Premier League 2020/21: FPL Gameweek 26 Fantasy Forecast
Ahead of each Gameweek in the Premier League, The Hype Train's team, Robert Austin, Sam Austin and Phil Jones, duel for FPL and league supremacy in predicting Premier League scores, as well as going head to head in picking a Scout Picks squad for each round of games. With the 2020/21 Premier League season starting tomorrow, we provide our Gameweek Forecast predictions, speculating how we think the latest round of games will be played out. Welcome to the Forecast. All aboard.
Premier League 2020/21: Gameweek 26 Fixtures
Premier League 2020/21: FPL Gameweek 26 Forecast
Enjoy our FPL Forecast article, with each of our team forecasting how we think the Premier League will shape up this upcoming Gameweek. If you agree or want to challenge us on our point of view, get in touch with us on our main Twitter account, @RealHypeTrain.
Fixture Predictions: Gameweek 26
Weekend Fixtures (10):
Man City 3-0 West Ham
West Brom 1-2 Brighton
Leeds 1-1 Aston Villa
Newcastle 0-1 Wolves
Crystal Palace 2-1 Fulham
Leicester 1-1 Arsenal
Spurs 1-0 Burnley
Chelsea 0-0 Man United
Sheffield United 1-0 Liverpool
Everton 2-0 Southampton
Double Gameweek Fixtures (7):
Man City 2-0 Wolves
Burnley 0-2 Leicester
Sheffield United 1-2 Aston Villa
Crystal Palace 0-2 Man United
Fulham 0-1 Spurs
West Brom 0-2 Everton
Liverpool 0-0 Chelsea
FPL Forecasting: Gameweek 26
14 teams have a Double Gameweek:
1 - Man City: West Ham (H), Wolves (H)
2 - Wolves: Newcastle (A), Man City (A)
3 - Burnley: Spurs (A), Leicester (H)
4 - Leicester: Arsenal (H), Burnley (A)
5 - Sheffield United: Liverpool (H), Aston Villa (H)
6 - Aston Villa: Leeds (A), Sheffield United (A)
7 - Crystal Palace: Fulham (H), Man United (H)
8 - Man United: Chelsea (A), Crystal Palace (A)
9 - Fulham: Crystal Palace (A), Spurs (H)
10 - Spurs: Burnley (H), Fulham (A)
11 - West Brom: Brighton (H), Everton (H)
12 - Everton: Southampton (H), West Brom (A)
13 - Liverpool: Sheffield United (A), Chelsea (H)
14 - Chelsea: Man United (H), Liverpool (A)
6 teams are only playing once during Gameweek 26:
West Ham, Leeds, Southampton, Newcastle, Arsenal, Brighton
Top FPL player targets ahead of the upcoming Double Gameweek:
GK: Ederson (MCI, GK, £6.1mil, 9.9% ownership)
DEF: Rúben Dias (MCI, DEF, £6.1mil, 21.7% ownership)
MID: Harvey Barnes (LEI, MID, £6.9mil, 17.2% ownership)
FWD: Dominic Calvert-Lewin (EVE, FWD, £7.7mil, 39.7% ownership)
Who are the teams to look out for and avoid?:
Man City (Watch): It is clear that this year belongs to Manchester City, a club that has invested in the right positions, and is successfully showing how to become a benchmark team in the league. City have conceded only thirteen goals all season and are scoring goals for fun. Of course, they have two home games, both of which I have no doubt they will win. The only asterisk of City is the big ‘R’ word: rotation. Will Stones play both games? Probably not. After the last Double Gameweek City were in most players only played once due to injuries and rotation.
Liverpool (Avoid): Yes, I support Liverpool. Yes, I believe we won’t win the title (I stopped believing that in the middle of January). Yes, I believe it will be a struggle to even get top four. Yes, I can see them finishing outside the top six altogether if this form continues. Facing a stubborn Sheffield United and renewed Chelsea isn’t going to help matters as these are teams that will defend in a low block as all the teams have done in the past few months against the Reds. Can I see Liverpool scoring this Double Gameweek? No. In fact I can’t see where the next goal is coming from. Mo Salah is the only player I would consider, but it has been a complete disaster ever since 2021 came about.
Everton (Watch): The Toffees face two severely out-of-form teams this Double Gameweek following on from their big win at Anfield. Spirits in the Everton camp will be high and facing a Southampton team on a huge loss streak, and then doomed West Brom is the perfect storm for what could be a productive Double Gameweek.
