Weekend Scout Notes
Deco sparkles as Chelsea show their intent. United stumble against Newcastle without Tevez. Arsenal and Liverpool do enough to start with narrow wins. Agbonlahor and Ashton make thousands of fantasy managers take a good hard look at their strikers.
Here’s my notes on the first weekend of the season…
Arsenal 1 West Brom 0
Arsenal’s performance will have a few Adebayor owners worried. The Gunners had plenty of possession but never really demonstrated the cut and thrust required to kill off a plucky West Brom.
Adeabyor looked out of sorts - he had some good situations but often chose the wrong option and in the second-half there were noticeable jeers from the Emirates crowd. After that, the big striker looked short on confidence and looked for a pass when an effort on goal was there for the taking.
Arsenal certainly need Fabregas to return to their midfield. Nasri put on a decent display which came packaged with a debut goal, but at times Arsenal were pedestrian in their attacks. There will be plenty of fantasy managers bringing in Nasri this weekend and plenty more already getting fidgety about Adeabyor.
In my view, Arsenal’s fixtures are kind enough to hand the striker enough early opportunities to get off the mark - a trip to Fulham next weekend being a case in point. Once Adebayor does get his first goal, particularly his first in front of the Emirates crowd, there’s every chance he can start to produce the form of last season.
As for Nasri, yes he’ll get suitors based on this display but I’m still not convinced that he’ll be a regular once Fabregas returns. I can still see Wenger opting for Eboue on the right with Walcott and Nasri in rotation on the left. In the short-term though, with Arsenal’s fixtures, Nasri appears to offer decent value.
West Brom put on a decent show in the first game back in the Premiership. Miller in particular, caught the eye with a muscular performance that troubled the Arsenal defence on occasions. He could be budget consideration for Baggies home games. Similarly, Kim, in midfield had his moments and offer could value in the budget midfield bracket.
Sunderland 0 Liverpool 1
Liverpool put on another sleepy first day performance but edged the win thanks to a moment of brilliance from Torres. Rafa got more out of his side in the second half, thanks to the introduction of Alonso and they dominated possession but failed to create a significant array of chances.
All eyes were on the Keane/Torres partnership but in truth they failed to click and were starved of clear cut opportunities. Indeed, there were signs once again the Liverpool could look to contain the opposition away from home rather than go for the throat as they often do at Anfield.
Rafa’s team selection had a couple of surprises – notably the inclusion of Hyypia over Agger and Skrtel in defence and the decision to start with Plessis in midfield and leave Alonso benched. I’d expect Rafa to recall both Agger and Alonso for the Boro game next time out.
Sunderland look pretty decent in another rousing opening day performance from Roy Keane’s side. Reid took the skippers armband and, as was the way last season, kept Sunderland ticking in midfield with a string of cute touches and accurate passes.
Diouf, playing just off the front man Murphy, looked sharp. Plenty of willing running off the ball, plenty of harrying. Goals are a concern of course – Jones’ absence will hurt Sunderland badly on this evidence, but when you consider that Sunderland’s fixtures are looking kind of friendly over the next three or four games, Diouf could be worth considering as a mid-price option.
Similarly the Sunderland defence looked firm - maybe there could be a few more clean sheets this term, particularly at home. Collins and Nosworthy, both amongst the FPL bonus points here, seem set to be regular starters and could offer value.
Middlesbrough 2 Tottenham 1
A superb start for Southgate’s Boro against a hugely disappointing Spurs who clearly seem distracted by the Berbatov saga.
The Bulgarian was relegated to the bench in this one, with dos Santos apparently preferred for his pace up front. That’s surely a smoke screen for other issues and Berbatov’s transfer to United can only be days away now.
Elsewhere in the Spurs lineup Essou-Ekotto kept Bale at bay by holding on to the left back spot, while Lennon confined the young Welshman to the bench by taking a wide left role. Bentley started on the right with dos Santos supporting Bent but both forwards were largely anonymous throughout.
The temptation is to panic and give up on Bent and maybe even Bentley early on but it’s worth considering that Spurs scored 46 goals at White Hart Lane last season, only United scored more home goals. Next weekend’s game with Sunderland at the Lane should see Tottenham’s attacking players profit. Sunderland were terrible travellers last season and Spurs will surely fancy putting this defeat behind them next week.
The home side fielded Wheater at right-back and he once again demonstrated his worth by providing a constant threat at set-plays. He scored one and should have had two. Wheater and Boro visit Anfield next week, once that one is out of the way, he will offer some short-term value as a mid-price option. Clean sheets aren’t likely to be too plentiful for Boro but if you need a new budget keeper, Jones appears to have sealed the role from Turnbull, at least for the time being.
Downing and Alves also caught the eye with their performances here – both are likely to be consistent throughout the season as mid-price options and like Wheater, when the fixtures fall kindly, they will certainly be popular targets.
Bolton 3 Stoke City 1
Stoke attempted to impose their physical game and expertise at set-pieces on Botlon but found themselves swept aside by a side who have long mastered those elements in the Premiership arena.
A fortunate but spectacular strike from Steinsson, a typically muscular effort from Davies and a debut goal for Elmander saw Megson’s side take the points. Fuller’s header late on providing the consolation for Stoke.
Little to say about either lineup here. Shittu had to wait for his debut as Megson went with the reliable Cahill/Andy O’Brien partnership at the back. Stoke boss Pulis meanwhile kept both Fuller and Lawrence on the bench with the pair lacking match fitness. Both are likely to start next weekend against Villa.
