WFC's Team-By-Team Preview - Part 1

Arsenal

Top Target

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang – £11.0 (TSB 24.1%)

In only 13 appearances for the Gunners last season, Auba netted 10 goals and provided 4 assists, only failing to deliver an FPL return on three occasions. This saw him register 87 FPL points at 0.082 points per minutes (PPM). Interestingly, if Auba had played as many minutes as Harry Kane last season, he would have scored 36 more points than the Spurs star.

Differential/Punt

Mesut Özil – £8.5 (TSB 2.4%)

The ‘assist king’ struggled to find consistent form last season, but still managed to create one goal scoring chance every 25.7 minutes, ranking 4^th overall in the league for chances created. With a more settled and clinical attack pairing of Lacazette and Aubameyang in front of him this season, expect Özil to return to rediscover something near his 2015/16 form this season. At only £8.5, he could be a bargain!

Monitor

Sead Kolasinac – £5.0 (TSB 4.6%)

Kolasinac was an FPL beast last season until he lost his place in the starting line up. If Emery takes a liking to him and he can make the left-back spot his own once again, you’re going to want to have Kolasinac in your side.

Be Wary of

Hector Bellerín – £5.5 (TSB 12.5%)

With Lichtsteiner joining the Gunners, Emery has two high quality right-backs to choose from. Bellerín’s regular first team place is under threat.

Penalty Takers

1. Aubameyang; 2. Lacazette; 3. Özil

Free Kick Takers

1. Özil; 2. Mkhitaryan; 3. Ramsey

Corner Takers

1. Özil; 2. Ramsey; 3. Mkhitaryan

Predicted Top Scorer

Lacazette (17)

Predicted Top Assister

Özil (15)

Predicted Starting Line Up

Additional Notes

- Whoever starts out of Cech (£5.0) or Leno (£5.0) will be a great option.

- Both Ramsey (£7.5) and Mkhitaryan (£7.0) offer excellent value and both are good enough to serve as 3^rd midfielders in FPL sides.

Bournemouth

Top Target

Josh King – £6.5 (TSB 3.7%)

Bournemouth’s go-to man in attack, King enjoyed a solid 2017/18 season after his breakout 2016/17 season, registering 8 goals and 4 assists, with around 2 shots per game. The Norwegian international has proven himself as a reliable FPL asset.

Differential/Punt

Junior Stanislas – £6.0 (TSB 0.2%)

Despite an injury riddled campaign last season, Stanislas showed enough to suggest that he could be a top 10 FPL midfielder if he can maintain fitness. With nearly 3 shots per game, Stanislas finished last season with a PPM of 0.058 points per game, almost exactly the same as Dele Alli and Alexis Sánchez, and higher than Wilf Zaha and Romelu Lukaku.

Monitor

Jordan Ibe – £5.5 (TSB 0.7%)

The former Liverpool youngster enjoyed bright spells last season, such as two goals and two assists in five matches from January to February. With more confidence now that his first full season as a PL starter is under his belt, keep an eye on Ibe in the early stages of this season to see if he can transform his patches of form into longer runs.

Be Wary of

Callum Wilson – £6.0 (TSB 4.3%)

Wilson has netted a hat-trick in two out of the past three seasons, but only scored 8 and 5 goals overall in these seasons. Despite patches of superb goal scoring form that he does have, his severe inconsistency and common long running barren spells in front of goal are a major turn off.

Penalty Takers

1. King; 2. Wilson; 3. Stanislas

Free Kick Takers

1. Stanislas; 2. Daniels; 3. Arter

Corner Takers

1. Ibe; 2. Fraser; 3. Surman

Predicted Top Scorer

Josh King (10)

Predicted Top Assister

Ryan Fraser (8)

Predicted Starting Line Up

Additional Notes

- Eddie Howe has many options at his disposal in up front and in wide areas, so rotation may come into play if players enter form slumps

- Junior Stanislas may not be fit in time for the start of the season

Brighton

Top Target

Anthony Knockaert – £5.5 (TSB 0.6%)

Having made it through his first season as a starter in the PL, Knockaert should now be used to the pace and physicality of the league, and be primed to recapture the form that got us all so excited at the start of last season. Mahrez (240 points) and Josh King (178) both exploded in their second PL seasons, and Knockaert will be hoping to do the same.

