With four gameweeks left, Gameweek 35 demands careful moves. Managers still chasing mini-league gains should prioritise reliable returns and inexpensive enablers that free funds for captains in the final stretch.

Goalkeepers: David Raya (£6.0m) remains the standout option among keepers after a 10-point haul last weekend and offers value alongside Arsenal’s defence. Fulham have blanked in four of their last six league games, making a home clean sheet plausible. At the other end of the budget spectrum, Karl Darlow (£3.9m) has accrued 24 points across his last five games and faces relegated Burnley at home, serving as a low-cost enabler. For managers planning ahead to double Gameweek 36, Dean Henderson (£5.1m) is an alternative given Crystal Palace’s two fixtures next round, despite a tricky away match with Bournemouth this Sunday.

Defenders: Gabriel (£7.2m) is a must, while Nico O’Reilly (£5.1m) has become increasingly attractive for managers preparing for City’s double in the next round; he has returned 27 points from his past three fixtures and faces low-scoring Everton away on Monday. Crystal Palace options include Jaydee Canvot (£4.5m) and Chris Richards (£4.4m) as budget routes into their backline, and Daniel Muñoz (£5.8m) offers more attacking upside after scoring in the defeat at Liverpool. Leeds defensive targets such as James Justin (£3.9m), Jayden Bogle (£4.4m) and Pascal Struijk (£4.3m) are also useful given a favourable fixture.

Midfielders: Bruno Fernandes (£10.4m) stands alone as the essential midfield pick; he is chasing the Premier League assist record for a single season and has delivered returns in each of his past seven matches, even ahead of Manchester United’s home game with Liverpool. Other options highlighted are Eberechi Eze (£7.2m), who made an impact after being brought off the bench in Europe, Rayan Cherki (£6.5m) with 23 points across his last three matches, Ismaïla Sarr (£6.3m) ahead of a double, Noah Okafor (£5.6m) despite a slight injury concern, and Enzo Fernández (£6.5m) under Calum McFarlane.

Forwards: Erling Haaland (£14.5m) is essential following recent goalscoring exploits. Support options include Dominic Calvert-Lewin (£5.7m), who could benefit from Burnley’s struggles after Scott Parker’s dismissal, and Jarrod Bowen (£7.8m), who has produced 24 points across his past two home games for West Ham ahead of a trip to Brentford.

Pep Guardiola’s attention to detail is well known. The manager’s dedication to tactical preparation once led him to pull a muscle in his back after watching hours of footage of an opponent at Bayern Munich ahead of a preseason match. That same obsessive approach now meets a tighter calendar. The Premier League have belatedly announced dates and kickoff times for remaining fixtures, handing Manchester City a compact schedule which has left them “frustrated,” per BBC Sport.

City’s remaining fixtures are:

Monday, May 4 — Everton — Hill Dickinson Stadium, Liverpool
Saturday, May 9 — Brentford — Etihad Stadium, Manchester
Wednesday, May 13 — Crystal Palace — Etihad Stadium, Manchester
Saturday, May 16 — Chelsea (FA Cup final) — Wembley Stadium, London
Tuesday, May 19 — Bournemouth — Vitality Stadium, Bournemouth
Sunday, May 24 — Aston Villa — Etihad Stadium, Manchester

The scheduling headache stems from the unresolved Crystal Palace fixture. The match was first postponed in February once City qualified for the Carabao Cup final and has not been rescheduled because of Palace’s run in the Conference League. City reportedly preferred playing Bournemouth on May 13 to finish with consecutive home games, but the Premier League instead placed that trip on May 19, three days after the FA Cup final. Andoni Iraola’s final home game as Bournemouth boss could prove to be an emotional setting for City’s penultimate league contest.

Arsenal face their own congestion with the Champions League semifinals, but the sequence is more manageable. Their fixtures are:

Wednesday, April 29 — Atlético Madrid — Metropolitano, Madrid
Saturday, May 2 — Fulham — Emirates Stadium, London
Tuesday, May 5 — Atlético Madrid — Emirates Stadium, London
Sunday, May 10 — West Ham — London Stadium, London
Monday, May 18 — Burnley — Emirates Stadium, London
Sunday, May 24 — Crystal Palace — Selhurst Park, London

Arsenal’s Champions League complication produces four games in 12 days, but Mikel Arteta has a five-day break before the West Ham trip and free weeks before Burnley and Crystal Palace. Arsenal also remain in London for May unless they reach the Champions League final in Budapest after the league season.

Chelsea’s remaining fixtures are:

Monday, May 4 — Nottingham Forest — Stamford Bridge, London
Saturday, May 9 — Liverpool — Anfield, Liverpool
Saturday, May 16 — Man City (FA Cup final) — Wembley Stadium, London
Tuesday, May 19 — Tottenham — Stamford Bridge, London
Sunday, May 24 — Sunderland — Stadium of Light, Sunderland

Chelsea’s hopes of Champions League qualification remain alive under a specific condition. Should Aston Villa slip into fifth place and win the Europa League, the team which finishes sixth in the Premier League would also get a spot at the continental top table.

Elliot Anderson has emerged as one of the summer’s most contested midfield targets, with Manchester City and Manchester United reportedly leading the chase for the Nottingham Forest player. The 23-year-old England international is valued highly by his club and the wider market, and the price being discussed could decide where he lands.

Forest are understood to be asking in excess of £100 million, with some outlets placing the fee as high as £125 million, a figure that would match the British transfer record set last summer by Liverpool for Alexander Isak. Dollar conversions cited in reporting place those numbers at roughly $135.1 million and $168.9 million respectively.

BBC Sport reports that Manchester United have taken a cautious stance, insisting they will “not overpay” for Anderson or other targets this summer. The club would reportedly “won’t pursue” the midfielder if a fee sits around £120 million. United’s hierarchy is said to feel that “Every player’s value has a cap, no matter how well regarded they are.” The same reporting adds the club’s leaders are “confident” there are other options available who can “improve what they already have.”

That financial caution is compounded by uncertainty around the Old Trafford dugout. Michael Carrick remains the frontrunner to continue in the role after overseeing the club’s recent resurgence and return to the Champions League, but no appointment has been confirmed. The lack of clarity over the manager could make recruitment more difficult.

Those factors leave Manchester City in a strong position. City are repeatedly prepared to meet high fees for targets and have a recent record of prevailing in tight transfer races, with examples cited including Marc Guéhi and Antoine Semenyo. Even if a record fee is not required, City’s capacity to offer immediate prospects of silverware under Pep Guardiola makes them an attractive destination for a player seeking quick success.

Anderson’s eventual destination may come down to whether Forest’s asking price and United’s self-imposed limits align, and whether a managerial decision at Old Trafford is reached early in the summer.