If you were to take anything from this game it’s that Davies and Elmander showed promise as a partnership up front. Nolan also enjoyed a strong game in midfield and came away with an assist and the maximum FPL bonus. For Stoke, Cort is clearly a real threat from set-plays. If you really feel that Pulis’ can tighten things up at home, Cort’s goal threat could see him offer some value.
Everton 2 Blackburn 3
Everton are having a miserable time of it and despite an Arteta-inspired spell which saw them take the lead in this one, the Rovers win was well deserved if a little dubious in its nature.
Moyes was forced to play both Jagielka and 17-year-old Rodwell in central midfield, while Baines also played out of position on the left of midfield with Valente starting at left back. Arteta and Yakubu offered reminders that Everton do possess players of attacking prowess and both could attract fantasy suitors. The defence will be a concern though and Lescott will have to chip in with more goals that last season to warrant his fantasy price tag on this evidence.
Luckily, Everton’s fixtures early on may well offer them the opportunity to settle down but they are clearly in need of new faces and the return of some old ones, particularly Cahill.
Paul Ince will be delighted with the Blackburn performance, with Santa Cruz emphasising his value with another goal away from home. Dunn impressed in midfield and Roberts looked lively up front. With Hull, West Ham and Fulham in the next four games, there could be some value in Santa Cruz and some of his mid-price team mates this week.
Injures
Dunn picked up a knock late on and was replaced by Tugay.
Hull 2 Fulham 1
From a fantasy perspective Hull’s first Premiership win will have confirmed Geovanni’s status as a possible bargain midfield purchase. Clearly he will be central to Hull’s chances of survival and his role just off the lone striker in this game, saw him crack a superb first half equaliser after Seol had given Fulham the lead.
There’s little else to glean from this one. There were few surprises with either lineup with Seol starting up with Zamora as expected and once again, proving effective with the opening goal from Bullard’s cross. It will be interesting to see if Hodgson drops him next weekend against Arsenal should Andrew Johnson be available as expected.
West Ham 2 Wigan 1
Dean Ashton’s brace will have blown the lid on his mid-price potential this season. Faubert’s assist should also be noted as should West Ham’s reliance on Etherington’s runs down the left – both present value during the Hammers run of favourable fixtures. As reported here, Ashton picked up a calf injury in this game and will undergo a scan on Monday so his fantasy owners will possibly need to hold fire on transfers while news of that injury filters through.
In truth, Curbishley’s side were lucky to come away with the win with Wigan dominating the second half. Zaki’s goal, his third in three games, underlined his potential as a possible purchase while Palacios ran the game in midfield for Wigan and came away with FPL bonus to show for it. It’s also worth noting that bargain full back, Figueroa had five attempts on goal – clearly he’s got the odd goal in his locker in addition to clean sheet potential at the JJB.
Elsewhere it’s interesting that Kapo started ahead of de Ridder, despite the former seeming to have the edge on the Frenchman in pre-season.
Injuries
Ashton tweaked his calf in the second half and was replaced. He is due to undergo a scan on Monday.
Chelsea 4 Portsmouth 0
An intimidating performance from Scolari’s men in which Deco announced himself with a goal, an assist and plenty of prompting and imagination throughout. Thousands of fantasy mangers will doubtless be looking his way as a result. Indeed, the Chelsea midfield looks laden with fantasy talent with both Joe Cole and Lampard getting off the mark in this one – both look set for big scoring season’s if today’s show is anything to go by.
Where do I stand on Deco? I still see Lampard as the better option. I think overall he’ll justify his bigger price tag by outscoring Deco and once the Champions League gets underway, I feel Lampard will be more secure, particularly for away games where Scolari may be tempted to rest Deco. Lampard showed today with half a dozen efforts and countless runs into the box, that he’ll be a major force in fantasy terms once again and I can see 10-15 goals coming from him. Deco’s goal record is fairly decent but doesn’t compare to Lampard’s in the Premiership over the past few seasons.
Bosingwa made it back from injury to take the right back slot and he will now top many a fantasy shopping list given Chelsea’s defensive strength. Anelka put on a strong display, capped with a goal to add to his very decent pre-season haul but many will see him as a short-term option with Drogba’s return looming large.
As for Pompey – it was a predictably impotent display. They simply couldn’t live with Chelsea in any area of the pitch and it was a frustrating day for Defoe and Crouch. United next weekend doesn’t promise and upturn in fortune – but then we always knew to leave Harry’s players well alone over the first few weeks. In the long-term there could be some interest in Kaboul if he continues to hold down a midfield role as he did today. Kaboul is of course classed as a defender throughout the fantasy games.
Injuries
Ballack picked up a knock in the first half and was replaced by Malouda
Aston Villa 4 Man City 2
Agbonlahor will get all the headlines with a hat-trick inside nine minutes and he will get plenty of attention from fantasy managers as a result. Barry’s contribution shouldn’t be overlooked though, his two assists are reminder that he could yet be an effective fantasy signing in a Villa side which looks the most likely to push the top four. The sooner the Barry situation is resolved, the sooner fantasy managers can safely consider the former Villa skipper.
Young contributed of course, with his first of many assists for the season. Carew also came out of the game with a goal and an assist and it’s clear that Villa’s attacking players are all likely to bring in decent hauls once again. At the back though, there are still question marks – clean sheets could well be hard to come by although the introduction of Cuellar next weekend should help to reinforce Villa’s brittle back line.
City meanwhile, like Everton, appear to have entered the season low on confidence. Hughes needs Jo back from the Olympics to help lift his side and to provide much needed firepower. An injury to Bojinov in the warm-up which saw him stretchered from the field saw Hughes hand young Chad Evans a debut up front. City scored twice but that said more about Villa’s defence than City’s attack which looked subdued throughout.
