Fantasy Voetball Gameweek 5: double gameweek best buys

Fantasy Voetball Gameweek 5 preview: double gameweek buys, captains and differentials

Gameweek 5 is the first double gameweek of the Fantasy Voetball 2026/2027 season, and the deadline is Friday 4 September at 18:55, an hour before Sparta Rotterdam host PEC Zwolle. Four clubs — NEC Nijmegen, FC Twente, Telstar and Excelsior — blanked in Gameweek 3, and those rescheduled fixtures land on 8 and 9 September. All four play twice before the round closes; the other fourteen clubs play once.

Everyone reading this already knows to load up on the doubles. The round is not won by noticing that; it is won by picking the right three from each of those clubs, and by being honest about which popular single-gameweek players have to go. With a maximum of three players per club you can hold at most twelve doubling assets, so the squeeze is real and the order in which you fill those slots matters more than usual.

The Gameweek 5 double fixtures

Two of those four are much better than the other two. NEC Nijmegen play both games at home, and the second is against the weakest attack in the round: NEC are 63% to beat Excelsior with a 33% clean sheet chance. They have also been the second-best attack in the Eredivisie this season at 2.29 expected goals per game, behind only PSV.

FC Twente have the highest combined expected goals in the round at 4.11, and the more interesting number is at the other end: Twente have conceded just 0.51 expected goals per game, the best defensive record in the league by a distance. Their second fixture is a home game against Telstar they are 61% to win.

Excelsior are the double to be careful with. Both games are away, they are 41% to win at Willem II and 16% at NEC, and the model gives them 2.68 expected goals across the pair. Their defenders and goalkeeper are still worth a look on price; their attackers are not a shortcut to points. Telstar sit in between — a very winnable home game against a Cambuur side generating 1.19 expected goals per game, then a trip to Twente they are 18% to win.

You can check every one of these numbers, plus the rest of the schedule, on the Fantasy Voetball schedule page and the market probabilities page.

Best buys by position for Gameweek 5

Goalkeeper: the cheapest double is also the best one

Ronald Koeman (4.5m, TEL) is the highest-projected goalkeeper in the round at 8.2 predicted points, and he is the cheapest starting option among the doubling clubs. The reason is volume rather than clean sheets: Telstar concede 2.19 expected goals per game, and the model has him making 8.7 saves across the two matches. He is also Telstar's confirmed penalty taker, which is a genuinely unusual source of upside for a 4.5m keeper.

If you would rather buy the clean sheet than the save points, Lars Unnerstall (5.0m, TWE) is the pick at 7.2 predicted points. His 55% combined clean sheet chance is the highest of any goalkeeper in the round, and it rests on the best defence in the Eredivisie by expected goals conceded. Gonzalo Crettaz (5.0m, NEC) at 7.0 is the third option, with two home games and a 47% combined clean sheet chance.

At the budget end, Stijn van Gassel (4.5m, EXC) returns 6.7 predicted points — still comfortably ahead of every single-gameweek keeper, the best of which is Vasilios Barkas at 4.0. Whichever you choose, take one of the four doubles: the gap between the cheapest double and the best single is more than 2.5 points.

Defenders: Twente and Telstar, then a cheap filler

Bart van Rooij (6.5m, TWE) is the premium and the safest of the lot. He has the highest clean-sheet exposure of any defender in the round at 52% combined, and he is unusually productive going forward for a full-back: 2.33 expected assists in 757 minutes this season, or 0.28 per 90, which is midfielder territory. He is also the one defender here who holds his value past this round — 8.2 → 5.2 → 2.8 across the next three rounds, for a weighted six-round score of 18.5, the best of any defender in the game.

Jeff Hardeveld (5.5m, TEL) is the attacking alternative. The model has him on 0.29 expected goals and 0.18 expected assists across the double — high for a defender, and the reason he out-projects several better-defended options.

The budget picks are the point of this position. Abdelnor Soualhia (4.5m, TEL) returns 5.2 points at 1.9% ownership, and Tobias Storm (4.5m, NEC) returns 5.1 as the cheapest route into NEC's two home games at 4.2% owned. Either beats every single-gameweek defender in the game — the best of those is Bas Kuipers at 4.0 — and both free up money for the midfield, which is where this round is actually decided.

Midfielders: the strongest position in the round by some distance

Daan Rots (7.5m, TWE) is the highest-projected player in the round at 10.9 points, on 0.77 expected goals and 0.29 expected assists across the two games. He is only 15% owned, which is the gap worth exploiting — the underlying case has not moved: 2.17 expected goals and 1.17 expected assists in 632 minutes this season.

