Fantasy Football - May 2013/14

GW37 is an enormous one, as 10 teams have re-arranged additional fixtures. The biggest winners of these double gameweeks are Sunderland and Man City. Happily for me, those are the two teams I built my wildcard around. I total 86pts. The big disappointment is my captain Aguero, who goes off injured after 27mins of the first game and sits out the second. Meanwhile Jon, my biggest rival at the end of the season, earns a whopping 110pts as his captain Yaya Toure nets 34pts single-handedly. Andrew did the worst this week, only making 54pts, but his mini-league victory is already assured.

GW38 is the last week. Kompany, Schurrle, Gerrard and Ramsey all bring in the points for me. Jon brings in, and captains Sturridge. But it's not enough. I beat him for the week, and beat him for the season.

Ross was the top performer in April & May. He made 418pts in the last 6 GWs. That lead him to lead Q4.

At the end of the year, Andrew wins with 2,318pts. I finish second, 102pts behind him. Jon is third, 36pts behind me. James finishes last with 2,011.

At the end of the season, the players with the highest individual score are Suarez (295pts), Yaya Toure (241pts), and Gerrard (205pts).

The best value outfield players were Koscielny, Fonte and Joel Ward. They didn't score many goal from set-pieces, they just played almost every game.

RVP is still the most expensive player in the game. His injury record ruined him as a fantasy prospect. He missed the vast majority of the season. Despite only playing 12 full games this season, he still scored 12 goals and made 3 assists.

The player with the biggest price drop is Erik Lamela. Spurs' summer signing only played one full match, and that was their 6-0 defeat to Man City! Other dissapoitments were Wilfred Zaha, Samuel Oto'o and Jesus Navas.

The top scoring centre-backs were Skrtel and Caulker. Baines and Coleman of Everton got 11 goals between them playing as full backs. Caulker was also the only outfield player to make it through all 3,420mins of the premier league season.

Luis Suarez was the clear player of the season. Despite beginning the campaign with a 5 match ban, he never missed another game and always played the full match. His incredible reliability meant he ended the year as both the top goal-scorer with 30, and also the top assister with 25. His exceptional year defines 2013/14.

Fantasy Football - April 2013/14

GW33 starts April off, and I make 57pts thanks to Lukaku and Suarez. I brought in Azpilicueta to double up on Chelsea defenders, and that proves a smart move as they keep a clean sheet. Ross was the only person to earn a higher score this week. His 67pts came thanks to Dzeko and Silva, as City beat Saints 4-1.

Jon then transfers out Rooney for Sturridge, as he tries to catch up with me for second place.

GW34 is another good one. 64pts, thanks to Marshall, Mirallas, Coleman (the core of my team all season) and the doubled-up Chelsea defenders. Again, Ross won the week, outscoring me thanks to David Silva. His captain earned 24pts!

I transfer out Mirallas to make space for Gerrard. Andrew drops Yaya Toure for Juan Mata,  and Ross drops Hazard for Mata. He'd earned 31pts in his last 2 games, and the bandwagon is hot.

GW35 is a good one for James and Jon, who earn 60pts and 59pts respectively. I only made 43pts, the lowest in our league. I had Coleman on the bench, and missed out on his 11pts, and also missed a Snodgrass goal. Jon had Raheem Sterling earn 18pts, for his two goals away to Norwich.

Then, I play my wildcard! I've been hoarding it all season, and now I cash it in for the final weeks of the season. Jon has been catching up on 2nd place, and I need a strong finish. Out go the two Chelsea defenders. Out go mainstays like Coleman, Marshall, Giroud, and Shaw. The new team has 3 Man City players, Borini and Alonso from Sunderland, with Gerrard, Ramsey and Eriksen to pick up extra points.

Meanwhile, Jon climbs aboard the Mata bandwagon, and he also buys Aguero.

GW36 is won by Ross with 86pts. Jon made 73pts, and I had 51pts. Borini was my only player to score. Jon captained Mata and he scored twice, making the difference. James had a team including Mata, Yaya, Bony and Koscielny. They all earned between 12-14pts.

At the end of April, Ross won the month. Jon came second, and he earned 29pts more than me. It's the third month in a row he's outscored me, and he's catching up on my 2nd place. I'm catching on Andrew, but he has such a lead, it's an insignificant victory.

Fantasy Football - March 2013/14

GW28, and I win with 68pts. Andrew and Jon are close behind with 64pts and 65pts. Suarez breaks his recent goal drought, with a goal, two assists, and 3bpts. Ross was the only one not to captain him. Benteke, however, scores twice after four goalless games, and it's his points that won me the week. Still, I'm dissapointed. I had Skrtel on my bench, and he earned 8pts. Even worse, Andrew had him and he colleceted those points.

GW29 is a shortened week. Due to FA Cup matches, only five games take place. Transfers are scrambled to get eleven players into our fantasy teams. Jon transfers out Suarez! A massive gamble as he tries to catch the leage leaders, i.e me.

In the end, Jon is the biggest winner. He totals 69pts, with Hazard captain and two Chelsea defenders. He moves ahead of Mike, and into third in the league. Andrew had a good week, with Hazard captain and 54pts in total. I made 42pts. I only had 8 players, none of them strikers; Andrew and Jon both had 10 players.

That marks the end of Quarter 3. Jon was the winner with 598pts. Andrew made 580pts, and I made 526pts. A high scoring quarter ends as we move into the final matches of the season.