Injuries
Bojinov picked up an injury in the warm-up and was a late withdrawal from the team sheet. It was later revealed that this was an Achilles injury and that the striker would be out for six months.
Man United 1 Newcastle 1
Newcastle put up an impressive display of resilience at Old Trafford, containing United and asking questions at the other end. Ferguson’s men were weakened by the absence of Tevez who missed the game due to a family bereavement. That meant that United had to turn to young Campbell to partner the returning Rooney up front. The home side were crying out for a creative spark but without both Ronaldo and Nani, they never looked to have that flash of brilliance on tap to make the all-important difference.
Fletcher reminded me that I should follow at least some of my Saturday morning inklings by scoring the United equaliser, after Martins had headed Newcastle in front. Fletcher looks set to continue on the right of midfield and could offer some mid-price value but in all honesty, with United missing gameweek three due to the Super Cup tie with Zenit St Petersburg, there is not too much incentive for fantasy managers to look to United for the next few weeks.
Tevez will return for the game at Portsmouth on Monday week so, in the short-term, there could be an upturn in fortune in attacking terms. Defensively they got caught out by Newcastle on a couple of occasions today. Brown’s inclusion at right back did confine Neville to the bench but there is clear for potential for rotation here.
As for Keegan’s side, they showed that they have kept the spirit that saw them end the season strongly last time out and Gutierrez certainly caught the eye, as did Coloccini at the back and the old warhorse Butt in midfield. They’ll fancy themselves to earn at victory at home to Bolton next weekend.
Injuries
Carrick picked up an ankle injury mid-way through the first half and was replaced by O’Shea. Ferguson remarked after the game that he would be out for two-to-three weeks. Giggs also picked up a hamstring injury and was subbed late on. Campbell also picked up a knock.
Hi everyone, I’d like to say hi!
Ive used this site a lot last year and have just returned for the new season!
I just wondered what people thought of my first FPL team and if anyone had any advice of who to transfer first and how likely my subs are to play/alternative cheap subs. Does anyone else have a team /formation strategy like the below?
[---------------------------- Howard ----------------------------]
[--- Johnson --- Laursen --- Shorey --- Evra ---(Paintsil)---]
[-- Bentley --- Arteta(c) --- Young --- Petrov ---(Smertin)---]
[---------- Van Persie ---- Yakubu ---- (Beattie) -------------]
DEFENCE
Howard - may be replaced with Friedel in a few weeks, just giving howard a chance in these good fixtures coming up, in which case i may also need to lose shorey soon.
Shorey - looked a little out of shape, whilst laursen and young definate keepers. Also if Barry stays i cant see shorey taking many left sided freekicks, which was one of the main reasons i put him in. I’m sure later in the season shorey will be a great buy but for now I’m thinking of transferring out for bosingwa, to give me 2 defenders from top4 PL teams.
Laursen – staying
Johnson - has tough fixtures, but he proved last year that in the long term he will rack up the points especially when the fixtures ease up, keeping for now
Evra - is my only top 4 defender so a definate keeper.
Paintsil – I know nothing about this guy, will he play much? Im tempted to change for cech who I hear plays in midfield sometimes, how often does cech play and play in midfield too?
MIDFIELD
Arteta - is a keeper with his last performance, potential price rise and good coming fixtures.
Young – Staying (what can I say im a villa supporter) but seriously hes a must for any team surely just because of his assists.
Bentley – I’m going to give a couple of weeks chances, knowing that he will inevetibly hit form at some point and with ronaldo out I think 4 strongest tier 2 midfield is best. Will he play every game? Who is he competing against?
Petrov – going to give acouple of weeks to see how man city fair. Then he may be going out for a fabregas or someone similar.
Smertin - a cheap buy on last season’s form, but will he play much in a new look Fulham team?? Any other cheap midfield ‘definitely going to play’ midfielders?
FORWARDS
Van Persie - planning to keep for now whilst arsenal have not many options, and potentially later transfer him out and use his cash on a cheap form striker and upgrade midfield, and perhaps change to 4-5-1
Yakubu - staying for now as he will play and good fixtures coming up
Beattie - i dont know much about the 3 new teams, will he play much?? Any better cheaper options from these 3 teams? Today miller player up front alone, is this common?
TEAM FOMRATION
Going on previous records I believe that at the beginning of the season, there are much more goals due to lack of fitness and scrappy games, which is why ive gone 4-4-2. Even this weekend only 3 teams has clean sheets I think…
After a few weeks when teams settle and the strong midfields can be seen (or once Van Persie is injured) I may use his cash to change to a 4-5-1. Then once teams are settled and clean sheets are more common I will revert back to my normal tactic of 5-3-2. As I believe this is where the consistent points come from in the long term, and its easier to find the value players in defence, e.g. laursen last year.
The winner of my league last year, had one defender from each of the top 4 PL teams, and in the long run the consistency gave him the edge.
Does anyone else use a tactic similar to the formation changes above?
WHO SHOULD GO
Shorey? although Villa do have stoke away next
or one of the subs?
or petrov?
FINANCE
i have 4.5mil in the bank
Cheers!
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Too make your team better you need lampard or gerrard!! I reckon you turn Petrov in to Lampard & you’ll still have cash left over!! Van Persie will start next game
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Ps. Mark do you have a league setup on FPL for visistors of this website? If so, what is the code to join?
Cheers!
Thanks too jimbob, i think Lampard will be coming in soon for petrov, maybe for chelseas next home game
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That’s great detail Whitey, I have never thought that much about changing my formation, but that sounds like a great tactic to use.