Differential/Punt

José Izquierdo – £6.0 (TSB 0.8%)

Despite only registering 5 goals and 5 assists last season, the Colombian was a constant threat for the Seagulls, creating numerous chances and whipping in countless crosses.

Monitor

Ezequiel Schelotto – £4.0 (TSB 2.8%)

Priced at only £4.0, Schelotto overtook 37 year old Bruno as Brighton’s first choice right-back to end last season. If he can impress in pre-season and hold this spot down, he will be a must have.

Be Wary of

Glenn Murray – £6.5 (TSB 1.7%)

Despite scoring 12 goals last season, Murray will be turning 35 in September and with the other strikers Locadia, Hemed and Andone in Brighton’s ranks, it’s hard to see the big man playing so many minutes again this season.

Penalty Takers

1. Gross; 2. Murray; 3. Hemed

Free Kick Takers

1. Gross; 2. Knockaert; 3. Izquierdo

Corner Takers

1. Gross; 2. Knockaert; 3. Izquierdo

Predicted Top Scorer

Gross (8)

Predicted Top Assister

Knockaert (9)

Predicted Starting Line Up

Additional Notes

- The Brighton backline may experience a re-shuffle this season with the signing of Leon Balogun. If Hughton utilises the Nigerian in his preferred position at centre-back, one of Lewis Dunk or Shane Duff will miss out. However, if Balogun is fielded at right-back, that will spell the end of Schelotto’s FPL appeal.

Burnley

Top Target

Stephen Ward – £5.0 (TSB 10.7%)

Mr Consistent in a tight Burnley backline last season, Ward is a steady customer who has attacking potential and does well in the BPS.

Differential/Punt

Robbie Brady – £5.5 (TSB 0.1%)

Just as Brady was hitting his top form last season, he suffered a season ending injury. However, he was Burnley’s most potent attacking threat before his injury. An average of 8.2 crosses per game bodes well for his FPL appeal given Burnley’s strikers are all known for their aerial ability.

Monitor

Nahki Wells – £4.5 (TSB 2.4%)

Wells did next to nothing last season after three consecutive 10+ goal seasons in the Championship. This was down to the fact that he missed the first half of the season through injury, and by the time he was fit again, Dyche already had settled on a starting side. If Wells puts together a good pre-season, he may coming into consideration for a starting spot in the Burnley side this season.

Be Wary of

Nick Pope – £5.0 (TSB 9.5%)

The only worry with Nick Pope is that a fit again Tom Heaton may come back into the Burnley starting side. Pope has now represented England and was England’s third string keeper at the World Cup, but this spot in the squad was only available due to Heaton’s injury. Will Dyche stick with the young Pope after a player of the season campaign, or will club captain and proven performer Heaton reclaim the Burnley number one jersey? We will have to wait and see.

Penalty Takers

1. Vokes; 2. Wood; 3. Barnes

Free Kick Takers

1. Brady; 2. Defour; 3. Gudmundsson

Corner Takers

1. Brady; 2. Gudmundsson; 3. Arfield

Predicted Top Scorer

Wood (8)

Predicted Top Assister

Gudmundsson (10)

Predicted Starting Line Up

Additional Notes

- Johann Berg Gudmundsson (£6.0) was a surprisingly reliable FPL asset last season, and should only improve again this year

- Dyche tended to rotated his centre forwards heavily last season

Five PODs for the Run Home

Dallin Watenze-Zelezniak | Penrith Panthers | $394,100 | CTW/FLB |BE 22 | 1.9% Own

