The FPL half-term report: Arsenal

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A, B, C Current Form Vs Favourable Fixtures VsX Unfavourable Fixtures Rest Rotation Risk Inj Injured/Returning from Injury OoP Out of Position £ Potential Bargain Sus Suspended/Near Suspension FPL Player Price Changes Date Player Team Price Change 09/10 Clarke IPS 5.3m 09/10 Emersonn IPS 5.6m 09/10 Gonzalo FUL 6.1m 09/10 Hamer COV 5.3m 09/10 Jocelin.T SUN 4.9m 09/10 Kluivert BOU 5.9m 09/10 Mundle SUN 4.8m 09/10 Nyoni LIV 4.8m 09/10 Oriola BHA 4.4m 09/10 Tchaouna COV 5.3m 09/10 White ARS 5.4m 08/10 Dibling EVE 5.3m 08/10 Mingueza CRY 4.3m 08/10 Rashford MUN 6.9m 08/10 Yates NFO 4.4m 07/10 Greaves IPS 3.9m 07/10 McAidoo MCI 4.4m 06/10 King FUL 5.6m 06/10 Rogers CHE 7.8m 05/10 Calafiori ARS 5.9m 05/10 J.Ramsey NEW 4.8m 05/10 Saka ARS 9.6m 04/10 De Ligt MUN 4.9m 04/10 Drakes-Thomas CRY 4.4m 03/10 Dowell HUL 4.4m 03/10 Groß BHA 5.9m 03/10 James CHE 5.3m 03/10 Kovačić MCI 5.3m 03/10 Martinez MUN 4.9m 03/10 McNeil CRY 5.3m 03/10 Woolfenden COV 3.9m 02/10 Aït-Nouri MCI 5.2m 02/10 Henderson CRY 4.9m 02/10 I.Sangaré NFO 4.8m 02/10 Longstaff LEE 4.8m 02/10 Mamardashvili LIV 4.8m 02/10 Szoboszlai LIV 6.9m 30/09 Heaven MUN 4.3m 30/09 Merino ARS 5.7m 30/09 Richards CRY 4.9m 30/09 Tarkowski EVE 6.2m 29/09 Kerkez LIV 5.3m 29/09 Pau AVL 4.4m 29/09 Wright COV 5.3m 28/09 Diarra SUN 5.3m 28/09 Ellborg SUN 4.4m 28/09 Morita HUL 4.9m 28/09 Nørgaard EVE 4.8m 27/09 Barry EVE 5.7m 27/09 Emegha CHE 4.9m 26/09 Zepa FUL 4.4m 25/09 De Cuyper BHA 5.0m 25/09 Eze ARS 6.2m 25/09 Gozo CRY 4.9m 25/09 Yohanna BHA 4.8m 24/09 Smith Rowe FUL 5.3m 24/09 Tzolakis HUL 4.7m 23/09 Butland HUL 4.4m 22/09 Bendito Mantato MUN 4.4m 22/09 Gyabi HUL 4.4m 22/09 Maatsen AVL 4.4m 22/09 Maguire MUN 4.8m 22/09 Wharton CRY 5.4m 21/09 Aina NFO 4.4m 21/09 B.Fernandes MUN 11.9m 21/09 Bergvall TOT 5.3m 21/09 Bogarde AVL 4.9m 21/09 Doucouré CRY 4.8m 21/09 Gusto CHE 4.9m 21/09 Hall NEW 5.3m 21/09 João Pedro CHE 7.7m 21/09 Lerma CRY 4.8m 21/09 Mason-Clark COV 5.3m 21/09 McAteer IPS 4.4m 21/09 O'Reilly MCI 6.3m 21/09 Schade BRE 6.2m 21/09 Simms COV 4.9m 21/09 Truffert BOU 5.4m 20/09 Aaronson LEE 5.3m 20/09 Burn NEW 4.8m 12345678 FPL GW6 Chip Poll View Poll FPL The FPL half-term report: Arsenal October 10 3 comments 10 October 2026 3 comments Where better to end our Half-Term Report series than with the reigning champions: Arsenal.

