At a glance
Risk: Low
Verdict: Buy
Information checked:
Introduction
Erling Haaland begins 2026/27 at £15.5m, the highest starting price in FPL history. The question is not whether he is a brilliant pick. It is whether he is brilliant enough to justify more than 15 per cent of your entire budget.
The answer depends on captaincy, squad structure and risk tolerance as much as raw goals.
The case for Haaland
Haaland finished 2025/26 as the highest-scoring player in the game with 239 points, 27 goals and eight assists.
He has also started each of his four Manchester City seasons quickly. Official FPL analysis notes that he was the top-scoring player after the first six Gameweeks in all four campaigns, averaging nine goals and 61.3 points across those opening spells.
Manchester City have favourable early fixtures, including home matches against promoted opponents in the opening run. That gives Haaland repeated captaincy potential rather than a single good fixture.
Captaincy changes the value calculation
A £15.5m player is difficult to justify if you rarely captain him. When the armband doubles his score, premium spending becomes easier to defend.
If Haaland is your captain in four or five of the first six Gameweeks, you are effectively buying access to those doubled points. If you plan to captain Fernandes, Saka or Palmer most weeks, Haaland's price becomes harder to support.
The ownership problem
Haaland was already selected by around three quarters of managers shortly after the game launched.
High ownership does not make a player a good pick, but it changes the risk. A big Haaland haul can damage the rank of managers who do not own him, particularly when he is heavily captained.
Going without him can still work, but it requires the extra money to produce clear improvements across several positions.
What £15.5m does to the rest of the squad
A Haaland squad often requires at least two budget defenders, a cheaper second forward and fewer premium midfielders.
The positive side is that 2026/27 provides several £4.0m promoted defenders and multiple forwards around £6.0m. Those prices make a Haaland structure possible without filling the entire bench with non-playing options.
The danger is paying for Haaland, Fernandes and Gabriel together, then discovering that the remaining squad contains too many minutes risks.
Haaland versus a balanced squad
The no-Haaland route can fund two premium midfielders, a stronger defence and a more reliable bench.
That structure needs the alternative captain to match Haaland. It is not enough for the extra players to score slightly more than their cheaper replacements; they must also compensate for lost captaincy points.
A balanced squad may become more attractive if Manchester City's line-up looks uncertain or if Haaland carries any fitness concern.
FPL Assistant assessment
Overall rating: 9.5/10
Minutes score: 9/10 when fit
Fixture score: 9/10 for the opening run
Risk: low football risk, high budget concentration
Verdict: Buy for managers who plan to captain him regularly
Frequently asked questions
Final verdict: Buy
Haaland is worth £15.5m for a riskcontrolled Gameweek 1 squad because he combines elite scoring, secure centrality, strong fixtures and exceptional captaincy appeal. Going without him is a valid aggressive strategy, but it should be based on a complete alternative structure rather than a belief that one expensive player can never represent value. Rate My Team Want advice based on your own squad? Rate your FPL team to review squad balance, expected minutes, fixtures, captaincy and transfer priorities.
Sources
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