GW30 is won by James. His made 64pts. I was second with 55pts, and Coleman being my star man. Ross and Jon lost out, not captaining Suarez in a week where he scores, assists and collects 2bpts.

GW31 is one of the biggest weekends of the season. 15 matches means some potentialy huge double gameweek scores. In preparation for this, I bring in Lukaku and Nolan for Benteke and Tom Ince. Jon gets Silva for Lallana and Ross buys Dezeko for Eto'o. Andrew plays his wildcard! He now has both Suarez and Sturridge, lets Hazard and Koscielny go out for Silva and Zabaleta in, and clears out all his Man Utd players.

On the Saturday and Sunday, Andrew is the winner. He earns 113pts, with a mighty 40pts from his captain Suarez, and with 21pts for Yaya Toure and 17pts for Skrtel. This is would be the best two days anyone has had this season, but for James. He made 107pts, thanks to captain Suarez, Toure and Oscar. But that'll rise to 123pts if he's lucky and has Mutch coming of the bench with two goals and an assist.

In comparison, I only made 69pts for the weekend, and that's 10pts less than Jon, who's catching up even without the points from Suarez. Annoyingly, I have 18pts on the bench between Lallana and Snodgrass.

Midweek, and Dzeko scores twice, as Lukaku gets a goal and assist. This means GW31 ends with Andrew earning 184pts, I earn 121pts, and Jon earns 108pts. James totalled 143pts (without Mutch) and Mike 140, and Ross lost out only on 110pts. With everyone in triple-figures, it was a massive week. Andrew played a massive wildcared, which effectively wraps up the league for him this year.

Andrew and Jon both buy Ross Barkley, and I move out Evra for Azpilicueta.

GW32, and James wins with 73pts. I come last with 56pts. Suarez scored and assisted for 18pts as captain. Jon chose Rooney as captain for 26pts, which was the difference between him and I.

March ends, and it was a good month for Andrew. He 410pts, and he's now 165pts ahead of me with only 6 games left of the season. After a busy month, Jon only made 6pts more than me, and is way behind catching me for 2nd place. James had a great month, but remains in last overall.

Fantasy Football - February 2013/14

GW24, and Ross buys RVP! Back from injury, he plays 77mins and scores a goal against Stoke. I win the weekend with 61pts. Lallana, Mirallas and Adam Johnson all score important goals. Annoyingly, I had John Terry on the bench and started Jonny Evans. That's a mistake which cost me 6pts. Everyone captained Suarez again.

In transfers, Andrew let Giroud go for Negredo and Jon swaps Clyne for Shaw.

GW25, and Jon wins with 71pts. Andrew made 68pts, as Skrtel and Hazard earned 38pts between them! At the same time, I only made 27pts. I had Sterling on the bench, worth 14pts, and in total I lose 41pts on Andrew. A crushing loss.

I quickly transfer out Adam Johnson, who's fixtures turn awful, and bring in Tom Ince. I also get Skrtel, he who'd just earned Andrew so many points. Ross and Andrew both bring in Adrian as a back-up GK, while Jon lets Janujaz go for Mirallas.

Midweek GW26, and a February storm postponed Everton v Palace and Man City v Sunderland.  Jon Hackett wins the week with 73pts; his is the only team with 11 players. Two goals for Adebayor were good news for Andrew and Jon, while Suarez had his first dissapointing match since Boxing Day. I only made 41pts, losing 17pts on Andrew and falling over 100pts off his lead, with 13 weeks left in the season.

Transfers, and there is only one. Jon swaps out Henderson for Sterling. Everyone else keeps the same squad.

The month ends with GW27, and James wins the week with 61pts. I come second, Giroud was my star player. He scored twice, assisted and earned 3bpts. Suarez fails to score again; he has only one goal for the last six weeks. Meanwhile, Sturridge has scored 9 goals in 7 games since returing from injury - a lucky thing no-one has him in their team!

In end of the month transfer news, Andrew drops Negredo for Rodriguez (SOU) and brings in Petr Cech, while Ross makes three transfers, the biggest of which is dropping RVP for Adebayor. RVP scored 3 goals in 4 games, so he's been doing well for Ross, but he is very expensive. I let Eriksen go out for Snodgrass in.

Febuary over, and I've had a poor month. I lost 40pts on Andrew, which all boils down to GW25. He remains in 1st place, and that could be the end of the title race unless something dramatic happens. Jon won the month with 254pts, but remains 4th overall behind Mike, for now.

Fantasy Football - January 2013/14

Note: January allows each player an extra wildcard to refresh their squad. I won't be covering this in depth as it's allows for such a huge number of transfers to take place. Intead, at the end of the month I will take stock of what manager did with their w/card.


GW20 starts the new year, and the second half of the season. Mike Hackett wins with 51pts, everyone having a low scoring week. Suarez scored, but was the only striker to do so. Walcott had a strong week, taking 11pts.

There was a long gap after GW20, to allow for an FA Cup weekend. Walcott was stretchered off injured as Arsenal beat Spurs. He ruptured his ACL, which will rule him out of the rest of the season and the World Cup. Everyone who had Walcott swaps him out. Andrew, Jon, and Ross all bring in Hazard, while I got for Ozil and Mike goes with Oscar.

GW21, and I win the week. 79pts as Welbeck, Giroud and Suarez score four goals between them. It was a high scoring week all round, as Ross earned 72pts and Andrew 70pts. Everyone but Jon and Andrew captained Suarez. Rooney remained injured; I'd brought in Danny Welbeck at the last minute.

