The current top-ranked Fantasy Premier League manager of the 2020/21 season has answered your questions to help you prepare for Gameweek 30 and beyond.
Michael Coone occupies the worldwide number one spot after Blank Gameweek 29 so we invited him to join us for a live question and answer session this week, hosted on on our new community Twitter account, FFS_Community and in a Hot Topic on the Fantasy Football Scout website.
Find out what he said by reading our recap in interview format below…
Do you value a good hunch over the stats and eye test?
“Yeah I never really let stats influence me. I find at times people read too much into them. Who knows when form is going to change and the stats will start improving from there! Getting on a hunch early is critical to making ground! Sticking with stats will probably just maintain your position.”
Has a successful transfer ever made you cheer in a public place?
Not this year unfortunately as i can’t watch any of the games in a public place with the pandemic. I got Diogo Jota (£6.7m) early in his first run of form and I was happy to cheer him on! Not sure if it was the Liverpool angle tho!
Looking at your FPL history, what changes in strategy/decisions did you make this season to completely turn around your fortunes?
Nothing massively different. I watched a good few of the games at the tail end of last season during a lockdown in Ireland and spotted some great players for cheap to go into my starting team for example Reece James (£5.0m), James Justin (£4.9m). Once I started strongly I kept a strong interest in it which made me plan my chips much better. Not Friday night pints with the pandemic either so I didn’t miss any Gameweek deadlines.
How many Teddy Bears do you own?
None but I’ll definitely buy one if I win it!
Best FPL tip for a 10k rank?
I think it’s key to get off to a good start and if not play the Wildcard early. You need to jump on the cheap point earners quickly. Once your team is set I don’t like taking too many hits to manage myself through the season but that’s just me.
Who is your captain for Gameweek 30?
Probably one of the most difficult calls I’ll have to make! Not sitting on the fence but I could make a case for most players in my squad! The fixtures are just great. I’ll even struggle to pick my best first 11! Any suggestions?
What are you thoughts on double Liverpool defence moving forward from Gameweek 31?
I don’t like the idea myself! I support Liverpool but they can concede goals to anyone at the minute regardless of the fixtures. Think money is better spent elsewhere.
What do you look out for before utilising your Chips?
Yeah I probably didn’t plan for them well too much in the past! Very important to maximise them in my opinion. Try to get a full squad of double game week players for my bench boost! My Wildcard in Gameweek 25 sorted out my Leeds Double Gameweek followed by the massive double Gameweek and the blank in Gameweek 29!
What are your tips for maintaining a lead in a mini-league? I’m 12/30 points ahead of my nearest rivals.
No point in letting other teams influence you! You’re top for a reason, keep playing your own game the rest should be more worried about you! Captain choices are key
What was the biggest turning point for you so far this season?
I’ve only taken three hits but one of them was to bring in Ilkay Gundogan (£6.1m) in an early for his 19 point haul when he was just £5.4m! I enjoyed that.
Have you done anything different in terms of your approach this season compared to prior seasons?
I’ve kept my interest in it! When I started doing badly in the past I probably kind of gave up! The pandemic has meant no Friday night pints so I haven’t missed any transfer deadlines.
Mendy and Rüdiger or Mendy and Azpilicueta as a Chelsea double up for their defence?
Antonio Rudiger (£4.6m) for me. Much cheaper and I don’t think Cesar Azpilicueta (£5.8m) will get too many additional attacking returns! Have an okay bench though, just in case of rotation!
Alexander-Arnold and Jota as the Liverpool duo from Gameweek 31 and on?
I’m a Liverpool supporter so I’m biased but yeah not bad shouts. A lot of money tied up in Trent Alexander-Arnold (£7.3m) though and I’m not confident of clean sheets! Don’t rule out Mohamed Salah (£12.4m).
Mohamed Salah and Ilkay Gundogan or Kevin De Bruyne and Diago Jota on a wildcard for Gamweek 31?
Very close call, all depends who will start for city against Leeds after the Champions League! If I knew they would start I’d probably prefer Kevin De Bruyne (£11.9m) and Diogo Jota (£6.7m) but I think I’ll be trying to use all four at different times in the run in.
We would like to thank Michael for joining us on this week’s FFS_Community Question and Answer. We will have another next week ahead of the Gameweek 30 deadline.
3 years, 1 month agoHello, DZ (dead zone). How we all doing today?
Happy weekend to all!