Picking last week’s Fantasy Bundesliga squad taught me several things.
Firstly, don’t go against your intuition (Manuel Riemann (5.4m), I hope you can forgive me).
Secondly, don’t go without Robert Lewandowski (17.3m).
I’ll try and follow both these rules ahead of an exciting Bundesliga Matchday 2.
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GOALKEEPERS
Manuel Riemann (£5.4m), Philipp Pentke (1.0m)
A penalty save, six additional saves and 17 points is more than any of Riemann’s owners could have hoped for. The Bochum stopper saved his side’s blushes in Matchday 1 and may well be given the same task for Mainz’ visit to the Ruhrstadion this weekend. Bochum’s first home Bundesliga game in 11 years and their first competitive home match with fans for 18 months – the stage is set for Riemann to impress once again.
Philipp Pentke costs just 1.0m and is simply a budget filler.
DEFENDERS
Alphonso Davies (13.3m), Borna Sosa (11.4m), Moussa Niakhate (7.3m), Amos Pieper (6.1m), Josip Stanisic (3.2m)
Alphonso Davies (13.3m) was arguably Bayern Munich’s brightest spark in their 1-1 draw with Borussia Mönchengladbach, managing 12 points despite no goal contributions or a clean sheet. He grabbed eight points for duels, looked threatening throughout and is one of the first names on my teamsheet ahead of their tie against Köln.
Josip Stanisic (3.2m) also had a great game against Gladbach, picking up one less point than Davies for 10.1m less. He’ll keep his place for this game and looks to be a great budget pick.
Borna Sosa (11.4m) was imperious from left wing-back in Stuttgart’s 5-1 win over Greuther Fürth, managing three assists from seven key passes. His tie against RB Leipzig isn’t an easy one, but he’ll be involved in everything Stuttgart do and, as Jesse Marsch’s side proved against Mainz, they’re not quite firing on all cylinders just yet.
Moussa Niakhate (7.3m) faces a Bochum side who failed to offer anything in front of goal against Wolfsburg in Matchday 1. Niakhate, on the other hand, grabbed a goal against Leipzig and will be at the heart of Mainz’s efforts again this weekend. He’s on free-kicks and also takes penalties when Daniel Brosinski (5.9m) isn’t on the field.
Amos Pieper (6.1m) is in the squad by virtue of being Arminia Bielefeld’s premier threat from set-pieces. Fürth looked dire defending dead-ball situations against Stuttgart and with Masaya Okugawa (6.0m) and Alessandro Schöpf (6.1m) now providing much better service, Pieper could rack up the attacking points.
MIDFIELDERS
Joshua Kimmich (15.3m), Filip Kostic (14.0m), Lars Stindl (13.2m), Masaya Okugawa (6.0m), Lee Jae-sung (6.0m)
Joshua Kimmich (15.3m) provided a great set-piece assist for Lewandowski’s goal and was lively throughout Bayern’s game. He managed five key passes, was then bright in the Super Cup and I expect a strong showing in this week’s fixture against Köln.
Both Filip Kostic (14.0m) and Eintracht Frankfurt were poor against Borussia Dortmund, but they couldn’t really ask for a better game than Augsburg this week. Fresh from a 4-0 battering by Hoffenheim, Kostic has the perfect opportunity to rediscover last season’s form.
Lars Stindl (13.2m) was unlucky to finish the Bayern game with just nine points, looking lively throughout as he emphasised his role at the heart of this Gladbach attack. Bayer Leverkusen will be kinder opponents for the veteran German as he looks to recreate last season’s form, which saw him average above one goal contribution per-game.
Former Salzburg man Okugawa was Bielefeld’s brightest spark in their drab goalless draw against Freiburg last time out. Their game against a Fürth side fresh from an opening day defeat is incredibly kind and Okugawa also has a share of set-pieces.
Summer signing Lee Jae-sung (6.0m) started up top for Mainz against Leipzig and will do the same against Bochum after Jean-Paul Boetius (6.9m) wasn’t included in the squad. The former Kiel winger looked dangerous in that game and also scored against this weekends opponents last season.
FORWARDS
Robert Lewandowski (17.3m), Erling Haaland (16.4m), Andrej Kramaric (14.4m)
Lewandowski looked incredibly dangerous against Gladbach. He was unlucky to just get the one goal, and then followed it up with two against Dortmund in the Super Cup. Sign him, he’s Robert Lewandowski.
Erling Haaland (16.4m) had the highest expected goal (xG) total on Matchday 1 and grabbed two goals and three assists, following on from his Pokal hat-trick.
As a result, only one forward spot is really up for debate this week.
I’ve put Hoffenheim’s Andrej Kramaric (14.4m) in that spot. He managed three assists in Matchday 1 from three big chances created, while Union Berlin have just played in Europe and Kramaric may have the chance to take advantage of some tired legs.
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