GW22 is a  low scoring week. Andrew won with 67pts. He had both Yaya Toure and Adebayor. Everyone captained Suarez, who earned 10pts. I lost 28 points to Andrew, after two good weeks of closing in. This was followed by another FA Cup weekend.

Transfer news, and Andrew let Oscar go for Januzaj. In the real world, Manchester United bought Juan Mata from Chelsea, Newcastle sold Cabaye, and Chelsea bought Matic and Salah.

GW23 and Suarez has another great week, 22pts as captain. Andrew and Jon are the only ones not to captain him, they chose Hazard who gave them 6pts. Meanwhile Giroud scores his third goal away from home in a row. The winner of the week is Mike with 78. I earned 17pts more than Andrew, continuing to close the gap, and remain second place in the league.

With Suarez on such good form for so long now, he's an automatic armband choice every week. Everyone has him in their teams, and choosing an alternative captain seems to never pay off. Sadly, with such a clear homogonised captain choice, the league becomes static.

As January ends, so ends the transfer window.

Wildcard Reports: Andrew, Jon, and Mike all played theirs before GW21, after the FA Cup break. Andrew dropped Negredo and Rooney for Giroud and Adebayor and used the money he saved to upgrade his midfield. Before he'd had Sterling, Kasami and Ramsey; now he fields Eriksen, Hazard and Oscar. Jon swapped Giroud for Adebayor, replaced Walcott, and and shuffled his team without too many major changes. Mike dropped Giroud for Negredo, and made room for Oscar and Lallana. James played his w/card before GW23, swapping out Coleman and Zabaleta for Koscielny and Azpilicueta, Mirallas and Cabaye out for Mata and Yaya Toure, and Rooney and Lukaku out for Aguero and Bony. James was the only person to choose Mata. Ross also played his before GW23, shuffling his team and making many minor changes. Negredo to Aguero and Kompany to Kolarov, for example. He brings in Eto'o as a differential.

I played my last wildcard at the very last minute, before GW24, having waited to see if any real world transfers catch my eye. I only made minor changes, getting rid of Ozil and Januzaj for Lallana and Sterling.

Fantasy Football - December 2013/14

December is a busy month. GW14 comes mid-week, and Luis Suarez scored 4 goals, an assist, and 3bpts. He's captained  for 48pts by everyone except Jon & James (who still don't have him). Yaya Toure and Hazard also score major points, and Mike Hackett wins the week with 100pts. I made 83pts, my highest week this season.

Still, there's disappointment as well. Fabian Delph scores a 13pts week, with a goal, an assist, and 3btps. But I've left him on my bench! RVP's slight injury means he misses a third game in a row, and my two Chelsea defenders again fail to keep a clean sheet. And, despite a great week, Andrew scores 1pt more than me.

Transfer news. Paul drops Benteke, who hasn't scored since GW4, for Negredo, while Ross swaps Rooney for Aguero.

GW15, and Mike Hackett wins with 72pts. I have a good week, but not good enough, and Mike moves ahead of me into second. Suarez had another great week, but he'd been captained again by all who had him. I had no real points coming from anyone other than Suarez - my two Chelsea defenders again let we down, only 1pt between the two of them! It's been a disasterous move to double up.

It's a sad truth,  but it's been estimated that 50% of Fantasy Football players become innactive by the end of December, as poor results hit their motivation. James is the first to declare himself out - 259 points off first.

Midweek transfers, and Ross drops Benteke for Lukaku, James drops Giroud for Lukaku, and Jon finally goes Sturridge out for Suarez in. The failures of Beteke this season have been remarkable. A terrifying prospect in August, a true goal-machine, and considered a must have for all fantasy teams. Now, he hasn't scored since his injury in September.

Then it happens - RVP injured, out for a month. It's been a tough 15 weeks for RVP owners like me. Honestly, while it's been only a relative failure, it's been a massive disappointment. I transfer him out for Aguero.

GW16, and Mike Hackett wins again, this time with 93 points. Suarez has another incredible week, yet only Mike and Ross had stuck with him as captain for double the rewards.

Aguero picks up an injury while Arsenal lose 6-3 to City. He could miss 10 weeks with a calf injury. I bring in Rooney, only for him to have an injury scare. Ross drops Aguero for Negredo, and James finally get in Suarez. Paul Hackett is forced by injuries to make four changes at the cost of -12pts.

GW17, and everyone captains Suarez. He scores two, gets an assist, and 3bpts, but this doesn't change the league at all. I win the week with 84pts, thanks to Januzaj, Coleman, and Mertesacker all having strong weeks.

Then, I win a second week in a row! GW18 is on Boxing Day, and points are hard to come by. However, Rooney was my Captain, and he brought in 22pts. People with Suarez captained lost out. After this, I climb back above Mike Hackett to reclaim second in the overall league.

An injury to Ramsey forced me to upgrade to Theo Walcott. Paul brings in Soldado, Andrew brings in Negredo, and Jon swaps Ozil for Walcott.

GW19, and Paul Hackett wins with 61pts. He captained Soldado, who scored his first goal since October. I was second with 56pts, thanks to Coleman, Evans, and Metesacker. GW19 also marked the end of Quarter 2, and the half-way mark of the season. Mike Hackett won Q2 by 7pts, with Andrew behind him, and myself next with 4pts less.

Luis Suarez had an unbelievable month. He earned 91pts on his own in December, and those who captained him every week made twice that. In comparison, Giroud has only made 96pts all season.

