FPL Hints & Tips
In the last article we went through the basic rules of FPL.
But just knowing the rules that isn’t going to be enough if you want to win your work mini league, beat your other half or win the Official And He Takes That Chance FPL league (You can join that here, don’t you know: fantasy.premierleague.com/leagues/auto-join/ut6b0t )
This is a game with many tried and tested strategies available for you to pick up, and we’ll look at some of the main ones in this article.
Formation
When setting up your initial team you should decide on a preferred Formation to use. This will help select players as you will know which positions you need for your starting 11 and which you need for your bench.
3-4-3 seems to be the most popular and successful Formation statistically, as you can utilise the most amount of attacking players (midfielders and forwards).
Another reason for this preference in Formation is that there is better value in £4.5 defenders than £4.5 midfielders, so your bench will be stronger with £4.5 defenders.
Price Point Template
Once you have your chosen Formation you can choose to set up your team with Price Points.
This assigns your 15-man squad with prices for each position, taking into account your subs.
You will want 2 Premium players for captaincy options. Premium options are anyone £10.0+
So a Price Point Template could look something like this if you are playing a 3-4-3 Formation:
GK: 4.5
D: 7.5, 5.5, 5.0
M: 12.5, 12.0, 7.5, 6.5
F: 8.0, 7.5, 6.5
Subs:
GK: 4.0
D: 4.5
M: 4.5
D: 4.0
You notice how the money is distributed throughout the team, incorporating 2 Premium assets yet keeping minimal money on the bench.
You do need a balance to a degree. Too much money on the bench is detrimental, yet so are too many premiums (any more than two).
Another reason for this is to capitalise on the theory: How to move to any player in 1-2 moves?
It is possible you might want to transfer in any player in the game. So if you want Harry Kane for example, you can do so in 2 moves, by selling a Premium midfielder and downgrade them, and upgrade the 8.0 forward to Kane.
Set & Forget Strategy
As you only get one transfer per week you do not want to be having to make too many transfers. To minimise this you can simply use the strategy to choose to Set and Forget players. For example you can choose a 4.5 and 4.0 goalkeeping pair from the same team (Sanchez and Steele from Brighton, for example) and leave them there for the season knowing that if one doesn’t play, the other will come in. This way you are minimising the need for transfers.
Put Money in first 11
You will notice as little money as possible has gone into the bench and none has been left in the bank.
The simple formula is:
Bench = 0 points
Money in Bank = 0 points
Keep It Simple: Minutes
The most basic rule that can often be overlooked; minutes. Are they going to play? If you look at Mahrez or Foden from Manchester City, they are great FPL players but they often do not start.
Is it worth having players who are not guaranteed to play? Perhaps, that is a decision that is up to you.
Transfers
The main takeaway here is to ask yourself why are you are making this transfer or making this hit (-4 points per transfer when you have no free transfers).
You had good reasons for bringing these players in, why are you wanting to take them out? Why are you selecting these players to bring in?
You need a good reason both ways.
‘Fixtures turning’ (more on this later) is a good reason. ‘They blanked in the last GW’ is a bad reason.
Do not make transfers early in the week; they have all week to get injured. For a Saturday deadline, aim to make your transfers Friday evening or Saturday morning. Check out the press conferences for team news. Give yourself the week to research and consider your transfer in mind.
When to use…
Chips
The best way to use chips is to target Double Gameweeks (DGWs). This way your players can score over two games rather than just one.
Wildcards
Wildcards can be used if your team is a mess (but if you spent enough time researching your initial team, this shouldn’t be a problem).
A Wildcard can reset your team and you can start again. One question to ask is, why did my team get such a mess? If you do not learn from these mistakes, you will likely walk right back into them.
A good time to play a Wildcard is when fixtures change. For example, Chelsea’s fixtures turn at GW7, giving them a good run of fixtures coming off the back of early games against Liverpool and Manchester City.
By planning and playing your Wildcard before GW7 enables you to get the best fixture swings.
Plan Ahead
It is advisable to plan and look ahead 4-6 GWs at a time.
I mentioned the Chelsea fixture swing in GW7, if you do not plan for it, you give yourself less of a chance of capitalising on it.
Form or Fixtures
How do you scout players and plan ahead? Do you use Form or Fixtures?
A combination of both is ideal. If a player is on form and has a good run of fixtures then that is ideal. If a player is not on form but has good fixtures that is less ideal. If a player is not on form and has bad fixtures, you’ll want to avoid them.
Eye Test or Stats
Another question is - do you prefer the ‘Eye Test’ (watching games and making your FPL conclusions) or use Stats to help inform your decisions?
The question to consider is this: how good is your ‘Eye Test’ in formulating solid, reliable FPL decisions? Even if you think your eye is good, it isn’t going to be as accurate as Opta generated stats available on the FPL app and website.
Again, a combination of both is good, but don’t be scarred of stats; they are there to help you, they a lot more accurate than your ‘eye test’ and can really boost your game.
Use the Watchlist
There is a watchlist tab you can add players to on the transfers page and it is a good idea to use this. If you are considering a player, put them on the watchlist as you may simply forget them. Once you have built up a few players on the watchlist you can compare them when it comes to making transfers to make the most informed choice.
Patience
If you spend time considering who you are bringing into your team it is worth giving them time, remembering you bought them in for a reason.
Maybe you are only bringing them in for a set period of time, which is a useful strategy, but be clear about why players are being transferred in and out.
Good Players Who Are Not Good FPL Players
N’golo Kanté. Over the last few seasons he has been one of the most successful players in world football, however, in FPL terms, he is not a good asset.
FPL favours goals and assists (clean sheets too for goalkeepers and defenders), so a defensive midfielder like Kanté isn’t a good option. 2 assists and 7 yellow cards last season scored him only 62 points.
This is reflected in his 5.0 price.
Deadlines
Keep an eye on deadlines, do not miss them.
Bandwagons
Do not jump on Bandwagons after one good game. For example, if Kanté scores in GW1 there will be a rush of people signing him, causing a Bandwagon. If Kanté scores in 4 of his first 5 games, the statistical data will show that he is a good pick. One good or bad Gameweek does not make a player a good or bad option.
Lastly
FPL is a game. It is meant to be fun, so enjoy it.
However, there is nothing wrong in letting your competitive nature come into the proceedings!
Read the full list of rules here:
https://fantasy.premierleague.com/help/rules
To join the Official And He Takes That Chance FPL league, click on the link below.
fantasy.premierleague.com/leagues/auto-join/ut6b0t
Denny Ledger
Twitter: denny_ledger