Welcome back to the Fantasy Premier League and welcome back to FISO!
The 2024-2025 Premier League season has gone into the rich archives of English football as the season in which Liverpool FC won their 20th title in the topflight of English football. A record-equalling 20th title, we should say, because the Reds equalled the 20 titles of their archrivals Manchester United, who won their last one back in the 2012-13 season. And all of that in the very first season of Arne Slot, the Dutch manager who was brought in from Feyenoord in the summer of 2024.
While that was a beautiful story, the Premier League offered much more drama than that. What about the crumbling of the traditional top six, for example? With Manchester United the great disappointment as a result of their finish in 15th (!) place? Of course, Spurs did even worse, finishing 17th (!), but the Londoners deviated the embarrassment a bit by winning the 2024-2025 Europa League (against Manchester United in the final), thus qualifying for the Champions League Group Stage. Or what about Nottingham Forest qualifying for European football for the first time in 30 years, thanks to an impressive 7th-place finish?
In other words, it was a season full of ups and downs, spectacle and disappointment, but as the saying goes: we need to move on. The Premier League 2025-2026 is just a few weeks away at the time of writing, which means that FPL preparations are in full swing for millions of fantasy managers. And there are a few important changes to take into account, once again:
Chips: Fantasy managers will have four chips at their disposal this season, namely the Bench Boost, the Free Hit, the Triple Captain and the Wildcard. Last season’s Assistant Manager chip has been removed from the game. Instead, all four of the previously mentioned chips will be available twice this season: once in the first half of the season and once in the second half.
Defensive points: Outfield players will earn points for defensive actions this season. These include clearances, blocks, interceptions and tackles for defenders, while forwards and midfielders also get points for ball recoveries on top of that. A defender gets 2 extra FPL points for every 10 defensive actions, while forwards and midfielders get 2 extra FPL points for every 12 defensive actions.
Bonus Point System changes: This season, goalkeepers now get 3 (instead of 2) bonus points for saved shots from inside the box, while a penalty save is now worth 8 bonus system points (down from 9 bonus system points). A scored penalty is now worth 12 bonus system points for the scoring player, instead of 18 or 24. Goalline clearances from outfield players have gone up in worth, from 3 to 9 bonus points. Finally, every successful tackle is now worth 2 bonus points.
Assists: For assists that took a deflection off a defender, assists will now be awarded regardless of whether the assist reached its intended target, providing it only took one touch off a defender and was received by the goalscorer inside the penalty area. Unforced defensive errors will also now lead to an assist being given by the player whose pass led to it, as long as the defensive error in question is not a misplaced pass. Players will now also earn an assist if they earn a penalty or free-kick that is scored via a handball, regardless of whether it was forced or unforced.
AFCON transfers: The Africa Cup of Nations will take place between Gameweek 16 and Gameweek 22 of the 2025-2026 FPL season. Fantasy managers receive five free transfers at the start of Gameweek 16 to deal with that.
The Premier League 2025-2026 season is set to kick off on Friday, August 15th, at 20h00 (UK time), when champions Liverpool host Bournemouth at Anfield.
In the build-up to gameweek 1, we will be taking an in-depth look at each of the 20 teams competing in the Premier League this season, including a general team preview, a tactical preview and some FPL recommendations per side. In this third part of our Season Preview series, we’re taking a look at Brighton and Burnley, the first promoted side in our 2025-2025 Club Previews series.
BRIGHTON – General preview for 2025/26
After two years of full-throttle football under Roberto de Zerbi, Brighton & Hove Albion brought in Fabian Hürzeler as the new manager last summer. At just 31 years of age at the time, the German became the youngest permanent manager in the history of the Premier League. He proved that age is really just a number though, as he led the Seagulls to a more than decent 8th place finish, just four points behind number seven Nottingham Forest, who will enter the Europa League Group Stage this season.
While the end result of the 2024-2025 campaign was good, Brighton fans will admit that it was a rocky road to get there at times. The Seagulls were inconsistent throughout the season, mixing impressive victories against the likes of Manchester City and eventual champions Liverpool with a run of eight consecutive defeats that, looking back, largely ruined their European chances. The low point in the Premier League was probably their shock 7-0 loss to Nottingham Forest though; Brighton’s worst league defeat in 67 years.
In attack, Hürzeler’s men performed admirably, scoring 66 goals in 38 league games. Only Liverpool, Manchester City, Arsenal and Newcastle were more prolific in front of goal, which also explains how strikers Danny Welbeck and Joao Pedro, and winger Kaoru Mitoma, all managed double figures in terms of league goals last season. The flip side of the coin was that the Seagulls offered too little solidity in defence under their new manager, conceding 59 goals. Only West Ham and the bottom-five teams conceded more than Brighton over 38 league games.
