Fantasy Football Captain Picks Gameweek 24 2017/18
Welcome to Fantasy Football Captain Picks Gameweek 24. To be honest; I couldn’t wait for GW22 to end. The Christmas fixtures started so well, green arrows in GW19 and 20, but quickly followed by two reds in 21 and 22 resulting in ending up pretty much back where I started. Don’t get me wrong, that’s not to say I didn’t enjoy it (honest) but usually the pain of a bad game-week is over in a matter of days. GW22 was like an episode of Downton Abbey, tedious, something I don’t want to watch and overly drawn-out. The FA Cup was a welcome break, which is saying something as prior to last week, Newcastle had failed to reach the fourth round since 2012! If all of the above sounds a little ‘woe is me’ it’s not meant to, but sometimes we all need a break.
I went into GW23 feeling refreshed and optimistic, and what a cracker it was too. If this weekend’s games taught me one thing about the Premier League, it’s that the gulf in class between the top teams and those languishing at the foot of the table is vast, gargantuan in fact. On Saturday I made my pilgrimage to St. James’ Park, it was a dire affair, no need to bore you with the details. In stark contrast, the match between Liverpool and Man City was master-class in attacking football (defending? not so much). The final score doesn’t do justice to just how good Liverpool were, they raced into a 4-1 lead in slick style, it was joyous for FPL managers who had kept the faith in Salah and Firmino, if only Bobby hadn’t threw away his shirt and with it any hopes of getting any bonus points!
If you’re the indecisive type then this game-week is not for you. It feels like one of those weeks where people will be jumping between potential captains right up till the deadline, I often find these are the most exciting, but can also be the most frustrating! Lets dive in!
Sergio Aguero (Newcastle, Home)
My allegiance to Newcastle holds no influence over my FPL team. Maybe if I’d been playing 20 years ago it would be a different story. I’m so desensitized to the mediocrity of my hometown club that they (sadly) rarely factor into my FPL strategising. If ever there was a game that epitomizes this, then it was Newcastle’s last league game at the Etihad. Back in the 2015/16 season, City beat Newcastle 6-1, Sergio Aguero scored 5 goals in just 20 minutes. When he scored his 5th, I actually smiled, safe in the knowledge that Aguero was my FPL captain; 50 points in the bag, my heart is made of stone.
We all know what Aguero is capable of, in seasons past often considered essential; a go-to captain choice. The injury to Gabriel Jesus has brought Aguero back into our thinking. Despite limited minutes his scoring record is right up there; 13 goals in just 1421 minutes, that’s a goal every 109 minutes, Only Kane, Salah and Austin can better that this season.
Newcastle have actually (unbelievably) picked up wins in our last two away games. We won away to Stoke (0-1) following the 2-3 victory against the Hammers, but I’m under no illusion that we will continue the trend at the Etihad. If Aguero is not in your team for this one, you may want to hide behind your sofa, that’s where I’ll be regardless, feel free to join me.
Mo Salah (Swansea, Away)
There’s no question that Liverpool are worse off without Philippe Coutinho. The question for FPL managers however, is whether the loss of Coutinho will see a regression in the output of 18 goal Mo Salah. So I had a quick look at the stats; Salah has played 8 games without Coutinho, scoring 67 points, that’s an average of 8.4 points per match. Salah’s score in the 14 games Coutinho did play? 112 points, averaging 8 points per match. After watching their 4-3 win over Man City, I have a feeling they’ll be just fine.
Swansea once again find themselves in mid-season relegation trouble and currently sit bottom of the league. Ex-manager Paul Clement was sacked just before Christmas, the third December in a row that they’ve disposed of their manager. They’ve only kept 3 clean sheets at home this season – against Huddersfield, Bournemouth and fellow strugglers West Brom, not the best form to face a Liverpool side that has scored 29 of their 54 goals on the road this season.
My GW18 Captain article suggested we ‘always stick with Salah’, hardly radical thinking. Unfortunately I’m incapable of following my own advice; I’ve only captained Salah once. Had I simply done as suggested, I’d be 78 points better off….just outside the top 500, ouch.