After suffering a hamstring injury against the Warriors in round 17, DWZ has been named to return this week against the Broncos. Since his move to fullback, he has averaged 29 points per game in pure base stats, and 15 points per game in evasive stats. Compared to the three most premium fullbacks in SuperCoach, DWZ is tracking quite well. Tom Trbojevic averages 27 points per game in base and 20 in evasive, Kalyn Ponga average 21 in base and 19 in evasive, and James Tedesco averages 31 in base and 20 in evasive. These three fullbacks are ahead of Watenze-Zelezniak though due to their superior creative and scoring involvements. However, you’d probably want to bring DWZ in as a CTW though. Comparing his stats since his move to fullback with some of the most popular CTW options in SuperCoach, the Kiwi flyer is doing much better. Esan Marsters (31 base/18 evasive) and Latrell Mitchell (19 base/17 evasive) are both goal kickers so have a clear edge over DWZ, but they don’t do noticeably better than Watene-Zelezniak in base and evasive stats. Neither do Euan Aitken (33 base/14 evasive) or Alex Johnston (18 base/16 evasive). So, if DWZ can just add a few more tries and try assists to his game, he can be right up there with the best CTW options in SuperCoach. Over the past two rounds, DWZ has shown signs of doing this, averaging 62 points per game thanks to 1 try, 2 line breaks, 1 try assist, 1 line break assist, 1 offload and 9 tackle breaks. With five matches in the final seven rounds against teams in the top seven for most points conceded (Broncos, Sea Eagles, Raiders, Titans and Knights), DWZ could be set to continue his current form throughout the run home, making him very appealing.

Michael Chee-Kam | Wests Tigers | $388,800 | 2RF/CTW | BE 40 | 1.2% Own

With Chris Lawrence out until round 25 with a torn hamstring and broken hand, Michael Chee-Kam will slot into the Tigers starting side on the left edge backrow, most likely becoming an 80 minute player. Although MCK’s seasonal average is 45, he has averaged 59 points when playing 45+ minutes. In his two 70+ minute matches at second row this season, his base has been excellent, averaging 53. Moreover, Chee-Kam is a prolific offloader and tackle breaker. In his eight matches playing 45+ minutes, MCK has averaged 15 evasive points per game. To put this in perspective, Andrew Fifita is averaging 19 evasive points per game this season, whilst Marty Taupau has averaged 18, Jason Taumalolo 14, and Angus Crichton only 13. Additionally, the Tigers’ remaining fixtures are against teams that rank high for points conceded against 2RFs – Rabbitohs x2 (4^th), Bulldogs (3^rd), Knights (8^th), Raiders (2^nd), Dragons (7^th) and Sea Eagles (6^th). This boosts Chee-Kam’s SuperCoach potential for the run home. With the CTW position looking so bleak, bringing Chee-Kam in there as a POD would be a very safe move given his base stats and the fact that he is now an almost certain 80 minute forward.

Mitchell Moses | Parramatta Eels | $319,700 | 5/8/HFB |BE 57 | 4.4% Own

Mitchell Moses and the Parramatta Eels are having a shocking season. However, if you’re a very brave person and have trades to burn, think about having a punt Moses. Over the past two years, Moses has exploded post Origin, averaging 77 in 2016 and 68 in 2017. Last year, out of the seven matches post Origin III, the Eels half scored three tons. Although Moses’ average this season is only 40.1, he has averaged 55 points per game at ANZ Stadium (not counting his injury affected 11 points in round 13), which is respectable. In fact, his ANZ Stadium average of 55 is higher than Cody Walker’s average at the venue (53). Many SuperCoaches are turning to Nathan Cleary as a POD for the run home, but Cleary isn’t setting the world on fire, only averaging 47 points per game since his return from injury. With the Eels playing 5/7 remaining games at ANZ stadium, including games against the leaky Bulldogs, Titans and Cowboys, Moses could be worth a punt.

