The Premier League 2020/21 season is around the corner and fantasy football fans will be excitedly (or reluctantly) assembling a team filled with proven stars, tasty bargains and untested newbies. Naturally, sacrifices will be made as players balance their budgets around high-priced and previously high-scoring stars – but which are the cream of the crop?

The following 15 players are 2019/20 season’s top performers in each position – substitutes included – according to Fantasy Premier League’s template. While some may have changed positions, moved clubs or been pushed down the pecking order for the forthcoming season, they are nonetheless the highest-scoring in their position at that time. Each player will be supplemented with the number of points scored last season, their new price for the 2020/21 season and any relevant change.

Nick Pope – Burnley (170 pts, 5.5m) – goalkeeper

The Burnley stopper was the highest-selected goalkeeper with an impressive 15 clean sheets last season. A guaranteed starter in manager Sean Dyche’s notoriously disciplined side, England international Pope will likely gain an even bigger slice of his 22.9 per cent user selection percentage from their last campaign.

Dean Henderson – Sheffield United (160 pts, 5.5m) – goalkeeper (now at Manchester United)

With a fresh long-term deal signed and clearly in Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s books for the future, Henderson will want to take his form on loan at Sheffield into the Man Utd set-up. He is priced the same as first-choice keeper David de Gea and will be vying for that number one spot.

Trent Alexander-Arnold – Liverpool (210 pts, 7.5m) – defender

Local hero TAA had a stunning season, racking up 15 assists and 14 clean sheets – a dream for the 54.2 per cent of players looking for high-scoring defenders. While his price has risen slightly, it will probably be much of the same as he continues to redefine the wingback role for Jurgen Klopp in the coming season.

Andrew Robertson – Liverpool (181 pts, 7.0m) – defender

On the opposite flank, the Scotsman carved his own success for Liverpool with a tidy 12 assists and 13 clean sheets. Robertson is understandably priced slightly lower and will likely start most games despite Klopp signing Kostas Tsimikas as reinforcement.

Virgil Van Dijk – Liverpool (178 pts, 6.5m) – defender

The only defender ever to win the Uefa men’s player of the year in 2018, the Dutchman was key for Liverpool’s impressive clean sheet tally and will again be the glue for the reigning champions. He also gets a fair few goals for a centre-back.

Matt Doherty – Wolverhampton Wanderers (167 pts, 6.0m) – defender (now at Tottenham Hotspur)

Flying Irishman Doherty’s performances at right-wing back for Wolves earned him a big move to Jose Mourinho’s Spurs last month. He will slide straight into the team considering the London club’s problems at right-back. Depending on the formation, he may improve on his eight assists from last season.

John Lundstram – Sheffield United (144 pts, 5.5m) – defender (new season midfielder)

If you played fantasy football last year, chances are you had Lundstram on your team – or at least fuming at the fact that your opponents had him. He was considered the best bang-for-buck player as he racked up clean sheets as well as provided some goals and assists – to the point that organisers have rightly pushed him back up to midfield.

Kevin De Bruyne – Manchester City (251 pts, 11.5m) – midfielder

Assist king KDB did it again for City after helping his teammates to 23 wins last season, bagging an impressive 13 goals in the process. The Belgian talisman’s price remains lower than wingers and outright attacking midfielders, probably because he is based slightly deeper. Another must-have for many.

Mohamed Salah – Liverpool (233 pts, 12.0m) – midfielder

The Egyptian wizard secured another team-high finish despite not performing to the levels of his prior two seasons. With “only” 19 goals and 10 assists this time around, Salah will want to return to his never-before-seen 303-point season in 2017/18. Still number one most likely to score goals in the algorithm in 2019/20.

Sadio Mane – Liverpool (221 pts, 12.0m) – midfielder

Adding a gloss to Liverpool’s lethal front three, the Senegalese sensation scored 18 goals and a Premier League career-high 10 assists last season. Mane is priced the same as Salah, suggesting predictions that he will do more of the same. He played slightly fewer minutes than his teammate.

Raheem Sterling – Manchester City (204 pts, 11.5m) – midfielder

The twinkle-toed winger thrived under Pep Guardiola’s rotation set-up once again, scoring a career-high 20 goals throughout their league campaign. He has clearly been instructed to score rather than assists – claiming just six in 2019/20 – finishing second in the goalscoring threat rankings.