Spurs (Watch): The North London team has two very winnable fixtures, they may not be as prolific as City, but they have potential to score some goals and keep some clean sheets. Son and Kane might not be a bad punt for this Double Gameweek.
Gameweek 26 – FPL Differential Picks:
MCI/WHU: Bernardo Silva (MCI, MID, £7.4mil, 1.4% ownership)
WBA/BHA: Sam Johnstone (WBA, GK, £4.5mil, 2.3% ownership)
LEE/AVL: Ezri Konsa (AVL, DEF, £4.6mil, 5.7% ownership)
NEW/WOL: Pedro Neto (WOL, MID, £5.7mil, 6.9% ownership)
CRY/FUL: Jean-Philippe Mateta (CRY, FWD, £5.8mil, 0.1% ownership)
LEI/ARS: Çaglar Söyüncü (LEI, DEF, £5.3mil, 3.0% ownership)
TOT/BUR: Hugo Lloris (TOT, GK, £5.6mil, 6.3% ownership)
CHE/MUN: César Azpilicueta (CHE, DEF, £5.7mil, 4.9% ownership)
SHU/LIV: Sadio Mane (LIV, MID, £11.8mil, 5.3% ownership)
EVE/SOU: Richarlison (EVE, FWD, £7.9mil, 7.7% ownership)
Double Gameweek fixtures:
MCI/WOL: Bernardo Silva (MCI, MID, £7.4mil, 1.4% ownership)
BUR/LEI: Çaglar Söyüncü (LEI, DEF, £5.3mil, 3.0% ownership)
SHU/AVL: Ezri Konsa (AVL, DEF, £4.6mil, 5.7% ownership)
CRY/MUN: Anthony Martial (MUN, FWD, £8.7mil, 4.3% ownership)
FUL/TOT: Hugo Lloris (TOT, GK, £5.6mil, 6.3% ownership)
WBA/EVE: Richarlison (EVE, FWD, £7.9mil, 7.7% ownership)
LIV/CHE: César Azpilicueta (CHE, DEF, £5.7mil, 4.9% ownership)
Differential Captain: Richarlison (Everton)
Everton won at Anfield in the first time for a generation, a big statement of intent for the rest of the season. Richarlison has been a focal point of the team this season by forming a partnership with Calvert-Lewin and heading into this Double Gameweek the Everton camp must be on cloud nine. The Brazilian has two goals in his last two games and has two very winnable fixtures: Southampton (H) and West Brom (A). Richarlison is a no-brainer for this Double Gameweek, as is Calvert-Lewin who is back from his injury problems. That is how simply a captaincy is: form and fixtures. Richarlison has both.
FPL Scout Picks: Gameweek 26
Formation: 3-4-3
Starting 11
GK: Ederson (MCI)
DEF: Ruben Dias (MCI)
DEF: Lucas Digne (EVE)
DEF: Luke Shaw (MUN)
MID: Ilkay Gundogan (MCI)
MID: Mohamad Salah (LIV)
MID: Hueng-Min Son (TOT)
MID: Harvey Barnes (LEI)
FOR: Jamie Vary (LEI)
FOR: Harry Kane (TOT) - (C)
FOR: Richarlison (EVE) - (VC)
Substitutes
GK: Hugo Lloris (TOT)
MID: Bruno Fernandes (MUN)
DEF: Cesar Azpilicueta (CHE)
DEF: Çaglar Söyüncü (LEI)
Fixture Predictions: Gameweek 26
Weekend Fixtures (10):
Man City 2-0 West Ham
West Brom 1-0 Brighton
Leeds 0-0 Aston Villa
Newcastle 0-0 Wolves
Crystal Palace 0-1 Fulham
Leicester 3-1 Arsenal
Spurs 0-1 Burnley
Chelsea 2-0 Man United
Sheffield United 0-2 Liverpool
Everton 3-3 Southampton
Double Gameweek Fixtures (7):
Man City 3-0 Wolves
Burnley 0-2 Leicester
Sheffield United 1-3 Aston Villa
Crystal Palace 0-2 Man United
Fulham 0-0 Spurs
West Brom 1-3 Everton
Liverpool 1-0 Chelsea
FPL Scout Picks: Gameweek 26
Formation: 4-4-2
Starting 11
GK: Emi Martinez (AVL)
DEF: Cesar Azpiliceuta (CHE)