Harry Kane (Southampton, Away)
I’ve embraced Twitter over the past few months. Whilst I don’t do a whole lot of ‘Tweeting’, I have found it to be another excellent source in my quest to fill every waking minute of my day with FPL (I really should get out more, maybe move closer to Silvers!) Prior to GW19, twitter was awash with people keen to ditch Harry Kane. A disappointing 3 points in GW17 and 18 in addition to a blank game-week on the horizon, it was a brave move that could have paid off. Back to back hat-tricks followed, the #Kanexiters duly punished. Then came the double game-week; Harry got sick, then got better, starting the game-week on the bench, he came on, did nothing and finished with 3 points. Particularly painful if you used your Triple-Captain chip. Last game-week Harry was back doing what he does best, goals 19 and 20 of the season, 26 points for those who kept the faith.
This week the opposition are a Southampton side who sit joint bottom of the form table; 3 defeats in their last 6. They haven’t won a home game since November, conceding 8 goals in their 4 home games since. Harry likes to score his goals in multiples, he scored a hat-trick in Spurs last away game, that was against a Burnley team with far better defensive credentials than the team he faces this week. In the corresponding fixture last season, Tottenham won 1-4; Harry scored one and sent a penalty kick over the bar. Which Harry will turn up this week? Who knows, but the fear is real, Hat-trick Harry can turn up in any given game week.
Marko Arnautovic (Bournemouth, Home)
Owned by just 9%, Arnautovic is still something of a differential. Were it not for his double game-week back in GW22 that number would probably be even lower. Arnautovic struggled to establish himself at the London Stadium following his £24m move from Stoke in the summer, failing to score in his first 13 outings for the Hammers. The arrival of David Moyes has seen a change in fortunes for the Austrian, 6 goals and 3 assists in his last 8 appearances. In West Ham’s 1-4 win at Huddersfield, Arnautovic was unplayable; a goal, 2 assists and maximum bonus, finishing with 16 points. He’s now scored 52 points in his last 5 games, level with Mo Salah.
Bournemouth will be full of confidence following their 2-1 victory over Arsenal, a result that lifted them 4 points above the relegation places. However, the Cherries away form suggests they may struggle this week. In their 11 away games this season, they’ve let in 18 goals and failed to keep a clean sheet since November. If Arnautovic plays as he did against the Terriers, he could easily grab another double-digit score. I almost ditched big Arnie last week, thankfully a wise man (Uncle Init) advised against it, if only I had stuck the armband on him, hindsight is a wonderful thing…. although I may just do that this week, good luck kids.
Thanks for reading Fantasy Football Captain Picks Gameweek 24
This article was written by Rosco.
Vote on our Captain Poll Now
The League Codes for FF247 for the 2017/18 season are as follows:
The main public FF247 League , which anyone is welcome to join, can be accessed using the following code 1503-553 (auto-link below).
We are delighted to say that this has a prize pool of £300 which will be split between the top 3 and this has kindly been sponsored by STARTING ELEVEN Please take a minute to click on the link and visit their wonderful Live Daily Fantasy Football game.
Join Our League – Quick Link
League Code: 1503-553
View league standings
Our Regulars League for 2017/18 is now open and has a cash prize pool of £300 paid directly to the winners from the FF247 management team. 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@fantasyfootball247.co.uk
*terms and conditions apply and are available upon request. Management reserve the right to review membership of this league on an ongoing basis. If you enter and win a prize you have to have commented on the site at least 10 times for 3 consecutive months between January 2018 and March 2018 or you will not be considered for a prize.
Gameweek Tracker GW24-29
Hello all. Bad GW last time.
Elliot
Jones Alonso Mee Otamendi
Sterling Eriksen Salah Son
Morata Firmino
Fabianski DCL T.Carroll Kabasele
Possible WC to get Kane, Arnie, solid GK and dump DCL, Kabasele and Erik? Y or N
Anything itb, and do you still have your FT? Morata to Bobby should be a good cash build and should pay off
Did read your team. Don’t mind my retarded comment
Ha, thanks Gavy, but thinking going from 23k to 40k needs some serious readdressing.
No, I don’t think it needs it. Your GK situtation is a bit annoying, but Fabianski is at least starting. I would bin Eriksen and upgrade Morata to Kane or Aguero. Probably Aguero seeing as though you don’t have Kane already. Dunno what’s in the bank so can’t suggest a Eriksen downgrade, but Arnie would be good..
