Hive FPL GW1 Preview - The best laid plans...
Published on HivePostify by @hivefpl · Tue Aug 18 2026
3 months after the conclusion of the 25/26 season, Hive FPL is back for what we hope will be another great season of Fantasy Football.
If you haven't yet done so, there is still time to join both the Classic and Head to Head leagues as well as the FPL based game, Football Exchange built right here on SportsBlock.
What will 26/27 bring for FPL managers?
Well for now, the only certainty appears to be uncertainty!
The Premier League has seen a record 9 managerial changes over the summer. With the likes of De Zerbi and Carrick only taking up their roles earlier in 2026, it means that we're likely to see plenty of changes to the style of play and personnel involved, particularly early doors.
As with any mass change, there will be winners and there will be losers. FPL managers will need to pick the winners as early as possible to stand a chance of success.
The other major factors to consider at the start of the season are the impact of the World Cup and the fact that the transfer window is still very much open.
Minutes played in the World Cup
Certain players in certain teams played a significant number of minutes this summer and then returned late to pre-season training.
We saw in the recent Community Shield that a City side that includes a number of World Cup stars who had made it to the Quarter Finals and beyond looked leggy against an Arsenal squad who had made better use of the last few weeks.
Performance in pre-season friendlies is very little guarantee for what comes in the real thing but it would be advisable to target players who have at least got minutes under their belt for the start of the season.
As for the transfer window, it feels like a couple of initial dominoes have fallen which could spark the market into life after a few quieter weeks. Rodri's departure is likely to see City looking at midfield reinforcements while Liverpool are still chasing the marque signing of PSG's Bradley Barcola.
All in all, I'd be suprised if we didn't see the vast majority of clubs dip their toes into the murky waters of the transfer market over the next fortnight.
What it all points towards is a significant amount of upheaval over the early stages of the season.
I've seen a lot of FPL content creators suggesting that they'll be using their first wildcard chip as early as week 3 this season.
Personally, I'm a bit more relaxed on the whole concept and happy to accept that there is likely to be a good deal of flux. It may well be necessary to use a wildcard early if your squad requires major corrections. Alternatively, if there's little value in shaking things up while the dust settles then it might be worth hanging on a bit longer. The best laid plans and all...
Hive FPL membership
Unfortunately the fixtures themselves don't get released until after the GW1 deadline and the game updates so you'll have to wait to see who you're actually playing in the H2Hs both this week and across the season.
A reminder that there is a sneaky little Friday match to kick things off meaning that the deadline is 6:30pm, Friday 21 August.
That is also the deadline to join the H2H leagues for the season. They will be locked after that point.
The Classic League and Football Exchange will remain open for any Johnny-come-latelies to join.
Here's who we have so far
|Hive Account|FPL Team name|Hive FPL Classic League|Hive FPL H2H|Football Exchange|Eligible for MEDAL reimbursement| |-|-|-|-|-|-| |@Yagman01 |YAGMAN FC |n |y |n |n | |@teofilex11 |Likodra FC |y |y |n |n | |@racibo |fpl.racibo.pl |y |y |y |y | |@earplugs |HaaBrunoLand |y |y |n |n | |@leebennett |Blue Mooners |y |y |n |n | |@borran |Hiveheadz |y |y |n |n | |@deniskj |Seskobob |y |y |y |y | |@blanchy |The Cella's |n |y |y |n | |@b0s |Legion FC |n |y |n |n | |@tengolotodo |Tengo Rangers |y |y |y |y | |@thoth442 |Red Cards of Rohan |y |y |n |n | |@mckane |FC McKane |n |y |n |n | |@suttercane |Sutter Kane |n |y |n |n | |@amirtheawesome |Ameerians |y |y |n |n | |@pingpongfrimpong |Ping Pong Frimpong |y |y |n |n | |@sperosamuel15 |Top Boy |y |y |n |n | |@talesfrmthecrypt |Suffragette City |y |y |y |y | |@george-dee |Damola's Team |y |y |n |n | |@gvkanten |Hungry Lions |y |y |n |n | |@ronnie10 |Blugrana |y |y |n |n | |@Herbae |Herbae (Stevelight) |y |y |n |n | |@Happyboy1 |HappyBoys |y |y |n |n | |@Doombot75 |Glasner half full? |y |y |y |y | |@acidyo |Acid's Team |y |y |y |y | |@kilvnrex |Kelsco City |y |y |n |n | |@stuartcturnbull |Jambo Villains |y |y |n |n | |@dewabrata |dewabrata |y |y |y |y | |@desro |Tangram |y |y |n |n | |@artniche |Corner |y |y |n |n | |@blockchainfpl |BlockchainFPL |y |y |y |y | |@dune69 |StilgartheFremen |y |y |n |n | |@danideuder |Dani Deuder FDA |y |y |y |y | |@Emeka4 |Emeka4 |y |y |n |n | |@Micheal87 |Micheal87 |y |y |n |n | |@aunt-granny |Working 9 to 5 |y |y |n |n | |@derek-trotter |Deals on Wheels |y |y |n |n | |@twicejoy |twicejoy |y |y |y |y | |@olibennett |Bennett's Boys |y |y |n |n | |@emekaj |Fire Power |y |y |n |n | |@elvisking |Top of the Pops |y |y |n |n | |@omrys5 |Division 1 |y |y |n |n | |@princekwame |Six and the City |y |y |n |n | |@aaalviarez |Chocopram |y |y |n |n | |@akomoajong |Simcard FC |y |y |n |n | |@publioscelta |Daring Differentials |y |y |n |n | |@el-maestro |Los Magos del Balón |y |y |n |n | |@workingdad |It's Nice! |y |y |y |y | |@besheda |DASHmesh |n |n |n |n | |@dirtyleeds |Dirty Leeds |y |y |y |y | |@stranger27 |The Fantasy Devils |y |y |y |y | |@chineduokafor |Large in the Rear |y |y |n |n | |@aditya-p |Garuda XI |y |y |n |n | |@Twicejoy-sports |The Mighty Fc |y |y |n |n | |@mikmai |Mikmai1 |y |y |n |n | |@cohlson |Cohlson |y |y |n |n | |@shebe |n/a |n |n |y |n | |@r1c4rd0 |n/a |n |n |y |n | |@palomap3 |n/a |n |n |y |n | |@niallon11 |n/a |n |n |y |n | |@wildlifelover |n/a |n |n |y |n | |@livinguktaiwan|PChip FC|y|y|n|n| |@gentleshaid|Gen2shaid|y|y|n|n| |@uwelang|FC Uwelang|y|y|y|y| |@kingsleyy| Kingsleyy |y|y|n|n| |@skander| Skander's Team |y|y|n|n|
GW1 Tips and Picks
2 main themes seem to be dominating discussions in the run-up to GW1
To Haaland or not to Haaland
That is definitely the question.
The big striker has been a must have FPL asset ever since he arrived in the Premier League. However, his price is now an eye watering £15.5mil meaning that to have him in your team means you will need to compromise elsewhere.
Normally I'd suggest that it's not much of a compromise. There are few, if any, players in the game capable of putting together multi-digit scores in the way that Haaland has over the past few seasons.
However, this season feels a bit different for several reasons. Firstly, Haaland is coming off the back of a World Cup summer, something he's not had to deal with in previous campaigns given Norway's failure to qualify for past tournaments. It means that he's had almost no pre-season and it showed in a bitty performance against Arsenal in the Community Shield.
In fact, City as a whole looked very undercooked having chosen to play just a couple of friendlies on tours of East Asia this summer.
Then of course you have to factor in that City as a whole are entering the post-Pep era and if Sunday's performance is anything to go by, that might not be the easiest transition period.
Let's be honest, it's still a massive risk not to pick him given how well he's started the last few Premier League campaigns.
If you don't have him in your starting team then you've also got to consider how you'd get him in later in the season. Realistically, the only way to do that is to drop a wildcard. If you're already thinking of doing that early doors then perhaps City's sequence of home games against Coventry, Sunderland and Ipswich starting from GW3 is the perfect opportunity to bring him back in?
An early bench boost?
Again, this seems to be a popular topic of discussion across FPL communities.
Ideally for a bench boost you want 2 factors to align - favourable fixtures and all 15 players to be starting.
Picking favourable fixtures at this early stage of the season is tough given that managers have no real form to go off. Yes, you'd certainly fancy Arsenal at home to Coventry or United at Hull but it's still a bit of a punt.
Getting 15 players who will start is probably a realistic ask if you've studied who has played in the pre-season and more specifically who has been starting in the last couple of matches. Most managers will begin to work with their preferred starting XI in the later part of pre-season.
Ultimately, whether you bench boost might be determined by a broader chip strategy. If your plan is to wildcard early on then why not bring in a couple of options who can help you with the bench boost.
Even if like me, you're not wedded to the idea of a WC early on, then perhaps just getting BB, which is arguably the weakest chip in the game, out of the way isn't a bad shout.
Which teams have the easier starts?
United- probably have the most favourable run of games in the first few weeks. Bruno Fernandes is the obvious, albeit expensive pick. Very much a candiate for the captain's armband in week 1. Could doubling up on United midfielders also be the way to go with Cunha or Mbeumo possibilities on that front?
Sunderland - another team with an easier start to the campaign. Defensive solidity meant that their CBs were good picks last season and the likes of Ballard might not be a bad shout to start things off.
Everton - If Kieran Dewsbury-Hall was £6mil instead of £6.5mil, I think everyone would have him in their team. At present, he's in just 3.5% of teams and if you can squeeze that extra half a million out of somewhere then he might just prove to be a great differential. Alternatively Ndiaye who is £6mil and likely to be on pens appears to be staying at Everton for now. Young left-back Aznou is one to watch early on. Could he get some starts ahead of Mykelenko? At £4mil he'd be a great buy if that comes to pass.
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Who are you favouring in the early parts of the season?
Tags: #hivefpl#football#soccer#fpl#fantasy#ocd#sports#epl#teamuk#vyb