I agree with Jimbob’s suggestion - that would be a good move. You could also bring in a top 4 defender for one of the Villa players - that is if you have the money.
Alos, Everton don’t look great defensively, but with easyish games coming up, keeping Howard might turn out well.
It certainly looks like a good side there and there isn’t much to improve on.
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Anyone know why Shittu didn’t play this week? Thought he was a dead cert starter…
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Geovanni from Hull looks like he could be good value as a budget midfielder. Besides the goal he scored, he looked to have a few other chances against Fulham and doesn’t seem shy about taking shots on goal.
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Arghhh, had Deco in my Telegraph side until Friday night and I was very pleased with my side, when I took him out as he was a doubt. Assist, goal and probably MOTM missed out. Oh well only week 1.
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Almost 8500 have transferred Fabregas out so far. Just according to my plans…
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The FantasyFootballScout league is 20th overall best league.
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Am seriosuly considering switching Bullard for Gutierrez. Thougght he has a superb game.
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Reply by brooklyn on August 17, 2008 11:13 pm:
i was also impressed by gutierrez - he was very active and seemed to have a real passion for the game.
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How many transfers till they start changing in price?
Its amazing how many people jump ship on one game, of jump on band wagons over one game. LOL
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Any thoughts on whether adebayor is worth keeping or getting rid of an purchasing torres or rooney??
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It amazes me how people play FPL year in year out and make the same basic mistakes. By the way I play official Barclays FPL.
Firstly goalkeepers no matter how good they are dont score many points unless they save penalties. Man Utd and chelsea had most clean sheets last season followed by Liverpool - so why was James top scoring goal keeper for the last 2 seasons ?
Defenders dont score many points either compared to midfielders or strikers as they dont score or get assists and few clubs keep clean sheets, (unless of course you have defenders who score like lescott, laursen or out of position players like matty taylor or eboue in previous seasons)
Midfielders generally score (ON AVERAGE) more points than strikers because they get more points for scoring and get assists.
Ergo - get a value keeper like kirkland or schwazer who will play every game
Defenders are a liability so go 3-5-2 and with the money you save on defenders and keeper, put the money into the midfield, and get the best midfielder you can buy to make him your captain. Ronaldo is way over priced and misses 2 months of the season so that leaves Lampard or Fabregas as your star player captain to earn double points. I would leave out Gerrard as he doesnt score many goals and is likely to be subject to rotation with tinkerman rafa especially in the run up to champions league games. Ashley Young is a steal as he sometimes plays up front so will score but earn midfielders points.
Fowards - Torres despite being a fantastic player, is also poor value for his price - look to berbatov who is a bargain if he gets his move to Man Utd, Bent who will play every game bar injury, and Santa Cruz.
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Reply by Louie on August 18, 2008 4:26 am:
I think you under rate a good defence D Brown. In retrospect the midfield is stronger but who can guarantee who the top individual players (outside the obvious fab gerrard lamps ronaldo) will be this season? Its easier to judge who the top teams (i.e. the top 4)will be and pick cheap defenders from these teams. Just look at which teams got clean sheets this week. Reina bosingwa carvalho clichy evra - I would have expected utd to keep a clean sheet so i’m including him too - got a total of 27 points at a cost of 31.5m. Gerrard lampard young and bentley got a total of 24 points at a cost of 39m. I realise this is only based on 1 game and i’m not one of these knee jerkers who over reacts to one good/bad result, i’m just using it as an example because I have nothing else to go on this season. So while midfield points may be more lucrative (arteta giovanni lampard nasri = 41pts for 31m) a solid defence is more consistent/easy to predict.
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Reply by Juzzie on August 18, 2008 9:48 am:
Agreed with Louie,
Goalkeepers and Defence are absolutely, absolutely crucial. Statistics will very simply tell you that the best value/season option continually comes from the backline.
Of course your captain choice and massive-points earners will come from huge names like Ronaldo or Torres, but I think it’s unsafe to assume defenders are that useless as you seem to put it.
I tend to think in this manner: defence is there as a regular core to build upon, something that tends to stay more or less that way all season, while your attackers have to be transferred and rotated a little more according to form.
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Reply by Alan on August 18, 2008 12:47 pm:
Play three at the back but get good defenders who play for top 6 clubs and are more likely to score. (rio, terry, lescott, laurson, gallas ect). This along with a good keeper should give you a base of 15-20 points a week average for your fancy players to add to. This is my plan anyway!
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D Brown,
I’m with Louie on this one - I think you have oversimplified things just a little. While midfielders and forwards generally have more point scoring potential than defenders, the other important consideration (constraint) is the budget you have to work with. So while you - quite rightly - identify Lampard, Fabregas, Berbatov et al as likely big point scorers this season it is important to note that those players are considerably more expensive than any defenders. So, while the total points haul of a defender might be less (than a midfielder/ forward), he still has the potential to give you a better return as a proportion of your budget. Defenders / keepers might be less glamorous, but they are definately not a liability!
In any case, I dont think its a case of people continuing to make “basic mistakes” - rather, it’s just different people approaching the game in a different way. It’s what makes the whole Fantasy Football thing interesting and this forum so helpful.
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Reply by Bedknobs and Boomsticks on August 18, 2008 8:45 am:
I will eat my mouse if anyone who regularly plays 5 in defence makes the top 10 in the scout picks league. Defenders will never get you big points like midfielders and strikers. Besides which, D Brown has a really cool goatee and once hypnotised one of my friends. How can I not agree!
Louie, what you’re forgetting is that I expected Adebyor to get a hat-trick this week which is 14 points doubled for the captaincy.