Josh Papalli | Canberra Raiders | $609,800 | 2RF |BE 101 | 3.9% Own

Since Papalii’s move to lock, he has gone full beast mode, averaging 73 points per game over his eight games in the position. In terms of other 2RFs in the competition, had Papalii been playing lock all season, he would have the 2^nd highest average out of all 2RFs (only trailing Rhyse Martin). Also, Jason Taumalolo is currently the highest overall point scoring 2RF in SuperCoach with 1162 points, but Papalii would be on 1241 points had he played as many games as the Cowboys superstar, and played at lock all season. Of Papalii’s 73 point average, an average of 52 points has come in pure base stats, with another 12 per game in evasive stats. Two major areas that make Papalii so appealing are his minutes, and his penchant for attacking stats. Firstly, Papalii has averaged 69 minutes per game during his eight matches at lock. With his work rate and ability to break tackles and offload, a 69 minute player in the middle of the field like Papalii is near SuperCoach gold. Moreover, during Papalii’s eight games in the number 13 jersey, he has registered a try or try assist in half of them, and he has also gone very close to the try line on a few occasions. So, if you buy Josh Papalii, you would be almost guaranteed to get 60+ points from him per week, but there would also be a huge upside, which is just what we’re looking for at this time of the season.

David Klemmer | Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs | $504,100 | 2RF |BE 55 | 2.1% Own

After some average form to start the season, ‘Big Klem’ has been exceptional over the last six weeks. During this time (excluding the Bulldogs’ round 15 demolition by the Titans), Klemmer has averaged 21 runs per game. This has led to the big man averaging 54 points per game in pure base stats over this period, only slightly less than popular 2RFs Jake Trbojevic (60), Jai Arrow (59) and Jason Taumalolo (58). Taking so many hit-ups per game and making around 25-30 tackles, Klemmer could easily average 60-65 in base from now until the end of the season if he converts some of his <8m runs in 8m+ runs, which is definitely achievable. Whilst Klemmer’s evasive stats have been somewhat inconsistent, he almost always manages at least 1 offload and 1 tackle break per game, which makes him that little bit more appealing. With this said, perhaps the most tempting thing about Klemmer is his opponents in the run home. In the Bulldog’s final seven games, they play some worst defending teams against 2RFs – Eels (=2^nd), Tigers (=2^nd), Broncos (=2^nd), Sea Eagles (6^th), Warriors (3^rd), Dragons (7^th) and Sharks (1^st). So, as a strong PPM player averaging 1.18 points per minute over the aforementioned period of time, Klemmer should be a go to POD for the run home.

By @WFC_Seb | @WFC_17

The Highlights and the Lowlights of the 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia

What an astonishing tournament we just witnessed. For one month, we watched, screamed, cheered and cried over some of the most beautiful football and best players of all-time. There were moments throughout the tournament that will be remembered forever, and also many talking points involving controversial aspects of the event, and we at WFC have taken a look back over some of these. The 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia was a resounding success, and the World Cup showcased once again why the beautiful game is the best and most loved game of all.

Highlights

Russia

Before the World Cup, there were many doubts over whether Russia could host the World Cup smoothly. Once the games started though, these doubts were quickly put to bed. The event was one of the best hosted in recent history, with state of the art facilities for players and fans, was organised very well and there were next to no major issues such as crowd violence. Thanks to the Russian national team’s exploits and deep run into the tournament, the world was brought to Russia, but Russia was also brought to the world, showcasing that it may not be as bad a place as the rest of the world perceives it to be.

England’s Re-Emergence

After the tumultuous past few years in English football, the English national team, led terrifically by Gareth Southgate and Harry Kane, has finally brought happiness back to England. The crop of youngsters played some great football and enjoyed a terrific run through the tournament. The dark days appear to be over, and there is much hope for the future. 

Portugal vs Spain

The Iberian Derby at this World Cup was without a doubt one of the greatest matches in World Cup history. The match was a pulsating affair that kept fans on the edge of their seats the entire time. It had everything – amazing goals from Nacho and Diego Costa, Cristiano Ronaldo’s hat-trick, sublime passing and counter attacking football, a goalkeeping howler, numerous lead changes and comebacks. What a match it was!

Japan

The conduct of the Japanese players, staff and fans at the World Cup was beautiful and quite touching, and a reminder of how people should also strive to live their lives. After each game, the Japanese fans cleaned all the rubbish out of their section of the stadium, taking big rubbish bags with them to make this happen. Additionally, after Japan’s elimination, they thoroughly cleaned their dressing room and lockers, and left a ‘thank you’ note to tournament organisers. What incredible gestures, and hopefully there can be more teams and fans like them in the future.

