Ahead of each Gameweek in the Fantasy Premier League, The Hype Train's three front-men, Robert Austin and Sam Austin, duel for FPL supremacy in predicting Premier League scores, as well as going head to head in picking a Scout Picks squad for each round of games. In addition, we provide general insight that we believe might be relevant for FPL players, such as our personal captaincy picks, differentials for the week, and more. Welcome to the Forecast. All aboard.

Fantasy Premier League: Gameweek 26 Deadline

For the 2019/20 Premier League season, the FPL deadline will be one hour before the commencement of the week's first game. Our website provides a real-world countdown timer for the the upcoming Gameweek, whilst you can read our latest Fantasy articles from the season on our 2019/20 FPL weekly hype sub-section.

How does our Forecasting work?

For three years we invited guests from the FPL Community to tackle us with picks for the upcoming Gameweek in Fantasy Premier League. We'll be taking a break from inviting guests onto this article for a year, and have introduced a new feature, Fantasy 5's, which we'll be asking weekly guests their top pick in each position ahead of each Gameweek.

For the sake of respecting the rules of the Forecast, we have provided an example of what we're sending out to interested parties that will feature throughout the season.

Premier League Fixture Prediction: As pundits, we are testing our football acumen with PL predictions and will be providing regular updated tables and stats in each edition of the FPL Forecast. A perfect score is worth 3 points whilst a correct result is worth 1 point.

FPL Gameweek Forecasting: Answering the regular questions that come up every single week in the Fantasy Premier League community that helps with identifying captaincy picks, transfers, attacking options, clean sheet potential, teams to look our for and avoid, players to consider for the Draft game, the wildcard differential players, as well as general analysis and comments.

Scout Picks: Picking a squad of 15 for a single Gameweek, without any budget, using the rules of the FPL - formations, captains and vice captains, and the player limits of 3 per club (chips will not be feature of these weekly picks)

Each team must pick a Captain, labelled as (c) and a Vice Captain listed as (vc).

Fixture Prediction: Gameweek 26

Gameweek 26 is split across two weekends’ due to a small winter break that the Premier League have provided clubs.

First Weekend (08/02 – 09/02):

Everton 2-0 Crystal Palace

Brighton 2-2 Watford

Sheffield United 1-0 Bournemouth

Man City 3-0 West Ham

Second Weekend (14/02 – 17/02):

Wolves 1-1 Leicester

Southampton 2-1 Burnley

Norwich 0-3 Liverpool

Aston Villa 0-2 Spurs

Arsenal 3-1 Newcastle

Chelsea 1-1 Man United

FPL Forecasting: Gameweek 26

Top FPL transfer targets for the Gameweek:

GK: Hugo Lloris (TOT, GK, £5.3mil, 3.3% ownership)

DEF: Mason Holgate (EVE, £4.5mil, 2.7% ownership)

MID: Steven Bergwijn (TOT, MID, £7.5mil, 1.0% ownership)

FWD: Gabriel Martinelli (ARS, FWD, £4.6mil, 3.9% ownership)

Who are the teams to look out for and avoid?:

Leicester & Wolves (Avoid Both): This fixture is ending 1-1 and nothing can convince me otherwise, it feels like a fixture that will be low scoring which is what Wolves are able to do at home…contain offensive players. I can see this being a game of few chances, and the only player I think would be effective in this fixture is Raul Jimenez (WOL).

Arsenal (Watch): If you have read my differential picks this week you know that Arsenal dominate this fixture against Newcastle. I can see this being the game that breaks the Gunners draw streak, so much so that I have entrusted one of my forward spots to Martinelli this week.

Everton (Watch): Ugh, if you know anything about my picks, and me, you will know my disdain for selection Everton players in my FPL team. I’ve had terrible luck with any of them in my own team, but (and this annoys me to say) I think Everton will do very well in this fixture. I won’t be transferring in any of their players though personally, as their run after this fixture is nightmarish for the Toffees. They got one good week left on the ‘Watch’ section of this before I start properly marking them to avoid.

Liverpool (Watch): Everyone is going to back a team with 8 clean sheets in their last ten games, and 22pts clear of 2nd place. Liverpool are in a league of their own, and anyone not looking at Norwich’s defence, and Salah’s amazing form, not going to bed without dreaming about FPL points in this fixture.

Chelsea & Manchester United (Avoid Both): What a mess this fixture is. I have no idea what way I think this game is going, so I am proudly sitting on the fence. United are the ghost of days gone by, and Chelsea make winning at Stamford Bridge a chore. Either this is going to an electric fixture with everything happening, or more realistically, two teams who are still figuring themselves out are going to cancel each other out. As a differential enthusiast, this is the game to see if Bruno Fernandes is going to be a good player moving forward, but I can’t believe over 2.8% of players have already pulled the trigger to bring in the Portuguese without vetting his qualities in the league.

FPL Captaincy Picks:

(C) – Mohamad Salah (LIV): This fixture to Liverpool is the equivalent of giving the keys to the candy shop to the kids. If you don’t captain Salah this week, I recommend you visit your local GP for an urgent check-up.

(VC) – Kevin De Bruyne (MCI): Pep Guardiola must navigate a fixture against ‘Serial Winner’ David Moyes’ West Ham in GW26. Usually, City dominate this fixture, and Mr. Rotation himself will want to bounce back after Spurs put another nail in the title race at their expense. De Bruyne is City’s constant and should be good for a goal or assist (or both) in a game to thwart the self-titled best manager in the Premier League.