Tjaronn Chery (8.0m, NEC) is the pick if you want the higher floor. He is NEC's confirmed penalty taker, he has two home games, and his season underlying is the best of any midfielder in the league: 3.94 expected goals plus 1.65 expected assists in 551 minutes, an expected goal involvement of 0.91 per 90. His trajectory is the best in the game over any horizon you choose — 10.7 → 5.5 → 6.4, for a weighted six-round score of 25.2. If you only make one transfer this week, this is the one that keeps paying after the double ends.

The value pick is Patrick Brouwer (6.0m, TEL) at 8.8 points and a PPM of 1.47, the best of any midfielder in the round. He is on 0.64 expected goals and 0.27 expected assists across the double and is owned by just 6%. For a genuinely cheap filler, Rui Mendes (5.0m, TEL) returns 6.0 and Jamiro Monteiro (5.9m, NEC) returns 6.7, both under 1% owned. Compare the whole list on the Fantasy Voetball player picks page.

Forwards: one obvious pick, then a sharp drop

Wout Weghorst (8.5m, TWE) is the only forward worth a premium slot this week, at 8.8 predicted points and 0.79 expected goals across the double. Nothing else in the position is close: Bryan Linssen (8.0m, NEC) is next at 6.9, and the best single-gameweek forward is Ayase Ueda at 5.0 for 12.0m.

That makes forward the position to save money in. David Garden (5.0m, EXC) returns 5.9 points at 1.3% ownership and takes a share of Excelsior's penalties, and Jelani Seedorf (4.5m, TEL) returns 5.6 at a PPM of 1.24 — the best value in the position. Both out-score every premium single-gameweek striker in the game while freeing up 4m or more for your midfield.

Captaincy in Gameweek 5

Daan Rots is the captain at 10.9 predicted points, the highest in the game. Two fixtures, the highest combined expected goals of any club in the round, and the largest share of Twente's attacking output give him both the ceiling and the volume you want from an armband.

Tjaronn Chery is the alternative if you want the safer floor, and the gap is only 0.2 points. He has two home games rather than one away and one home, he is the confirmed penalty taker, and his season underlying is the stronger of the two. Choosing between them is close to a coin flip, and either is clearly ahead of the field.

Dusan Tadić (8.5m, NEC) at 9.2 is the third option and the best low-ownership armband at 8.5% owned. Behind those three, Patrick Brouwer and Wout Weghorst are level on 8.8. Do not captain outside the doubling clubs this week — the best single-gameweek player in the round is Shunsuke Mito at 6.0, barely half of what Rots projects.

Hidden gems and differentials for Gameweek 5

This is where the round is actually won. Chery, van Rooij and Koeman will be in a large share of teams; the remaining squad slots are what separate you from the field.

• Marko Pjaca (6.5m, TWE) — 7.9 predicted points at 0.5% ownership, the single biggest ownership-to-output gap in the round. He has five goals and two assists in 478 minutes this season, and he is a rotation risk at a 0.71 starter probability, which is precisely why nobody owns him. If he starts both games it is the best 6.5m in the round.
• Dusan Tadić (8.5m, NEC) — 9.2 points and 8.5% owned. The third-highest projection in the game at a fraction of Chery's ownership, and the highest expected assists of any player in the round at 0.39. He has three assists and 1.88 expected assists in 528 minutes.
• Jamiro Monteiro (5.9m, NEC) — 6.7 points, 0.9% owned. The cheapest way into NEC's two home games in midfield, on 155 projected minutes.
• Marvin Peersman (5.0m, TEL) — 6.6 points, 5.1% owned, PPM 1.32. Almost matches Hardeveld for half a million less and a quarter of the ownership.
• Irakli Yegoian (6.1m, EXC) — 7.2 points, 7.1% owned. The one Excelsior attacker worth owning; he has three goal involvements in 255 minutes and plays 169 of a possible 180 minutes.
• Lars Unnerstall (5.0m, TWE) — 7.2 points, 6.8% owned, and the best clean sheet odds in the round behind the league's meanest defence. A quiet way to gain on the 34% of managers in Koeman.

If you are stacking, Unnerstall plus Propper or van Rooij is the correlated pair the fixtures support — both cash in on the same 30% clean sheet against Telstar, and Twente's 0.51 expected goals conceded per game is the number that makes it worth doubling up. Do not extend that logic to Excelsior: their defenders are cheap and playable on their own merits, but neither of their away fixtures gives you a clean sheet worth stacking.

Who to sell before Gameweek 5

The uncomfortable part of a double gameweek is that good players from single-gameweek clubs have to make way. These are the highest-owned players whose Gameweek 5 collapses:

Gjivai Zechiel (8.3m, FEY) is the structural sell. He sits in 40% of teams, but his projection falls all the way through the horizon — 3.2 → 2.9 → 2.7 → 2.4 → 2.2 → 1.6 over the next six rounds, for a weighted score of 9.7. That is bottom-half output from a top-price midfielder, and this is the week to act while an obvious upgrade exists.