Success of the Small Footballing Nations

This World Cup was made so great by the amount of upsets that occurred. Germany capitulating against Mexico and South Korea, Croatia’s 3-0 demolition of Argentina, Japan defeating Colombia, Russia knocking out 2010 champions Spain – all examples of underdog nations prevailing over world footballing powers. Almost every time a footballing superpower played a minnow footballing nation, the ‘big’ nation was pushed right until the final minute of the game. Although they may have been knocked out in the group stage, teams like Australia, Tunisia, Iran and Morocco all fought valiantly and seriously challenged the ‘big’ nations. At this World Cup, no result was guaranteed, and that’s what made it so intriguing.

Amazing Goals

The 2018 FIFA World Cup had no shortage of absolute screamers. Pavard’s volley, Nacho’s half-volley, Ronaldo’s free-kick, Di Maria’s long range strike, Quaresma’s trivela, Coutinho’s curler, Cheryshev’s blast, Lingard’s top corner goal, Modrić’s rocket, Messi’s sublime touches then finish, Mertens’ volleyed lob, Chadli’s last gasp winner – all these goals got the fans out of their seats and will be remembered long into the future.

Brilliant Saves

In addition to the amazing goals, the goalkeepers at the World Cup pulled off numerous jaw dropping saves. Jordan Pickford pulled off five or six top drawer saves, such his 90^th minute stop off Mateus Uribe’s shot or his strong right hand block against Belgium. Goalkeeper of the Tournament, Thibaut Courtois, also made some big stops, such as his one-on-one save against Pavard, or his fingertip save from Neymar’s curler. Furthermore, although many believed it to be a Harry Kane miss, one of the saves of the tournament would have to be Danijel Subašić’s lunged block in the semi-final against England. These saves as well as many more were quite remarkable, and won’t be forgotten any time soon.

Luka Modrić’s Leadership

The way Modrić led the Croatian side throughout the tournament was remarkable. Through his performances and effort on the pitch, he was an inspiration to his team and stood up when they needed him most. Nothing exemplifies this more than when he stepped up to take a penalty in Croatia’s round of 16 win against Denmark, after previously missing one only a few minutes earlier which would have won Croatia the match in regulation time. Modrić’s efforts put him as a favourite to win the Ballon d’Or this year.

England’s Set Pieces

Throughout the entirety of the World Cup, England were a threat from set pieces. Literally every corner or free-kick they looked live scoring a goal thanks to Kieran Trippier’s perfect deliveries, and the aerial prowess of Harry Maguire, John Stones and Harry Kane. In fact, England scored nine out of their twelve goals from set pieces, which is just incredible.

World Cup Debut Nations

Two teams at the 2018 FIFA World Cup were making their first appearances at the tournament – Panama and Iceland. The joy brought to these nations as a result of playing at such a world event was immense, and there were wonderful scenes when they both scored their first ever World Cup goals against England and Argentina respectively.

Late Goals

During the 2018 FIFA World Cup, there were nine match winning goals scored in the 90^thminute or later (excluding extra-time). That is more than any other World Cup. There were also three 90^th minute or later equalisers scored. These moments caused great excitement and sadness in equal measure.

Belgium’s Comeback Against Japan

After 68 minutes in Belgium’s round of 16 match against Japan, the Blue Samurai were up 2-0. After 73 minutes, Belgium trailed 2-1. The Red Devils then levelled things in the 74^th minute. At 2-2 and well into injury time at the end of the 90 minutes, Japan sent numbers forward for a corner to try and snatch the victory. This proved to be a fatal error. Belgium won the ball, breaking the length of the field, with Nacer Chadli finishing off a blistering team move to win the match. What a comeback!

Michy Batshuayi’s Falcon

Michy Batshuayi kicking the ball into the post to celebrate a goal, only for it to rebound and hit him in the face – classic!

