Fantasy Premier League Ramblings 2018/19
Sometimes I have thoughts and on occasion I am allowed to express them on here. Not sure where this article is headed, but let us just type away and see what comes of it.
There has been some mention of Keita on the site recently and he has started to appear on some of the teams managers have been posting. I have been particularly interested in him and have been trying to monitor the commentary on top of whatever I can watch of him. His previous numbers tend to reveal that 10 goals and 10 assists is not a huge ask for this season, assuming he gets between 2800-3000 minutes. In fact, an uptick on assists is very possible, since when we look at his previous assist tallies we are not looking at FPL assists, which are a bit different.
On paper, it feels like he could be a bonus point magnet, but it is hard work winning them bonus points with the kind of players he will have alongside him. So he can have many a standout game and fall short in bonus points because the front three combined for four goals. Plus, there is also yellow cards. Keita doesn’t mind picking one up which will also cut into his chances at bonus points. Despite those things though, he is still likely to get his fair share. He should make a key pass or two per game and on this team, it could be more. Plus if he carries on like he did in the Bundesliga he will be elite at completing dribbles which the BPS system loves. Add his capacity for recovering balls and if he does get about 10 and 10 on goals and assists, he should be near 20 bonus points for the season.
My biggest reservation about having Keita is not his price (that’s perfect) it is that he takes up a LFC spot and when there is a huge interest in having a defender of theirs and possibly Salah and Firmino, tough decisions have to be made. There feels like there is similar value and similarly priced players, where we wouldn’t have to take a coveted LFC player spot up with Keita. Ramsey and Mkhi, Pogba and Lingard, Groß and some a bit cheaper that could also pan out. So why tie up the spot when we could just go somewhere else for similar results?
I am asking you! Wait…you are waiting on me to answer that?
The thing is, do any of us know, I am sure we all have an opinion, but there is a lot of guesswork to this. Here is my guess, Keita will outperform just about everyone in his price bracket, which we will call the 6-8 million bracket. I do think Pogba will finally score well in FPL, but that’s a topic for a different day. So that means that if I set up my team right this minute, he be in. Who would I sacrifice? Probably my LFC defender, if I decide I want Firmino from the start. Yeah, Salah is definitely in, he is the most terrifying player since Suarez to watch play when you don’t own. Well that went a bit long, I wanted to write a paragraph on Keita and move on.
So instead of making some long winded opinions on other topics like I just did with Naby, let me offer some quick takes. Some of these will be familiar to people who frequent the board if you have seen any of my comments over the last couple of days.
– Zaha creates a lot of penalties for his team, second only to Sterling last season. Milivojevic is unlikely to replicate the goals from last season anyway, but if Zaha leaves there is no chance he will.
– City play the three newly promoted teams and the three promoted teams from last season right after Arsenal. So make sure you have some nice City coverage for GW’s 2-7 or it will likely lead to lots of misery.
– I did a set piece takers list HERE so don’t forget to check that out. Be aware though, don’t get too excited about who takes direct free kicks for a team. There was only 17 goals scored from said shots last season and two of those were scored by Coutinho. Having said that, every little bit helps and I still prefer whoever I own to be on them if possible.
– #DaveSaves I get it, set and forget. There is a lot of nice in not having to ever worry about that position, no transfers, no hits. I will say one thing, that might be considered negative. What is more likely, that he has another FPL season of 172 points or that he returns closer to what he averaged (136 by the way) the previous four seasons?
– I was going to make a point or two about Ralls from Cardiff, but that Cookie wrote an article on it, so just go check that out. HERE > Cookie loves Cardiff
– Besides Azpilicueta and maybe Alonso, there seems to be little to no interest in Chelsea on RMTs. However, I would advise to keep a closer eye on them. In particular if Hazard and Willian leave, there could be some real bargains in there. Pedro scored in their first game under Sarri in a 1-0 win and Fabregas was sitting higher then we have been accustomed to, in Cesc’s case he might get decent minutes even if the Belgian and Brazilian stay.
Thanks for reading Fantasy Premier League Ramblings 2018/19. This article was written by Mito21
PRE-SEASON FRIENDLIES
Usually we run an article and ask people to get involved and cover the friendlies with any info they can gather. And it’s usually fun but in all honesty it’s usually also a bit messy and difficult to refer back to. This season we have one link that you will need need for all such info, courtesy of Mito –
Here you will find all the pre-season info you could ever wish for in one place – line-ups, scorers, assists, match info, sarcastic comments….
