Must Haves for Your 2024/25 FPL Team

London, England- Cole Palmer's (£10.5m) record-breaking price rise for the 2024/25 Fantasy Premier League has not deterred managers from rushing to include him in their squads. The Chelsea star has climbed £5.5m in cost this season after topping the overall player standings last campaign with 244 points.

Palmer's Rapid Popularity

Palmer has quickly established a significant ownership advantage over any other midfielder since Fantasy was launched on Wednesday afternoon. Just over 24 hours after the game went live, more than 1 million managers have already entered their squads, and Palmer can be found in over 53 percent of them.

Dominating the Midfield

When looking at the ownerships per position, Palmer has been selected by over 16 percent more managers than the second most popular midfielder, Anthony Gordon (£7.5m) of Newcastle United.

Most-Owned Midfielders 2024/25

Variability in Other Positions

There is far more indecision in the other three positions. Under two percent separates the two top-owned goalkeepers and forwards, and there is only a nine percent disparity between the top two defenders.

Haaland’s High Price Tag

While Palmer already appears irresistible, the same cannot be said for Erling Haaland (£15.0m) after he was handed a starting price of £15.0m, the highest of all time in Fantasy. The Manchester City forward sits in only 30 percent of squads as managers look to spread those funds throughout their line-ups instead.

FPL Pod: Should You Pick £15.0m Haaland?

Is the Man City forward too expensive, or do you need to own him? Hear what the experts say.

Alternatives to Haaland

Aston Villa’s Ollie Watkins (£9.0m) and Newcastle’s Alexander Isak (£8.5m) have proved the most popular Haaland alternatives for managers’ frontlines. Indeed, they are the two most-owned players in the game so far, found in 56 percent and 54 percent of squads respectively.

Similarly to Haaland, Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah (£12.5m) is around the 30 percent ownership mark, making him only the fifth most popular midfielder. If this trend continues, both Haaland and Salah would take on the unusual roles of differential captains in the early stages of 2024/25.

For Haaland, in particular, this represents a huge turnaround from last season when his ownership—starting around 80 percent and rising to over 92 percent at one point—made him the runaway favorite in the vast majority of Gameweeks.

Bargain Forwards

Haaland’s ultra-premium cost is impacting managers’ opening squads significantly. Brighton & Hove Albion’s Joao Pedro (£5.5m) is the most-chosen budget forward to play alongside Haaland, with over 22 percent of Fantasy managers backing the Brazilian.

This marks out Fulham's Rodrigo Muniz (£6.0m) as a great cut-price differential. He costs just £0.5m more than Joao Pedro and has a far kinder opening run of opponents.

Most-Owned Forwards 2024/25

Premium Defenders

Haaland’s £15.0m price tag has also had a knock-on effect at the back. Those going without Haaland are investing in premium defenders instead. Arsenal’s William Saliba (£6.0m) offers the most secure route into the league’s meanest defense, with the Gunners keeping 18 clean sheets last campaign. Saliba is currently in 39 percent of squads, while both Man City’s Josko Gvardiol (£6.0m) and Tottenham Hotspur’s Pedro Porro (£5.5m) are found in more than a quarter of squads.

Among the cut-price contenders, Newcastle’s Dan Burn, Crystal Palace’s Joachim Andersen, and Villa’s Ezri Konsa all have the early fixtures to justify their popularity at £4.5m apiece. Southampton’s Taylor Harwood-Bellis is among a host of ultra-low £4.0m starters for the promoted clubs who can help free up cash for owners of Haaland, with over 15 percent of managers already bringing him into their squads.

Most-Owned Defenders 2024/25

Goalkeeper Choices

Between the posts, Arsenal’s defensive exploits in 2023/24 mean that David Raya (£5.5m) is the most popular goalkeeper at present. Nonetheless, managers should be looking for value here, with save points and bonus points just as crucial as clean sheets. Pairing Brentford’s Mark Flekken (£4.5m) with his deputy Hakon Valdimarsson (£4.0m) offers a solution at a mere cost of £8.5m.

Most-Owned Goalkeepers 2024/25

As the new Fantasy Premier League season kicks off, managers are busy finalizing their squads, with Cole Palmer emerging as the standout choice in midfield. The coming weeks will reveal whether the early investment in these popular picks pays off, and how managers adapt to the season's unfolding dynamics.