Fantasy Football - November 2013/14

The end of October marks the end of the first Quarter of the season. Q1 had a clear winner in Andrew and a clear loser in James, with over one-hundred points between them. The middle of the table, however, is far closer run. I finished 2nd for Q1.

 

The League Table at the end of Q1

The transfer news going into GW10 was fairly quiet. I sold my two Spurs defenders (Vertonghen & Naughton) for two Chelsea defenders (Ivanovic & Terry) ahead of their strong fixtures. Paul sold Soldado for Benteke, while Andrew sold Moses & Grandin for Morrison & Lallana. Everyone else shuffled their bench players or saved transfers for next week.

GW10 was won be me. I captained RVP, and he scored, assisted and won 3bpts. I played five defenders, and they picked up two clean sheets - Ivanovic & Terry losing 2-0 away to Newcastle. Andrew had Rooney as captain, as did James, and Wayne did exactly as well as RVP. Every other striker failed to win points. (No-one in our league has Soldado anymore, not that he would have helped.)

In preparation for the next week, both Andrew and I buy Aaron Ramsey. He's been the breakout player of the season so far. James drops Michu for Nasri and Lukaku for Sturridge, and Paul drops Vidic for Coleman. And then, at the last minute, David Silva picks up an injry that will keep him out for the month! Ross, who'd only just brought him in, is forced to sell him for Nasri, and Paul to sell him for Yaya Toure; they both take a -4pts hit for their bad luck.

GW11 is full of suprise results. Chelsea rescue a draw at home to West Brom, Newcastle beat Spurs 1-0 at WHL, and Man City lose to Sunderland. This is a curveball which throws off quite a few teams - and that includes my own. I only made 32pts for the week, Coleman and RVP the only players to score any meaningful points. Doubling up on Chelsea defenders has gone horribly so far. Between two of them they've only earned 3pts over two weeks! Luckily for me, Jon does even worse. He only made 21pts and dropped down to fifth in the table.

The real deciding player is Luis Suarez, who runs the show as Liverpool beat Fulham 4-0. The only real differnce between teams this week comes from their Sturridge/Suarez choce. He scores twice, gets an assist, and earns 3bpts for a total 16pts. (The only other striker from our teams to score was RVP; it was a poor week.) Sturridge played only 75mins and earns only 2pts. Teams who captained Sturridge lose out - James, Jon, and myself. Andrew, Paul, and Ross, however, captained Suarez, gaining 32pts. This dramatically shakes up the table, and it's all down to one player and one decisive captain choice. Suarez has made 64pts in the last six weeks, and Sturridge only 40pts.

I immediately transfer out Sturridge for Suarez.

There's a long international break between GW11 and GW12. There are some minor transfers, but nothing major. Paul and Mike both bring in Cabaye, while Ross make room for John Terry. In injury news, RVP is again suffering from those same groin and toe injuries, Benteke still isn't fully fit, and Sturridge has a slight injury.

GW12 is won by Andrew with 73pts, who stretches his lead at the top of the table. He captained Rooney for 22pts. Jon came second for the week with 71 thanks to two Lampard goals, and I was third with 65. My two Chelsea defenders provide clean sheets, while Suarez, Mirallas and Giroud are all in the points. Ramsey has a second unspectacular week, after I've brought him in.

Not everything went according to plan in GW12. Through some terrible brain-fart, I put Luke Shaw in my starting eleven and left Mertesacker on the bench. Arsenal went on to beat Saints 2-0, and Shaw notched 1 solitary point. Meanwhile Mertesacker picked up 11 points for his clean sheet, assist, and bonus, of which I recieved none. I would have won the week if my brain had been working! Stupid mistakes cost points, and I lost out.

Injury news, as Sturridge does his ankle on Friday afternoon before GW13. In response James and Ross both transfer him out, at a -4pts cost, for Aguero and Rooney respectively, but Jon still has him. Ross and James also both feel done with Ozil, James bringing in Ramsey and Ross gets Walcott. James also made a third transfer, Nasri out for Mirallas. Meanwhile, Andrew brings in Ivanovic for Huth.

GW13 starts, and Suarez is chosen as captain by all who have him. (Only James and Jon are without Suarez now.) Suarez plays 90mins but does nothing else, to the disappointment of all, but this doesn't affect the table much at all. Paul wins the week with 74 points, Jon is last with 45. Chelsea again failed to keep a clean sheet. Ramsey has another great week, scoring twice and earning 3bpts; Ross & Jon are the only two not on the bandwagon, and they lose out despite having other Arsenal midfielders (Walcott & Ozil respectively).

The Overall Table, as it stands at the end of November.

In the head-to-head at the top of the table, Andrew beat me by 7pts. He's outscored me 4 out of the last 5 weeks, and has 42pts more than me for November. The key difference between our teams now is that while I have RVP, he has Wayne Rooney. With small niggling injuries, RVP has missed the last two weeks. Rooney has totalled 24pts in those two games, and has earned double-figures 4 times from the last 5 weeks.

Fantasy Football - October 2013/14

October started off with GW7. Suarez is most sought after, and four different people move to bring him in. Andrew and Mike (at the expense of Soldado), Paul (for Negredo), and Ross (for Rooney.) This means Ross now has both Sturridge and Suarez, and that Suarez is now more popular in our league than Sturridge, by 4 teams to 3.