Luiz starting tonight would suggest Christensen being his first choice at center back?
I hope so. I know he’s only 5.5 but hard to keep if he’s not getting 60 mins lol
5.6 now
So he is. Less just hope Cahill is rested and it should be fine
Cahill’s got a hammy
Let’s hope he is rested then 😉
2FT and 0.7ITB. anyone to bring in or roll the transfers over?
What’s Depoitre done recently? I’d be inclined to bin him/Okazaki and Gross and either get a half decent striker or Arnie if that is achievable.
Great midfield, very poor front line apart from kane. I would go 3-5-2 and upgrade Gross to Arnie/Lanzini. You can get the funds by downgrading Depoitre to Crouch who is decent bench fodder.
McBurnie is getting game time under his belt now, and is £0.4m cheaper, if you want to raise more money!
cheers robbo.
i was also thinking of doing gross and de bruyne to son and arnie. i might do the kdb swap later a week before the league cup final
Hi everybody.
And thanks for the great articles. Always very helpful – and fun to read!
What would you do with this lot? 2 FT, 0.2 ITB.
Generally, I would gladly bin Rooney, Eriksen and Gross. And with the money, I could either try to get Kun, or improve my horrible defense.
I think that the most reasonnable is to improve the defense…
So I was thinking Eriksen, Francis–>Pogba, Stones, 0.1ITB. I would then bin Rooney the following week to afford someone like Christensen.
Alternatively, I could consider Eriksen, Francis–>Ox, Stones, 2.7 ITB, which would leave me with enough to directly afford Azpi the following week.
Or I could bin Rooney instead of Eriksen, but I do not see which cheap forward to select…
What do you think?
Hi Vinci.
First order of business is decide whether you want to play 3-4-3 or 3-5-2 then downgrade Rooney of Gross to cheap bench fodder and take it from there. At the moment you are leaving a lot of money on the bench every week with one of your mid/fwd players.
+1, you’re looking at over £1m wasted every week with that structure.
Top advice.
I think I’d steer towards maybe Groß to Milivojevic of Palace and Rooney to Vardy.
Seeing Pedro’s dive there makes me so angry with the new rule.
Deserves a 2 match ban minimum for that, absolutely ridiculous
Remind me of the new rule? Do you mean the successful deception one?
As far as I’m aware, retrospective bans can only be issued if the dive successfully deceives the referee.
So you get a 2 match ban if you don’t get caught on the pitch, or a measly yellow if the ref spots it.
Diving full stop should get the player a ban, regardless of whether the ref sees it in game or not in my opinion.
I agree. The only way for the FA to show that it is committed to getting that rubbish out of the game.
Your theory, and not that i don’t disagree with the principle, is that simulation spotted by the referee would be a red card offence carrying an automatic two-match ban.
Yeah, and he’s right there, the disparity is totally out of sync. Same offence should carry the same punishment, end of.
Too many negatives in that sentence for my brain to compute, GP 😉
He means he agrees. He just said it in Scottish
Does Scottish add an extra negative then?
Always. Have you not been there?
That will explain why they gave me so many compliments whilst I was there!
Hehe.
Init summed up what I was driving at in that if it’s a two game ban after the event then it should be two games in ‘real’ time.
Haha, I knew what you meant. Just being facetious!
As long as there is a line drawn between full-on diving and going down from minimal contact, I think that should be the case yes.
There just can’t be a line drawn though.
It’s the interpretation of the witness.
Although I feel a red card during the game for it could go wrong so many times, so a yellow with a retrospective ban once it’s confirmed the referee is correct is fairer?
Yep, anything deemed to be a dive, dealt with by the ref or not, should be referred afterwards and given the same punishment. This rule that the ref dealt with stuff and so they can’t then take any further action is just nonsense.
I also think that a straight red would have a further adverse effect in that a referee will probably start to act cautiously – if he has the option of giving a straight red or a penalty I imagine he would lean towards a penalty, not wanting to make a straight red call where he isn’t 100% sure (and therefore leaving him with only one option; a penalty). After all, dives are supposed to deceive the referee, so putting him in that predicament might not help.
Equaliser for Norwich