We’ve put together our Scout Picks ‘bus team’ ahead of Gameweek 1 of Fantasy Premier League (FPL).
For those who haven’t seen this article series before, it’s essentially a rough, first draft of our regular picks, which get finalised and published much closer to the deadline.
We are limited to a £83.0m budget for our starting XI, although the bench options – currently – aren’t just unplayable fodder as you might have in your own squads.
We are actually running a poll below on whether they should count as part of a wider £100m overall budget or whether you prefer them to stay as they are, offering cheap, more playable alternatives to the first XI but not price-capped.
The final picks will stay as they are and cement our weekly selection based on the Scout Squad long-list entries and fresh injury updates but this ‘bus team’ article – a term coined by the Always Cheating boys – will discuss the players who are likely to be in the running.
Here it is, then: our early thoughts on the runners and riders up for selection in Gameweek 1, followed by the preliminary picks themselves.
THE LIKELY LADS
There weren’t many weeks when Trent Alexander-Arnold (£7.5m) and Mohamed Salah (£13.0m) didn’t feature in the Scout Picks last season, and the Liverpool duo are very likely to be included again in Gameweek 1 of the new campaign.
Alexander-Arnold, of course, was the top-scoring FPL defender in 2021/22, averaging one return (be it a goal, assist or clean sheet) per game. Given his points potential at both ends of the pitch, the right-back still feels under-priced, even at £7.5m.
As for Salah, we hardly need any encouragement, but it’s worth noting that he is traditionally a very fast starter. In fact, the Egyptian has managed to score on the opening day of each campaign since signing for the Reds back in 2017.
SALAH’S OPENING DAY RECORD
| Season | Gameweek 1 opponent | Goals | Assists | Bonus | FPL points |
| 2021/22 | Norwich City (a) | 1 | 2 | 3 | 17 |
| 2020/21 | Leeds United (h) | 3 | 0 | 3 | 20 |
| 2019/20 | Norwich City (h) | 1 | 1 | 2 | 12 |
| 2018/19 | West Ham United (h) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 8 |
| 2017/18 | Watford (a) | 1 | 1 | 1 | 11 |
Tottenham Hotspur attacking representation, be it through Harry Kane (£11.5m) or Son Heung-min (£12.0m), also looks on the cards for the Scout Picks, with Southampton up first for the Lilywhites on Saturday.
The Spurs pair were in electric form following Antonio Conte’s arrival last season, racking up a combined 44 attacking returns in 2022 alone.
More goals have been scored by Kane and Son in pre-season, resuming one of the most devastating partnerships in the Premier League, and one of them will almost certainly be on Scout Picks duty in Gameweek 1.
IN CONTENTION
The rest of this article is completely free to read but requires a Fantasy Football Scout account for access – you can get yours at no cost here.