Everyone in our league (except James) captained their Liverpool striker. They both played the full game and scored, but Sturridge was awarded 3bpts while Suarez was awarded none. That's an extra six-points for Jon, Ross and myself over the Suarez teams. Amalfitano came good for me again with an assist; apart from him and Yaya Toure, there were no good point-scorers from midfield for anyone in our league!

James, with Ozil as captain, lost the week. Andrew and I both won the week with 44 points; Andrew becoming the first in our league to hit 400pts overall. It was a bad week for strikers, except for Lukaku who scored his fourth goal in three games. Soldado was dropped, having not scored since GW2. Giroud hasn't scored in three weeks. Benteke is still injured. RVP played 90mins for the first time since his injury, but failed to score or assist. All of a sudden, goals from strikers seem to be drying up.

With none of the big teams keeping clean sheets either, it was only the Liverpool strikers captaincy that inflated point scores the week. That explains why James lost out so heavily. For everyone else, GW7 was evenly paced, and left our league table mostly unchanged.

With a long international break ahead, the gap before GW8 gave lots of time to tinker. I brought in Adnan Janujaz, the Man Utd teenager scored two goals in GW7 and was priced at only £4.6m. He became something of a hot property. Also popular is Lukaku, James loses Lambert for him, and also buys Januzaj. Jon decides to be rid of Soldado, for Lukaku. Meanwhile, Paul brings in Januzaj and Mata for Ben Arfa and Kasami, and Ross drops Dzeko for Benteke, who's back from injury.

The RVP situation continued to define my team. Excluding penalties, RVP hadn't scored in 14 of his last 18 league games. Worse, he now seems blighted by regular minor injuries, David Moyes once again confirming he's doubtful the Friday before a game.

GW8 was a key week as, apart from Jon and Andrew both captaining Lukaku, everyone had a unique armband choice. The clear winner was Mike with 73pts and captain Giroud winning him the week. Mike's team contains three Arsenal players and three Liverpool players, a risky strategy which pays off when those two teams play well. I came second for the week with 66pts and rose to second in the league table! That was thanks largely to Mirallas and Silva, two players I'd kept faith in over a few doubtful week. (Jon lost the week with 44pts, a tally which would have won him GW7.)

The League Table after GW8

RVP had scored a goal, which was great news, but then things took a turn for the worse again. His ongoing injury concerns continue with both groin and toe problems. He missed a midweek Champions League tie, and yet again was a doubt for the weekend.

In the mid-week transfers, I sold Jose Enrique for Vertonghen, and Jon gave up on waiting for Walcott to return from injury, upgrading to Ozil. Despite being the top point scoring midfielder in the game, Ramsey is still only owned by Paul and Mike Hackett, everyone else clearly thinking his form cannot possibly last.

GW9 and Andrew, with a team unchanged from GW7, earned 81pts. Paul also earned 81pts, and I totaled 74pts. It was another high scoring week, Mike with 55pts coming last, but a poor one for midfielders - not a single midfielder over 9.0 delivered returns beyond a clean sheet. Meanwhile, all of the popular strikers were in the goals. (Except for Benteke, who missed a penalty.) The real winner was Luis Suarez, who scored a hat-trick and 3bpts. Paul Hackett captained him, for a 34pts haul!

All said and done, October was a tremendous month for me. I won the month with 184pts, claiming second in the overall league. Andrew earned 173pts this month, and he stays top of the overall table, while James came last of the month with 127pts and stays last overall.

 

The in-form players of the month. The Suarez vs Sturridge choice was a crucial one across our league, Suarez the clear winner this month.

The Table for October.

Fantasy Football - September 2013/14

GW4, and Jon Hackett plays his wildcard! After a -8pts shake up already this season, he decides to play it early and changes almost his entire squad.

I let Wanyama go and brought in Amalfitano from West Brom. The deadline day signing won me over, despite West Brom having failed to score a single goal so far. James ditched Dzeko for Benteke and Paul Hackett sold Negredo for Benteke, while Andrew dropped Kolo Toure for Distin of Everton. That turned out a smart move, Benteke scored and picked up 2bpts; also good news for Andrew, who already had Benteke as his captain, and for whom Distin picked up a clean sheet and 2bpts.

Paul Hackett wins GW4 with 60pts (and that's without 13pts from Ben Arfa who's left on the bench). He plays a 5-2-3 formation with all three of Soldado, Benteke, and RVP for great returns. Jon and Andrew both finished second with 58pts. James, Ross and Mike all had terrible weeks. For me, Giroud scored and my back four collected 3 clean sheets between them. Plus, captain RVP scored a penalty. That gave me 51pts, and moving me up to 4th in the league.

Dzeko failed to play at all last weekend, and having only scored once in the first four games I wanted to drop him from my team. Coutinho, who had looked so great in preseason, is turning out to be not so hot for fantasy football. While crucial to the way Liverpool play, he not made an assist or scored a goal yet this season, and that's not good enough for a £9.0m midfielder. Plus, he injured his shoulder against Swansea and could be out for a while. I drop Coutinho for Ben Arfa, and then it's a straight choice between Sturridge and Benteke for who to spend my money on. Both are the same price (£9.2m) and both have scored 4 goals in the first 4 weeks. But Liverpool have slightly nicer fixtures until November, and dropping Coutinho makes me want another Red to take his place, so I go with Sturridge.

In preparation for GW5, Andrew drops Dzeko for Lukaku and Ross drops Hazard for Eriksen (and £1.1m in the bank). But the big change comes from James, when he plays his wildcard!  Having been a Benteke/Soldado/Lambert team, he swaps for Benteke/Rooney/Giroud. He lets Coutinho go and spends the money on Michu, and sells his Man City assets for Ben Arfa and Moses. This doesn't immediately work out for him however. In a low scoring week, he only gets 37pts.

