With Gameweek 1 of Fantasy Premier League (FPL) 2024/25 nearing, we’re welcoming back our team of Hall of Famers and guest writers. Here, eight-time top 10k finisher and Chelsea fan Zophar returns with his weekly Q&A – and reveals his own Gameweek 1 team.
Q: Solanke, Wood or Muniz if have to choose one?
(via @FPLBilly1001)
A: With Alexander Isak (£8.5m) nailed in most FPL squads and Erling Haaland (£15.0m) also popular, most FPL managers playing a 3-4-3 formation have this dilemma. I think Dominic Solanke (£7.5m) is an elite FPL option and yes, this is based mostly on my personal opinion, but I think he will thrive at Spurs. The north London side are an attacking outfit and their forward gets a huge number of big chances. I think he will provide them the focal point they have been missing and although minutes may be reduced a bit early on, I think he will be a regular on their teamsheet ahead of Richarlison (£7.0m). He is my top forward pick after Isak and Haaland.
Coming down to Chris Wood (£6.0m) or Rodrigo Muniz (£6.0m), I think if you are looking primarily at the first three fixtures, it would be Wood. If you are looking at a longer horizon, say the first six Gameweeks, I like Muniz’s fixtures a lot better. They are both different players. Muniz is a high-volume shooter who receives few big chances. Wood doesn’t get a lot of attempts but Nuno’s side do create big chances for their centre-forward.
So I would rank them as Solanke, Muniz and Wood in that order. I just think Fulham’s attack is better than Forest’s.
Q: Jota or Eze?
Q. Gordon vs Jota?
(via @Mirza19487703 and @FPL_Weiss)
A: Let’s use this question to talk about five of the most popular FPL options in the midfield mid-price bracket and this is how I would rank them: Diogo Jota (£7.5m), Anthony Gordon (£7.5m), Eberechi Eze (£7.0m) and Christopher Nkunku (£6.5m).
Diogo Jota
This is clearly the most short-term option. Jota is likely to start the season as Liverpool’s centre-forward but whether he retains that spot over the wealth of alternative attacking options remains to be seen when everyone is fully fit. However, when Jota is on the pitch, his rate of goals per 90 minutes is right up there with the best of midfielders. He is the highest ceiling pick of the aforementioned quartet.
I think it is OK to pick one short-term pick amongst your attackers and if I was to go with one for the start of the season, it would be Jota. In my opinion, he has the potential to be Slot’s first-choice centre-forward over Darwin Nunez (£7.5m).
Anthony Gordon
At the time of writing, we are yet to hear Eddie Howe’s press conference ahead of the Southampton game. He mentioned after Newcastle United’s last batch of friendlies that despite only 45 minutes of game time, Gordon had come back looking fit and sharp for pre-season.
We all know about his home record last season but I think the dip in his away output had to do as much with Newcastle struggling on the road as it was the player himself. With no European distractions this campaign, I am backing the Magpies to have a storming season and they also have their first-choice players back from injury.
I think their first five fixtures are great from an attacking standpoint and yes while Gameweek 1 minutes are a concern, I’d still start with Gordon. There is the small risk of a transfer to Liverpool but that is looking less likely as the weeks go on.
Eberechi Eze
Eze’s numbers under Glasner towards the tail-end of the season were absolutely fantastic. Granted, these were with Michael Olise in the team. The two complemented each other spectacularly and we can only speculate how the winger’s absence will impact Eze.
However, my personal opinion is that Eze will continue to be a fantastic option and now even get a larger share of set pieces. Jean-Philippe Mateta (£7.5m) might miss Gameweek 1 or get limited minutes, which might also impact Eze in the short term, but otherwise, he is a set-and-forget pick.
And yet in terms of who I would pick in my Gameweek 1 team out of Jota, Gordon and Eze, it would be the first two over the Palace man. The only offputting thing about Eze is possible transfer speculation, especially since Manchester City are now without Oscar Bobb (£5.0m) through injury. Yes, Eze does not play the same position but gives them another body in midfield which can allow Bernardo Silva (£6.5m) to move to the right.
Spurs are also interested, and it would be annoying to see Eze randomly miss out on the teamsheet with a transfer to another club.
Christoper Nkunku
This is a difficult one for me as a Chelsea fan. I recently wrote about Nkunku as an FPL option in my earlier piece but with the Blues making so many signings left, right and centre I am beginning to question my judgment.
With so many personnel changes and a new manager/system, the London side will surely take time to gel. Where will Nkunku play alongside Cole Palmer (£10.5m) and potentially Victor Osimhen? We just don’t know that yet.
Nkunku is currently in my FPL squad but if I could find the £0.5m extra, I’d rather have Eze and then look to get Nkunku when I am feeling a bit more confident about Chelsea. Right now, I’m just trusting the quality of the player and the fixtures.
Q: Jota instead of Salah to get Saka and Trent?
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