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Reply by Goat on August 18, 2008 9:09 am:
I agree with B & B. although you’re right about the consistency of the defenders they just don’t get the big points.
and you’re ignoring the rediculous amount of emphasis the fpl has on the importance of a good cpt.
in the absence of ron surely it’s more important to have as many as the potential big scorers as poss, that way you chose the one with the best game as cpt. rather then having a stella def but always having to rely on ONE pot big scorer as cpt regardless of the fix
least that my opinions anyways
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Reply by simon on August 18, 2008 11:33 am:
i tend to play 3-5-2 or 3-4-3…but with at least one high price defender and two mid price ones
reason being..
1 i hate the fact that if the team conceeds early on, you know he won’t score many points for you (unless he scores)..whereas with a mfer or attacker ur always clinging to the hope that he’ll get u more points as the game goes on
2 i hate the fact the fpl puts up clean sheet points after about 80 mins..then ur defender conceeds in injury time!
3 defenders can LOSE you points (i had glenn johnson this week and got a bit fat 0!)
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Reply by stevie b on August 18, 2008 9:33 am:
i think it’s a case of getting the cheapest defenders from the big clubs (Bosingwa, Dossena) and then getting good budget ones that have a healthy bonus points/goal threat potential, like Wheater and Scharner.
Realistically your defenders are only going to average 3-4 points a week, that’s why having only 3 play (unless your budget ones have a good fixture) seems to reap the most reward. I find the midfielders the most predictable (with the exception of new players), while the strikers and defenders are about the same in terms of predictabilty. The diffence between stikers and defenders being that you’re probably better off using your transfers to change strikers depending on fixtures. Your defence just needs to look fairly solid, then you can almost forget about it.
Best tactic is perhaps to get say, Bosingwa and Dossena, then have two good budget ones like Wheater and Scharner, who you can rotate, and have an even cheaper one like L.Young or Figueroa. Job done!
Goalkeepers are a lottery. Two cheapos usually do for me. Say, Kirkland and Schwarzer.
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hello everyone, i was wondering if anyone here had any information regarding the head to head leagues. i read about it somewhere on the fpl site awhile ago but since then it would appear the link has disappeared. i appreciate the help.
also a question to mark (if you’ve got the time to answer of course):
would you ever consider putting a message board up on the site in the future? i thought that if a message board were introduced we could have separate forums for different topics and would be easier to sift through the various discussions. just a thought. i’m sure dr. rog could be an admin, haha.
anyway, thanks for the excellent site and great work.
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Thinking about pulling some shenanigans, wondering if you think it will work? I figure that the first week is the biggest time for panic, bandwagon jumpers, and people completely restructuring their teams. I was wondering if I burn my transfer wildcard this week and pick up all the players that had stellar weeks right now, just to transfer them at the end of the week, when I put together my official squad, if I could make some money off of it? For example picked up Gabby, Nasri, Djourou, Geovanni, Wheater, and Deco even though I have no intention of having most of them in my line-up. Also t-ferred out Lescott, RVP, and Laursen even though I figure I’ll have them in this week, just to see if I can buy them back on the cheap. Who knows, even if I make .5 points off of it, I’ll consider it a success. I’ll probably wish I had that wildcard when Ronaldo comes back, since it’ll take some serious maneuvering to get him into the squad once he hits form. Enough babble let me know what you think.
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Reply by Bedknobs and Boomsticks on August 18, 2008 8:46 am:
They’d need to rise 0.2 to make it work. Ain’t going to happen, but good thinking.
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Hi,
just discovered this website - awesome effort by the writer.
I have a few questions:
1) I have Adebayor plus 1mill in the bank. Should i take out Adebayor & put in Torres?
2) I have Anelka. I assume Drogba will take over Anelka when he is back. Anyone know if his return is imminent?
3) Bains for Everton - Is he guaranteed to start every game?
4) Lampard or Deco - Which one best value for money vs points, medium term?
Thanks.
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so does everyone still think everton defenders are worth holding onto?
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Djourou started for Arsenal against West Brom. Is he likely to play next weekend? Is Toure still not fit?
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Ender4,
I have Adebayor and was thinking to trade him out as well, but, I’m going to stay with him for a few reasons; firstly he is a proven champ when it comes to getting lots of goals. Also let’s remember it’s only one game in and even the best strikers don’t always score every game. It’s also good to note that Nasri scored his goal by leading infront of Ade and if Nasri didn’t score that goal Ade would of. Arsenal have a nice run of games and I’m sure Ade will come good. Personally I’m going to hold off for a couple of weeks and see how he goes, and let’s not forget he’s starved a little in terms of good supply from Arsenal’s depleted midfield. Fabregas will make a huge difference.
Question 2 & 3 I’m not sure on but for 4 I would go for Lampard. Lampard is more potent infront of goal and will take all of Chelsea’s penalties. I watched the Portsmouth game and Lampard could of had a hat-trick and he also has the same assist potential as Deco who I’m still not convinced will be a first choice all the time whereas Lampard ‘is’ Chelsea in my opinion and therefore I think his spot in the team is cemented.
On a another note, I agree with those that are saying not to panic. I’m only new to FPL this season and after the first weekend I’m mid table in my league and that’s with my captain Tevez not playing also. I see the fact that some players performed better then others as normal and if you have a player that didn’t do so well this week how do you know they’re not going to blitz the next. It’s rare for a player (besides the certain few) to blitz week in week out so I say stick to your guns and have faith in the team you chose. In saying that I will mention that I made one change and only because of the team.
