Fantasy Football Captain Picks Gameweek 1
‘Life is really simple, but we insist on making it complicated’. So said Chinese philosopher Confucius way back around 500 BC. The same could be said of FPL.
Of course, if Confucius were around today, (and enjoyed a little FPL in his downtime) he may give it the big ‘un, but I bet you any money he’d be like the rest of us, because as simple as the game is, most of us have a canny knack of overcomplicating every decision we make.
The biggest decision we make each week is arguably our Captain pick. Again this should be simple; pick the best (in form) player with the best fixture and you’re golden right? In theory yes, but does that make it any less painful when your ‘sure thing’ picks up 2pts and the one ‘you were going to captain’ picks up a game-week spoiling 21 pointer? Hell no.
It’s GW1, you want to start as you mean to go with a solid score from your captain, but ‘whom should I pick’ I hear you cry. Well, fear not, I have surveyed the contenders and I’m pretty sure at least one of them will do the business for you. Read on and pick your poison.
Mo Salah / Sadio Mané – Norwich (H)
Let us assume that you understand why favouring a Liverpool attacking asset, at Anfield, against a newly promoted side (Norwich) is a good choice – you do? Great.
The real decision, as it was this time 12 months ago is Salah or Mané? Ahead of GW1 2018/19, a £4m price increase to an eye-watering £13m made the latter a more palatable choice for many, a £3.5m saving was hard to ignore after all. Of course, all the smart people started with both. This season, the decision is not so cut and dried; Salah’s price drop (£12.5m) and Mane’s increase (£11.5m) means there is just £1m difference, decisions, decisions.
Throughout last season there was little to separate the two players. They shared the golden boot with 22 goals apiece (along with Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang), however, in terms of FPL points (which is what matters) it was Salah who once again topped the table with 259 to his teammate’s 231. Where Salah came out on top for assists (12 vs 3), Mané came out on top for BPS (24 vs 18), so yeah, not much in it.
With doubts surrounding Mané making it into Liverpool’s GW1 starting 11 (and his no-show at the Charity Shield certainly adds credence to those doubts) my advice is keep it simple, go with Salah, its what Confucius would do.
Harry Kane – Villa (H)
Harry Kane? In August? He’s cursed, cursed I tell you! So proclaim the crazy folk, and if you listen to them too much maybe you’ll start to believe them. Of course, the rational-minded amongst you will know that like ghosts, zodiac signs and anything that come out of Mike Ashley’s mouth, curses are quite frankly a load of b@llocks. Maybe those of a more superstitious persuasion also suffer from short-term memory issues, Harry scored two perfectly acceptable goals in the opening month of the 2018/19 season, so quite why these notions persist is beyond me.
It’s strange to say that a player who scored 17 league goals had a poor season, but by his lofty standards, 2018/19 was probably a season Harry would sooner forget. Blighted by injuries, Harry looked knackered from the off. His season looked to be over after sustaining ankle ligament damage in the 1-0 Champions League win over Manchester City back in April, but he was back the following month, turning out in the Champions League final, a decision manager Mauricio Pochettino was heavily criticised for.
The upside to a season such as his last is, of course, his price. Had Harry been priced at the £12.5m (as he has been the previous two campaigns) I think we’d be seeing a lot less of him in RMT’s. The folk at FPL towers know their onions. £11m, wow, the last time Harry cost so little was back in 2016/17, the season he scored a personal FPL high of 224pts.
I don’t know a great deal about his opponents Aston Villa, but I know a man who does. I turned to our very own Swirly to ask if he thinks his beloved Villians can keep Harry and co. at bay, here’s what he had to say:
‘That’s a tough one. Villa have bolstered their defence in the transfer market through both loanees and signing new talent. Will that keep Harry and co at bay? Understandably, Spurs are the favourites in this fixture and I think that is with good reason. Whilst Kane has been famously quiet in August (not you too! 😉 ), the goal he scored against Juventus could well be a warning sign to how he may start this season, especially if Spurs can retain Eriksen, and Moura can keep his form in Son’s absence. This match will be a dose of reality for the Villa boys, but I don’t think they’ll be a complete walk over.’
So there you have it.
Raheem Sterling – West Ham (A)
The great form v fixtures debate rears its head time and time again throughout the course of a season. There is merit in both arguments. A good set of fixtures should not be ignored (unless a team’s form is completely in the toilet). Similarly, a player in form can mean that a supposedly bad run of fixtures is superfluous. These decisions are often taken into consideration when picking one’s captain, but again there are exceptions to the rule. Those exceptions are usually wearing Sky Blue.
Conventional wisdom will tell us that both my previous picks are better placed for your GW1 Captain’s armband given that they both play on home turf. However, as last season once again proved, home and away, Manchester City assets should not be overlooked.
