5 FPL Mistakes to Avoid this Christmas

Let’s be honest with ourselves: even the most dullard managers imagine the day in which they make the maverick move that defines their season—bringing in Kenedy, captaining Snodgrass, or jumping on Alexis Sanchez before his eventual return, all of which could have a big impact.

But, in truth, few of those moves are likely to pay off.

Instead, one unlocks his or her FPL potential by avoiding mistakes.

As you prepare for the festive run in, keep these common missteps in mind as you go.

1. Taking Unnecessary Hits: We all get fed up with the players that aren’t performing. Currently, you could include Marcos Alonso or Gylfi Sigurdsson on this list. Neither player has been ideal in the past month. Still, both remain ever-present for their sides and possess the quality to turn around their current form. And frankly, at this time of year, as long as your players are fit and have played 3 of the last 4 matches, it’s probably not worth taking a hit to remove them, no matter how frustrating—exceptions being circumstances like funding another transfer because a player is actually injured.

2. Removing Heavy Hitters for a Hit: People on forums and Twitter will continue to debate which of the current big 6 premium players are the optimal combination. Salah, Sane, Sterling, Hazard, Kane, and Aubameyang all have the potential to either troll owners or sink non-owners. No one will know until the dust settles which were best. And, in fact, the rush to acquire the most recent high scorer (Hazard for gw17, Salah for gw16, Kane for gw15, Aubameyang for gw14) all too often requires multiple moves and, indeed, hits. But by their nature, these players can deliver against any opposition, making those hits insult to injury for the overly reactive managers, who shuffle one for another. Stay the course. Hold your heavy hitters as long as they remain healthy until you have the flexibility to move them for free.

3. Trying to Read the Tea Leaves: This covers a number of different mistakes, but a couple of examples from this season include the infamous “Aguero may be rested” from gw2, when he scored a hat trick. Another is “Raheem Sterling never comes off the bench—he either starts or he doesn’t feature”, which was proved incorrect in gw17. Or what about ahead of gw16 after midweek fixtures, “Aubameyang started against Manchester United; he definitely won’t start against Huddersfield.” We receive limited (and flawed) information from clubs regarding the availability of their players, and often our speculation comes down to anecdotal evidence or spinning a convincing narrative. Remain skeptical and rely on the depth of your squad to deal with occasional rest and rotation.

4. Missing a Deadline: Probably the most egregious mistake one can make, missing a deadline can mean anything from not updating a lineup to failing to change a captain or even missing an opportunity to make a transfer. Set a preliminary lineup including a new captain while games are still happening. Plan your transfers ahead of time to avoid panic/rage moves. Set a calendar reminder. Just. Don’t. Forget.

5. Judging Your Decisions with Hindsight: We all do it. We look back a moves we made as if we could have somehow divined the outcome. The week after Mendy’s injury, I had the choice to bring in Leroy Sane or David Silva. I chose the latter, and it feels like it was a mistake. However, I also remember my decision-making process. Silva has strong underlying statistics and played a central role in the attack. Sane had precious little playing time up to that point, and we had no clear indication that Sane would return to the position he held last season ahead of Sterling or Mahrez. I certainly made the wrong move, but I didn’t make a mistake.

This holiday period will provide highs and lows for all of us.

In the end, there will even be winners and losers.

Let’s enjoy the ride, avoid real mistakes, and judge our decisions with compassion, no matter the outcome.