I traded Seol, who did a great job, for Giovanni from Hull. The only reason being is that Fulham have GW3 off and I have two Fulham players on my team so if I didn’t do it now I may have been in trouble later on.
Hope that helps a little.
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i have baines cos i knew he would play left mid…had a feeling they wouldnt start well regardless of opposition, now i dunno if i shoud persist or get out early? Did anyone watch the game?
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Reply by James on August 18, 2008 1:03 pm:
They still have the three promoted sides to play, and I reckon they’ll still pick up some clean sheets in those games.
First games are too much of a lottery to start predicting how the rest of the season will go. Everton have problems, but I think they should be okay for the next 4 games.
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Hey guys, I also wanted to mention a thought I had which could potentially make the FPL game a closer contest and possibly a little more exciting, so I would like to hear your thoughts.
Over the weekend I had Tevez as my captain and therefore finished 10th out of 20 in my league on 40 points. I’m a first timer in the FPL so I wasn’t too worried considering if Tevez played (and I had Cahill in instead of Shorey, damn it!) I would have been around the top 2-3 mark.
Anyway, this led me to my next thought:
What if next season the FPL had the option whereby you had the luxury of choosing a captain and vice captain for each game week. The idea behind the vice captain is that if your selected captain is ruled out at the last minute, or scores zero during the lock out period, then your vice captain becomes your double points earner thus keeping you in the hunt with those who’s captains played. If your captain does play then your vice captain just scores their usual points as normal.
This is just a basic principle and of course you could factor in things such as the vice captain only being able to score points and half etc. but I would like to hear what you all think.
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Reply by CK on August 18, 2008 9:30 am:
Nah mate. Most people pick sure starters for captain and they check this against likely team line-ups. Last minute withdrawels (like Tevez) are VERY rare so having a vice captain will very rarely be needed.
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Reply by Dr. Rog on August 18, 2008 9:35 am:
i like it… but CK is right - thats just tough luck
personally i dont like captains - i always seem to pick the lowest scoring player in my team that week for the job! was much easier when you could just opt for ronaldo every week.
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Reply by stevie b on August 18, 2008 10:10 am:
i made the mistake of choosing a forward - which is too risky, and generally hardly ever pays off. Always pick an attacking midfielder who is playing at home. I should have gone for Lampard but went for Adebayor…when will i learn?
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Alexi - Will Baines for Everton always play left-mid? or is he just covering for someone who is injured?
Cheers.
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Does anybody know or have a rough idea of HOW and WHEN the Price increase / decreases come into effect in the FPL? Last year I made my form player subs quickly to avoid having to pay an increased fee.
I see Deco has been transfered in by 18,000 people. I wonder for instance how much of an increase this will generate and when it will come into effect? I think its possible for a player to go up more than 0.1m in a single week. Can anyone confirm this?
The FPL obviously have some formula for this. It would be handy to know what the formula is! In theroy you could predict an increase / decrease in value by looking at the xfers in/out…
Thoughts anyone?
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Reply by stevie b on August 18, 2008 10:01 am:
he’ll go up this week. Probably by just the 0.1, because it’s so early in the season. Deco hasn’t a great goalscoring record, but he’ll do alright. 150 for the season. I expect 190+ from Lampard though.
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Reply by James on August 18, 2008 10:22 am:
I laid off Deco in favour of Lampard to see what kind of form he’d start with, but he’s hit the ground running and I’ve transferred him in for Lampard already. Agree that Lampard will probably score more over the season, but I was also waiting to see how Bosingwa performed, and he’s ready to get dropped in right away too. I think Bosingwa/Deco is more attractive than Figueroa/Lampard.
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Reply by James on August 18, 2008 10:16 am:
They mention the formula in the FAQ and that it won’t be revealed to players.
Values will be updated at the same time as transfers in/out are processed, so I doubt knowing the formula will be any help.
So many players operate by buying in the previous week’s best scorers without looking at injuries, fixtures, etc.. It’s best just to assume that anyone who had a good week is going up in value, so get in early if you had already planned to buy them.
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Reply by BristolJim on August 18, 2008 10:59 am:
Agreed, it’s probably best to get your xfer in early, unless there is an international week to scupper your players!
I think the player values change independantly of the transfers in/out stats as no ones value has changed yet, but the transfers in and out have.
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Reply by Akers on August 18, 2008 1:35 pm:
False, net transfers is one the main factors but it doesn’t kick in straight away.
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Thinking of upgrading Adebayor to Torres for WK2. Not sure though…when is Fabregas going to be back? Also, is Torres likely to be rested against Boro?
I’m hoping liverpool thump boro anyway as i stupidly picked Turnbull not Jones, so a 5-0 would sort that problem out, and put people off Wheater too.
All but 2 of my players are away from home for wk2…not sure there’s a lot i can do to improve my team, without making it worse for wk3 - i predict a low scoring week in general.
M.Taylor in midfield was a disappointment - 3 goals for Bolton, and he didn’t score or set-up one of them! Mind you, i’m not convinced by any of the budget midfield buys so far. Faubert could be useful, while maybe Nolan will be more productive than Taylor. I can’t see Giovanni doing much away from home, which is kind of restricting, but he is playing a forward role….hmmm..much to ponder…..
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Reply by Akers on August 18, 2008 1:38 pm:
At 5mill he should be in everyones squad. I am only going to use him in favourable fixtures, but it’s not like it’s not like a bit chunk of my budget is sitting on the bench (unlike this week with Tevez, Bale and Zaki)
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Hey BristolJim
I too am desperate (really!) to know when the player values will begin to change….
I know that the ‘formula’ used to calculate these changes is a closely guarded secret, to the extent that some randomness is inserted into the mix to stop maths-nuts from reverse-engineering it.