If recent history tells us anything then a trip to the London Stadium should not deter you from captaining a Citizen in GW1. In the corresponding fixture last season it was a 0-4 win for the visitors, continuing the trend that saw them win 1-4 in 2017/18 and 0-4 in 2016/17. If that all seems a little ‘ancient history’ for your liking then you need only look back to July 17th when they faced off in the Asia cup, the result? 4-1 to City. There’s a trend in there somewhere.
So which of those wearing sky blue should you captain? The clue is in the title. Sterling played most of pre-season in the central striker role in the absence of Sergio Aguero and Gabriel Jesus, and in the four games he’s played he grabbed 4 goals and 2 assists. It should also be noted that two of those games were 45-minute appearances. He was once again spearheading City’s attack in Sunday’s Charity Shield match, and he was once again on the score-sheet. This article isn’t about telling you who should be in your team, that ain’t my job, but if you do have him, you should really give careful consideration to doubling up his points and start your season in style
Callum Wilson – Sheffield United (H)
Callum is here to make up the numbers. It’s a three-horse race for the captaincy this week in my opinion, but I didn’t want to short-change you. So here he is, this one is for those of you who like to live on the edge, outside of conventional wisdom, laughing in the face of popular opinion. I could have gone with Jamie Vardy, but the opposition and a little bit of personal bias (I had Wilson almost all of last season) swung it in favour of the Cherries frontman.
Wilson started last season at a bargain £6.0m, but 14 goals and 12 assists have seen him garner a hefty £2.0m price increase. Much of the FPL pre-season chatter on twitter (concerning Bournemouth assets) has revolved around Wilson v King. In my opinion, you get what you pay for.
Wilson has fared well in pre-season; 3 goals and 2 assists in Bournemouth’s four fixtures, he’s the fourth-highest owned forward in the game (20.7%) playing against an unknown quantity in new boys Sheffield United, you could do a lot worse. Will I be going with Callum? Hell no, when it comes to my captains I’m more vanilla than the ice cream, that doesn’t mean you have to be.
That’s your lot folks. Its good to be back, I wish you all a bobby-dazzler GW1, and if it doesn’t go to plan, fear not as we have another 37 wonderful weeks to put it right. Fandabidozi.
Thanks for reading Fantasy Football Captain Picks Gameweek 1. This article was written by Rosco.
FPL FIXTURE TRACKER
FIXTURE TRACKER LINK
Fantasy Football 247 League Codes:
This is our main public FF247 League, which anyone is welcome to join and can be accessed using the code below;
League Code: ikkny1
The prize pool for this one is £300.
Our Regulars League* for 2019/20 is sponsored by Fanteam The cash prize pool is £500. The first 5 places are paid out in a tiered system.
To enter this one you need to be an active and recognised site member and you need to e-mail us for the league code – elleffcee@gmail.com
*terms and conditions apply and are available upon request. Management reserve the right to review membership of this league on an ongoing basis which is dependent upon regular comment / community activity.
Vote on our Captain Poll Now
Okay all so here is what I am rolling with right now… What do you think? I am taking a massive punt on a Newcastle winger for 5.5m… I know, what am I smoking right?
Take a risk on him, might pay off. I’d be more concerned with the two 4 million defenders as neither are a guarantee. Downgrade Rich to someone like Perez so you csn improve a defender.
Robbo to VVD gives you the same coverage and 0.5m to improve one of the 4m defenders
Genuinely considering a punt on Abraham – not really rating any of the £6.5m options and I’d like to wait and see on Kean and Haller!
Chances of him starting and keeping that spot? Would have thought he fits Lampards pressing style the most out of his options up front.
Difficult to call he has started the last two friendlies. Take a risk, I’m going with Kean at the moment, which is also a little risky. I feel this season in general there are a lot more unknowns, like how will Chelsea do with Lampard etc.
Cheers Go. Looking like Moura/Fraser/Martial + Abraham (+£0.5m) or Barkley + Lacazette.
Both have their risks!
I’d fancy Fraser + Abraham a little bit, Abraham could be fantasy gold if he starts regularly
How’s your full team looking?
Cheers, Zed. Moura is in at the moment more out of fear of Kane than anything else!
This is it, Mr Go. I don’t think I’ll go with Haller, he’s just there at the moment
I have Fraser instead go Moura (looking good at least for the first two juicy fixtures), I don’t think Moura will cover Kane so you need to find some other reasonings to have him
You think KWP is going to play a lot? Surely he’ll get rotated with Aurier when he gets fit?
KWP is a quick fix – Montoya will be sound cover until I decide to get rid of KWP
.
Yeah, I’m leaning towards Fraser too.
I have a fairly similar team and it’s Kean and Wilson at the moment, could backfire.
Reckon Kean is chucked straight into a starting role? I’m not saying it as if I know, I genuinely have no idea
Yeah I have no idea. If he was he would be straight In but can’t guarantee it
Christmas tree!
