Goalkeeper is the one position where our AI Rating tells you to save, not spend. Across all 63 goalkeepers in the game right now, the highest score is just 71 — and not a single keeper earns a Buy verdict. The best of them sit on Hold; everyone else is Risky or Sell. So the smart play is simple: pay as little as you can for a rating in the low 70s, and push the money you save up towards the Bruno Fernandes and Erling Haaland end of the pitch.
Here is how the position ranks for the 2026/27 season, straight from the engine behind our FPL AI Player Rankings. Every number below — rating, price, ownership — is live as of the GW1 deadline.
The two at the top (rating 71)
Two keepers share the highest rating in the game at 72: Gianluigi Donnarumma (Man City, £5.5) and Caoimhín Kelleher (Brentford, £5.0). Same rating — but Kelleher is £0.5m cheaper, which makes the Brentford keeper the single best value in the position. Donnarumma’s move to City puts one of the tightest defences in the league in front of him; the model likes both, and choosing between them really comes down to whether that extra half-million is better spent elsewhere. It usually is.
Premium bracket (£5.5–£6.0)
David Raya (Arsenal, £6.0, rating 70) is the template pick — 34.0% of managers own him, more than any other keeper in the game. He is safe and he plays behind a strong defence, but note the engine does not rate him above a £5.0 Kelleher or Martínez. You are paying a premium for certainty, not for a higher ceiling. Jordan Pickford (Everton, £5.5, 70) and Alisson (Liverpool, £5.5, 66) fill out the pricier tier.
The £5.0 sweet spot
This is where the position is won. At exactly £5.0 the engine offers a whole cluster of keepers rated in the high 60s to low 70s:
- Caoimhín Kelleher (Brentford) — 72
- Emiliano Martínez (Aston Villa) — 70
- Robin Roefs (Sunderland) — 70
- Dean Henderson (Crystal Palace) — 69
- Nick Pope (Newcastle) — 68
- Matz Sels (Nottingham Forest) — 67
- Robert Sánchez (Chelsea) — 66
- Senne Lammens (Man Utd) — 65
Kelleher, Martínez and Roefs are the standouts here: a top-of-the-position rating without touching your premium budget.
Budget enablers (£4.5 and under)
If you want to free up money for an extra big name outfield, the position bends further still. Bart Verbruggen (Brighton, £4.5, 69) is the best budget rating in the game and already 18.9% owned — the smartest enabler on the board. Guglielmo Vicario (Spurs, £4.5, 65) and Bernd Leno (Fulham, £4.5, 63) are solid £4.5 picks, while Martin Dúbravka (Spurs, £4.0, 65) is the cheapest usable keeper in the game.
AI vs the crowd
The ownership numbers show where the crowd and the model disagree. Senne Lammens (Man Utd) is 20.3% owned and Martin Dúbravka (Spurs) 24.1% — both heavily backed, both rated only 65. Managers are piling into United’s new number one and Spurs’ cheap bench keeper, while the engine quietly prefers Kelleher, Martínez and Roefs (all higher rated, same or lower price) plus Verbruggen as the budget play. That is the edge: the same money, a better rating.
The verdict
No goalkeeper is a Buy, and that is the whole point. Spend £4.5–£5.0, take a rating in the high 60s to low 70s, and put the savings into your attack. If you want the value king, it is Kelleher at £5.0. If you want to go as cheap as possible without giving up a rating, Verbruggen at £4.5 is the one.
See the whole board in our FPL AI Player Rankings, and read the rest of this positional series: best forwards, best defenders, best midfielders and our value picks. New to the number? Start with how our AI Rating works and how to use it to build your team.
Our ratings are generated by an AI model from official FPL data and refreshed every gameweek. Fantasy PL Edge is an independent site and is not affiliated with the Premier League or the official Fantasy Premier League game.