Update (Friday 21 August, morning): the morning press conferences have shifted several statuses. New flags: Bruno Guimarães (Arsenal, 6.7% ownership) — thigh injury, 75% chance of playing; Dean Henderson (Crystal Palace, 2.6%) — ankle, 75%; Danny Welbeck (Chelsea, 1.7%) — 75%. Worse: Ryan Yates (Nottingham Forest) has gone from 75% to a full injury with no return date — if you own him, he will not play. Unchanged: Doku, Matheus Nunes and Šeško remain on 75%. Konsa still appears as an Aston Villa player, though his ownership has fallen from 16.0% to 15.2% — some managers have already acted.
The Gameweek 1 deadline closes tomorrow at 18:30 UK time. A few hours left, and one issue that deserves more attention than anything else.
One in six managers owns a player who probably will not play
It is Ezri Konsa. He still sits in the game’s database as a £4.5m Aston Villa defender with no warning flag attached — and 16% of managers own him. That figure has been climbing for two days, because a cheap defender always comes in handy.
Meanwhile, here is the actual situation:
- Arsenal agreed a deal worth around £50m and put him through a medical.
- Arsenal did not register him before Thursday’s midday cut-off, so he cannot face Coventry on Friday (per the Evening Standard).
- Villa are losing him to a direct rival for the top places. A club in that position virtually never fields the player in his final match before leaving.
- Reports suggest his Arsenal debut may not come until 31 August — at Villa Park, against Villa.
To be fair: nobody has officially announced that Konsa will not face Brighton. Emery has not said it outright. But a player who has had a medical at another club, with a deal agreed, two days before leaving, is not a player you build a squad around.
The problem is that the game gives you no warning. Konsa carries no injury or doubt status, no red or yellow flag. He looks fully available. If he is in your starting eleven and you do nothing before 18:30 tomorrow, you begin the season with ten players.
Who to replace him with, for the same money
At £5.0m or less, by our ratings:
- Jan Paul van Hecke (Tottenham, £5.0m) — rated 85, the highest-rated cheap defender in the game. Owned by 9.1%.
- Chris Richards (Crystal Palace, £5.0m) — 82 at just 0.8% ownership.
- Malick Thiaw (Newcastle, £5.0m) — 82 at 1.8%.
- Tyrick Mitchell (Crystal Palace, £4.5m) — 81, exactly the same price as Konsa.
- Matty Cash (Aston Villa, £4.5m) — 79. If you want to keep a Villa defender, he is staying at the club and rates higher than Konsa.
All five rate above Konsa (73), and four of them cost the same or less.
If the Arsenal defence tempts you against Coventry
The appeal is obvious: the champions at home to a promoted side, the easiest fixture of the round. But be careful which one you pick.
Riccardo Calafiori at £5.5m is on 30.9% ownership — the most-owned Arsenal defender — at a rating of 75. Gabriel costs £8.0m and rates 85. Gabriel is the quality here; Calafiori is the popularity.
Remember too that Saliba and Timber are injured with no return date, so this back line is less predictable than it looks from outside.
Captaincy: the model says Bruno
As of this morning:
- Bruno Fernandes — rated 90, risk 8, upside 89. The best profile in the game, away at Hull. Captained by 49.8%.
- Erling Haaland — rated 89, risk 15, upside 78, owned by 69.6%. The crowd’s pick.
- Antoine Semenyo — rated 90, the game’s other Strong Buy, at 26.5% ownership.
- Harry Wilson (£6.5m) — rated 89 at 7.0%. The cheapest route to a high rating in your squad.
The full set with risk and upside is in Captain Picks, and a complete squad sits in our recommended eleven.
Two things that have not changed
Prices are still frozen. We checked this morning: not one of the 595 players has changed price since the game launched. The annual “buy now before he rises” panic has no basis again this year.
The doubts are still doubts. Jérémy Doku (4.6% ownership), Ryan Yates (4.4%), Matheus Nunes and Nordi Mukiele are all on 75% chances of playing. That can still shift after Friday’s final press conferences — our Injury Centre refreshes hourly.
Before you lock your squad
We set out the full checklist yesterday. The short version: check nobody in your squad has left the league, that nobody carrying a 75% note is in your eleven, that your captain and vice-captain play in different fixtures, and that the squad is actually saved rather than just viewed.
23 teams have now joined our league. The code is 3ix1cw, details on the mini league page. To score from Gameweek 1 you only need a saved squad before tomorrow’s deadline.
Ownership, price and status data come from the official Fantasy Premier League API, read on the morning of 20 August. The 0–100 ratings come from our AI model. The report that Arsenal missed the registration deadline for Konsa comes from the Evening Standard; no club has issued an official statement on his availability. Fantasy PL Edge is an independent site, not affiliated with the Premier League or the official Fantasy Premier League game.