Up until Gameweek 5, they were also the league leaders, but a surprise 3-0 loss at Brighton and Hove Albion last time out has maybe provided a minor reality check heading into the autumn.

In this piece, we look back on their season so far, both as a team collectively and individually.

Only Chief Scout members can read every bit of these articles – but you can join them for free before the Gameweek 6 deadline by taking advantage of our free trial.

RESULTS SO FAR GWResultArsenal’s xGArsenal’s xGC1Arsenal 3-0 Coventry1.880.202Aston Villa 0-1 Arsenal1.040.333Arsenal 2-1 Chelsea2.050.394Sunderland 0-2 Arsenal1.881.805Brighton 3-0 Arsenal1.631.31

There’s no reason to overreact to one bad result, of course, especially with the context above.

Brighton were superb against the Gunners but their opening two goals were speculative efforts from well outside the box, each carrying an xG of under 0.06. On another day, they fly into the East Stand or into David Raya‘s (£6.1m) gloves.

Arsenal, indeed, actually outperformed their opponents on the expected goals front.

That’s something they’ve done in every match this season, in fact

By the same token, we have to acknowledge the luck (or Raya’s heroics) in Gameweek 4, with Sunderland missing a penalty and running the Gunners very close on Wearside.

Even with the Brighton blip, and the Sunderland near-slip, Arsenal are in familiar territory: ranked 1st for lowest xGC.

Their xGC from open play (2.1) is also way superior to that of any other team.

Indeed, be it most clean sheets (three) or fewest shots on target conceded (13), few sides can better the Gunners in any defensive metric.

At the other end, not quite so elite – and that’s of course been the case for many years now. This is a side whose success is predicated on a mean backline.

The Gunners are actually a lowly 9th for non-penalty xG (7.69). Nine sides have carved out more big chances (12).

Strangely, given their past successes, they’ve not scored a single set-piece goal (excluding penalties) all season!

Arteta has kept things fairly settled this season, with eight players ever-present starters (Christos Tzolis (£6.3m) will, of course, drop out of the XI for the first time this season now). Ben White (£5.5m) may have made it nine, had he not missed out in Gameweek 5.

Approaching, however, is the three-games-a-week period. The Champions League really ramps up now, and so might the rotation:

Interestingly (and maybe encouragingly, if you own Arsenal assets), Arteta didn’t do too much resting of key players in the league between the September and November international breaks last season:

Riccardo Calafiori (£5.9m), for instance, tended to get the midweeks off and continued to start in the Premier League throughout.

Bukayo Saka‘s (£9.6m) only league benching came at the start of the run above, when he’d just returned from injury.

Gabriel Magalhaes (£8.0m) powered through, too, only getting nights off in the EFL Cup.

Much the same as last season, with Saka and Declan Rice (£7.4m) hogging the crossing duties from set plays.

Rice, Arsenal’s leading taker of direct free-kicks in 2025/26 (with five), has yet to chance his arm in this campaign.

Saka benefitted from Viktor Gyokeres‘ (£7.1m) peripheral role this term by slotting in a Gameweek 4 penalty. The two job-shared last season.

Gyokeres may well be starting in Gameweek 6, however, with Kai Havertz (£7.6m) an injury doubt.

OTHER HALF-TERM REPORTSArsenal | Aston Villa | Bournemouth | Brentford | Brighton | Chelsea | Coventry | Crystal Palace | Everton | Fulham | Hull | Ipswich | Leeds | Liverpool | Man City | Man Utd | Newcastle | Nottm Forest | Sunderland | Spurs

Thoughts on WCVerbCal De Cuyper HallBruno Saka Gros Barnes TavGonzalo HaalandLeno Konsa Gvardiol Walle Egeli

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