The Scout explains why both teams will play TWICE in Gameweek 26 and looks at who the in-form picks are
The Scout explains why Arsenal and Wolverhampton Wanderers have a Double Gameweek 26 (DGW26) in Fantasy Premier League, who the in-form picks are and why the winners of the EFL Cup semi-final between Manchester City or Newcastle United are unlikely to have a DGW26.
Which clubs have a DGW26 and why?
Arsenal and Wolves will take part in the first Double Gameweek of 2025/26 following the former’s 4-2 aggregate victory over Chelsea in the EFL Cup semi-finals.
As a reminder, a “Double Gameweek” is when a club play TWO Premier League fixtures in a round of matches, and their players get two chances to score points.
The Gunners will now face either Man City or Newcastle in the EFL Cup final, which takes place on the same weekend as Gameweek 31 in Fantasy.
Arsenal’s Gameweek 31 visit to Wolves has therefore been rescheduled and moved into Gameweek 26, giving both clubs a Double Gameweek 26 and a Blank Gameweek 31 (BGW31).
A “Blank Gameweek” is when some clubs don’t play a Premier League fixture in a round of matches, and their players score zero points in Fantasy.
Mikel Arteta’s side are on their travels in both their DGW26 matches, visiting Brentford and Wolves, who travel to Nottingham Forest in their first fixture.
Double Gameweek 26
Brentford v Arsenal
Nott’m Forest v Wolves
Wolves v Arsenal
Who are the in-form players from Arsenal and Wolves?
An assessment of each player’s form over the previous calendar month shows why Arsenal’s Gabriel (£7.0m) will be a popular captain pick for his two matches.
Both Arsenal and Wolves played five matches in January and, as the table below highlights, the Gunners centre-back totalled 32 points, averaging 6.4 points per match (ppm).
Gabriel combined a goal and three clean sheets with four defensive contribution points and two bonus points in that spell, showing why he is the most-owned defender in Fantasy, found in 39 per cent of squads.
Wolves’ forward Mateus Mane (£4.6m), meanwhile, owned by under two per cent of managers, could prove a very handy differential and help managers climb up their mini-leagues.
His average of 5.4ppm across January was bettered only by Gabriel among the Arsenal and Wolves contingents over the last five Gameweeks, equalling that of Gunners midfielder Declan Rice (£7.5m), who is selected by 32 per cent.
Elsewhere, Arsenal’s three clean sheets across that period brings William Saliba (£6.0m), David Raya (£5.9m) and Jurrien Timber (£6.3m) into the form table.
Once again, Wolves have a cut-price, low-owned pick to consider here. Hugo Bueno (£4.3m) produced an assist, two clean sheets and two bonus points to total 22 points, with an average of 4.4ppm, just ahead of Raya and Timber.
Arsenal and Wolves’ in-form picks over January
Player
Club
Owned
Pts per match
Gabriel
Arsenal
39.3%
6.4
Rice
Arsenal
32.1%
5.4
Mane
Wolves
1.9%
5.4
Saliba
Arsenal
12.5%
4.6
Zubimendi
Arsenal
2.3%
4.4
H.Bueno
Wolves
0.2%
4.4
Raya
Arsenal
33.3%
4.0
Timber
Arsenal
28.2%
4.0
Scroll across on mobile to see the full table
Why it’s unlikely that Man City or Newcastle will have a DGW26
Man City and Newcastle go head-to-head in the other EFL Cup semi-final second leg on Wednesday evening.
Having won 2-0 at St James’ Park in the away leg, Pep Guardiola’s side are the favourites to claim a place in the final.
In this scenario, Man City will have a BGW31, along with their current Gameweek 31 opponents, Crystal Palace.
On the other hand, if Newcastle overcome that deficit and make it to Wembley, they would have a BGW31, along with their current Gameweek 31 opponents, Sunderland.
Regardless of whether Man City or Newcastle progress, it seems very unlikely that either club will have a DGW26 or Double Gameweek 27 (DGW27) due to European action.
Newcastle are involved in the UEFA Champions League playoffs, with the first and second legs taking place in the midweeks of 18 and 25 February, or the midweek of Gameweek 26 and Gameweek 27 to Fantasy managers.
In Man City’s case, their Gameweek 31 opponents Palace are involved in the UEFA Conference League playoffs, which also take place in the midweeks of Gameweek 26 and Gameweek 27.
This would suggest that the Premier League will have to reschedule them into another Gameweek later in the season.