FPL 2025/26: Best Fixtures for the First Six Gameweeks – Who Should You Target?

Many FPL managers follow the mantra 'fixtures breed form.'

Early in the season, when preseason form is uncertain, fixtures are the key starting point for building a solid team.

In this blog, the teams with the best Fixtures for Attack and Defence Difficulty are identified using the Fixture Difficulty Ratings.

Let's dive in!

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Best Fixtures - Attack Difficulty - Load up on Forest and Spurs?

As shown in the image below from our Fixture Difficulty Ratings, Forest have the best opening run from an Attack Difficulty perspective.

They face Brentford and West Ham at home in Gameweeks 1 and 3, and meet newly promoted Burnley and Sunderland in Gameweeks 5 and 6.

Wood (£7.5m) — the second-highest scoring forward in FPL last season — could be a great option to kick off your campaign.

Fulham are second with home games against Man United, Leeds and Brentford appealing. Their away trips to Brighton, Chelsea and Villa look more difficult, so FPL managers might want to rotate their players for these games.

Spurs are the only team to host a newly promoted side on the opening day, this is followed by a trip to Man City but then the fixture list eases up after that with games against Bournemouth, West Ham and Wolves looking attractive for their attackers.

As the above image from our Stats Sandbox feature shows, Solanke (£7.5m) was top amongst their attackers for 'Expected Goals' (xG) (11.86) last season.

The Englishman could thrive under the tutelage of their new manager Frank. Kudus (£6.5m) is also an attractive prospect given his budget price.

Everton start the season against newly promoted Leeds, with a favourable run ahead, only the Gameweek 5 trip to Liverpool stands out as a tough fixture.

As the below image from our Stats Sandbox feature shows, their top scorer Ndiaye (£6.5m) is classified as a midfielder this season.

Bournemouth open away to champions Liverpool, but their schedule improves quickly and FPL managers shouldn’t be deterred from picking their assets.

As the below image from our Stats Sandbox feature shows, Bournemouth were third for xG (73.61) last season, only behind Man. City (74.20) and Liverpool (91.19).

For FPL managers looking at potential bargains, Sunderland have the best fixtures of the promoted sides. With the first three games against West Ham, Burnley and Brentford offering potential for the Black Cats to get off to a flyer. Adingra (£5.5m) could be worth a look.

Man City are ranked as low as seventh for 'Attack Difficulty', but as the above image from our Player Points Projections feature shows, the Manchester side are projected to score the most goals (12.3) over the first six Gameweeks.

Best Fixtures - Defence Difficulty - Maximise Defensive Contribution Points

As the above image from our Fixture Difficulty Ratings shows, Forest remain top for 'Defence Difficulty'.

This further enhances the appeal of Murillo (£5.5m) and Milenković (£5.5m) who would have emerged as the top two scoring defenders last season, had the newly introduced Defensive Contribution Points (DCP) been in place.

Villa are a great option for FPL managers looking to invest in cheap rotation options, as the below image from our AI Rotation Optimiser shows. A rotation of Konsa (£4.5m) and Esteve (£4.0m) offers a great fixture run for the first six Gameweeks.

Liverpool have added Frimpong (£6.0m) and Kerkez (£6.0m) to their backline, but the presence of Robertson (£6.0m) and Bradley (£5.0m) means that there is likely to be regular rotation amongst the fullbacks.

As the above image from our Custom Stats feature shows, Virgil (£6.0m) was third amongst all defenders for Interceptions last season and should benefit significantly from the new DCP for defenders.

West Ham, Spurs and Wolves round off the top six with all three sides offering great options at just £4.5m.

As the above image from our Custom Stats feature shows, Wan-Bissaka (£4.5m) and Udogie (£4.5m) should both benefit from the new DCP system with both fullbacks in the top 10 for Tackles last season.

What does your Team's Fixture Difficulty look like?

Using the Fixture Difficulty Ratings tool, FPL managers can see what the upcoming schedule looks like for their Team.

FPL managers can click on any squad name to drag the player up and down in the table, access fixture difficulty specifically for their squad players, and exclude Gameweeks from the data range, which is useful for Blank and Double Gameweeks.

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