Revolution is in the air this week as many in the community are looking to overthrow the Fantasy Premier League’s (FPL) emerging template.
Our Hot Topic posters are full of advice on how to rise up the rankings by being different.
Meanwhile, investing in Leicester City assets looks to be a key way to break the mould according to our community scribes, who also use the animal kingdom to poke fun at some of this month’s January transfer moves.
Elsewhere, taking a punt on Stoke City escaping relegation is among the riskier template-smashing strategies looked at in our latest Members’ tables.
We look back on all of that and finish off with a catch-up with the leaders in our community competitions, the managers currently turning to the template to help them soar away from their rivals.
The Community Articles
Ahead of a strong run of matches for Leicester – starting with Watford’s visit to the King Power Stadium this weekend – FPL Virgin has been delving into the statistics of their chief creator, Riyad Mahrez, for his Members’ community article.
Meanwhile, the ‘crowd’, being tracked by Hutch_James, also backs a strong performance from the Foxes this Gameweek.
Elsewhere, Applebonkers has been taking a tongue in cheek look at some of the more unusual players Premier League managers ought to be considering before the January transfer window slams shut.
Finally, be sure to look out for Top Marx’s latest Hall of Fame analysis on Saturday morning.
Don’t forget, if you’ve got some analysis, scout reports or features brewing, be sure to visit our community section to submit your article.
The Hottest Topics
The cold weeks of January have brought a sense of malaise among some in the community about their involvement in Fantasy football, with Jordan asking for help to tackle a bout of FPL fatigue that has recently affected him.
Wild Rover is also fed up, disgruntled in particular that too many managers are opting for the same small pool of players. His template-busting discussion attracted a raft of ideas from the community on how to stay ahead of the herd, and was also the main topic on this week’s Scoutcast.
Targeting Leicester looks to be a good way to break the template in light of their strong set of fixtures.
We also recommend tapping into the prospects at another side with a favourable schedule, Everton, with Jordan Pickford a key option for Ludo. Theo Walcott, who Everton signed from Arsenal this week, could be another template-breaking Toffee, according to JonBones’ hot topic on the winger’s move.
Another way to steal a march on mini-league leaders is to borrow some successful strategies from poker players, said Zeslinguer.
For Limited and mediocre manager, one of the best ways to climb the rankings is to stick with the template and sit back while others take disastrous risks on differentials.
According to our “rough with the smooth” round-up of your Gameweek 23 scores, such maverick moves can indeed be full of danger. Just ask those who handed the armband to Manchester United’s misfiring midfielder Jesse Lingard as he toiled against lowly Stoke City on Monday.
But for those still keen to take a punt on a low-owned player, there are a raft of suggestions in our Hot Topic on Gameweek 24’s best differentials, with Ibe Wisdom adding to the discussion with a specific need to find a new ‘magic bean’ cheap midfielder, after it emerged popular choice Ruben Loftus-Cheek could now be sidelined for months.
Harry Kane looks to be the template’s top captaincy choice this weekend as he travels to a Southampton side that he scored a hat-trick against in Gameweek 23. But Kings of Lyon wonders whether Manchester City striker Sergio Aguero may be a better option.
There was further chat on City’s assets in our discussion on how they compare with the array of attacking talent among Liverpool’s ranks.
Among the template’s prize assets is Chelsea defender Marcos Alonso, who has goals, assists, bonus points and clean sheets in his locker. He looks to be the only Blues player worth considering, according to our Hot Topic on Antonio Conte’s troops.
Eden Hazard is particularly unpopular among the community, after mustering a single goal in his last seven league starts. Rbrd is among those unhappy with their investment in the Belgian, but admitted he still cannot quite bring himself to show him the door due to his kind fixture run, including this weekend’s trip to Brighton.
To view all our discussions please visit our Hot Topics page.
The Members Tables
Stoke present the ultimate form versus fixture conundrum. They prepare to host Huddersfield at home on the back of a woeful run of form that saw their manager Mark Hughes sacked. For those considering their options under the management of new boss Paul Lambert, I’ve created this table looking at their key assets.
Knight Rider has been taking a peak at the key statistics of Leicester defenders, ahead of their strong fixture schedule, while FPL Virgin has been focused on the best Bournemouth options.
Meanwhile, attacking midfielders come under scrutiny in chief_marc’s latest table.
If you’re a member and are yet to get to grips with the custom statistics tables, you can view this movie for an explanation of how they work. Also, remember to tag them so that people can find the tables with ease.
The Community Tournaments
Handing the Gameweek 23 armband to Manchester United’s Jesse Lingard proved costly for long time FFScout Moderators and Contributors league leader Az, who has now relinquished top spot to Jack Wain, the latter scoring 99 after captaining Harry Kane.
There’s also a change at the summit of both Red Lightning’s Top 10K Any Season league and PDM’s Top 1k Any Season contest, with Anders Lium taking first place in each.
The form manager among the community is Mei You Shagua, who leads Red Lightning’s January to May league.
Elsewhere, Heroes and Villains retains bragging rights at the top of the FFScout Members league, while Bowstring the Carp is the new leader of the main Fantasy Football Scout league. He is also up to 14th overall and is now the top-ranked manager in Ireland.
In TorresMagic’s Last Man Standing competition, TheTinman hit the top score in Gameweek 23, with 116. There are 791 teams left after 100 were eliminated when the safety score was set at 62.
Hutch_James dropped by to alert Rugby fans among the community that Six Nations Fantasy football is about to get underway, while Speedyboyz was on hand to supply the latest news from the Community Watch tournament.
If you are running a community tournament and would like the latest scores included in future Community Round-Ups, please email us summary of the current leaders and a link to your league, spreadsheet or head-to-head competition, at jonty@fantasyfootballscout.co.uk.
