Suggested squad

5-3-2

£100m spent£0m left

Verbruggen

£4.5BHA

12.49 pts · 92% start

Virgil

£6.5LIV

17.52 pts · 98% start

Mukiele

£5.5SUN

16.56 pts · 81% start

Truffert

£5.5BOU

16.2 pts · 99% start

Konsa

£4.5ARS

11.2 pts · 88% start

Mitchell

£4.5CRY

10.85 pts · 81% start

Semenyo

£8.5MCI

19.37 pts · 89% start

B.Fernandes

£12.0MUN

19.14 pts · 77% start

Damsgaard

£5.5BRE

16.42 pts · 61% start

Haaland

£15.5MCI

23.78 pts · 83% start

Watkins

£8.0AVL

19.6 pts · 82% start

Bench

Dubravka

£4.0TOT

9.16 pts · 67% start

Hughes

£4.5CRY

5.95 pts · 52% start

Florentino

£5.0IPS

9.34 pts · 61% start

Strand Larsen

£6.0CRY

13.27 pts · 67% start

Where the money went

GKP

£8.5m

DEF

£26.5m

MID

£35.5m

FWD

£29.5m

Starting XI£80.5m

Bench£19.5m

Nailed starters10/11

Playable bench3/4

Why this shape

£80.5m of the £100.0m is in the starting XI and £19.5m on the bench. Bench money only pays off when someone in front of them does not play, so the aim is to keep it low without picking four players who never start.
2 premiums anchor the XI with the rest spread across mid-price players, which keeps a transfer in hand if the season starts badly.
10 of the 11 starters are strong bets to play every week, and 3 of the 4 bench players would actually come on and start if needed.
The 5-3-2 shape came out best here because that is where the value sat, not because the formation itself is superior. It can be changed each week without a transfer.

Comparing the four

Projected points for the starting XI over the next 5 gameweeks. The bars start at zero, so how similar they look is the point — these strategies are close, and the assumptions behind them are large. A strategy you understand and can adjust beats one you picked because a number was two points higher.

Start of Season Team Picker