DEF: Ruben Dias (MCI)
DEF: Joao Cancelo (MCI)
MID: Hueng-Min Son (TOT)
MID: Mohamed Salah (LIV)
MID: Bruno Fernandes (MUN) – (C)
MID: Ilkay Gundogan (MCI)
MID: Harvey Barnes (LEI)
FOR: Ollie Watkins (AVL)
FOR: Dominic-Calvert-Lewin (EVE) – (VC)
Substitutes
GK: Sam Johnston (WBA)
FOR: Patrick Bamford (LEE)
DEF: Stuart Dallas (LEE)
DEF: Matt Lowton (BUR)
Fixture Predictions: Gameweek 26
Weekend Fixtures (10):
Man City 3-0 West Ham
West Brom 1-2 Brighton
Leeds 3-1 Aston Villa
Newcastle 0-1 Wolves
Crystal Palace 1-2 Fulham
Leicester 1-1 Arsenal
Spurs 1-0 Burnley
Chelsea 2-2 Man United
Sheffield United 1-2 Liverpool
Everton 3-1 Southampton
Double Gameweek Fixtures (7):
Man City 1-0 Wolves
Burnley 1-1 Leicester
Sheffield United 0-2 Aston Villa
Crystal Palace 1-3 Man United
Fulham 1-1 Spurs
West Brom 0-2 Everton
Liverpool 2-1 Chelsea
FPL Forecasting: Gameweek 26
14 teams have a Double Gameweek:
1 - Man City: West Ham (H), Wolves (H)
2 - Wolves: Newcastle (A), Man City (A)
3 - Burnley: Spurs (A), Leicester (H)
4 - Leicester: Arsenal (H), Burnley (A)
5 - Sheffield United: Liverpool (H), Aston Villa (H)
6 - Aston Villa: Leeds (A), Sheffield United (A)
7 - Crystal Palace: Fulham (H), Man United (H)
8 - Man United: Chelsea (A), Crystal Palace (A)
9 - Fulham: Crystal Palace (A), Spurs (H)
10 - Spurs: Burnley (H), Fulham (A)
11 - West Brom: Brighton (H), Everton (H)
12 - Everton: Southampton (H), West Brom (A)
13 - Liverpool: Sheffield United (A), Chelsea (H)
14 - Chelsea: Man United (H), Liverpool (A)
6 teams are only playing once during Gameweek 26:
West Ham, Leeds, Southampton, Newcastle, Arsenal, Brighton
Top FPL player targets ahead of the upcoming Double Gameweek:
Elite targets if you don’t own them:
Barnes (LEI), Calvert-Lewin (EVE), Richarlison (EVE), Holgate (EVE), Kane (TOT), Azpiliceuta (CHE), Bruno Fernandes (MUN), Son (TOT) and Sterling (MCI)
Outside considerations (either in form or due a start):
Aguero (MCI), De Bruyne (MCI), Maja (FUL), Moura (TOT), Werner (CHE)
Looking ahead to Gameweek 29:
Bamford (LEE), Martinez (AVL), Aina (FUL), Watkins (AVL), Maupay (BHA), White (BHA), Dunk (BHA), Lingard (WHU)
Are you planning for the reduced Gameweek 29?:
There are only 8 teams competing in this shortened Gameweek and only 3 teams – Spurs, Aston Villa, Fulham – are playing twice during Double Gameweek 26. If you’re playing your Wildcard this week, you’ll probably have to take this week into consideration, meaning the likes of Kane (TOT), Son (TOT), Aina (FUL), Watkins (AVL) and Martinez (AVL) should be your starting point.
Gameweek 29 fixtures:
Fulham vs. Leeds
Brighton vs. Newcastle
West Ham vs. Arsenal
Aston Villa vs. Spurs
The further downside is that of those 3 teams, Fulham and Aston Villa just do not have favourable fixtures if you’re going this route, so you have to weigh up if you want to go big for this Gameweek, or do advanced planning, which I wouldn’t advise given the season we’ve had. Just plan week to week and make a few last minute adjustments.