GW5 was full of poor results. RVP, Walcott and Silva were all late injury calls, and Benteke came off injured early in the match. Giroud failed to score or assist, as did Sturridge, as did Soldado, and Dzeko only played 17mins. Rooney scored, but the only performing striker was Lukaku in his Everton debut. He earned 7pts playing only half of the match, as he scored and picked up 2bpts. That, along with Paulinho's winning goal for Spurs, won Andrew the week.

I came second for the week and rose to third in the league overall. I had thought I was doing badly (Giroud was my captain) but Mertesacker scored and Amalfitano earned 10pts in his home debut. Owned by less than 0.1% of all Fantasy Football teams, it was great to see him come good so immediately.

The injury news created problems for almost everyone. Walcott needed a stomach operation, and as with Benteke's hip injury, they're both out for a month. Coutinho is out for similar, and both Van Persie and Silva were doubtful for GW6.

Another week, another wildcard. This time Ross throws his into the ring. He drops RVP, finding the funds for Ozil and Vidic, keeps Dzeko, and drops the injured Walcott for the in form Michu.

Out of everyone else, Mike and James swap Walcott for Ozil, Andrew swaps him for Moses. With Benteke also injured, Andrew gets in Rooney, Paul gets Lukaku and James gets Lambert; all three take a -4pts hit. The other bit of news is that Paul drops RVP - I am now the only person in the league with RVP! So I captain him, hoping to double that advantage.

Instead, I end the month with a terrible week, staying third in the table but losing all my lead over those chasing. Having captained RVP for the home game against West Brom, for which he was fit, he was rested and only earned 1pt - the worst outcome for a captain. Everyone else had good scores for their captains. Jon earned 28pts from Sturridge, while Rooney and Soldado both brought in double figures for everyone else. It was a massive disappointment for me.

Amalfitano is proving to be a great fantasy prospect, but I had put him on the bench! Thinking he'd be unlikely to earn points away at Man Utd, he only went and scored and assisted and earned 3bpts as Man Utd suffered a shock defeat. I missed out 12 points there, with Amalfitano stuck on my bench. I've also carried an injured David Silva for 3 weeks, tying up money I could have used elsewhere. GW6 is one for me to forget.

Differentials can be very important. For example, Mike is the only one in our league to have Ramsey, the star of the month; he's scored 4 goals in 3 games, his price keeps rising, and he's clearly on top form.

 

The form players for September.

All in all, a thoroughly disappointing GW6. Andrew won his second week in a row with 68 points and Jon came second with 59. Lukaku was the best player this week, earning 16 pts; Andrew and Paul are the only ones to have him selected. No-one in our league has Suarez, and Jon was the only one to captain Sturridge. I was bottom for the week.

The September table. James does terribly, despite his wildcard. Andrew and myself are the only ones to still have our wildcards.

That brings September to an end. Andrew the clear winner of the month, James the clear loser, despite playing his wildcard. I climbed to third in the table overall, even with RVP being a massive disappointment.

The league table at the end of the month.

Fantasy Football - August 2013/14

The story of GW1 revolved around the DGW for Chelsea and Villa. Everyone in our League had captained Hazard, who played both games and was awarded an assist for an own goal in the second. The popular choice of Lukaku up front turned out a failure, Jose Mourinho only bringing him on as a sub at the end of both games. The real winner was Benteke who scored three goals and was man of the match twice. From the rest, Mignolet also turned out to be a good choice, saving a penalty to save 'Pool's clean sheet and picking up 3bpts.

Andrew won this opening week, the only person with Benteke up front, and more points coming from his three Chelsea players and Soldado. James was second with Mignolet's penalty save and goal scoring Ivanovic to thank.

My week was a disappointing one. Coleman did well for me, scoring and assisting, but I'd left Luke Shaw on the bench after a slight injury worry and that proved a grave mistake. He kept a clean sheet and made an assist for 12pts, but I saw none of it.

The story of the first round of transfers was everyone dropping Lukaku (I brought in Giroud.). Lack of game time and tough fixtures meant everyone who had him got rid. I was the only one to take a -4pts hit to transfer out Hazard, everyone else keeping him in their team and hoping he'd do well in Mondays game against Man Utd at Old Trafford. Paul Hackett used his wildcard to shake his team up, becoming our third RVP team.

As it turned out, I needn't have bothered with the extra transfer. Hazard didn't get any extra points, but neither did David Silva, so I gained nothing for my transfer except four points spent. For GW2, Andrew won again, with James a close second again. They both had Mignolet, who kept a second clean sheet. He's earned 22pts in two weeks! That's 10 more than any other GK in our league, and I've only earned 3pts off my GK pair! They also were the only two to profit from Chelsea defenders clean sheet against Man Utd - had RVP scored Ross and I would've been top with him as captain. But he didn't, and so we didn't, and it doesn't matter "what could have" in the end.

Transfers after the second week were dominated by the dropping of Hazard, as expected. James, Jon, and Andrew all took him out; I'd already gotten rid last week. Jon had some housekeeping to do, taking a -8pts hit restructuring his team, whilst Andrew got rid of Zaha for -4pts.