Brighton: Tactical preview 2025/26
If we had to describe Fabian Hürzeler’s coaching style in one sentence, it would be something along the lines of a balanced approach between fluid attacking play and a solid defence, with a penchant for set-pieces. Over the 2024-2025 Premier League campaign, only Liverpool recorded a higher Expected Goals from set-pieces than Brighton (8 vs 7) and Hürzeler’s side overperformed in that sense by scoring 10 goals from corners and freekicks.
As far as formations go, the German head coach likes to switch it up and he does not strictly adhere to one or two specific starting lineups. The backline practically always consists of four players, with high-pressing and dynamic wing-backs, but the formations often vary between 4-2-3-1, 4-4-2, 4-4-3 and sub-variations of those. More important is his focus on the fundamentals of his team, regardless of formation: possession-based football, dynamic positioning, high pressing, lots of vertical passes and tactical flexibility on the pitch as games progress.
BRIGHTON – Potential FPL picks
Starting a list potentially valuable FPL picks from the Brighton roster is not hard, as it might boast one of the most under-priced players in the entire game. Kaoru Mitoma (£6.5m) was one of Brighton’s best players last season, scoring 10 goals and providing 5 assists for a total of 145 FPL points. In a squad where the points were very spread out, the Japan international was the highest-scoring Seagull in the official fantasy game. Despite that, and despite the fact that Brighton as a team was only outscored by four other teams in the league last season, Mitoma’s price tag was kept at a very affordable £6.5m. The Seagulls unfortunately have been given a bit of tough opening set of fixtures, including games against Man City, Spurs and Chelsea in the first six, but we nevertheless regard their Japanese winger as a very appealing pick; if not from Gameweek 1 onwards then definitely once the Seagulls’ schedule clears up a bit.
Perhaps no Brighton player was as symbolic for the team’s inconsistency throughout the season last year as Yankuba Minteh (£6.0m). The Gambia international was brought in from Newcastle for a cool £30 million last summer and made a more than promising impression right off the bat. He also showed the type of inconsistence that is typically associated with young players. Minteh showed incredible pace and great dribbling though, and even his end product was decent last season, despite it being his first season at the AmEx and his first full season as a Premier League player. In 1,831 minutes of Premier League action, the young winger managed 6 goals and 5 assists for a total of 102 FPL points. Seeing as he is classified as a midfielder in FPL, the competition for his position in fantasy squads is fierce, but we can definitely see him emerge as a budget-friendly pick after Brighton’s difficult run of opening fixtures.
While we would not immediately recommend a defensive asset from the Brighton roster, at least not until Hürzeler’s side has shown that they have improved in that area, Bart Verbruggen (£4.5m) remains an interesting option. The Dutchman is one of the finest young goalkeepers in the league, perhaps even in Europe, and he is nailed-on between sticks under Hürzeler. He did not miss a minute of Premier League action last season, which resulted in 103 FPL points, courtesy of 7 clean sheets and 91 saves. Oh, and one assist. We expect Verbruggen to get plenty of chances again this season to rack up save points, especially if Hürzeler manages to shore up his defence and limit more conceded chances to shots from outside the box, and he is very affordable at his current price. With just a few more clean sheets on top, you can have a 125+ point goalkeeper here at a price of just £4.5m.
BURNLEY – General preview for 2025/26
Burnley were relegated from the Premier League at the end of the 2023-2024 season after just managing a disappointing 24 points from 38 league games. Instead of feeling down and out though, the Clarets vowed to return to the Premier League as quickly as possible, and return to the Premier League as quickly as possible they did. On April 21st 2024, they became the second team in the Championship to clinch straight promotion to the Prem, behind champions Leeds United. The victory also saw Burnley reach 31 league matches unbeaten, setting a new club record in the process.
Their incredible unbeaten run wasn’t the only club record that was broken last season. Burnley, in true Claret fashion, actually remained unbeaten at home during the entire season, the first Championship side to do so since Newcastle United in the 2009-2010 season. A big part of the success was thanks to their solid defence, which let in only 16 goals in 46 league games: an all-time record in English league history. As a matter of fact, the Clarets did not concede more than one goal in any league game throughout the 2024-2025 Championship campaign. This included a run of 12 consecutive clean sheets in the league between December 21st 2024 and March 4th 2025. This all resulted in an impressive 100 points, which was still not enough to keep Leeds, who also reached the 100-point mark, off the title. Like that, Burnley became the first team in English football history to reach 100 points without winning the title.