That said, you can usually make an educated guess as to who will increase/decrease and by how much, based on the weekly transfers in (especially as a proportion of the total number of teams which contain the player), and future opponents.
I’ve seen leagues wherein the participants are clearly aiming to have the most expensive squad by the end of the season, rather than the most points- a cool subversion of the game mechanics I reckon.
I’ve found that if you are playing for points, intentionally building up your squad value is only of marginal use.
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Reply by stevie b on August 18, 2008 10:37 am:
just picking players who have good fixtures over 2 months or so is the easiest thing. Perhaps picking the odd player that people all go for is a reasonable tactic for making your team more valuable. A good, steady team, with the potential to do well over coming weeks will always help to increase you team value, which in-turn will help you more as the season progresses, as you’ll be able to buy one or two more ‘big 4′ players as well as keeping your excellent value buys elsewhere in your squad.
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Anyone know if ryan babbel is returing in time for the next liverpool game??
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k
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Reply by stevie b on August 18, 2008 10:41 am:
i think you could be jumping ship a bit early, but, if you really think you need more cash, and only want someone who’s going to be in your 11 occasionally then Giovanni for 5m looks good. Just use the 1m you’ve freed up very wisely!
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Reply by Raf on August 18, 2008 10:47 am:
reckon alonsos a good shout for 6 mil, home game too.
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my lineup looks good next week and i cant think of any transfers that i need to do !!!!! :
Robinson
Evra Clichy Laursen
Taylor Bentley Young Lampard
Ashton Bent Adebayor
Jaskelinan cahill figueroa de ridder
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Reply by Andrew on August 18, 2008 11:13 am:
I’m not sure about Taylor, he didn’t do anything at home to Stoke on Saturday, so I can’t see him being a major influence in many games. The problem is finding someone of a similar price who will be!!!
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Reply by Dudee on August 18, 2008 11:14 am:
Alonso ! 6.0
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Hey James, I think trading out Lampard is a big call my man. I watched the game and I will admit that Deco was outstanding, but besides the outside rocket he scored (it should be said that James made a meal of it) Deco was more of an assist threat then a goal threat. Lampard could of easily had 3 goals as he missed two good chances during regular play plus he also got one assist and looked dangerous when taking the corners.
I have a feeling as the season goes on he’ll dust off the cobwebs and those missed chances will be sure goals.
In short I think Lamps is more complete in regards to assists and goals whereas Deco will rack up the assists this year.
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Reply by James on August 18, 2008 11:03 am:
Yeah mate, can’t disagree at all. Frank was only in my team due to the Fabregas injury, and it remains to be seen whether or not I’ll hold onto Deco once Fabregas is back.
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Will Alonso Start Againts Middlesboro
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Reply by Raf on August 18, 2008 11:19 am:
its a home game so id favor him over plessis to start.
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Dudee - your midfield and forwards are exactly the same as mine. Defensively, I have Evra, Jagielka, Carvalho, Cahill and Shawcross.
Two issues really - the results of Ashton’s scan today; and Evra (who I changed from Clichy at the last minute on Saturday) - United have Pompey away next, don’t have a game in gamesweek 3 and then they have Chelsea and Liverpool away from home. At £6.5m I may look elsewhere for this week. He would be the only one in your main team who I would change.
I await to see how Laursen gets on - Villa leak goals but are capable of scoring more: he is worth holding onto but he is pricey for the lack of cleansheets.
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Reply by Dudee on August 18, 2008 11:10 am:
Ive put Bosingwa in for Evra . Hope he Starts against Wigan !
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Yeah, I have CArvalho at the mo and would like Bossingwa BUT will he play every week! We’ll have to wait to the Champions League starts _ maybe CArvalho will be rotated as well!!
I would be wary of any early transfers this week with the England game coming up. You never know who may get injured…
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Hey Leighton, I think Villa will be much better off once Cuellar starts playing. We all know the rep he has and it’s much easier for a defender to get use to the pace of the Premier League. Plus it should be said that the Villa defence hasn’t had a lot of playing time together so the fact that they are all quality players (Laursen, Shorey, Young, Cuellar) I think it won’t be long before they gel as a unit, and if Laursen, Shorey and Young can score points like last season while maintaining a cleaner sheet I think those that have them will reap the rewards. Only question is not when but how long before they do?
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Is it me or is FPL allowing free transfers at no points deductions? or am I missing somthing and be hit with a 20 point reduction tomorrow?
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Reply by James on August 18, 2008 11:37 am:
Already made my transfer yesterday. Just tried to do another one just now and it’s saying I’ll have 4 points deducted.
Did you hit your wild card button by accident?
I wouldn’t risk making the transfers even if it does look like you’ve uncovered a bug.
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points only get deducted from your score at the start of the next gameweek. so if you make 5 transfers now at the cost of 20 points those 20 poitns will not be removed until gameweek 2 opens!
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Hey guys, is there a Fantasy Premier League private league going for all the guys on this website?? If not then should we start one?? Could be fun?
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Reply by Steve on August 18, 2008 12:05 pm:
Fantasy Premier League
League Code: 20529-12043
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Here’s what it tells me…
Confirm transfers
Please confirm that you want to make the following transfers:
* Laursen replaced by Cahill
These transfers will deduct the following points from your total: 0
These transfers will be active for Gameweek 2 as long as they are confirmed by 23 Aug 11:30 BST.
Transfer wild card
Your transfer wild card is currently active. All transfers made this Gameweek are free from points deductions.