GW3 was a poor one for strikers, and with everyone except Andrew fielding a team of three up front, the week was won and lost on who was captained in midfield. Mike Hackett used his wildcard for GW3, and promptly won the week (with Walcott his captain). That was on the back of Man City beating Hull 2-0, with Zabaleta and Yaya Toure his stars. Jon came second, thanks largely to Zabaleta. This combined with an average week for Andrew and James to close up the middle of league table somewhat, before the long international break between GW3-4.

The extra transfers Jon and Andrew made proved somewhat fruitful. Jon swapped out Rat (who's not first choice for West Ham) for Lescott who kept a clean sheet. Hazard had no game, and Jon had no options on the bench, so Cazorla's 3pts were important, and Weimann was a holdover from the DGW in GW1 while Anelka is a popular cheap striker. The -8 points is a big hit, but all three were necessary. That's the price of starting with 4 DGW players, you'll have to swap them out at some point. Andrew transferred out Zaha (who's price is plummeting) for Paulinho, and Hazard for Toure. He then captained Toure for a 22 point haul! However, 3 of Andrew's first team picked up zero points, and none of his bench played a single minute. Saved by his Captain, indeed.

The Dream Team so far. Mignolet has been the standout player. No-one in our league started with Giroud or Sturridge.

The gap between GW3-4 also featured Transfer Deadline Day. The biggest move of the day was Arsenal bringing in Mesut Ozil from Real Madrid. Man Utd also finally signed Feliani from Everton, while Chelsea let Lukaku go on loan to the Toffees. Bale made his move to Madrid, but the Suarez and Rooney transfer rumours came to nothing in the end.

The three RVP teams sit bottom of the table. His failure to score against Chelsea and Liverpool bringing into question just how "fixture proof" he really is. Ross suffered badly from this, captaining him both those weeks, for only 6pts reward. In contrast, Andrew earned 38pts from his captain choices (Dzeko & Yaya Toure.) The importance of a scoring captain is massive, and RVP teams can be burnt twice when he has a blank week. Still, with great fixtures coming in september and october, now would be a great time for RVP to find his scoring boots.

Ross sits above me due to the Hazard/Silva -4pts transfer. The RVP teams are a clear distance behind the Non-RVP teams, but it has only been three weeks.

Fantasy Football 2014 Season Preview

A new Fantasy Football season is upon us, and at 1130am the Fantasy Deadline slamed shut, with every side confirmed for the start the season.

The two highest scoring players in the game last season where Bale and RVP. As a result, they’re the two most expensive players in the game this time around. Finding the funds for either requires sacrifices elsewhere, and so choosing to go without either is a popular thought.

The uncertainty of the transfer window doesn’t help matters. Gareth Bale has been so strongly linked to Real Madrid for record breaking amounts of money that his departure appears almost a foregone conclusion. That leaves the big question at the start of the season as this:  

To RVP or not to RVP.

League Top Scorer two years in a row, and nailed on first choice for the defending champions, Robin van Persie would be first name into any fantasy team were price no object. But his value of £14m is incredibly high. Suarez and Aguero are £11m, and Rooney is £10.5m, with a clear gap to the £9.5m strikers below them. Cutting the necessary £3m-5m from the rest of your squad means losing out on a lot of other talent. Nonetheless, if RVP hits form, not having him selected could be disastrous, and finding the money spare mid-season (without using your transfer wildcard) would be a tough task. Another factor, RVP is “fixture proof”, as he’s a captinable asset no matter who he’s up against, capable of scoring in any game, and potentially takes penalties and free kicks for Man Utd. It is, to my mind, the biggest decision of pre-season.

I decided straight away I wanted RVP, and everything else was based around making room for him.

As a result, my starting team has a strikeforce of RVP, Dzeko and Lukaku. Worth £29.5m all together, I’m reliant on RVP scoring a lot, and straight from the start. My midfield is Hazard and Coutinho, Mirallas, Delph, and Wanyama. Two top players/ one mid-priced/ two budget (£35.5m). My backline has no premium defenders: Jose Enrique, Mertesacker, Coleman, Collins, Shaw. They’re only £25.5m. My goalkeepers are a rotation pair of Vorm and Marshall, meaning I need the two welsh teams to keep clean sheets this year. Here’s hoping those fifteen turn out to be good choices! My starting team last year made me cringe when I looked back on it at the end.

The transfer window has been a slow burn this summer, and not too dramatic so far. Soldado at Spurs should provoke interest; I would buy him for sure if I had the funds. Manchester City have also spent big, but until a few games have been played it’s uncertain who will be first choice for each position, making it uncertain how to act on those signings. Chelsea, Arsenal and Man Utd have done little worth notice, yet. The last two weeks of August are sure to throw a spanner into many fantasy football plans, somehow!

The two biggest “want-away” transfer targets, who keep being making headlines, are Luis Suarez and Wayne Rooney. Two key players for Liverpool and Man Utd, both would be key players for whichever team they end up with. The uncertainty over them keeps them out of many fantasy football teams. (Suarez is also banned for the first six matches for biting Ivanovic last season.) It seems unlikely either will be sold in the end, but it should keep them out of most fantasy managers thoughts.

The other factor skewing these opening selections is a double game week (DGW) for Chelsea and Aston Villa. It is not uncommon for managers to overload their team with DGW players for this one week and hope to score big. I personally am very distrustful of this strategy. Real football managers often rotate their squads unpredictably when fixtures congest like this. However, picking the right player on a DGW can really pay big, and the allure is indisputable.