FPL FIXTURE TRACKER
(It’s scrollable btw, just swipe left or right)
FIXTURE TRACKER LINK
It’s been a busy summer already with Arsenal, Everton, West Ham and Chelsea appointing new managers, Manchester City adding to their already dominant squad, Man Utd continuing to splash the cash and Liverpool trying to protect Karius by beefing up their midfield. Spurs may even have a new home soon.
And FPL wise, this is the place to discuss strategy, learn about the promoted teams and their players while in the days and weeks to come we’ll have plenty of articles, interviews, player analysis, Bore Offs, Tips, etc, etc.
So be sure to get involved in the discussions, the RMTs and the banter as we look forward to another season of Fantasy fun!
The League Codes for FF247 for the 2018/19 season are as follows –
The main public FF247 League , which anyone is welcome to join, can be accessed using the following code 1581-751 (auto-link below).
The prize pool for this one will be confirmed in due course.
Join Our League – Quick Link
League Code: 1581-751
View league standings
Our Regulars League* for 2018/19 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@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. If you enter and win a prize you have to have commented on the site at least 5 times for 8 consecutive months between August 2018 and March 2019 or you will not be considered for a prize. That’s basically 1 comment a week all season, we think that’s a reasonable ask to be considered a ‘regular’.
In your e-mail could you please supply:-
Your name.
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Another look at a different approach what do we thk rip it apart do we thk Mendy can hold a place dwn
Hate the keepers but it could work other than that. A lot depends on the two 4 million defenders who could both start
Silvers
Being brutal, I think you’re asking for trouble with that entire defence and goalkeeper set up. Too many ‘ifs’ pal.
Judging by who is highlighted, he knows that, he can’t even get himself to confirm the transfers. 😉
I’m just messing about guys Salah is causing havoc could do with another mill anyone got any spare cash it’s pretty tough going with Salah in
Join the club!
Serious Q Mendy or Robertson????
Robo for me. Both if you can get the funds together.
But it’s really a question of waiting to see how nailed they are.
Robertson – sadly for us Scots he had the whole summer off
Cheers guys
What are people’s thoughts on Ederson vs DDG?
ederson is cheapest route into city defence, with no rotation risk. DDG is 0.5m more for a season likely to be very tight in defence, but not the cheapest utd option once world cup players return to duty.
I opted for Ederson (at the stage)….draft v62!
Yeah that’s what I was thinking and your draft there could be looking similar enough to mine. Very nice midfield there mate.
Buggered if Kane, KdB or Sanchez need to be added though
KDB won’t be hard getting in at 10 but Kane could be. I don’t see us having to worry about Sanchez though.
I can see KDB being my City cover when he reappears.
Oh definitely! As soon as he’s back I’m dropping Sane and bringing KDB in! Most nailed in that City team
I can see why you’d prefer Kevin. Just don’t forget to never sell him, even if he has two or five blanks in a row. Ginger is guaranteed big points at the the nd of the season but you must trust him throughout the campaign.
Hi all,
New to the site, though did read loads of articles last season & thanks to all the contributors. I’ve been doing FF for a few seasons now and been okay (13,000 in 14/15 & 63,000 in 15/16) but lost my way in last 2 seasons.
I think it’s because I’ve focussed too much on a good squad, and not on a great 11/12. Interested in people thoughts on building a squad or trusting your XI?
Current squad is:
DDG (had Ederson last year and 6 points a game but never close to BP’s as never had any saves to make!)
MENDY ROBERTSON BAILLY
SANE JORGINHO SALAH (c) JOTA RICHARLISON
AGUERO WOOD
boruc, bamba, wan-bissaka, sorloth
Keeping close eye on Delph- lots of talk that Pep may not bother with another midfielder after losing out on Jorginho and play Delph in midfield role, which makes a cheap route in City defence with an OOP.
Thanks for thoughts
Harry P
Hi Harry, a warm welcome to the site.
On the squad / team thing it’s a good question and it’ll be interesting to see what people say but for me personally I like to run with about 13 players who I know I can rotate when I need to. That’s with one dead keeper and one dead defender usually. When I say dead I mean 4.0 / 4.5 or so scrubs but ones who do still play, preferably. Just not with much / any intention of using them. I’d never consider going in with just an 11.
On your team as it is there I wouldn’t take Jorginho as he’s more of a DM. I imagine he may well be one of the best players this season from what I’ve seen of him but probably not from a fantasy perspective. Forward line looks a bit lacking too, for my liking.
Thanks all,
The Delph thing was about hearing Pep may play him in midfield and as he’s classed as a defender at City what an ideal way in (and cheaper), but wanted to monitor – hence having Mendy at present.
Thanks for thoughts on XI v Squad – v useful, particularly with WC returnees to consider.
