Home is where the points are! After all the pre-season planning, GW1 finally arrived & delivered an exciting start to the 25/26 season. With promoted sides winning 3-0, veteran forwards scoring braces & Spurs actually keeping clean sheets, there is much to discuss. GW2 is even more critical than GW1, so let’s get into it. Here is all the essential weekly FPL info you need to ensure you top those mini leagues.

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⚔️ Gameweek 1 Review - 59 Points (54 Average)

Steady does it. Though I was hoping for an explosive start to the season, I received a solid start instead. In such a volatile season where much has changed, perhaps that’s a better outcome. There were quite a few blanks throughout the team, but one big hitter returned to even us out above the average GW score, so important for a successful season. Defence has never been our strong point, but I did expect more. Diouf might come out this GW, as West Ham didn’t look even remotely good, and they have a hard run coming. Midfield wasn’t bad with a goal from Gakpo and an assist from Sarr, but the big hitters blanked with Palmer, Wirtz and Fernandes all collecting just two points. The robot Haaland came in clutch with two goals and all three bps for a huge 26-pointer. Good solid start to build on for the season.

💎 Gameweek 2 Gem Pick

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 Ollie Watkins – Aston Villa (£9.0m, 26%)

• Great H2H attacking record v Brentford

• Low owned

• Differential Captain

With not much to shout about in the first match against Newcastle, I see why Watkins isn’t being talked about much for GW2. But in starting the season, we set up our teams for more than one GW, so I’ve not lost faith. Five goals and one assist in the last four games against Brentford is the main reason why Aston Villa are unbeaten in the last seven against the Bees, and after an atrocious display against Nottingham Forest, I don’t see that changing. Watkins, at only 26% owned, is near differential level and one which could gift you with a nice green arrow and rank rise for GW2. For all the talk around Haaland and Ekitike, I think we need to remember Watkins has been consistently scoring goals, even finishing above Haaland last season for FPL points. Nothing has changed, he’s still a great pick and against a sub-par backline that conceded two goals already to an opposition number nine (Chris Wood), I am even contemplating a captaincy. Are you?

✅ The Best 2 Transfers IN for Gameweek 2

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 Cole Palmer – Chelsea (£10.5m, 60%)

• Ownership has reduced, so more opportunity for rank rise

• Plays a shell-shocked West Ham

I’ll admit, not many of you would have seen this coming after a less than convincing GW1, but he did play one of the best defences in the league & remember, last season he scored four goals in one single match for a 25 pointer. It’s not what I saw for Chelsea, but more about what I see about the next opposition. West Ham were overpowered, outplayed & battered by newly promoted Sunderland, 3-0. Definitely not good news for a manager that was already under pressure before a ball was even kicked this season. His ownership has fallen 5% already, giving us more opportunity to rise in rank, while saving an all-important free transfer in the process. I expect big things from ice-cold Cole Palmer this week, and again, he’s another outside risky but rewarding captaincy shout.

🇳🇱 Tijjani Reijnders– Man City (£5.6m, 29%)

• Hit the ground running on debut

• May represent new City style

A GW1 score of 10 points has seen his popularity soar and, subsequently, he's increased by £0.1m. With no bonus points after a goal and an assist, it could have been so much more as well. Watching him was a joy, and I was jealous of those who own him as I was getting flashbacks of Gundogan in the 15+ goal season. Yes, ok, it’s the first game and don’t go crazy, but I think I have seen enough that tells me it's going to be a huge season for the £5.5 m midfielder, and some are saying he is a ‘cheat code’. A tough game against Spurs up next, but after Brighton & Man Utd look more promising matches, he could haul more double digits in.

❌ The Best 2 Transfers OUT for Gameweek 2

🇸🇳 El Hadji Malick Diouf – West Ham (£4.5m, 7%)

It looked so good at first, but I may have made a mistake. Diouf was so attacking in pre-season and in the first half against Sunderland, even with a shot cleared off the line, but I overlooked a key issue; he plays for West Ham. They were soundly beaten and were second in most metrics, to a newly promoted side. He’s in my team for attacking returns and some clean sheets, but let’s look at the heat map below. If he’s this defensive against a shock-promoted side that scored three, what hope does he have against the majority of other teams for either attacking or defensive points? With the amount of quality we have for defenders, even at the cheap price point of £4.5m, we can't afford passengers, not even on the bench. He will now sit on my bench until GW3, until I am confident, who is the best option to swap him out for. With Chelsea, Forest and Spurs up next, one thing is certain: he won’t play another game for me. A non-option moving forward.

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 Ezri Konsa – Aston Villa (£4.5m, 18%)

After feeling the pain of owning Konsa last season, I tried to warn others of the dangers. He seems a good, cheap, reasonable pick in hindsight, but brings nothing but pain. Yes, he got 3 points, so it doesn’t seem that bad, but after receiving a red card, he will be banned for GW2 against Brentford, which is the reason why managers even owned him in the first place. You see, the pain has already arrived in GW1. Aston Villa have two away fixtures in the next three, but most importantly for Konsa he is nowhere in the defensive contributions (DC) charts. This is vital for this season, and again, much like Diouf, there are many better options. Trust me and save yourself a world of Konsa pain, get rid.

🦸 Gameweek 2 Captaincy Calls

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 Bukayo Saka – Arsenal (£10m, 16.8%)

• Play a newly promoted side at home

• Proven FPL asset

• Great captaincy option

• Have beaten Leeds in the last six H2Hs

• Leeds look vulnerable at the back

🎯 Target Game

Brentford v Aston Villa

With many alternative KOs this GW (Friday evening, early Saturday & Monday night football), I think the best watch will come in the 3pm at Brentford. Four of the last five matches have seen three goals or over, plenty of yellow cards & even a few reds; so it's set to be a stormer of a match. To add to the intensity, Watkins is playing his old club & interestingly, he always performs well against them. Aston Villa were poor in their first match (v Newcastle), but I see a better outcome this time with Brentford looking porous at the back, only one GW in.

🪙 Chip Update?

Plain and simply, no. Take the next two fixtures (before the international break) to feel out how teams are performing and if you need to alter your preconceptions of players and update your target player list accordingly.

Conclusion

Good luck & be sure to visit  X for my captaincy, final GW2 team, and football insights/analysis throughout the 2025-2026 season. Look out for my special articles and follow me on X @FplVeteran_ for daily fantasy football content.