Not bad, I like it a lot apart from KWP who isn’t nailed at all I reckon, he will get rotated, although at 5.0m he’s a decent pick though, I just wouldn’t risk it with both Zichenko and KWP with that bench! But with all three of Kane/Salah/Sterling the funds are so short, thought to find decent players at 5.0m for any position imo…
*tough
Yeah I was worried about having both KWP and Zinchenko.
Ditto
Sorry, reposting in the new article. My first real RMT of the season. Been pretty set on King for a while but now weighing King vs Jota – thoughts? All other suggestions welcome. Hope everyone’s just about ready
Or downgrade elsewhere for King > Wilson? Not sure I could trim 1.5 out of this lot.
Strong team! Nketiah is likely to go out om loan to a championship side, before the window closes.
Thanks MrGo. I’ve read that Greenwood is a prime candidate for a price drop with such high ownership from the drop so guess I’ll pick another 4.5 fwd
Wow, so very different from my team. Makes me worry about my attack even more.
Hey guys, Been away for a while. Had a post last time I was here, showing my team. Didn’t follow up or read the replies. Sort of going through a hard time. Heard I will be turning blind in the upcoming 10-20 years. Genetic shit. No treatments yet, just experimental shit. It is what it is. Staying strong for family. But it damaged my life perspectives.
Anyways, this is my team. Haha. What to change? :p
Oh jeez Raz, sorry to hear mate. In all honesty, the advances in medical research come fast and furious and it’s amazing what can be done so don’t give up hope. A close mate has a daughter with a serious medical condition and they’re encouraged every day that she’ll live a longer, better quality life than they thought even 12 months ago. In the meantime, stick to FPL and FF247 and we’ll hopefully keep ya chuckling.
Good draft there, I think Rashford could be brilliant and under the radar. Perez over Tielmans for me, but could go either way.
Lol, this team was my first draft… like a few weeks ago. You’re saying it’s actually good? Wow. Bit worried about the attack and lack of City.
And yeah, I’m staying strong. Can’t change the things that come on our paths. It’s just way, because it is out of my hands. No healthy lifestyle can change a thing.
Also thinking. Should I now go do everything all at once? Or keep the focus on my job and my studies. It’s a little bit weird.
Well of course no City – figured that was your ‘against the grain’ move! Would probably require a cheaper front trio to turn Moura & Zaha into Sterling & 5.5/6.0 mid. Or have a tinker with Moura > KDB and downgrade Ederson, Zaha & Wilson to accommodate Kane or Kun.
Yeah. Seems having either Sterling or Kane is a must.
Sorry to hear that Raz, but like Colriles says above no one knows how the medical research will develop in the next 10 years, it could be taking huge leaps like it has in recent years, I think it will actually! Let’s hope for the best and try to relax with FPL and our (bad) jokes in the meantime!
:good:
Hehe. Yeah, keeping my mind off of things helps. FPL was always a good distraction but the past years I was too busy.
Keep it up Raz!
Sorry the hear that mate. I am not in a position to give advice on how to react to such news or what you should or not do accordingly.
I’m sure it’s scary to hear such news from the docs but you saying you are keeping strong for your family tells me you are prepared to make good decisions in this process.
On a sarcastic note, you won’t have to bother with the eye test anymore!! :)) okay, that was too sarcastic and I’ll get my coat now
Yeah. It’s life changing news. Unsure how to feel or react. At least you won’t see me drive ever again. So traffic is safe again. Hehe.
Make jokes dude, it’s all good. I do the same.
Sorry to hear that Raz. I echo everything that has been said before. In addition, I have had the honour and pleasure of listening to Miles Hilton-Barber (google him) on a number of occasions and so I can say that philosophically things can be life changing but not necessarily for the worse.
Ps. Your team probably needs a bit of tinkering 😉
So sorry to hear that Raz. That sucks! Mind you god knows what kind of state the likes of me and Elle will be in 10-20 years’ time at our advanced ages.
As others have said science and treatments are constantly improving. Keep strong and treasure each day.
Team could do with a bit more City I think. You got AWB on the bench so you kind of have a 443 set up if you see what I mean. You could downgrade Deulefeu to a 4.5m and upgrade Moura to KBD. Swapping Ederson to a 4.5 and Wilson to King you could have Sterling instead of Zaha.
Raz
Get the simple stuff out of the way first, nothing particularly barf about your squad. Except the lack of City!
More importantly, I want you to keep fighting on the personal front and stay as healthy as you can pal. As the boys say, these days medical science is moving apace.
Keep in touch always
:good:
Settling on this team, gives me cover in defense and allows me to go with big 3 ahead! Just little doubtful on Barkley can go with Townsend or Peryera! Any suggestions?
Snookie
That squad is good. I’d give Barkley a fair chance over the first six or so games to see how he is featuring.