FPL Tips GW1

Welcome to FPL Tips GW1

We’re kicking off the first of our regular weekly articles with a slight variation on the usual tips format. Essentially, this is my first FPL draft, created last night for you to all pull apart/copy/laugh at. Take your pick.

My fellow contributors can attest to this being created the night before the Liverpool vs Sevilla match (before I get accused of jumping on the band waggon!), it was nice to see returns for one of my ‘differentials’, how long a certain Diogo stays a differential remains to be seen!

We’re hopefully going to get a few more drafts from my fellow contrinbutors over the following days, along with our first captain’s article and of course the Site Team.

It sure feels good to be back!

Rosco FPL draft 1

When the game launched, I was adamant about not paying £15m for Erling Haaland. Yet here I am, with the big Norwegian front and centre, taking up 15% of my budget. There will likely be opportunities throughout the season to redistribute those funds, but for now, given City’s fixtures, I’d rather play it safe.

After deciding on Haaland, I’d love to say the rest of my GW1 draft was easy, but it wasn’t. The more competitive pricing this season is a testament to FPL’s efforts.Credit where it’s due. I’ve been on autofill for weeks now, finally committing to a draft purely for the sake of this article. However, like many of you, my photo library is filled with endless drafts, courtesy of the excellent FPL Team app. My ‘camera roll’ could easily be mistaken for the work of someone obsessed with this game…

Enough preamble. Let’s talk players. I’m still tinkering, and my biggest dilemma is Salah (£12.5m) vs. Saka (£10m). Saka offers better overall balance, but Salah just feels right—I’ve always loved Mo Salah. For now, Saka is in, partly due to Smash reigniting my interest in Jota (£7.5m).

Keepers

I’ve never had much success with rotating keepers, and I can rarely find enough spare cash for one who reliably keeps clean sheets. So, I’m sticking with a playing £4.5m keeper and a non-playing £4.0m backup. Henderson is my choice for now. I don’t love him, but Palace had the 4th best defense last season, their fixtures are decent, and with Johnstone possibly moving, Henderson seems a safe pick. However, his spot is tenuous—if bids for Andersen and Guehi are accepted, Henderson will be out. If that happens, I might pivot to Flekken, who has the advantage of a £4.0m backup in Valdimarsson. But with City, Liverpool, and Spurs in Brentford’s first five, I don’t see many points. I may need to spend more on a keeper, Pickford or Pope at £5m appeal, but funds are tight.

Defenders

Gvardiol (£6m) is locked in. I missed out on him last season, and those last few weeks were painful. If he can replicate that form over a full season, £6m will be a bargain.

I’ve opted for three rotating £4.5m defenders: Hall, Quansah, and Konsa. They could easily be Mykolenko and Robinson instead. The biggest risks are Hall and Quansah holding their spots, but both have had solid preseason minutes. Hall, in particular, might lock down the left-back spot and become a mainstay. Konsa is there purely for favorable fixtures and his rotation with Hall.

Barco (£4.0m) takes the fifth defender spot. Brighton fans speak highly of him, and with Estupiñán out until September, many think the spot is Barco’s to lose. While Brighton’s fixtures outside of GW4-5 aren’t great, I have more faith in their defense than in Southampton’s Harwood-Bellis.

Midfeilders

In midfield, we’ve already discussed the Salah vs. Saka conundrum. Jota is in with the hope he can ‘cover’ Salah (unlikely) and, more importantly, stay fit (again, unlikely). He’s a risky pick, but at £7.5m, he’s an easy switch to another £7.5m player. If I choose Salah over Saka, I’d probably swap Jota for Gordon (£7.5m), who doesn’t carry the same concerns.

Nkunku (£6.5m) feels like a no-brainer. If he stays fit, he’ll likely outperform his price tag. Despite last season’s injury struggles, he’s looked good in preseason, and I’m willing to take the risk.

Eze (£7m) and Gordon (£7.5m) have been in many of my drafts. I’m not entirely sure about Eze, who is the third-highest-owned midfielder. I’d pick him more as insurance, but I don’t want EO (Effective Ownership) to suck all the fun out of the game. So, I’ve found the extra money for Bruno Fernandes (£8.5m). This spot might ultimately be downgraded to free up funds elsewhere, in which case Eze and Gordon would be back on the table.

I initially had Rogers (£5m) as my fifth midfielder but downgraded him to Bergvall (£4.5m). It’s probably too early to see the Spurs man in the starting XI, but he has more upside off the bench than the alternatives. If I wanted to play it safe, Winks would be my choice, but that feels a bit dull for my liking.

Forwards

Up front, Isak (£8.5m) has been locked in since his price was revealed. Opening-day fixtures don’t get much better than Southampton at home. I’m usually cautious about picking Newcastle players for my FPL side, but I can’t resist the excitement of watching my FPL players score at St. James’ Park (unless they’re playing for the opposition, of course!).

I started this article with my thoughts on Haaland (£15m), and I’ll add this: it’s easy to downgrade him, but it’s a nightmare trying to bring him back into your team quickly. I salute anyone who goes without him—it’s brave and could pay off. But if it doesn’t, and he performs as we know he can, it will hurt. A lot.

Solanke’s (£7.5m) move to Spurs forced a change in lineup and formation. I was set on a 3-5-2 setup, but £7.5m for a Spurs forward of Solanke’s calibre is a steal. He scored three more points than Isak and costs £1m less. That’s the Newcastle tax. Had Solanke moved to Spurs before the game launched, I guarantee he’d have cost more.

So, that’s where I am now. If this is still my team come GW1, I’d be very surprised. I’m a tinkerer at heart, with 50 drafts filling up my camera roll—that’s a whole lot of temptation!

Good luck in GW1 and for the season ahead!

Thanks for reading FPL Tips GW1. This article was written by Rosco.

Follow @FantasyFooty247

VOTE ON THIS WEEK’S CAPTAIN POLL

FPL FIXTURE TRACKER

”

Both leagues will be shut to new entrants as of 01/01/25.