Have 1.0 itb at mo so was looking at where Jorginho plays in Charity Shield & the Palace pre season (Sorloth).
Cheers guys – hope to post more & contribute to others not just ask question about my side!
Hey Harry, great to have you posting. I don’t think it’s a bad idea once the teams are settled in a bit, but it feels dangerous early on since many teams will be unsettled as players come back from being rested. Plus any players who were transferred in before the deadline but didn’t have time to make GW1 because lack of training with the team will also be slotting in.
I am a fan of Jorginho’s game, but not for fpl as it sounds like he will sit deep. Could be wrong on that, so watch for that. Rest looks fine, although I am unsure on Bailly for any extended time.
Was going to mention Bailly too as I’m unsure also. But then stopped typing, because I’m unsure
Hi Harry – My take on this is that you need XV guys that you know are starters or can be replaced easily if they end up not being starters. That’s for the beginning of the season (when uncertainty is around) and the last 10gw or so (when rotation kicks in). In between, you are fine with 1 nailed on keeper and 10-12 starters.
Forgot, on Delph. If he uses Delph, it will be to rest Fernandinho. So he will be sitting deep and probably won’t get a ton of minutes. Don’t think he is worth 5.5 considering his minutes.
Hi Harry for what it’s worth (which is not very much!) I tend to get myself a subs bench of three £4.5m players who will at least play, and one £4.0m def who probably won’t play. I then aim for the best starting 11 with the money left. I’m not sure whether this falls within “building a squad” or “trusting your XI” or if it’s somewhere in the middle!
Yay! It’s time for FPL again! Woohoo! Here’s my first draft, having absorbed every little bit of helpful info on this site this evening…
Thoughts?
Interesting shouts in Andone and Patrício there Ben. Strong XI with perhaps the exception of Ralfs who I know nothing about except that he is loved by Cookie. You don’t really need to palace defenders though.
Thanks DMC!
Andone and Patricio are both recommendations from Fly from the Interview article. Tomkins was PM’s recommendation from the same article and I see from discussions in the Comments that Wan-Bassaka is the most likely £4.0m def to have a chance of starting, but I agree two Palace defs seems wrong. Ralls is only there because of Cookie!
Overall a strong squad you have there….maybe swap Patricio to a non-playing 4.0 as there will be most likelyminimum rotation having Eders…keep the 0.5M handy
eplnoob – I likey – always nice having a cheeky 0.5 spare. Thanks
Nice team, Andone is nursing a groin problem and has been for 10-15 days now. Which is not good considering that he is battling Locadia and Murray for the striker spot. I am assuming that Knock, Gross and Izquierdo will sit behind one striker. So being new on the team and unable to train regularly could mean he won’t start right away. Plus it looks like Brighton might beat Leicester to Jahanbaksh which will only muddy the waters even more as he will start.
Rest of the team looks fine. I probably drop Patricio for a 4.0 and change one of the Palace guys, but that’s just me.
Izquierdo also interests me. 6.0, good stats last year, second year in the league, you reckon he’s good value?
Not sure. He is a decent enough player, but with no set pieces and basically no shot in hell of being on the end of one it does feel like there will be many a week of 2-3 points with the occasional goal. I mean if he plays a bit more I guess he could be decent value. Maybe if we watch the fixtures and make sure we only have him for the right ones it could work.
Thanks Mito. Am certainly considering downgrading Patricio (if he turns out to be mega, like Fly suggests, I can always pick him up later). Would give me 0.5m to upgrade Tomkins (I don’t want to get rid of WanB if he’s a genuine 4.0m who may actually play). Or maybe there is a better 4.5m def? Would be nice to keep the 0.5m in the back pocket. Sounds like I need to shift Andone at least for the start of the season. Will look into alternatives but it’s tricky at that price….
This is my 2nd draft…
Instead firmino and sane previously,i bring in aub and kdb. Pls rate my team..thanks guys.
@Xhunt, some quick thoughts.
Bennett might start, might not so watch that he is likely to, if he doesn’t there are two other guys we are all tracking to see if it looks like they will.
Long is so not a goal scorer and is unlikely to play up top unless he comes in as a sub.
Obiang might be moving to Italy, looks likely. So make sure he doesn’t leave.
Bournemouth just bought a new left back, so Daniels could lose his spot.
KDB is unlikely to start GW1 due to the world Cup.
Thanks for the tips..if were you..are sane willstart for the 1st GW..iam thinking william also in my list
Are this one better that above draft
Yeah 2nd one looks quite good for the first couple of weeks.
2nd better than 1st