Fantasy Football Scout community writer Greyhead analyses the Gameweek 20 transfers and strategies of some well-known Fantasy Premier League (FPL) managers.
‘The Great and The Good’ this season are the FPL Godfather Mark Sutherns, the BlackBox pair of Az and Andy North, Scouts FPL General, Joe and Tom, the FPL Wire trio of Pras, Lateriser and Zophar, FPL celebrities FPL Harry, Martin Baker, Pingreen, FPL Frasier and Luke Williams, Hall of Famers Ben Crellin, Fabio Borges and Tom Dollimore, and last year’s mini-league winner Huss E.
“Eat. Sleep. FPL. Repeat.”
Gameweek 20 arrived after the New Year’s Day fixtures had frankly bored us into a post-festive hangover. Therefore, FPL managers approached the round with a sense of trepidation.
However, there was reason for optimism, with shiny new chips unlocked and the January transfer window open. This got managers all giddy, and some started taking hits, even though they only recently enjoyed five free Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) transfers. Bad planning or wicked variance? You decide.
Meanwhile, Antoine Semenyo (£7.6m) was still playing despite being one ‘Fabrizio tweet’ away from Manchester City, Hugo Ekitike (£9.1m) went MIA due to DOMS (no idea), and Mikel Arteta continued his weekly selection riddles as Declan Rice’s (£7.2m) swollen knee turned out to be more smoke and mirrors as he hauled – much to the horror of Mark Sutherns.
OVERALL PERFORMANCE
Az – yes, Az – stole the show with a tally of 69, boosted by the 17-point hauls of Malick Thiaw (£5.1m) and Igor Thiago (£6.9m).
Fabio Borges was right behind on 68, with the same dynamic duo. Is he copying Az’s homework?
A bit of luck took FPL General to 61 points, as Thiago was his autosub for Ekitike. That’s why festive bench order matters, kids!
TRANSFERS
Approaching this deadline, Gabriel Magalhaes (£6.6m) was the standout move. Over a third of these elite managers brought him in, trusting Arsenal’s defensive form and the Brazilian’s goal threat. It brought immediate success.
Three of these 18 took hits, including the normally well-prepared Pras, Harry and Martin Baker. Initially surprising because of the AFCON transfer bundle, FPL’s recent injury list and Gabriel frenzy should probably be taken into account.
Not all decisions paid off, though. The most painful transfer belonged to Mark Sutherns, who sold Rice just before the midfielder’s 17-point explosion. And Lateriser did the same with Thiago. Ouch, very ouch.
Mind, it wasn’t all bad news, as Fabio picked precisely the right time to buy Thiaw.
‘THE GREAT AND THE GOOD’ TEMPLATE
In Gameweek 20, the FPL template has shuffled just enough to make sure we are paying attention.
Phil Foden (£8.9m) and Matheus Cunha (£8.2m) stay at complete ownership – will that stay the case, as young Phil appears to have entered the point-dodging stage of his season?
Virgil van Dijk (£5.9m) moves out of the template, as managers quietly admit they’d rather spend the cash elsewhere, with Gabriel seamlessly taking his seat after his reminder that centre-backs can score points.
Dubravka (88.9%), Raya (50.0%)
Timber (55.6%), O’Reilly (50.0%), Andersen (44.4%), Keane (44.4%), Gabriel (38.9%)
Foden (100.0%), Cunha (100.0%), Saka (83.3%), Szoboszlai (27.8%), Gordon (27.8%)
Haaland (94.4%), Ekitike (77.8%), Thiago (38.9%)
Meanwhile, Yankuba Minteh (£5.9m) has left, ushering Anthony Gordon (£7.4m) straight into proceedings. Even so, there is very little consensus regarding those fourth and fifth midfielder spots.
BENCH POINTS
‘Tis the season for rotation, so let’s now take a look* at some benches.
*note this is as of Gameweek 19
Andy and Frasier have both managed to sideline over 200 points so far. That’s more than 10 points per Gameweek that are politely waving from the dugout.
Frasier had it worst, somehow missing out on six double-digit hauls, turning his bench into a weekly highlight reel of what-might-have-been.
CONCLUSION
FPL is a funny old game, and so it proved with some Gameweek 20 transfer nightmares. Still, the beauty of this time of year is that there’s little time to mourn before we jump straight into another the next fixtures.
Anyway, that’s all from me for now, and remember: don’t have FPL nightmares.
For those affected by any of the topics raised above, you can find me here on Twitter or BlueSky.
