Captain, Defender, Midfielder And Forward Picks From Pingreen Ahead Of FPL GW26

Ahead of the action, check out the latest Pingreen (@FPLPingreen) FPL GW26 tips whereby they take you through the smartest captain, defender, midfielder and attacking options.

Hello FPL fans! My name is Pingreen, and I’m back to share my top picks for Gameweek 26 and beyond, right here on SportsCasting. I finished 700th in the world in 2022/23 and ranked 1,330th last season, so make sure you take my advice seriously.

The back-to-back Double Gameweeks are over, and the next time someone asks you about your Ass Man, they probably aren’t referring to a Fantasy Football chip strategy.

Captain Pick – Mohamed Salah – £13.7m – MCI (A)

This week is really lacking a standout captain pick. Arsenal have a good fixture, but without their star boy Saka, who are you going to captain? Ødegaard? Trossard? Not for me.

If in doubt, you usually can’t go wrong with giving Mohamed Salah the armband, and that is what I will be doing. He faces Manchester City at the Etihad, as Liverpool look to put more ground between themselves and Arsenal in the title race.

A trip to the Etihad isn’t what I’d call an easy fixture – but it also isn’t as threatening as it was in previous seasons. City’s 34 goals conceded this campaign sits 10th in the division, as they continue to struggle defensively without their midfield anchor Rodri.

Defender – Gabriel – £6.3m – WHU (H)

With Liverpool having a minor drop-off in form in recent weeks, Arsenal look to have cemented themselves as the best defence in the Premier League again, at least statistically.

They have conceded 22 goals this season, the lowest amount in the league by a margin of 4 goals. Their 0.86 xGC per 90 is also the lowest in the league, with Liverpool trailing at 0.92.

If you are looking at investing in the Arsenal defence, you won’t do any better than Gabriel Magalhães. Watching him stroll into the box for a corner is always bound to get your adrenaline flowing – with the big man getting on the end of 3 set pieces to put the ball in the net on 3 occasions so far this season.

This weekend, the Gunners are at home to West Ham – who have failed to score in 2 of their last 4 games and haven’t scored multiple goals in a game in over a month.

Midfielder – Ethan Nwaneri – £4.5m – WHU (H)

Everybody loves a budget pick; they allow you to load up on those players that make your team look so attractive on paper. The hottest budget pick on the market right now is Arsenal youngster Ethan Nwaneri.

With injuries to Saka, Martinelli, Jesus, and Havertz, the Arsenal front line is devoid of options. For Nwaneri, this is a huge opportunity, and although it’s early, he looks to be making that right forward spot his own in Saka’s lengthy absence. He’s had 2 goal contributions in his last 2 games and is ing the eye test for any of those who have watched him.

This weekend, he comes up against a West Ham defence who are giving up 1.73 xGC per 90 this campaign – the only teams with a higher figure are Leicester, Ipswich, and Southampton. Another great opportunity for the new star boy on the block.

Forward – Wissa – £6.3 – LEI (A)

Now, try not to get too excited – but my forward pick this Gameweek has 0 goal contributions in his last 3 Premier League appearances. His name is Yoane Wissa.

So why is he my forward pick? Firstly, there isn’t an abundance of good forward picks this Gameweek. Secondly, even in a slight dry patch, his underlying numbers have still been really good.

He’s averaging 0.66 xGI per 90 minutes, which is better than the likes of Chris Wood, who is only averaging 0.43 xGI per 90. Have I mentioned how much I hate Chris Wood this season? The overperformance is off the charts.

The third reason Wissa is my forward pick is his opposition. Brentford have an away trip to Leicester City, who have been absolutely woeful all season.

The Foxes have conceded 53 goals this campaign, the second-highest figure in the league. Unless the fan protests have worked miracles, this is a defence Wissa can have success against.