FPL is just a couple of days away!! The Template Teams are starting to flood the timelines of Insta, X, Threads, Bluesky and Youtube.
While most of you would be going with 7-8 Template players in our team, there is always an option to go with a couple of Tasty Differentials (Lowly owned FPL assets) in your team, so that you enjoy their hauls to yourself.
Jumping on the Bandwagon a week earlier compared to most people can be highly beneficial for your Overall ranks. After that just enjoy their hauls and hope for some prices rises while most people flock to that Bandwagon.
Link to all our 2026/27 Pre-Season articles including all team pre-season friendly updates, best drafts, fixture analysis, position-wise analysis, differentials, players to target, budget enablers and more. Completely free to access as well!
In this article, we will be highlighting 5 Players who are less than 10% Owned and 1 Ultra Differential (less than 1% Owned) for all of you as of Wednesday 19th August, 2026. There are many more whom you guys can consider if you decide to not go with the 6 players mentioned below.
Best Differential Picks(<10% TSB) for FPL GW1
Martin Odegaard – Arsenal – 6.5 Midfielder – 6.1 % TSB
- In the Community Shield, what caught my eye was how advanced & involved Martin Odegaard was. After a couple of injury ravaged seasons, Odegaard was back to full fitness in the FIFA World Cup. He seems to be in good form as he scored a goal in the Shield and could have got a couple of Assists. Most people would go for Tzolis because of his pre-season form, but if you want to take a more secure route into the Arsenal attack, Odegaard is your man.
- Arsenal have the odds of scoring the most Goals this Gameweek. They are predicted to score 2.5+ Goals. Also an added benefit for Odegaard is his routes to points due to Set Pieces (Free kicks and corners). Odegaard also is extremely good for Bonus Points due to his chance creation stats. Arsenal also sit 2nd for projected goals across the 1st 5 Gameweeks.
- With Bruno Guimares also arriving at Arsenal and slotting into midfield, Odegaard is also free to take up positions much higher up the pitch. He almost got Defcon points in the Shield having got 11 in 84 minutes. He even supplied the Pre-Assist for Havertz’s goal where he supplied a beautiful cross to Tzolis.
Fantasy Football Hub(FFHUB) Free AI Team Rating Tool
Ben White – Arsenal – 5.5 Defender – 3.5 % TSB
- With Gabriel being 8 million this season, most FPL Managers will be starting with the other Arsenal options initially this season, if they are going with Haaland and Bruno. While Calafiori is the most popular option because of his Goal Threat and Mosquera is the vanilla pick, we are going with Ben White as a different route into the Arsenal Defence.
- Arsenal have the Best odds of keeping a Clean Sheet this Gameweek as they open the campaign against Coventry City. White also has no direct positional rival until Timber returns to action. Konsa is very likely to join Arsenal and could eat into White’s minutes long term but he should take his time to settle into this team and will also compete with Mosquera for the CB spot(Till Saliba is out). Both Mosquera & Calafiori have some rotation worries with Hincapie lurking.
- Also remember that White is good for attacking returns having scored 182 and 156 points in his 1st 2 seasons for Arsenal where he scored 6 Goals and 10 Assists. Who remembers that Brace in Arsenal’s Double Gameweek? Me, as I had him back then. Let’s hope for more of the same this season.
Further Read: Premier League Penalty & Set Piece Takers | 2026/27 PL Season
Phil Foden – Manchester City – 7.0 Midfielder – 4.6 % TSB
- Foden was namechecked by Maresca as one of the 3 Horse-Men for Manchester City this season, along with Haaland and Gvardiol. Foden has been given an interesting role by his new coach as evidenced by the positions Foden was taking in the Community Shield. Foden played as a Number 10/Advanced 8 Role instead of playing out wide. This is where Foden has thrived in his career and from where he did his damage last season.
- Bournemouth’s aggressive playstyle will also suit Foden as he can make late runs into the Penalty area. He nearly scored from the same situation against Arsenal and was denied by a good save from Raya. Foden scored 19 Goals and got 8 Assists as he scored 230 FPL Points in 2023/24 season. Could this season be Foden’s renaissance? Lets find out at the end of the season.
Trai Hume – Sunderland – 4.5 Defender – 6.1 % TSB
- An OOP Defender playing against a Promoted Team is Fantasy Gold. Especially for managers who are planning for a Bench Boost in Gameweek 1. Hume has played all the games as a Right winger during Pre season except the last game. That happened as Thomas Meunier who has been playing as the Right back was injured and Hume had to cover for him. As long as Meunier is fit, expect Hume to line up on the wing again against Ipswich.
Top FPL Defenders for Shots last season:
- Williams- 46
- O’Reilly- 41
- Hume- 34
- Calafiori- 32
- Guehi- 32
- Pedro Porro- 32
All Stats below are from FFHUB. For more Stats, Player Comparison, Points Prediction, Rate My Team AI Tool, AI Recommended Transfers, FPL Planners and much more to improve your FPL Game – Subscribe now for the 2026/27 season with an exclusive 50% off discount and with a win your mini-league or money-back guarantee!
- Hume has scored 2 Goals and got 1 Assist in Pre-season. He is usually an attacking full back having scored twice and also got an Assist last season after staring 34 games. He can also get the occasional Defcon points and has 2 good fixtures against Ipswich & Fulham to begin the season.
Further Read: FPL Rotational Pairs & Combinations for the 2026/27 FPL Season
Before going further do vote in this week’s captaincy poll
Marco Palestra – Chelsea – 5.5 Defender – 2.7 % TSB
- Alonso is known for his wingback system and under him Frimpong & Grimaldo became Fantasy gold in Bundesliga Fantasy. The one player who could go that level in the current Chelsea defensive unit is Marco Palestra. A versatile player, Palestra can play Right Wing back, Left Wing Back and even Right Back. He even used to play in Central Midfield at the beginning of his career.
