As one season hardly has time to settle into the hazy dreams of fond 90+ point double Gameweeks and curse-filled 20-point weeks, I have already started to think about next year. So, with a fair bit of crystal ball gazing, finger in the air and just plain old opinions, here are a few things to think about and my own view which with 2,433 points can’t be too shabby, and of course this view will change over the next month or so as the transfer window opens up and the so called nuggets from the World Cup are picked up.

How do we find this season’s Ramsey or Michu from the previous season? The first couple of weeks are vital to latch onto the cheap guy who is making the big impact. Pre-season friendlies are notorious for throwing up people who then do not hit the ground running, I kept with Mirallas too long last time but managed to go with Ramsey in enough time to mitigate that.

Some weeks injuries will kill you. It happens. One of the reasons I will never trust Rooney again, no matter how often he scores well, is that he can’t be relied on – nor can RVP these days – to actually turn up on any given fixture. Maybe the actual stats say different but not going there again. Once bitten…

Goalkeepers

Cheap goalkeepers who make plenty of saves, lucked into Mannone and Marshall, and they made a good Home/Away combo, so even when not keeping clean sheets they still picked up points. For less than £10m for them both was a good call. Never been one to go for an expensive keeper, and what with all the attack-minded teams, I think the money is better off spent elsewhere to gather those points. Now that Marshall isn’t with us in the Prem any more (unless he gets transferred in), Speroni may get my second choice, unless Cech’s injury is worse than we think and then Chelsea’s back-up comes into play.

Defenders

Defence is always a difficult one early on, so I will spread my first selections all over unless one of the top sides has an “easy” run of fixtures but things like Cardiff beating City earlier in the year can put a spanner into that. Having said that, defenders who take set-pieces should always be considered, so Baines fits right into that category. Interesting that the tops sides seem to have very settled defences and rotation isn’t that much of an issue here, so barring injuries Cahill looks nailed on for my team. Some little early-season gems can be punted on here from one of the promoted teams if the fixtures fall okay, so do the research, it works. Teams like Stoke, West Ham and Sunderland can also offer good value for defenders to compliment any of the star ones you pick. Something to keep an eye on is where Ashley Cole goes, still good class and as long as not too expensive I’d like to get him in

Midfielders

My first name in for next year is Yaya Toure, he is the only must have guy in my opinion, and he and Nasri make a great points pairing. May have to see where the City millions go in the summer first. Liverpool’s midfield looks full of promise, just wondering where potential targets like Lallana will fit in at the top of that diamond, vying with Sterling and Coutinhio. Will hold a watching brief on Mata and see how the new Utd manager sets things up and who else they bring in. Midfield does seem the one area that players are rotated in and out across all the major teams on a regular basis so the mid table teams can provide some value if consistent playing time is your thing – Puncheon is someone I will be keeping a close eye on. My big question is will Michu repeat his performances from 2012/13 season or has his time come and gone?

Forwards

Suarez should still be scoring goals, but I have a nagging feeling that teams that can pack their defence may have found Liverpool out, and Champions League may cause a bit of rotation going on. On balance, I’ll try and get him in for the start and see how that goes.

I don’t care who Chelsea have as a striker, they are not going to get 20+ goals out of them, not the way Mourinho sets up his teams, he likes midfielders breaking forward, which is why Hazard and Oscar score, and how Lampard notched up his goals. Just look at the striker’s ratios he has managed at other clubs, not good enough for FPL investment.

Always looking for where Lukaku ends up, if it’s at Chelsea then he is not going to play – and see my earlier comment on how Chelsea play – but anywhere else he is going to score goals.

Aguero had to be considered and if I can fit him with Suarez and then one other, that’s who I am going for. If Tottenham sort a regular forward out, I’ll see if can afford him, but like Chelsea I think they look to get more out the midfield for goals then their strikers. Bony is another one to consider – in a bad Swansea team he still scores goals

Overall

Remain flexible.

Here is my team from Week 1 last year

Cech

Turner Cole Mertesacker

Ramires  Mirallas Walcott Coutinho

Benteke Giroud Anelka

…and how I ended up at the end of the season

Mannone

Olsson Coleman Azpilicueta

Jedinak Eriksen Yaya Touré Nasri

Sturridge Dzeko Suárez

Wow what a journey and good fun and ended up with 3-4-3 same as I started with but that changed on a week-by-week basis.

So anyway as usual hope this provokes some debate about next season and that it’s not too early to start the planning.