From Calafiori to Foden: Who are the top difference makers in FPL Gameweek 1?

[p]Here are the players that will make a real difference to your FPL Gameweek 1 team using [a href="https://go.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/join?utm_source=flashscore&utm_medium=partnership&utm_campaign=preseason-2026"]Fantasy Football Hub’s[/a] AI predicted points. [a href="https://go.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/ai-team-rating?utm_source=flashscore&utm_medium=partnership&utm_campaign=preseason-2026"]Get your Gameweek 1 team rated instantly by AI for free[/a] simply by uploading a screenshot.[/p][h2]Best Defender: [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/calafiori-riccardo/CEwq7x7l/"]Riccardo Calafiori[/a] vs [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/coventry/GOvB22xg/"]Coventry City[/a] (H) - 5.4 predicted points[/h2][p][a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/arsenal/hA1Zm19f/"]Arsenal[/a] defenders are in high demand for Gameweek 1, having kept an impressive 19 clean sheets last season on their way to the Premier League title. They kick off the entire campaign with a home game against Championship winners Coventry City.[/p][p][a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/gabriel/tEcnVXMS/"]Gabriel[/a] (£8.0m) sees a price hike of £2.0 million, but there are other options to pick from the Gunners defence, including full-back Riccardo Calafiori (£5.5m) who produced three goal involvements last season. The £2.5m price saving could be the difference in your squad.[/p][image alt="Comparing Gabriel and Calafiori's 2025/26 stats" id="d2fe9ab3-eecc-4a7a-ac91-7d110d74e66f" credit-line="Fantasy Football Hub" guid="9d21e2b0-e918-405e-83fc-011689fc6d4e" original-width="1080" original-height="810" /][h2]Best Midfielder: [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/foden-phil/E7XjDJns/"]Phil Foden[/a] vs [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/bournemouth/OtpNdwrc/"]Bournemouth[/a] (H) - 5.4 predicted points[/h2][p][a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/haaland-erling/UmV9iQmE/"]Erling Haaland[/a] (£15.5m) has been selected by a huge 73.5% of managers going into this campaign, who will likely back him with the armband early too. So, to benefit from Manchester City delivering if you back them early, doubling up could make the difference.[/p][p]New manager Enzo Maresca has described Phil Foden (£7.0m) as one of the pillars in his squad, trusting him with the captain’s armband during pre-season. There’s hope he can replicate his dazzling 2023/24 campaign, with 19 goals and eight assists. He’s 6.4% owned.[/p][image alt="Phil Foden player profile" id="e41efe01-e19b-4137-a4c8-ba24d1311568" credit-line="Fantasy Football Hub" guid="456f735c-0481-4ed4-9888-d4ba22c34bd7" original-width="1080" original-height="810" /][h2]Best Forward: [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/isak-alexander/p41IV42c/"]Alexander Isak[/a] vs [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/newcastle-utd/p6ahwuwJ/"]Newcastle United[/a] (A) - 5.2 predicted points[/h2][p]Alexander Isak (£9.0m) had a disappointing opening season for [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/liverpool/lId4TMwf/"]Liverpool[/a], with just three goals and one assist across 694 minutes. But with [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/ekitike-hugo/ltVXPlJU/"]Hugo Ekitike[/a] (£7.5m) injured, plus a full pre-season, where he has a goal and assist already, we could see a big improvement.[/p][p]Investment in Liverpool is going in favour of [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/wirtz-florian/0Q5gjImi/"]Florian Wirtz[/a] (£7.5m) with two pre-season goals and [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/szoboszlai-dominik/dERKtqoo/"]Dominik Szoboszlai[/a] (£7.0m) for his set piece potential and penalties, but Isak has a good chance of spot-kicks himself. Can he make a difference against his old club?[/p][image alt="Isak's 2025/26 stats" id="f629ba3e-d519-4901-b7b9-359304edcd32" credit-line="Fantasy Football Hub" guid="3535e095-8ef1-497d-98da-0aeff3da0b0d" original-width="1080" original-height="810" /][p]Do any of these picks make your current side for Gameweek 1[a href="https://go.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/ai-team-rating?utm_source=flashscore&utm_medium=partnership&utm_campaign=preseason-2026"]? Get your team rated instantly by AI for free[/a] simply by uploading a screenshot.[/p]