Plan the run, not just next week
With gameweek 9 in progress in 2026/27, use the next five fixtures to shape transfers rather than chasing the next opponent alone. These averages use FPL’s own 1–5 difficulty rating: a planning guide, not a guarantee of returns. The data engine expects heavy buying at the top of the list, making early entry before price rises valuable. That is a reason to prepare moves, not to buy solely because a club ranks well.
Aston Villa lead on 2.4, followed by Coventry City on 2.6. Bournemouth, Brighton, Chelsea and Ipswich Town all average 2.8. The sequence matters alongside the average: Villa start with MUN (A), then have SUN (H), IPS (A), EVE (H) and CRY (H). Buying now targets the whole run; waiting through the opening fixture is defensible if your current player still deserves a place.
Villa offer the clearest fixture case
Manzambi combines Villa’s leading fixture rating with a £6.1m price and 7.0% ownership. His 6.3 points per game, two goals, three assists and 0.52 xGI per 90 give the move more substance than fixtures alone. He is the midfield route to consider if you want to act before wider buying, though the opening MUN (A) fixture means there is no need to treat this as a one-week purchase.
N.Jackson offers a forward alternative at £7.0m, with five goals and 25.9% ownership. His 5.4 points per game and 0.43 xGI per 90 sit below Manzambi’s figures, so the kinder schedule does not automatically make him the preferred Villa purchase. Let the position you need to improve decide. Coventry’s 2.6 average also deserves monitoring, but this brief supplies no individual buying case from their squad.
Brighton reward a position-led approach
De Cuyper is the strongest Brighton option here on points per game: 7.7, alongside six clean sheets and six attacking returns. At £5.4m and 45.0% ownership, he offers both defensive and attacking routes to points. Vuskovic costs £5.2m and is owned by 7.3%, with 6.4 points per game, six clean sheets and 9.6 defensive actions per 90. His two attacking returns are the clearest reason not to treat the cheaper option as equivalent.
Verbruggen provides a £4.6m goalkeeper route, with 5.7 points per game and six clean sheets. Choose according to the position that needs work rather than forcing a defensive transfer. Hinshelwood is the more speculative midfield consideration: £5.9m, 0.6% ownership, three goals and 1.57 xGI per 90. That attacking rate merits attention, but his 24 total points are a reason not to let one standout metric settle the decision.
Bournemouth give two credible routes
Evanilson’s £6.4m price buys four goals, four assists and 0.55 xGI per 90, with 5.8 points per game. Tavernier costs £6.6m in midfield and has five goals, 6.1 points per game and 0.61 xGI per 90. Both have a fixture case: Bournemouth face IPS (A), NFO (H), FUL (A), BHA (H) and HUL (H). Tavernier leads those rate measures, but Evanilson may fit the position you actually need.
Chelsea and Ipswich Town share Bournemouth’s 2.8 average, but matching averages should not produce matching transfer priorities. Chelsea finish with LIV (H), while Ipswich have TOT (A) and AVL (H) within their run. Neither club has an individual recommendation in the supplied player data. Keep them on the fixture watchlist rather than forcing a purchase without the player evidence available for Villa, Brighton and Bournemouth.
Sell selectively into harder schedules
Nott’m Forest, Hull City and Brentford have the hardest averages at 3.6. Sunderland and Fulham follow on 3.4, with Newcastle at 3.2. These are sensible places to look for an outgoing player when funding a move towards the kinder runs. Brentford’s sequence is particularly worth planning around: BHA (A), EVE (H), MUN (A), ARS (H) and MCI (H).
The case against selling is that a club average cannot judge an individual asset. Forest still have HUL (A), while Newcastle finish with SUN (H); the full sequence matters more than a difficult label. Use the ratings to prioritise transfers you already have reasons to make. Without individual performance data for these clubs, a blanket sell instruction would go beyond the evidence.
