played less than 300 minutes and is currently linked with a move to LAFC, which seems more like a question of when and not if.

He is also unfortunately past his prime, and at 8.5 million, he is too costly for a player whose minutes and future at the club aren’t guaranteed. Kudus for just 6.5 offers more than Son does and also saves you 2 million going into the first Gameweek of the season.

Further Read: Best FPL Goalkeepers to Target For The 2025/26 FPL Season

Rayan Cherki – £6.5 million

Like every season, this season too has its own doubts around Manchester City’s attackers. City’s newest signing, Cherki, is not only an exciting young option but also has been put in a very tempting price point. However, if you have played FPL before, you know that Pep Guardiola is never to be trusted, and the infamous Pep Roulette has probably ruined your gameweeks too.

Until it is very clear that Cherki will be starting, he is a FPL player to avoid before GW1. In fact, from Manchester City, the only attacker who is currently nailed on is Erling Haaland, and everyone else should be avoided.

Further Read: Underpriced FPL Assets at Each ‘Big Six’ Club | 25/26 Season

Jeremie Frimpong – £6.0 million

Brought in as Trent Alexander-Arnold’s replacement, Frimpong is currently owned by 28.6% of FPL players. On paper, Frimpong looks like the best alternative to Trent in modern football, with him averaging 13 goal contributions per season in the last 2 years.

However, there are a few key points to note. Firstly, he is likely to have low defensive contributions, and with defensive contributions being more important this season, it will be hard to ignore that aspect of Frimpong’s game. Secondly, at Bayer Leverkusen, he played more of a wingback or right-wing role, and at Liverpool, he is expected to play the traditional right-back role. Arne Slot also regards Conor Bradley very highly, and there’s bound to be some rotation with him at least in the start of the season.

With a mixed bag of starting fixtures for Liverpool, Van Dijk would be a better option if you want a Liverpool defender in your team.

Further Read: List of Free to Join Prize FPL Mini Leagues Ahead of 25/26 Season

Rayan Aït-Nouri – £6 million

Second, Rayan from Manchester City on the list of FPL players to avoid is Rayan Ait-Nouri. Another player who had a terrific last season with 11 attacking returns, Aït-Nouri, just like Frimpong, is a great signing on paper.

However, just like with Rayan Cherki, Pep Roulette is bound to strike with Rayan Aït-Nouri too. The starting fixtures for Manchester City are also not the easiest from a defensive standpoint. They play Wolves (A), Tottenham (H), Brighton (A), and Manchester United (H) in the first four gameweeks. If you want to stick with a Manchester City defender, Gvardiol might be a better and safer pick, both from defensive contributions and Pep Roulette’s angle.

Further Read: FPL Rotational Pairs & Combinations for the 2025/26 FPL Season

Jarrod Bowen – £8 million

The last player on the list is West Ham’s talisman, Jarrod Bowen. The Englishman had 24 attacking returns and was on penalties. However, he has been reclassified as a forward and has been priced at 8 million. There are cheaper options in the forward category with arguably better fixtures in the first few gameweeks. If you exclude West Ham’s first gameweek fixture, Sunderland (A), they have a run of tough fixtures: Chelsea(H), Nottingham Forest (A), Tottenham Hotspurs (H), and Crystal Palace (H). Hence, he is another FPL player you should avoid

Further reads from ALLABOUTFPL ahead of FPL GW1 of the 2025/26 FPL Season

FPL Rotational Pairs & Combinations for the 2025/26 FPL Season
2025/26 FPL Season- New Rules & Changes | What’s New in FPL? 
Best FPL Goalkeepers to Target For The 2025/26 FPL Season
Best FPL Budget Enablers For The 2025-26 FPL Season 
List of Free to Join Prize FPL Mini Leagues Ahead of 25/26 Season
Initial FPL GW1 Drafts for the 25/26 FPL Season with Pros & Cons
2025/26 FanTeam Season Game Strategy Guide | EPL Fantasy
FPL Players To Avoid in Your GW1 Drafts | 2025/26 FPL Season
FanTeam EPL Fantasy Season Game Drafts with Keynotes
Best £4.0 Million FPL Defenders for the 2025/26 FPL Season
Best £4.5 Million FPL Defenders for the 2025/26 FPL Season
Best FPL Budget Forwards (£4.5 – £6.0 Million) | 25/26 FPL Season
Underpriced FPL Assets at Each ‘Big Six’ Club | 25/26 Season
FPL 2025/26 Team Structure and Planning based on Fixtures
FPL Fixture Analysis for The 2025/26 FPL Season | PL Fixtures
2025/26 Premier League Clubs Pre Season Friendlies Fixtures List
Funny & Creative FPL Team Names for the 2025/26 Season

If you’re new to FPL, here is a link to all our FPL Beginners Guide including FPL Beginner’s Guide- How to play?, Bench boost, Team value, Triple captain, Effective ownership, Price Changes, Free Hit, Bonus Points, and more.

Link to all our 2025/26 Pre-Season articles including all position-wise analysis, team previews, fixture analysis, position-wise analysis, and more. Completely free to access as well!

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