Gameweek 8 of Fantasy Premier League has come to an end, marking just over 20% of the season completed.
Few would have predicted the Premier League table to look quite like it does at this stage, and these unexpected developments are giving FPL managers plenty to think about as they prepare for the weeks ahead.
In this FPL fantasy analysis, we will provide free FPL gameweek 9 tips, and we’ll take a closer look at one striker who’s capturing everyone’s attention, along with another forward who started the season strongly but is now being transferred out in large numbers.
We’ll also highlight a defender who continues to impress with his consistency, compare two highly attacking midfield options to see who comes out on top, and review the top five players for both expected goal involvements (xGI) and defensive contributions heading into Gameweek 9.
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FPL Gameweek 9 Deadline
The Fantasy Premier League Gameweek 9 deadline is Friday, 24 October 2025, at 19:30 BST.
FPL Gameweek 9 Fixtures
Leeds will host West Ham.
Sunderland travel to Chelsea.
Newcastle welcomes Fulham.
Brighton face Manchester United at Old Trafford.
Brentford have a home game against Liverpool.
Nottingham Forest are away to Bournemouth.
Arsenal will be hosting Crystal Palace.
Manchester City will visit Aston Villa.
Wolves will be hosting Burnley.
Spurs have an away fixture against Everton.
FPL Assets Leading On Form For Gameweek 9
Let’s start by looking at the current form amongst the best FPL players for Matchweek 9 before getting into our free fantasy football tips.
(Form is a metric that’s issued on the official FPL platform, which uses a player’s average score per match, calculated from all matches played by his club in the last 30 days.)
Goalkeepers:
- Caoimhín Kelleher jumps to first with 5.7 points
- Robin Roefs remains second with 5.2 points
- Nick Pope drops to third with 4.2 points
Defenders:
- Gabriel Magalhães stays first with 9.0 points
- Reece James is second with 8.3 points
- Nordi Mukiele jumps to third with 7.5 points
Midfielders:
- Antoine Semenyo remains first with 8.5 points
- Ismaila Sarr is second with 6.7 points
- Declan Rice drops to third with 6.5 points
Forwards:
- Erling Haaland stays first with 11.5 points
- Danny Welbeck jumps to second with 8.3 points
- Igor Thiago remains third with 7.7 points
Nick Woltemade Continues To Deliver
Newcastle’s new striker, Nick Woltemade, has consistently delivered in front of goal since his arrival in the Premier League.
He has played five league games so far this season and has scored in four of them, with his most recent goal being an extraordinary backheel flick against Brighton last weekend.
In terms of FPL points, Nick Woltemade has the second-highest points per match among all forward options in the game, with only Erling Haaland above him.
With a total of 32 FPL points, Woltemade is currently priced at £7.4m, having risen by £0.4m since his first appearance.
He has recorded the second-highest price increase among all forwards in the league, once again only behind Erling Haaland.
Woltemade currently has an expected goals (xG) value of 2.64 and has registered a total of 21 touches in the opposition box this season, averaging 4.2 touches per game.
He has scored one penalty and also hit the woodwork.
His biggest strength, apart from his finishing, appears to be his aerial ability, as Woltemade has already won seven aerial duels this season.
Looking at Newcastle’s upcoming fixtures, they face Fulham, West Ham, and Brentford in their next three Premier League games.
It is clear that most FPL managers expect him to maintain his excellent form, as Woltemade is currently the most transferred-in player ahead of the new gameweek
FPL Managers Losing Trust In João Pedro
Chelsea’s Brazilian forward, João Pedro, started the season in excellent form.
In his first four games of the season, Pedro scored a total of 33 FPL points, failing to contribute an attacking return in only one of those matches.
At the end of Gameweek 4, João Pedro was the most-owned player in the entire game, and many FPL managers expected him to maintain his consistency in producing attacking returns.
Since Gameweek 4, however, João Pedro has managed no attacking returns, earning only two points in each of the matches between Gameweeks 4 and 8.
Interestingly, he still has the second-highest total of FPL points among all forwards in the game, but his recent dip in form has made managers wary of keeping him in their squads.
Chelsea’s upcoming fixtures look promising, as they face Sunderland, Spurs, Wolves, and Burnley in their next four games.
Despite this encouraging run, João Pedro has dropped from being the most-owned player in the game to the third-most-owned, and he is currently the most transferred-out forward ahead of the new gameweek.
Overall, he is the second most transferred-out player ahead of Gameweek 9, with only Mohamed Salah being sold more rapidly.
Is Nordi Mukiele The Best Budget Option In Defense?
Sunderland have been an exciting team to watch since their promotion to the Premier League.
They are currently sitting in seventh place in the Premier League table and are only one point off the top four.
A major reason for Sunderland’s strong performances has been their defense, as they have kept four clean sheets in eight games this season.
Only Newcastle and Arsenal have kept more, with five clean sheets.
One of the most important components of Sunderland’s defense has been Nordi Mukiele, who has started every game for the club since Gameweek 3.
His FPL returns make for very impressive reading.
In his first appearance against Brentford, Mukiele earned a total of four points, making 14 defensive contributions in that match.
After Brentford, Sunderland faced Crystal Palace, and Mukiele scored 10 FPL points thanks to a clean sheet, 12 defensive contributions, and two bonus points.
