Fantasy Premier League 2026/27: Key Player Reclassifications
The Fantasy Premier League game board has been nudged again. Ahead of the 2026/27 season, a cluster of emerging names have been pushed into new roles, and the ripple effect on managers’ plans could be significant.
At the heart of it all: Junior Kroupi, Patrick Dorgu and Omar Marmoush.
Kroupi: From finisher to Fantasy goldmine
Bournemouth’s Junior Kroupi is the headline act. Listed as a forward last season, he now switches to midfield after operating primarily as a No 10 behind Evanilson in his breakout year.
The role suited him. The numbers scream it.
Kroupi struck 13 goals in 33 appearances in 2025/26, a superb return for a player not leading the line. His average of 134.0 minutes per goal was not just sharp, it was devastatingly efficient — over 50 minutes quicker than Antoine Semenyo, whose 188.2 minutes per goal was the best among regular starting midfielders.
Now those same goals are worth more in FPL terms. As a midfielder, Kroupi will collect an extra point for every strike and will also pick up clean-sheet points when Bournemouth shut teams out. That combination of central attacking influence and Fantasy scoring bonus turns him from an interesting option into a potential cornerstone.
Managers who were already circling his name now have another reason to build around him.
Dorgu: Carrick’s winger gets a Fantasy promotion
Manchester United’s Patrick Dorgu moves in the opposite direction in positional terms, but not in status. He’s reclassified from defender to midfielder after Michael Carrick’s tactical reshuffle in the second half of last season.
The story here isn’t volume. It’s impact.
Dorgu made only three starts under Carrick after the new manager took over in Gameweek 22. Three starts. Three goals. Each time he was used high on the left flank, and each time he delivered.
He scored against Arsenal. He scored against Manchester City. Against Brighton & Hove Albion, he went one better, producing both a goal and an assist.
When you drop his numbers alongside United’s other attacking midfielders under Carrick, he holds his own. Dorgu’s 33.2 minutes per shot was the sharpest of the group when compared with Matheus Cunha and Bryan Mbeumo. He also matched Cunha’s tally of three big chances, despite playing more than 800 minutes fewer than the Brazilian.
That is the profile of a player who doesn’t need 90 minutes every week to cause damage. The reclassification to midfield strips away the clean-sheet upside he had as a defender, but it aligns his Fantasy position with his real role: an attacking winger who looks to get shots away early and often.
If Carrick leans into that more regularly this season, Dorgu becomes one of the more intriguing mid-price midfield gambles in the game.
Marmoush: Guardiola’s striker steps into the spotlight
At Manchester City, Omar Marmoush travels the opposite road to Kroupi. He switches from midfielder to forward after Pep Guardiola pushed him into a central striking role in the manager’s final season in charge.
Guardiola trusted him up top, and Marmoush responded with three goals and three assists. It wasn’t an explosive haul, but it was a clear statement about how City saw him: as a focal point, not a wide creator.
For Fantasy managers, the change tightens the margins. As a forward, Marmoush loses the extra point for goals and the clean-sheet bonuses he enjoyed in midfield. Yet being classified as a striker underlines his importance in City’s attacking structure. When he starts, he’s close to the chances that matter.
His appeal will now hinge less on bonus points at the edges and more on whether he can turn that central role into consistent returns.
Other reclassifications that matter
- At Arsenal, Myles Lewis-Skelly moves from defence into midfield.
- Aston Villa’s Lamare Bogarde does the same.
- Brentford’s Keane Lewis-Potter flips from defender to midfielder, adding attacking value to a player already known for his forward thrust.
- At Brighton & Hove Albion, Mats Wieffer is now a defender rather than a midfielder, while Georginio Rutter goes the other way, from midfield into a forward slot.
- Crystal Palace’s Rio Cardines is reclassified as a defender after previously being listed as a midfielder.
- Fulham’s Ryan Sessegnon also drops back into defence.
- Nottingham Forest’s Eric Moreira shifts from midfield to defence.
Each of these moves quietly redraws the Fantasy map. Some will unlock budget enablers in new positions, others will close off old loopholes. But the pattern is clear: the game is chasing reality more closely, mapping players to the roles they actually play.
For managers, the question is simple and ruthless: who adapts fastest to this new landscape, and who gets left behind when the first wildcard is played?