FPL Scout Picks: Gameweek 26

Formation: 3-4-3

Starting 11

GK: Dean Henderson (SHU)

DEF: Trent Alexander-Arnold (LIV)

DEF: Kyle Walker (MCI)

DEF: Serge Aurier (TOT)

MID: Richarlison (EVE)

MID: Mohamad Salah (LIV) (C) - (C)

MID: Kevin De Bruyne (MCI) - (VC)

MID: Hueng-Min Son (TOT)

FOR: Gabriel Martinelli (ARS)

FOR: Sergio Aguero (MCI)

FOR: Roberto Firmino (LIV)

Substitutes

GK: Bernd Leno (ARS)

MID: Bruno Fernandes (MUN)

DEF: Lucas Digne (EVE)

DEF: Jack Stephens (SOU)

Fixture Prediction: Double Gameweek 26

Gameweek 26 is split across two weekends’ due to a small winter break that the Premier League have provided clubs.

First Weekend (08/02 – 09/02):

Everton 2-0 Crystal Palace

Brighton 1-1 Watford

Sheffield United 1-0 Bournemouth

Man City 4-1 West Ham

Second Weekend (14/02 – 17/02):

Wolves 3-2 Leicester

Southampton 2-1 Burnley

Norwich 0-3 Liverpool

Aston Villa 1-1 Spurs

Arsenal 2-1 Newcastle

Chelsea 2-2 Man United

FPL Forecasting: Gameweek 26

Top FPL transfer targets for the Gameweek:

Gabriel Martinelli (ARS) is a bargain at £4.6 million.

Jamaal Lascelles (NEW) is also perfect bench fodder with good fixtures on the horizon.

Raul Jimenez and Adama Traore (WOL) just look fixture proof.

George Baldock (SHU) is the better attacking option to consider, especially with John Lundtram’s place in the team a slight doubr given Sheffield’s transfer activity.

Who are the teams to look out for and avoid?:

Spurs (avoid): Aston Villa is a tricky fixture and there’s a few in form players for both teams that might negate one another.

Wolves (Watch): This game should (and hopefully will) have lots of goals. Vardy and Jimenez look certain options to consider.

Sheffield United (Watch): Classic 1-0 home win incoming.

Everton (Watch): Palace are struggling in attack. A clean sheet should be on the cards for The Toffees.

Man City (Watch): Serial winner, David Moyes, is going to lose this game by a heavy margin. We’re in the belief that the Champions League will eventually catch up with City as they switch gears in a bid to win a major honour. Get used to seeing Otamendi play.

FPL Captaincy Picks:

(C) – Mohamed Salah (LIV): Shocker. Mohamed Salah is the top FPL player again with 165 points. The Egyptian King is in lethal form, managing 30 points from his last 2 league matches. The pick is a no-contest for Gameweek 26, with the league’s top side visiting the worst team, Norwich. Writing is on the wall.

(VC) – Danny Ings (SOU): No goals in 3 matches? No better way to end a small gold draught than against your former side at home.

Other Gameweek Comments:

Gameweek 26 will actually and ‘literally’ be the longest Gameweek that I can remember in FPL history. It’s bad enough waiting one evening for your team’s players to let you down. We’re about to go a week.

Teams on the whole, given the percentage ownership of players, we’re actually under the impression that FPL players will not have to make many, if any transfers, so should be a good week to roll the dice and bank on the ever-predictable Captain Salah.

As a side note, I’d like to take the opportunity to thank everyone that has been following The Hype Train for the past 4 and a half years. We just hit 1000 published articles and have grown and developed massively as a website. We’ve grown and learnt and have matured as individuals and as a team on this website. We love what we do and have never, EVER, charged a single penny for our content. We can’t wait to keep building on our portfolio o Fantasy sports and to greatly expand our actual football team, Hype Train FC, in the next year.

Thank you for joining us on our journey so far. We look forward to the next five years!

FPL Scout Picks: Gameweek 26

Formation: 3-4-3

Starting 11

GK: Ederson (MCI)

DEF: George Baldock (SHU)

DEF: Virgil van Dijk (LIV)

DEF: Trent Alexander-Arnold (LIV)

MID: Mohamed Salah (LIV) – (C)

MID: Riyad Mahrez (MCI)

MID: Kevin De Bruyne (MCI)

MID: Steven Bergwijn (TOT)

FOR: Raul Jimenez (WOL)

FOR: Danny Ings (SOU) – (VC)

FOR: Dominic Calvert-Lewin (EVE)

Substitutes

GK: Dean Henderson (SHU)

MID: Gabriel Martinelli (ARS)

DEF: Lewis Dunk (BHA)

DEF: Enda Stevens (SHU)

Want to know more about The Hype Train?

The Hype Train is an entertainment website founded in 2015, specialising in Fantasy sports reporting, starting with Fantasy Premier League (FPL), before expanding to MLS Fantasy coverage in 2018.

We pride ourselves in providing beautiful graphics, statistics, in-depth analytical reporting and free weekly insight for hopeful players attempting to climb rankings tables. We are also occasional media reviewers, with a keen interest to review games, live sport, and professional wrestling.

In 2019, Hype Train Football Club was formed, becoming the first Fantasy Football website to take to the field. HTFC is a socially active team across social and web channels, providing regular match highlights, match reports, comprehensive player statistics and unique player profiles.

The Hype Train were nominated and shortlisted for the 'Best Football Blog' in 2016 by the Football Bloggers Association at their annual Football Blogging Awards (The FBA's), and were again shortlisted as a finalist in 2019 in the 'Best Fantasy Football Blog' category.

You can follow us on Twitter, Like us on Facebook, follow Hype Train FC on Instagram, subscribe to our YouTube channel for exclusive content, or visit our website here at www.thehypetrain.co.uk

All aboard.