Many well-laid plans are being scrapped and reassessed as the first deadline for the fantasy football season approaches.Romelu Lukaku is returning to Chelsea. Phil Foden and Kevin de Bruyne are both out for the foreseeable. Jack Grealish is now in Manchester City, Danny Ings is a player at Aston Villa, and who knows where Harry Kane might be by the end of next month?As many managers, I had Bruno Fernandes and Mohamed Salah as my premium midfielders for a while. I decided to go with three mid-price players this season where there is genuine value. But I'm having some rethinks.Lukaku at Chelsea and Kane at City feel like a game-changer. It spells guaranteed goals, and you'd expect both to be fairly rotation-proof.Fernandes would then have to be my replacement, as Salah begins the season with a trip up to newly promoted Norwich and a home match against Burnley.Fernandes could bring in Grealish to help save 4m on their budget. Riyad Mahrez will be a million dollars more but they should both get plenty of playing time due to the injuries for De Bruyne or Foden. Jadon Sancho, a Manchester United midfielder, is an attractive option to Fernandes. This will save you 2.5m.Are you looking for a bargain?Emiliano Buendia is worth considering?As is the case with fantasy football, the next step is to find the right players for your team and to discover bargain-buys that will give you the edge over your opponents.Robert Sanchez, a goalkeeper at 4.5m who has kept 10 clean sheets in 27 appearances, looks good value. Brighton also have a decent set of fixtures to begin the season.Kasper Schmeichel and David de Gea are available for half the price. Dean Henderson has been out of pre-season so this is a good opportunity to get Kasper Schmeichel.Trent Alexander-Arnold is always a first name on my team sheet. He's a midfielder disguised as a defender with Virgil van Dijk back to help improve Liverpool's clean sheets potential.Luke Shaw, at 5.5m, is a must-have in defense. However Lucas Digne could also be worth a look with Everton's string of fixtures. Aaron Cresswell (5m) and Vladimir Coufal (5m), West Ham full backs, will be popular once more.To make the budget work, you'll need to find two 4.5m defenders. The new Arsenal signing Ben White and Luke Ayling from Leeds are just two of the options. They have some difficult fixtures to start. Brentford's Rico Henry, left wingback at Brentford, or Norwich's Max Aarons at Norwich could be worth a risk. Burnley's Charlie Taylor and Matt Lowton are clearly tried and true.Stuart Dallas is now a FPL midfielder this season, which means that he will only receive one point for Leeds' clean sheet. However, he still looks great at 5.5m. Jack Harrison (6m) and Raphinha (6m) are also great options if you want more.Emiliano Buendia, the Championship's standout player, is owned by nearly 15% of the managers. He was tempted by Aston Villa's performance against Newcastle, Watford and Brentford. You might be tempted to switch his team-mate Leon Bailey, who is only 2% owned. If he starts well, there is real differential value.There are also value options at lower prices than the premium ones: 7m Harvey Barnes who looked sharp in Community Shield; Bukayo Saka at 6.25m if he can continue his impressive form from last season; and Joe Willock at 6m when he returns to Newcastle.Mason Mount and Diogo Jota both cost 7.5m, if you have the cash to spend more. There are plenty of value signings available among newly promoted clubs like Ismaila Sarr, Sergi Canos and Billy Gilmour.Forwards: If you are going to spend big on Kane and Lukaku, then you should look at one mid-price option as well as one budget option. I like Michail Anton or KelechiIheanacho at 7.5m and Marcus Forss at 5.5m.Alistair Bruce-Ball hosts the Fantasy 606 podcast with former Premier League winner Chris Sutton, and Statman Dave. To join Fantasy 606 this season, the code is 'e206yk. On Thursday, the BBC Sounds app will host the first episode.