Lowlights

VAR Controversy

The biggest talking point coming out of the World Cup is undoubtedly the VAR. the point of the VAR is that it can only intervene when the referee has made a clear and obvious error. However, on numerous occasions the VAR intervened when there was no clear and obvious error. For example, the handball penalty awarded to France in the World Cup Final was said to be a clear and obvious error. But, how could it be so clear and obvious if the referee had to spend about three minutes reviewing the footage to make a decision, and if so much opinion in the footballing world is divided over whether it was a handball or not? This was not a one off, and the VAR made quite a few errors throughout the tournament in terms of when it should/should not have intervened. After such a fabulous event, the main talking point should be the football. Unfortunately though, this is not the case, and the word on everyone’s lips is ‘VAR.’

France’s Conservative Style of Play

Despite France’s World Cup victory, there is much disappointment surrounding their performances and style of play throughout the tournament. Despite possessing the most talented and technically gifted squad, Deschamps transformed them into a conservative and well drilled machine that rarely lifted viewers out of their seats. Moreover, in none of France’s seven matches did they noticeably play well and dominate, with their best performances probably coming against Uruguay and Argentina, whilst they were average if not poor in their other matches, including the World Cup Final against Croatia. Instead of playing exciting free flowing football like everyone wanted, France to an extent played anti-football, and relied on special moments and set-pieces to nab their goals. As a result, many people are discussing if France truly deserved to win, and if this is the best way forward for French football. With this said though, they are world champions, so whilst the results are going their way you can’t really question Deschamps and the French team. Congratulations to them.

Diving

For a long time, football haters have insulted the game by claiming that players are weak, too soft and dive. At the 2018 FIFA World Cup, these statements were proven true by exploits of some players. The worst offender was Neymar, who over Brazil’s first four matches spent 14 minutes lying on the turf clutching his body parts like he had just been shot or hit by a car. His play acting was just embarrassing, and it gives the beautiful game a bad name. Other players that should be ashamed of themselves for play acting at the World Cup include Kylian Mbappe, Antoine Griezmann, Cristiano Ronaldo, Pepe, Lucas Hernández and Harry Maguire.

Final Group Game Snooze Fests

With teams already qualified for the round of 16 or just needing a draw to make it through to the knockout stages, the reality is that some final group game matches have a high chance of being rather bland. This is what occurred at the 2018 FIFA World Cup, with the worst matches of the tournament occurring in this round. These matches that were extremely boring include Denmark vs France, Japan vs Poland and England vs Belgium.

Goalkeeping Howlers

You have to feel sorry for goalkeepers when they make monumental errors in such important games as those at a World Cup. Sadly though, there were many errors made by goalkeepers that will always be remembered, such as those made by De Gea, Muslera and Lloris.

Panama

Although a highlight was seeing Panama play and score at their first ever World Cup, there is no hiding the fact that they were severely out of their depth. Both times they came up against a team with much quality they were demolished – 3-0 against Belgium and 6-1 against England. As good as it is seeing small footballing nations compete at these tournaments, strong nations such as Italy, Netherlands and Chile all missed out on qualification, whilst Panama made it with their inferior quality and were subsequently played off the pitch. Football fans want to see breath-taking and quality football at World Cups, and none of Panama’s passion can make up for their lack of quality.

Ronaldo’s Goatee

As good looking as Cristiano Ronaldo is, not even he can make a goatee like that look attractive.

By @WFC_Seb | @WFC_17

Lessons Learnt from the 17/18 FPL Season

Pre-season form isn’t as important as people think

Undoubtedly, the form of players in pre-season is important as it provides an indication of whether or not they will nail down a starting spot come the beginning of the season.

However, last season taught us that FPL managers read into this form too much.

In this way, some players who had solid pre-seasons were backed by many FPL managers to score well in FPL, despite not having proven themselves as reliable FPL assets before. Moreover, tried and tested FPL assets who endured a lacklustre pre-season were ignored. As a result, when the season began the in-form but unproven players were preferred to out of form but more experienced players, which did not turn out well for many.

