The Template Blanked, Villa’s Bleeding, and Bruno Needs a Response: Your Gameweek 2 Weekly Review
Gameweek 1 is done, and it did the thing opening weeks always do: told us everything and nothing at once. Arsenal look every bit the champions. Manchester United do not look like a team that just spent the summer talking about progress. Nine of the twelve most-owned players in the game blanked, Erling Haaland among them. Gameweek 2 is where we find out how much of that was real.
The deadline is 18:30 BST on Friday, 28 August, ninety minutes before Crystal Palace host Manchester City to open the round. The gameweek closes five days later with Arsenal’s trip to Aston Villa on Monday night. Below is the short version of everything we’ve covered this week, section by section, with a link through to the full breakdown wherever you want more than the headline.
Quick Take
Bruno Fernandes is the week’s top captaincy call after United’s Hull horror show, at home to Ipswich. Saka’s trip to Villa Park looks tougher on paper than it is, since Villa shipped four without reply at Brighton and haven’t fixed anything since. Brighton, not Villa, are now the form team in the division, which makes Chelsea’s home date harder than it looked a week ago. And every chip should stay in the drawer this week, Triple Captain included, until Haaland’s home date with Coventry in Gameweek 3.
Gameweek 2 deadline
blanked in GW1
of Aston Villa
Captain Recommendations
Bruno Fernandes is the pick this week, projected fractionally ahead of Haaland with Ipswich visiting Old Trafford and every reason to respond after Hull. Saka is the co-favourite despite travelling to Villa Park, since Villa’s defence has already shown itself to be brittle. Haaland remains defensible against a Crystal Palace side missing a centre-back, but it’s no longer the automatic armband it was in August, and Cole Palmer is a tougher differential than it looked a week ago now that Brighton, not West Ham, are the visitors to Stamford Bridge. Full captaincy breakdown →
Chip Strategy
Nobody should be touching a chip this week, United’s Hull disaster included. Wildcard and Bench Boost both need more information than two gameweeks can give you, and the one date worth planning around is a few weeks off: Erling Haaland at home to Coventry in Gameweek 3, the clearest Triple Captain setup on the horizon. Full chip strategy guide →
Differential Picks
Only three of the twelve most-owned players in the game returned in Gameweek 1, which is as strong an argument for looking past the ownership charts as you’ll get all season. Yoane Wissa at 2.8% owned is the standout, with Riccardo Calafiori and a fast-rising Maxim De Cuyper close behind. Full differentials list →
Fixture Analysis
Manchester United carry the best clean sheet odds of the round at home to Ipswich, while Aston Villa’s leaky defence makes their home date with Arsenal look softer for the visitors than the fixture list suggests. Brighton’s trip to Chelsea is the fixture most likely to catch managers out, given how comfortably they demolished Villa last week. Worth looking further ahead too: Haaland’s home run against promoted sides starts in Gameweek 3, and Chelsea host Hull in Gameweek 4. Full fixture breakdown →
Injury Updates
Arsenal remain without Timber and Saliba, Manchester United without Ugarte, and Liverpool are down four first-team names between Ekitike, Bradley, Leoni and Gomez. Wesley Fofana’s suspension rules him out of Chelsea’s visit from Brighton, and Nottingham Forest go into their trip to Anfield with two midfielders touch-and-go after groin strains. Full injury list →
Player Performance
Rayan Cherki outscored Haaland from Manchester City’s bench, Brighton’s Maxim De Cuyper and Jack Hinshelwood posted the two best expected points totals in the league, and Marc Guehi topped the defensive charts despite Crystal Palace losing. Brentford’s Mamadou Sangare marked his debut with a haul that’s already brought in 200,000 new owners. Full performance review →
Predicted Lineups
Five fixtures shape this gameweek: Friday’s Palace vs City curtain-raiser and deadline anchor, United’s bounce-back date with Ipswich, Liverpool hosting a short-handed Forest, Chelsea’s tougher-than-expected date with Brighton, and Arsenal’s Monday night trip to Villa Park. Full lineup predictions →
Transfer Suggestions
Maxim De Cuyper is the most-bought player in the game heading into this week despite a tougher fixture, and Mamadou Sangare is the clear budget bandwagon after his debut haul. The bigger risk is chasing Gameweek 1’s headline names purely on reputation, Palmer, Joao Pedro and Morgan Rogers included, none of whom have faced a defence worth the name yet. Full transfer guide →
This Week’s Full Coverage
Captain Recommendations: Bruno’s Reprieve, Haaland’s Reckoning
Chip Strategy: Why Patience Beats Panic
Differential Picks: The Template Already Blanked Once
Fixture Analysis: Reading the Runs Before They’re Obvious
Injury Updates: Who’s Actually Missing
Player Performance: Who Actually Delivered
Set your squad before 18:30 BST on Friday. Everything above will still be here after the deadline if you need to check it twice.
