Liverpool FPL: Who To Own, Captain And Avoid — 1 Aug

The call — Liverpool's attack has the third-best outlook in the league — and their fixture list reads like a favour. Newcastle away first, fine, that's the hard one. Then Forest at home, Ipswich away, Fulham at home, Bournemouth away, before City turn up at Anfield in GW6. Five of six you'd happily attack, and our projections agree: this is one of the…

The pick, per our model, is Szoboszlai at £7.0m — and yes, I know Isak projects a touch higher over the six. The order is deliberate. Szoboszlai is the pick because he's the reliable route into this attack at a price that doesn't wreck your midfield budget. He's good for a steady return most weeks with the odd big one, and about 4 in 10 managers already have him, so he's a safe pass rather than a gamble.

Isak at £9.0m is the upside play — around 25 points projected over the run, and only about 1.5 in 10 own him. A forward leading the line for the league's third-sharpest attack against Ipswich and Fulham is not a complicated sell. If you've got the £9.0m free, he's the one who goes massive.

Wirtz (£7.5m) and Gakpo (£7.0m) sit behind those two, and that's the honest caveat with this whole attack: it's crowded. Lots of good players, not enough guaranteed 90 minutes to go round. Gakpo at 3.5 in 100 owned is tempting as a punt, but ask yourself who's coming off on 60 when Liverpool are 2-0 up. Probably him.

One warning on the other end. Liverpool's defence ranks fourth-meanest in the league, but the clean-sheet run is genuinely awkward — Newcastle, Bournemouth and City away or hosting in this window. Virgil (£6.5m) still projects nearly 24 points across the six because he plays every minute and chips in at set pieces, and only about 1.7 in 10 own him. He's fine. Just don't buy him expecting six shutouts.

The call: Szoboszlai is the buy — nailed minutes, kind fixtures, sensible price. If you can stretch to Isak as well, do it before GW3 and GW4 arrive, because Ipswich and Fulham are where the hauls live. Hold off on the Liverpool defence until the run softens — the attack is where this team pays you.