For example, Tom Carroll was a highly popular FPL asset at the start of last season. This was due to his pre-season form, where he provided three assists in one match, was heavily involved in Swansea’s attacking play in other games, and also became Swansea’s first choice set-piece take post Gylfi Sigurdsson. Carroll was priced at £4.5m, and this made FPL managers excited, as they believed he could be a solid 4^th or 5^th midfielder that saves them money. However, Carroll disappointed. It took him eight matches to register his first assist, and he only provided four assists in the whole season to go with his zero goals.

The same occurred with Jay Rodriguez. Priced at £6.0m, J Rod netted a couple of goals in pre-season and looked very sharp. FPL managers thus believed that Rodriguez had the potential to replicate his outstanding 2013/14 season where he netted 15 PL goals. Subsequently, despite netting only five goals over the two seasons after 2013/14, Rodriguez’s ownership percentage rose, and FPL managers planned to use J Rod as a regular starting XI player in FPL. Like Carroll though, his pre-season form vanished once the PL season began. The West Brom forward netted only two goals in the first five months of the season, and ended the 2017/18 season with 7 goals thanks to a run of form from GWs 31-34.

Furthermore, one of the greatest FPL players of all-time, Sergio Agüero, entered the 2017/18 season off the back of a pre-season where he did not fire regularly. There was also much suggestion that he would lose his starting place in the Manchester City side to Gabriel Jesus. These factors led to the ludicrous belief that Agüero was past his peak. Due to this, he entered the FPL season with <10% ownership. Once the season began, Agüero proved doubters wrong, netting six goals and providing three assists in his first five starts of the season, only being benched once in the first two months of the competition. Whilst Agüero was doing this, some FPL managers sat by with Carroll and Rodriguez as well as the likes of Christian Atsu, Andros Townsend and Steve Mounie in their starting XIs each week.

Therefore, the lesson here is that planning to start unreliable players such as Carroll or Rodriguez based on some positive pre-season form is not a good idea. Instead, FPL managers should prioritise selecting tried and tested FPL players such as Agüero, and only start the likes of Carroll or J Rod if they begin to excel against PL opposition during the season.

Don’t hesitate to follow the crowd

Each season, people (such as myself) love selecting differentials in their FPL sides and captaining these lowly owned players to stand out from the crowd. FPL managers also do this in an attempt to improve their rank by selecting a differential who they believe will outscore the highly owned players.

However, last season in particular showed us that FPL managers should not hesitate to regularly captain players with a high TSB% and captained by the large majority of FPL managers that GW.

This was so through the exploits of Mo Salah. We all know how good Salah was last season. He was an FPL machine, hardly ever blanking and returning large hauls most weeks. However, for some reason I only captained Salah three times all of last season. Yes, you read it right; only three times. I finished with a rank of 380k, which I think is quite good considering that I only captained Salah three times. I know of other FPL managers in the same boat as myself, who found themselves either captaining 'safe' options such as Harry Kane or differentials most weeks, whilst Salah sat there with the vice-captain on him. This did not pay dividends for us.

Those managers who finished with high ranks such as the top 10,000 captained Salah on more than 50% of occasions. However, this isn’t to say that these managers didn’t take risks on differentials. In fact, quite the opposite, and that is why they reached their higher rank. Successful FPL managers last season took risks on differentials to set them apart from the rest, but rarely captained them. Instead, they would continue to captain a safe option such as Salah, but seek to propel themselves up the rankings by transferring in differentials such as Son, Ramsey or Arnautovic.

This should be a lesson for all serious FPL managers. Captain safe options such as Salah to protect your rank, and seek to overtake others by transferring in differentials, but captaining them sparingly.

Using your chips outside of the double gameweeks (DGWs) should not be feared

Ever since chips were introduced into FPL, the main strategy of use by FPL managers has been to save them up until the end of the season, and use them over the double gameweeks.

For the Free Hit chip, this is the most effective way to use it.

However, last season demonstrated that FPL managers may be better off using their Triple Captain (TC) and Bench Boost (BB) chips earlier in the season.

