World’s best FPL manager Fábio Borges speaks as we honour Hall of Fame greats

We hear from arguably the world’s greatest Fantasy Premier League (FPL) manager, Fábio Borges, as we launch our Hall of Fame roll of honour.

Here at Fantasy Football Scout, we believe it is important to acknowledge the best of the best when it comes to FPL.

This means that every year, we will toast the top five managers in our prestigious Career Hall of Fame.

The managers who can break into the top five will be immortalised on our Hall of Fame page.

You can check your own position in the Hall of Fame by becoming a Fantasy Football Scout Member and joining either of our two FPL mini-leagues.

Our Live Hall of Fame, which is updated throughout the season, had its first refresh for 2021/22 over the international break and you’ll be able to see all the correct new IDs attached to the managers in question.

And where better to start our mini-profiles of the elite managers than with Fábio Borges, our Hall of Fame number one who can boast of six top 5k finishes in a row.

You can read a more detailed interview with Fábio here.

How do you generally approach FPL? What is your main strategy/style?

Fábio: I am definitely a stats-oriented manager. I do watch one or two matches every weekend but it is basically impossible to remember every small detail of every game and stats basically do that for me.

Regarding hits, it is very rare that I take them outside of Double Gameweeks. I like to plan ahead very carefully and since I am a very patient manager, unless there is an injury crisis, I like to stick to my guns.

What is your best FPL moment?

Fábio: When I captained Charlie Austin for a hat-trick in my first season playing. I was a casual player before but I enjoyed the thrill of a captaincy haul so much that I started taking the game much more seriously after that moment.

What are your top tips for securing a good finish?

Fábio: 1) Fixtures over form. We never know when a good period of form starts and when it ends so I think it is better to mainly focus on long-term stats since they give you a better view of what each player can deliver on average. Fixtures, on the other hand, are very important, since on average, every player does better in easier fixtures.

2) Transfers are precious. Don’t sell a player just because he blanked and someone else scored a hat-trick. Always try to buy reliable players that you feel confident having for at least four Gameweeks, even if they blank in the first three. By picking set-and-forget options and sticking with them through bad times, you can use your precious transfers on weaker spots in your team without having to take too many hits.

3) Be aware that luck is a massive factor in this game. Just because you had a bad Gameweek doesn’t necessarily mean that you made bad decisions. At the same time, just because your captain hauled, it doesn’t mean you made a good decision either. Always analyse your decisions with a critical eye but without being too harsh on yourself. After all, most factors in every football match are out of your control and happenstance plays a huge part in your team’s points in a single Gameweek.

What stats do you pay most attention to? What is your favourite tool in the Premium Members Area?

Fábio: I mainly focus on expected goals (xG) these days since I believe it is by far the most useful stat (assuming the model is reliable). I usually prioritise long-term stats since there is a lot of variance/luck in smaller samples.

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