Mexx Meerdink (9.1m, AZ) is the most-owned player in the game at 44%, and he plays once for 4.6 points. His season has been a study in bad finishing rather than bad chances — one goal from 3.41 expected goals in 323 minutes — so he is a reasonable buy-back later. He is not a reasonable hold this week, when 9.1m buys you Rots or Chery instead.

Jari De Busser (5.0m, AZ) is the cheapest fix available. At 32% ownership and 3.5 projected points he is the clearest downgrade in the game this week: Koeman costs half a million less and projects 4.7 points higher. If you make one cheap move, make it that one.

And watch for the trap in your own double. Kaj Sierhuis (8.0m, NEC) is a NEC player in a double gameweek and still projects only 1.7 points, because the model does not expect him to start either match. Owning the right club is not the same as owning the right player — check who is expected to start on the Fantasy Voetball predicted lineups page before you commit.

The best Suikeroom team for Gameweek 5

Suikeroom gives you unlimited transfers for one round with no budget, so the only real constraints are the formation and the three-players-per-club cap. This is the highest-projecting legal XI for Gameweek 5, in a 1-3-4-3:

That XI projects 89.4 points before the captain, or 100.3 with Rots in the armband. The interesting part is the price tag: it costs 72.5m, comfortably inside the solver's spending ceiling. In other words, this round does not require the chip — a wildcard, or even a couple of well-chosen transfers, gets you most of the way there. Save Suikeroom for a round where the optimal team is genuinely unaffordable. For the exact optimum solved live against the current numbers, use the Fantasy Voetball optimal teams solver.

Looking ahead to Gameweek 6

Do not plan this round in isolation. Ajax and Willem II double in Gameweek 6, Ajax playing away at Fortuna Sittard and then at home to Willem II. That lifts Oscar Gloukh and Steven Berghuis to 10.0 predicted points each and Davy Klaassen to 8.9 — numbers that rival what the Gameweek 5 doubles produce this week. PSV also have the single best fixture of Gameweek 6, at home to Sparta Rotterdam with an 80% win probability and 3.16 expected goals.

The practical consequence: if you are choosing between two players of similar Gameweek 5 value, take the one who is not about to be sold again. Chery (25.2 weighted) and Rots (24.1 weighted) both hold up well past this round. Telstar's cheap assets do not — Hardeveld drops from 7.3 to 2.7 and Peersman from 6.6 to 2.4 in Gameweek 6, so treat those as deliberate one-round buys and plan the exit before you make the entry. More rounds are broken down in the Fantasy Voetball preview hub, and you can revisit last week's Gameweek 4 preview for the picks that led into this one.

FAQ

Who should I captain in Fantasy Voetball Gameweek 5?

Daan Rots of FC Twente is the top captain pick at 10.9 predicted points, the highest of any player in the round. He plays twice, Twente have the highest combined expected goals in the gameweek at 4.11, and he is on 0.77 expected goals across the double. Tjaronn Chery of NEC Nijmegen is only 0.2 points behind at 10.7 and offers the safer floor with two home games and confirmed penalty duty, so either is defensible.

Which teams have a double gameweek in Fantasy Voetball Gameweek 5?

NEC Nijmegen, FC Twente, Telstar and Excelsior all play twice in Gameweek 5. None of the four had a fixture in Gameweek 3, and those postponed games have been rescheduled for 8 and 9 September. NEC have the best double with two home matches; Twente have the highest combined expected goals at 4.11 and the best defence in the league at 0.51 expected goals conceded per game. Excelsior are the weakest of the four, with both fixtures away.

What are the best differentials for Fantasy Voetball Gameweek 5?

Marko Pjaca of FC Twente is the standout at 7.9 predicted points and just 0.5% ownership, though he carries rotation risk at a 0.71 starter probability. Dusan Tadić at 9.2 points and 8.5% owned is the best high-projection low-ownership pick, and Jamiro Monteiro at 6.7 points and 0.9% owned is the cheapest differential route into NEC's two home games.

Should I sell Mexx Meerdink before Gameweek 5?

Yes, for this week at least. Meerdink is the most-owned player in the game at 44%, but AZ Alkmaar play once and he projects only 4.6 points. He has one goal from 3.41 expected goals in 323 minutes, so the finishing should correct and he is a fair buy-back later — but 9.1m spent on Daan Rots or Tjaronn Chery buys you more than double the projection this round.

Which cheap players are worth buying in Fantasy Voetball Gameweek 5?

Ronald Koeman at 4.5m is both the cheapest and the highest-projected goalkeeper in the round at 8.2 points, Abdelnor Soualhia at 4.5m returns 5.2 as a Telstar defender at 1.9% ownership, and Jelani Seedorf at 4.5m returns 5.6 for the best forward value in the round. All three out-score every equivalently priced single-gameweek option. The full price-sorted list is on the player picks page.

This preview was written by TheFantasyTool AI - verified by Nicolai @ TheFantasyTool