Throughout the season, top performing FPL assets such as Salah, Kane, Agüero and Sterling all excelled, regularly registering scores of 10+ points. Despite these exploits though, FPL managers continued to hold their chips until the DGWs. This then backfired on many.

Towards the end of the season, numerous PL managers began to rotate their sides as fatigue caught up with players and teams competing in European or other domestic competitions wanted to keep their star players fresh. This wreaked havoc for FPL managers using their TC and BB chips.

For example, during DGW37 last season, Manchester City had two dream match ups – HUD/BHA. As a result, many turned to Raheem Sterling as their TC, but Sterling only played one of these matches, and blanked in the other. Similarly, Chelsea had two plump DGWs (GW34 vs sou/bur and GW37 v LIV/HUD). However, go-to FPL asset Eden Hazard was benched once in each of these GWs. Although not at the end of the season, Tottenham had a DGW in GW22 vs swa/WHU. A large number of FPL managers thus put their TC chip straight on Harry Kane, before Pochettino rested Kane in one of these matches.

Furthermore, rotation madness also ruined many people’s BB. With the aim of filing their squads with as many DGWers as possible, FPL managers clamoured to bring in the likes of Davies, Bellerin, Otamendi, Willian, Son and more, often taking point hits to do so. However, all of these popular DGW options were rested in at least one of their DGW match-ups, making the transfer of them in for a single GW player pointless.

Last season, some of the more successful FPL managers used their TC and BB chips earlier in the season. They did so in GWs where their players had favourable fixtures, were in form, and guaranteed to start, such as TCing Harry Kane vs hud, Mo Salah vs WAT, or Eden Hazard vs NEW, or transferring in such players to use their BB.

So, you may be better off waiting for these opportunities and capitalise on them whilst you can, rather than wait for the DGWs were rotation may ruin your plans.

Playing in the Premier League is a big test for newbies

Whenever a player who has excelled elsewhere arrives in the PL, FPL managers begin licking their lips and talking up these players as potential FPL gems.

However, last season highlighted that no matter how good a player is in other leagues, coming to the PL is a whole different ball game.

Other European leagues such as La Liga or the Eredivisie have quality players. Despite this though, such leagues are far less physical than the PL, and of a lower intensity. Moreover, the English League Championship is arguably more physical than the PL, but of a far lesser quality than its first division counterpart.

As a result, it is common for PL newbies to really struggle in their first few months, or even the entire season, when they first arrive in the PL. In this way, they fail to replicate their attacking or defensive exploits elsewhere in Europe or England, and take much time to adjust to the pace, quality and intensity of the PL.

For example, Alvaro Morata and Alexandre Lacazette both arrived in the PL for the first time at the start of last season, coming off the back of large goal hauls in Italy, Spain and France. Thus, their TSB% in FPL was high come GW1. As the season progressed though, neither player lived up to expectations, as they both regularly failed to find the back of the net and experienced periods in and out of their respective teams.

The same applied to players from promoted teams. In their final seasons before being promoted to the PL or joining PL sides, Anthony Knockaert (15 goals/9 assists), Tom Ince (14 goals/8 assists) and Tammy Abraham (23 goals/4 assists) were all regarded as some of the best attacking players in the Championship, and upcoming PL stars. As a result, their FPL TSB% were high with many hoping that they could emulate such attacking returns in the PL. This was not the case though, and each player struggled to make an impact in the top tier of English football last season.

Therefore, be careful when selecting PL newbies in your FPL side, and do not expect them to seamlessly carry over their form from other leagues in their new league.

Never own Andy Carroll

This one is a very simple lesson and is relevant to idiots such as myself.

Don’t own Andy Carroll.

I bought him in GW4 for his favourable run of fixtures (HUD, wba, TOT, SWA, bur, BHA, cry). Carroll then blanked against the Terriers and Baggies, before blanking again and picking up yellow cards against Spurs and the Swans, and topped this all off by getting sent off 27 minutes into West Ham’s trip to Burnley, subsequently receiving a suspension. 

Owning Andy Carroll is the stuff nightmares are made of.

 By @WFC_Seb | @WFC_17