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Reply by Phil Pino on August 18, 2008 12:11 pm:
Wayne, you could always do 1 transfer a week for free in the FPL. It’s only when you do more than one that you get a points penalty.
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Reply by Burton on August 18, 2008 12:17 pm:
Wayne. You’ve used the once-in-a-season wild card, which allows you to make as many transfers as you like in any one week. You chose the first week.
Maybe email the game organisers? But I don’t know if they’ll be able to help you.
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Reply by Dr. Rog on August 18, 2008 12:17 pm:
it looks like you’ve clicked play wildcard instead of simply confirm transfers -
if it wasnt intentional then im sorry but its just tough luck - u cant get it back now… you might as well reconstruct your team to tinker it to exactly what you want.
here is an extract from fpl:
Transfer wild card
You can play 1 transfer wild card a season. All transfers made in the Gameweek your wild card is played will be without points deduction. You play your wild card by clicking on the ‘Play wild card’ button.
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Reply by Lazio Ultra on August 18, 2008 8:44 pm:
Wayne, is your last name KERR?
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Chaps…I’ve already done 2. Plus when I did 2 last time it still said Zero will be deducted !
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Here is an example just done now ! (Although didn’t confirm !)
Confirm transfers
Please confirm that you want to make the following transfers:
* Arteta replaced by Barry
* Lampard replaced by Johnson
* Downing replaced by Nolan
* Bentley replaced by Dunn
These transfers will deduct the following points from your total: 0
These transfers will be active for Gameweek 2 as long as they are confirmed by 23 Aug 11:30 BST.
Transfer wild card
Your transfer wild card is currently active. All transfers made this Gameweek are free from points deductions.
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Reply by Dr. Rog on August 18, 2008 12:21 pm:
you’ve used your wilcard mate
schoolboy stuff
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Reply by Wayne on August 18, 2008 12:22 pm:
I’m not that thick ! - I won my league of 26 people - So know how it works !
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Reply by Andy on August 18, 2008 12:28 pm:
It doesn’t take rocket science to translate “Your transfer wild card is currently active.” = You have played your wildcard.
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Reply by Cesc on August 20, 2008 12:43 pm:
brilliant wayne, best laugh i’ve had for ages!
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Reply by Brad on August 20, 2008 1:02 pm:
From this moment on you will be known across the land as Wildcard Wayne
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Ouch for Wayne
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Reply by Shiloh on August 18, 2008 1:14 pm:
They really should move those options further apart. I just had a look to see if I did the same (I didn’t) and they are right next to each other.
I imagine that if you are making transfers using your phone or on an incompletely loaded page you could click the wrong one.
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Love your work. I am an Aussie who loves the EPL dreamteam comp and after finding this site I am now a step ahead of the rest of my mates.
Cheers
Heada
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“Your transfer wild card is currently active”.
That says it all Wayne, you’ve used your wild card this week. Big error if you didn’t mean to use it but you might as well just tinker your team to get it the way you want it.
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My Team, opinions would be grateful.
Ferdinand, Evra, Boswinga, Laursen, Cahill
Young, Bentley, Gutierrez, Arteta, Geovanni
Torres, Bent, Kitson
Want to swap Torres for Berbatov once I can be sure he is playing for Man Utd, but will he be a regular with Rooney and Tevez???
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Reply by Jack on August 18, 2008 12:42 pm:
Wow you have a heavy defence…maybe think about getting a few cheaper defenders in? E.g. Wheater or Cahill.
Then you can maybe upgrade another of your midfielders.
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Reply by Dr. Rog on August 18, 2008 12:46 pm:
looks better already
i would say trade down another defender as well unless you plan to play more than 3 at the back on a regular basis
try and get a ‘gun’ in your team like gerrard or lamps (or cesc when fit) for big points potential
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Reply by Chezba on August 18, 2008 1:15 pm:
OPTIONS:
Evra for Wheater, which gives me 1.5 million to upgrade Midfield or Strikers
I could transfer out Torres and gain (in addition to bent) Yakubu & Berbatov (risk transferring in at this stage??)or Van Persie
Still have 1.5 million for possibly Bentley for deco?
What do you reckon? Am tempted to stick with Torres for the moment
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one question
Taylor bolton midfielder or
cahill bolton defender
V newcastle
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Man Utd have a tough few weeks including not playing in week 3, so i’d start getting rid of their defenders now.
Replace with Arsenal defenders maybe, as they have decent few games coming up.
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away from home i would go with taylor as you would expect newcastle to score
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Djourou to play?
or just covering for injuries, and won’t play again?
15,000 people have transferred him in
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Reply by Dr. Rog on August 18, 2008 12:45 pm:
muppets… he’s cover - nothing more
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Chaps - I’ve sent a mesage to FPl and I’ll let you know the response (Although part of me thinking I should have kept it quiet)
I was just seeing if anyone else had the same issue.
Just to reiterate it’s not a wildcard issue and it looks like a genuine bug !
I’ll keep you posted
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Reply by Dr. Rog on August 18, 2008 12:49 pm:
i have made 2 transfers. i trial runned making another right now and it does say that i would be deducted points
the issue is you have activated the wildcard
one way to check this is to see whether you still have the option to activate it. my hunch is the button wont exist as you have used it
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maybe not a good time to transfer Wheater in?
After all, Boro are playing liverpool at Anfield next match, so clean sheet going to be tricky.
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Hi guys, I just checked out the ‘crack the code’ site and don’t really understand how it works e.g. what does the % relate to, why’s there only 8 players listed and what does NTI stand for. Sorry if this seems like a stupid question but I’m new to this and would really appreciate if Mark or someone else would take the time to give me a brief rundown of how it works. Thanks in advance.
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