Who are the teams to look out for and avoid?:
Newcastle (avoid): Steve Bruce has come out with another nonsensical pre-match rant about 7-8 teams being in the relegation battle, disguising the fact that that Fulham and Brighton have significantly better form. This all translates to a Wolves masterclass at St James’ Park. If it not for a trip to Man City, Nuno’s side would have had some very tempting DGW options.
Aston Villa (avoid): Without Jack Grealish there is something missing in the final third for Villa as they struggle to win as many set-pieces and find killer balls for Ollie Watkins to exploit. Playing away twice doesn’t help and it is against teams two promoted sides who can be hard to breakdown.
Man City (cautious): Rotation is in the air and I can see the likes of Gundogan, Cancelo, Dias, Stones, Sterling and Mahrez all being rotated. The only safety net is Ederson. I expect City to win both games, but what’s the point of a Double Gameweek like last when City’s key men only played once?
Spurs (oh dear lord): This is a classic case of fixtures over form if I’ve ever seen it. Spurs are still in the Europa League mix, but have been misfiring in the Premier League, netting only 3 goals across their last 5 outings, scoring twice against West Brom (GW23) and Lucas Moura scoring in a 2-1 defeat at West Ham (GW25). Spurs have only won once in their last 6 matches too, with Moura also netting in the 2-0 win at home against West Brom… Kane is not in form, neither is Son and they play defensively minded sides in Burnley and Fulham that will restrict a punctured attack unit of chances. None of this is good, leaving masses of FPL players relying on pure luck of the fixtures to return the goods in a low moment for Jose Mourinho’s side. It might be the most frustrating week in you captain Kane.
Everton (watch): One team who are purring again is Everton. DCL is fit again, Richarlison is doing the business and Lucas Digne is an attractive option in FPL. Fixtures are kind for The Toffees, hosting Southampton and travelling to West Brom offers a high ceiling. Neither team can defend, it’s that simple.
Chelsea and Man United (watch): The same analysis can be applied to both Chelsea and United week. Neither have lost in their last 5 fixtures and have form on their side. Both have high valued Fantasy options and they play each other.
Liverpool (watch, well kind of): Mo Salah is the exception to the rule this season and is dragging himself to the Golden Boot slowly but surely. The Egyptian is currently the meme of the dog in the burning house right now as the leading scorer in the league right now, watching his teammates fall like flies due to injury. You can never rule against the 17-goal winger though, he’s that good on his day.
Leicester (watch): Fofana and Maddison are injured, but Barnes and Leicester are in good enough form to entrust against Arsenal (H) and Burnley (A), especially as they’ve been knocked out of the Europa League.
Gameweek 26 - FPL Captaincy Picks:
Essential: Bruno Fernandes (MUN)
Alternative: Dominic Calvert-Lewin (EVE)
Differential: Ollie Watkins (AVL)
Other Gameweek Comments:
You can’t own them all. I’ve tried various method to include a host of attractive players on paper – Son, Kane, Fernandes, Salah, Sterling – so you just have to make your bed and lay in it. My only solemn advise is to back form players and that’s what I’ve tried to reflect, otherwise sitting through these games in a Gameweek that will feel like it goes on forever, will be soul crushing if you have to endure the pain if a bad Gameweek having pinned your hopes on out-of-form players.
After a lot of back and forth, it took me forever to settle on my transfers and yet I ended up dropping more points (64 points since Gameweek 15) to bring in Martinez (AVL), Son (TOT) and Calvert-Lewin (EVE) – with James Maddison (injured) and Ings (form) making way. I’m not particularly happy with the lack of options in midfield besides the base five picks in my team, which is forcing a template if you have any money in attack of defence.
FPL Scout Picks: Gameweek 26
Formation: 4-4-2
Starting 11
GK: Emi Martinez (AVL)
DEF: Mason Holgate (EVE)
DEF: Ruben Dias (MCI)
DEF: Joao Cancelo (MCI)
MID: Hueng-Min Son (TOT)
MID: Mohamed Salah (LIV)
MID: Bruno Fernandes (MUN) – (C)
MID: Ilkay Gundogan (MCI)
MID: Harvey Barnes (LEI)
FOR: Ollie Watkins (AVL)
FOR: Dominic-Calvert-Lewin (EVE) – (VC)
Substitutes
GK: Sam Johnston (WBA)
DEF: Cesar Azpiliceuta (CHE)
FOR: Patrick Bamford (LEE)
DEF: Ben Mee (BUR)
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