Season 2026/27
Gameweek 1 Last Man Standing Picks
Honest picks, the teams to stay away from, and a bit of common sense for your survivor pool
Deadline
Friday, 21st August 2026 at 19:00 BST
The Strongest Picks
Confidence ratings are editorial judgement, not calibrated win probabilities
Arsenal (H)
vs Coventry
5/5 confidence
safe riskChampions at home against a side that just came up. Saliba and Timber are out but they still put three past Man City in the Community Shield, and you only get Arsenal once this season so spending them on GW1 has a cost
Man United (A)
vs Hull City
4/5 confidence
moderate riskCarrick's side finished third and won four of their last five. Hull won the play-offs but this is still a gap in squad quality, and taking United now keeps Arsenal in the bank
Man City (H)
vs Bournemouth
4/5 confidence
moderate riskHaaland at home in Maresca's first league game should have too much. Eighteen draws last season is the LMS warning though, a stalemate here is how you go out
Brentford (H)
vs Spurs
3/5 confidence
moderate riskSpurs finished 17th, De Zerbi is still patching a wrecked injury list, and Brentford are at home. This is a win you can take without burning a title contender
This Week's Fixtures
- vsArsenal
Coventry
21 Aug, 20:00easy difficultyChampions at home, Community Shield 3-0 still in the legs
- vsHull City
Man United
22 Aug, 12:30medium difficultyPlay-off winners at home against a side that finished third
- vsEverton
Crystal Palace
22 Aug, 15:00hard difficulty13th vs 15th, both leaky, draw written all over it
- vsIpswich
Sunderland
22 Aug, 15:00differential difficultyPromoted home side against a Europa League team
- vsForest
Leeds
22 Aug, 15:00hard difficulty16th vs 14th on opening weekend, stay out
- vsBrentford
Spurs
22 Aug, 17:30medium difficultySpurs finished 17th and still have an injury list
- vsBrighton
Aston Villa
23 Aug, 14:00differential difficultyVilla are short of bodies, Brighton at home
- vsMan City
Bournemouth
23 Aug, 14:00medium difficultyHaaland at home, but Bournemouth drew 18 times last season
- vsNewcastle
Liverpool
23 Aug, 16:30hard difficultyNo Newcastle manager, Iraola's first league game away
- vsFulham
Chelsea
24 Aug, 20:00hard difficultyMonday night, Alonso's first league game, Fofana suspended
Stay Away From These
- Liverpool
Away at St James' Park in Iraola's first league game, and they won one of their last five last season. Newcastle have no manager, which makes this chaos rather than a free win
- Leeds
Away at Forest in a 14th vs 16th fixture that screams draw. Opening-weekend away days like this are how last man standing ends
- Spurs
Finished two points above the drop and still missing van de Ven, Kulusevski, Solanke and Kudus. Do not touch them at Brentford
- Chelsea
Alonso's first league game is a Monday night away at Fulham, with Fofana suspended and World Cup returnees short of minutes
If You've Burned Through the Good Teams
Sunderland (A)
vs Ipswich
3/5 confidence
moderate riskSeventh last season and into Europe, away at a side that just came up. Using Sunderland now is how you save Arsenal and Man City for weeks that actually need them
Brighton (H)
vs Aston Villa
3/5 confidence
risky riskVilla are missing bodies and several World Cup returnees have no pre-season. Home to a depleted side is a smarter spend than burning the champions
What We're Actually Picking
Man United
Hull are play-off winners at home but United finished third and won four of their last five. Taking them now keeps Arsenal in the bank for a week that actually needs the champions
Form Guide (Last 5 Games)
- WWWWW
Arsenal
Last season closed with five straight wins as champions
- WWDWW
Man United
Carrick's side won four of the last five to finish third
- DWWDL
Man City
Ended last season with a loss, now Maresca's first league game
- WLDLD
Liverpool
One win in the last five last season, Iraola inherits a stutter
- DDWWW
Coventry
Championship run-in, went up as champions with 95 points
- DWWDD
Bournemouth
Draw heavy to the end last season, sixth and into Europe