As usual, and despite their record-breaking Championship season, it remains to be seen how Burnley will fare as newly promoted team in the Premier League. They have managed to keep most of the squad intact, apart from goalkeeper James Trafford, who moved to Manchester City for around £30 million. At the same time, the Clarets have invested heavily in their squad so far, though more in the squad as a whole than splashing it all on one or two players. Right winger Marcus Edwards’ loan from Sporting Lisbon was made permanent for about £9 million, while fellow winger Loum Tchaouma and left-back Bashir Humpreys were brought in from Lazio Roma and Chelsea, respectively. The loans of offensive midfielder Zian Flemming (Millwall) and forward Jaidon Anthony (Bournemouth) were converted into permanent deals as well, while Burnley also managed to bring in the talented Feyenoord and Holland international Quilindschy Hartman for around £8 million.
Burnley: Tactical preview 2025/26
While their achievements last season don’t look like it now, there was quite some uncertainty in and around Turf Moor after last season’s relegation. Manager Vincent “Trust the process” Kompany parted ways with the club for bigger things at Bayern Munich and Scott Parker was brought in to lead the Clarets back to Premier League status. What followed was one of the most impressive Championship runs in history based on an incredibly solid defensive setup. The former Chelsea man, who is not expected to change it up too much in the upcoming season, built his side on a compact back four consisting of a strong central pair and extremely disciplined fullbacks, led by a phenomenal James Trafford in goal.
Parker’s approach to football last season was described as extremely pragmatic on more than one occasion, but the starting formation was almost always the same. The young manager clearly prefers a 4-2-3-1 setup with a solid double pivot in the midfield to protect both the backline and the overall balance in the team. Up front, he often posted a lone striker flanked by two wide players who would get plenty of defensive tasks as well. Right behind him and well in front of the defensive midfield block, it was either Hannibal Mejbri or Zian Flemming who brought the creative impulses. Overall, we expect Parker to go for a similar low-risk, result-oriented approach in the upcoming season.
BURNLEY – Potential FPL picks
First off, Burnley have been given one of the hardest sets of opening fixtures for the 2025-2026 season. Their first seven games include visits to Spurs, Manchester United, Manchester City and Aston Villa, as well as home games against Liverpool and Europe-bound Nottingham Forest. As a result, do not expect too many Gameweek 1 squads to feature a lot of Burnley players. Having said that, the Clarets do offer a few interesting fantasy options, especially for the budget hunters amongst us. In that sense, central defender Maxime Estève (£4.0m) stands out, as he was as nailed-on as they come in Parker’s Championship side last season. He barely missed a minute of league action and we expect a similar use of his qualities this season. Don’t expect too many attacking intentions from the Frenchman, but remember that defenders will also get additional points for clearances, blocks, interceptions and tackles (CBIT) this season. With a price tag of £4.0m, Estève can be a decent and very budget-friendly fifth defender in your squad.
If you are set on including a Burnley fantasy asset in your squad as soon as you can, new signing Quilindschy Hartman (£4.5m) could be a slightly more exciting addition than Estève, though also £0.5m more expensive. The left-back, who recovered from a serious injury last season and was brought in from Dutch giants Feyenoord over the summer, is expected to start for the Clarets, in part thanks to his attacking intent. Parker might opt for a back-five instead of a back-four in the Premier League, in order to offer his forwards a bit more support from the wide areas without compromising the crucial solidity in the centre of the park. Such a system fits Hartman like a glove, who has shown to be a dynamic wingback in both Rotterdam and the Dutch national team. We are generally not fans of picking players who are new to the Premier League, especially not as part of a newly promoted side, but the Dutchman might turn out to be a shrewd gamble at a reasonable price.
For our third potential FPL pick from the Burnley roster, we have looked at who will likely take on much of the set-piece duties this season. Based on last season and the fact that main man Josh Brownhill has now left the club, it looks like many of the set-pieces will fall to Jaidon Antony (£5.5m). The 25-year-old winger registered 8 goals and 7 assists in 43 Championship games last season as a loan player from Bournemouth, after which Burnley paid £8 million for him to bring him in permanently. He is expected to take on a large part of the direct free-kicks and corners coming Burnley’s way this season, which is always a plus for a fantasy asset. Combine that with his very affordable £5.5m and you’ve got a budget differential pick worth considering for your midfield, though likely from Gameweek 8 onwards.
For further discussions have a look at FISO’s FPL forum.