The defending champion of our league is Jon Hackett. His team is built upon a front line of Soldado, Lukaku, and Weimann (of Villa, presumable for the DGW.) A midfield of Hazard, Walcott, Ben Arfa, Sterling, and Jesus Navas, in total worth £40.5m – the advantage of saving that £5m by going without RVP. His defence has Cahill, Rat, Zabaleta, and Coleman, with a Westwood/Boruc GK pairing. That’s three Chelsea players for their DGW, and doubling up on Man City for their early run of easy games.

Ross Cooper ‘s is the only other team to have started with RVP. Encouragingly, his team is similar to mine, with RVP, Dzeko and Lukaku up top. He also has Hazard and Mirallas in the middle, like me, and besides them Walcott, Kim (Cardiff), and Grandin (Palace). That’s a £36m midfield of two premium/ one mid-priced/ two budget, like mine. His defence is more economical, with Dawson, Luna, Amorebieta, Collins, and Clyne, allowing him a Mignolet/Marshall GK pair.

Then there’s Andrew “Claims he would’ve won if he’d not run off to the USA mid-season” Hackett. He’s gone for Soldado, Lukaku, and Benteke up front – a popular combination from non-RVP teams given this Villa/Chelsea DGW. His midfield of Hazard, Walcott, and Mirallas are also popular choices, with Zaha and Grandin cheaper hopefuls. A backline of A. Cole, Lescott, Toure, Rat and Shaw are solid choices, and not too expensive at £26.5m for the lot. He has the two Saints keepers of Jaaskelainen & Gazzaniga; with Shaw that means he can double up for any Southampton clean sheets. He’s gone heavy for the DGW with four expensive players, but apart from that it’s an even side with players from all different teams.

James Brand meanwhile has Soldado, Dzeko, and Lambert up front – a middle option to the expensive Sold/Dzek/Benteke of Andrew and the cheap Sold/Dzek/Weimann of Jon. His midfield of Hazard, Walcott, Coutinho, Mirallas, and Kim is expensive – a three premium/one mid/one budget set up. His backline of Ivanovic, Koscielny, Collins, Garrido, and Chester is balanced, with a Mignolet/Mannone GK rotation pair. He’s got two Arsenal and two Liverpool players for their early fixtures.

There’s also Mike “in Australia” Hackett with a Lukaku, Berbatov, Anelka front three. A midfield of Walcott, Carrick, Arteta, Yaya Toure, and Fallaini, possibly to take advantage of the new bonus points system. A solid backline of Zabaleta, Glen Johnson, Koscielny, Walker, and Shawcross, with a GK pair of Begovic/Foster. Three Arsenal players in that team make him reliant on them getting the best of their early fixtures.

Finally, there’s Paul “Father Figure” Hackett, who’s picked a Benteke, Lukaku, Dzeko attack. Behind them come Mata, Hazard, Lallana, Puncheon, and Routledge. That’s a midfield reliant on Chelsea and Saints early fixtures. Then a strong defence of Kompany, Vidic, Jagielka, Vlaar, and Huth with a GK rotation pair of Mignolet/Guzan.

Some interesting things to note at the start.

The RVP question has led to only two people choosing to start with him, while 5 go without. That could be good news for me, as his goals would benefit me and not the others. Also, everyone has been won over by the Chelsea DGW opening, with everyone except Mike starting with at least two blues players, and Jon, Andrew and Paul choosing three. Those three also have made sure to have at least one Villa player included as well, (Andrew and Paul choosing Benteke, Jon taking Weimann) and Paul having Vlaar to make 5 DGW players! Given Villa’s tough fixtures and blank GW3 it’ll be interesting to see how the gamble pays off. Hazard is the most popular of the Chelsea players, with everyone except Mike finding a way to fit him in their team. Lukaku is also very popular, in every team except for James’, with no-one choosing to go for any other Chelsea striker; Ba & Torres held in low regard. Obviously, the general view is that going without that pair is too risky for the Chelsea DGW. It’ll be very interesting to see who carries them through into September and the season proper.

Mingolet also proves popular, as I’d thought, with 3 teams starting him as GK. None of them, however, have trusted to put him in for every game. Instead, they have him in a rotation pair (presumably), with a £4.5m or £5m keeper. Bale has been left out of every team, however as he’s famously not fit for the season start, he could well become important if he’s still at Spurs when the transfer window shuts. In his place, Soldado has proven a popular choice for non-RVP teams. Three people chose him as their most expensive striker, hoping he settles quickly to the premier league, and to take advantage of Spurs' great early fixtures. Excluding Chelsea and their DGW, only Mike’s chosen the bold idea of fielding the full three players from one side, with three from Arsenal. Andrew did the same, however his is deceptive - since his backup GK is Gazzaniga he cannot play all three at the same time.

The only other stand out player is Theo Walcott. He finds his way into four teams, despite limping out of England’s friendly match against Scotland midweek. He scored 14 goals last season, and is one of the top goal-scoring midfielders. Interestingly, absolutely no-one has gone for Santi Cazorla, who costs the extra £0.5m more, and scored twelve goals last season from midfield. Other ignored players include Sturridge, Aguero, Giroud, Silva, Michu, Baines or Cech – a great surprise to me personally as I’d expect them to be popular choices all around. Also, James is the only person other than myself to choose Coutinho in midfield. Other players have steered well away from the £9m midfielders, Jon taking Jesus Navas the only exception. The others looking to the premium options (Hazard, Mata, Walcott,) or for value elsewhere.

And that is how the teams set us up for the season ahead.