Their next game was against Aston Villa, where Mukiele again scored four points and made 16 defensive contributions.
Following that match, Sunderland faced Nottingham Forest, where Mukiele scored six FPL points.
Sunderland then lost to Manchester United in a game that saw Mukiele record his lowest total of the season with three points, although he still managed 12 defensive contributions.
In Sunderland’s most recent outing, Mukiele scored 17 points against Wolves courtesy of a clean sheet, a goal, 12 defensive contributions, and three bonus points.
Nordi Mukiele currently averages 7.3 points per match, with only Gabriel from Arsenal averaging more, at 7.4.
At £4.1m, Mukiele has provided excellent value for the mere 3.2% of FPL managers who own him.
At this moment, Mukiele ticks many boxes for FPL managers considering him, as he can be seen as a budget defensive option who is outperforming most other assets while also serving as a strong differential pick.
Bryan Mbeumo Vs Pedro Neto
When looking for midfield options who fall into the medium-priced category in FPL, two options stand out for their attacking potential: Bryan Mbeumo from Manchester United and Pedro Neto from Chelsea.
Mbeumo is currently the more expensive option, coming in at £8.0 million.
Pedro Neto is priced at £7.0 million and has accumulated a total of 32 FPL points compared to Mbeumo’s 36.
Given that these two attacking midfield options have very similar profiles in terms of price and points, let’s examine how their overall performances on the pitch compare.
Bryan Mbeumo has played a total of 686 minutes this season, which is more than Neto’s 590 minutes.
Both players have scored two goals and have provided one assist.
Mbeumo has had eight shots inside the opposition box and three from outside the box, compared to six from inside the box for Neto and one from outside.
Mbeumo has a higher xG than Neto, with 2.33 compared to Neto’s 0.78.
Neto has also had significantly fewer touches in the opposition box, with 26 compared to 43 from Mbeumo.
Neto has, however, played more crosses into the box than Mbeumo this season, with 31 compared to Mbeumo’s 20.
Mbeumo has also been much less active than Neto when it comes to taking on opposition players, with only nine dribbles completed compared to Neto’s 24.
Mbeumo has committed more fouls than Neto, with five compared to one, and Neto has been caught offside more often than Mbeumo, seeing the flag raised on three occasions compared to two offsides for Mbeumo.
With Chelsea and Manchester United both looking to improve their league rankings this season, it will be interesting to see which of these two midfield options finishes this season with more FPL points.
Top 5 Players For Expected Goal Involvement
Let’s take a look at the top 5 players currently leading the FPL xGI (expected goal involvement) metrics at this stage of the season:
1) Erling Haaland – 9.21
2) Jean-Philippe Mateta – 8.32
3) Bruno Fernandes – 5.31
4) Enzo Fernández – 4.27
5) Cody Gakpo – 4.20
Top 5 Players For Defensive Contributions
Here are the top 5 players with the most defensive contributions in FPL so far:
1) Marcos Senesi – 108
2) Moisés Caicedo – 102
3) Elliot Anderson – 101
4) Granit Xhaka – 101
5) Tyler Adams – 99
Top 3 FPL Gameweek 9 Captain Picks:
- Erling Haaland vs Aston Villa
- Antoine Semenyo vs Nottingham Forest
- Bukayo Saka vs Crystal Palace
Differential Captain Pick Of The Week
Nick Woltemade
The most transferred-in player this week will be an excellent shout for the captain’s armband for those who do not want to follow the pack and captain Erling Haaland.
If Nick Woltemade can do what he has done in 80% of his Premier League games so far this season, he will return decent points for those who decide to captain him in Gameweek 9.
Playing Your Free Hit?
FPL managers who are considering using their Free Hit Chip this weekend might find some value below in our Gameweek 9 FPL tips:
GK: Senne Lammens (£5.0m)
DEF: Marcos Senesi (£5.0m)
DEF: Kyle Walker (£4.4m)
DEF: Dan Burn (£5.1m)
MID: Phil Foden (£8.1m)
MID: Antoine Semenyo (£8.0m)
MID: Bryan Mbeumo (£8.0m)
MID: Bukayo Saka (£10.0m)
FWD: Erling Haaland (£14.7m)
FWD: Nick Woltemade (£7.4m)
FWD: Jarrod Bowen (£7.8m)
BENCH: Martin Dúbravka (£4.0m)
BENCH: Kadan Young (£4.4m)
BENCH: Charlie Tasker (£3.9m)
BENCH: Owen Bevan (£3.9m)
Final Thoughts
Gameweek 8 has wrapped up, and FPL managers are now looking ahead to GW9 FPL with plenty of decisions to make.
This week has highlighted players who are exceeding expectations, while some early-season stars are starting to see their ownership shift.
These changes are opening up opportunities for managers willing to take a calculated risk.
Rotation and fixture uncertainty remain key considerations, making it more important than ever to check team news before finalising your transfers or captaincy.
Budget-friendly picks that consistently deliver are proving just as valuable as the high-profile options, giving managers multiple paths to gain an edge.
Looking beyond this week, planning for favourable fixture runs and identifying players in hot streaks could be the difference between climbing the rankings and losing ground.
Smart decisions now will pay off later in the season.
Good luck for Gameweek 9. Hopefully, our FPL GW9 tips have been helpful.
May your transfers hit the mark, your captain return big, and your squad reward careful strategy.