- Palestra is probably the 2nd coming of Marcos Alonso in the Chelsea squad. He scored 1 Goal and got 4 Assists last season for Cagliari. His stats were brilliant as he created 31 Chances, had 29 Shots and played 27 accurate crosses. This makes him a great pick for Alonso’s system which relies heavily on Wing Backs to make a significant impact in the final 3rd of the pitch.
- Chelsea have some decent fixtures to start the season with Fulham and Hull in the 1st 4 Gameweeks. If you are brave, go for Palestra instead of the boring pick of Lacroix or Colwill. Remember, fortune favors the brave.
Further Read: FPL GW1 Scout Picks Based on Stats, Analysis and Matchups
Ultra Differential Pick for FPL GW1 (Under 1 % Ownership)
Jack Hinshelwood – Brighton – 6.0 Midfielder – 0.4 % TSB
- While most FPL Mangers are going for Gross, Hinshelwood remains criminally lowly-owned. Hinshelwood finished last season brilliantly and has carried that form into pre-season. He is locked in the number 10 Role for Brighton and without Gross, would have been Brighton’s best attacking player heading into the FPL season.
- He finished with 6 returns in the last dozen Gameweeks and scored Brighton’s only goal in their final friendly. Interestingly , Hinshelwood was the furthest forward for Brighton on the pitch and was the biggest Goal Threat. He scored once yet missed 2 big chances and had a match high 5 Shots, which has coach highlighted after praising him.
Hinshelwood Rank among Midfielders last 12 GWs (GW26- GW38):
- Shots on Target- 2nd
- Shots inside the box- 3rd
- Big Chances- 2nd
- xG- 5th
- Non-Penalty xGI- 3rd
- Expected Points- 2nd
Brighton Midfielders sorted by xGI/90 last season:
- Hinshelwood- 0.38
- Mitoma- 0.36
- Gomez- 0.34
- Minteh- 0.34
That’s it for Gameweek 1. We will be back with 6 More Differentials next Gameweek where we will be hoping to get some positive returns from our current selected Differentials for Gameweek 1. All the best for the FPL Season. Its so good to have the Premier League back!!
Further reads from ALLABOUTFPL ahead of FPL GW1 of the 2026/27 FPL Season
FPL Basics:
2026/27 FPL Season – New Rules & Changes | What’s New in FPL?
Best & Funny FPL Team Names for 2026/27 PL Season
GW1 Articles:
FPL GW1 Scout Selection based on Stats, Fixtures and Matchups
Top FPL GW1 Differential Picks to Target Ahead of GW1 Deadline
2026/27 PL Season: Predicted GW1 Lineups of All 20 PL Teams
FPL Gameweek 1 Bench Boost Drafts- BB1 vs BB2 vs BB Later Analysis
2026/27 Pre-Season Summary of All 20 Premier League Teams
2026/27 Premier League Penalty and Set Piece Takers for all 20 Teams
Top FPL Gameweek 1 Captain Picks Based on Analysis & Metrics | 26/27 Season
Must Read Articles:
FPL Team Structure Guide with Drafts, AI Team Rating, Formations, Pros, Cons and Key Notes
2026/27 Premier League Penalty and Set Piece Takers for all 20 Teams
Best FPL GW1 Drafts for the 26/27 FPL Season with Pros & Cons
FPL Chip Strategy Guide- Best Windows to Play Free Hit, Wildcard, Triple Captain and Bench Boost
Ultimate DEFCON Analysis: Top Players & Best Opponents to Target
FPL Rotational Pairs and Combinations for 2026/27 FPL Season
Eight Simple FPL Tips to Secure a High Rank | 26/27 Season
2026/27 Pre-Season Summary of All 20 Premier League Teams
FPL Fixture Analysis for 2026/27 Season- Teams with Best and Worst fixtures
Five Must Own Players in GW1 for FPL 2026/27 season
AK FPL’s Final GW1 Draft & Team Reveal | 3x Top 5K Finishes
How Chelsea could line-up under Xabi Alonso for 2026/27 season
FPL Players To Avoid in Your GW1 Drafts | 2026/27 FPL Season
Position Analysis:
GKs and Defenders Series:
Best FPL Goalkeepers to Target based on Stats and Fixtures
Best FPL Defenders at Each Price Point for the 2026/27 Season
Best £4.0 Million FPL Defenders for 2026/27 FPL Season
Best Premium Defenders for 2026/27 season based on Stats and Fixtures
Best £5.0-5.5 Million FPL Defenders for the 2026/27 FPL Season
FPL Rotational Pairs and Combinations for 2026/27 FPL Season
Best £4.5 Million FPL Defenders for the 2026/27 FPL Season
Best Value for Money Defenders and GKs for 2026/27 FPL season
Midfielders Series:
Best FPL Premium Midfielders(8.0-12.0) for 2026/27 FPL season
Best FPL Midfielders at Each Price Point for the 2026/27 Season
Best Mid-Price FPL Midfielders for the 26/27 Season | £6.5 to 7.5M
Best Budget FPL Midfielders for 26/27 Season | £4.5m to £6.0m
Best Value for Money Midfielders for 2026/27 season
Forwards Series:
Best FPL Budget Forwards (£4.5 – £6.0 Million) | 26/27 FPL Season
Best £6m Forwards Comparison for the 2026/27 FPL Season
Best FPL Premium and Mid-Priced Forwards (6.5 million and above) for 2026/27 season
Top Forwards at every price point for the 2026/27 FPL 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 2026/27 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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