Fixtures

A Guide to FPL Fixture Rotation ahead of 2019/20

We continue our analysis of the newly released 2019/20 Premier League fixture list with a look at which teams rotate well from a Fantasy perspective – as well as the pros and cons of doing so.

Many Fantasy managers will be familiar with the approach but for the uninitiated, we’ll begin by exploring rotation strategy in detail.

The Concept

Selecting assets according to fixture rotation is a strategy that can only be applied to squad-based Fantasy games. It’s also often restricted to goalkeepers, defenders and assets in the budget end of the market.

The idea is to simply find a couple of low-cost players whose fixtures dovetail, either to offer successive home matches or, at the very least, a prolonged spell of favourable opponents. This allows for the selection of one player – with the other asset benched – to guarantee us a home encounter or a strong fixture.

A rotation policy tends to focus on the acquisition of budget options, mainly because many Fantasy managers will generally resist benching mid-price and premium assets.

Those playing Fantasy games limited to just a starting XI – such as Sky Sports – won’t need to turn to this strategy. But for Fantasy Premier League managers, rotation is a strategy to consider in certain positions.

In theory, it can help maximise the points returns from two budget options – freeing up funds for big investment elsewhere.

It should be said that the rotation strategy is shunned by some Fantasy managers.

As we will discuss below, anticipating where a clean sheet or attacking return will come from is often not as simple as picking the player with a home match.

The majority of us will, at some point in our lives, have been left cursing a benched goalkeeper’s away haul as the shot-stopper with a home fixture blanks.

With premium defenders very much en vogue now, plenty of us will also perhaps be overlooking the option of alternating between two £4.5m defenders come the start of 2019/20.


We’ll begin our exploration of rotation with a look at the defensive benefits that home advantage brings.

Home Advantage – A Season-by-Season Analysis


SeasonCS Home %GC Home %CS Away %GC Away %
2013/1459.0543.1640.9556.84
2014/1558.9342.5641.0757.44
2015/1657.2144.7442.7955.26
2016/1761.2142.9538.7957.05
2017/1860.1842.8339.8257.17
2018/1957.4944.4042.5155.60

CS = Clean Sheets
GC = Goals Conceded


The percentage of clean sheets being kept at home fell from 60.18% in 2017/18 to 57.49% in 2018/19.

The total of 119 home clean sheets last season was down 17 on the previous campaign and the lowest figure since 2012/13, when 116 clean sheets were recorded by sides on their own turf.

Newcastle United, relegated Cardiff City and champions Manchester City were the only three sides who conceded more goals on their own soil in 2018/19 than they did on their travels, which at least suggests some significance in home advantage when it comes to defensive statistics.

It’s hardly a revelation that a side playing on their own turf would stand a better chance of keeping a clean sheet or conceding fewer goals, of course, but as our team-by-team breakdown below illustrates, home advantage is more pronounced with some teams that it is with others.

2018/19 CLEAN SHEETS – HOME AND AWAY SPLIT

TeamHome CSAway CSDiff2017/18 Diff
Arsenal7165
Wolves725N/A
Chelsea10644
Everton9544
Liverpool12937
Brighton5230
Crystal Palace752-1
Bournemouth6420
Leicester6423
Burnley5322
Spurs7614
Watford4311
West Ham4314
Fulham321N/A
Huddersfield3214
Cardiff550N/A
Newcastle56-15
Southampton34-1-2
Man City911-2-2
Man Utd25-35

In 2017/18, four of the ‘big six’ hit double figures for home clean sheets – only Liverpool and Chelsea managed that feat last season.

Everton, Chelsea and Arsenal were again notably stronger on their own turf when it came to shut-outs.

Manchester City have become something of an anomaly in recent years: this was the fourth successive season in which they have kept more clean sheets on the road than at the Etihad.

Southampton repeated their trick of 2017/18 in registering more shut-outs on the road than at home, while Manchester United have now done this twice in the last three seasons.

The main concern to Fantasy managers who rotate goalkeepers and defenders would be the diminishing role that home advantage plays for budget options.

£4.0m and £4.5m-rated goalkeepers are generally the ones paired together for those FPL bosses who adopt this approach.

There were ten clubs whose first-choice goalkeepers were in this bracket at the start of 2018/19: Wolves, Brighton, Palace, Bournemouth, Watford, West Ham, Fulham, Huddersfield, Cardiff and Southampton (we’ve excluded Burnley, despite Joe Hart‘s early-season run in the first team).

In six instances, the difference between home clean sheets and away clean sheets was one or fewer – just proving how hard it can be to second-guess where a shut-out will come from.

As we have seen in the section above, the percentage of shut-outs in home matches fell to 57.49% and the total number of clean sheets kept by sides playing on their own patch fell to its lowest in six years.

ROTATION PAIRINGS IN 2019/20

There are ten pairings that alternate home fixtures perfectly next season:


Team 1Team 2
BournemouthSouthampton
BurnleyAston Villa
Crystal PalaceNorwich City
Leicester CityBrighton and Hove Albion
LiverpoolEverton
Manchester UnitedManchester City
Newcastle UnitedSheffield United
Tottenham HotspurArsenal
WatfordChelsea
West Ham UnitedWolverhampton Wanderers

Some of these are decided by geographical proximity, created by the need to spread police resourcing: Liverpool/Everton, Manchester United/Manchester City and Spurs/Arsenal being notable examples.

Those three combinations plus Watford/Chelsea and Leicester/Brighton are largely irrelevant when it comes to rotation because of the price tags associated with at least one of the respective clubs’ assets and their ability to score points on the road – Fantasy managers aren’t going to bench Andrew Robertson or Aymeric Laporte simply because they have an away fixture.

The other five pairings give the following run of matches in the first half of the season (the graphics are from our Members’ Season Ticker):

Bournemouth/Southampton

Burnley/Aston Villa

Crystal Palace/Norwich City

Newcastle United/Sheffield United

West Ham/Wolves

A shout-out to user Portsmouth Bubblejet, who documented the 38-game rotating pairs soon after the fixtures were announced.

Burnley and Villa’s alternating home fixtures are perhaps the best pairing above but there are still off-putting games within that.

Wolves and West Ham’s match-up doesn’t look great at first but including favourable away fixtures where necessary gives the following run from Gameweeks 1 to 19, avoiding any of the ‘big six’:

lei | bha | BUR | NOR | avl |cry | WAT | CRY | SOU| SHU | NEW | AVL | bou | SHU | WHU | bha | sou | nor | cry

Given the relative dearth of clean sheets last season, Lukasz Fabianski and Rui Patricio may well be priced up at £4.5m again and could be rotated for the above run.

Away from the ten aforementioned pairings, Watford and Brighton’s fixtures give a decent sequence from Gameweeks 1 to 19 (with six meetings against the newly promoted clubs and none against the top half-dozen sides):

BHA | WHU | SOU| new | BUR | new |wol | SHU | avl | BOU | NOR |nor | BUR | sou | lei |CRY | cry | SHU | shu

As above, Mathew Ryan and Ben Foster could be paired in tandem to achieve the above run, although the rotating twosomes needn’t be limited to goalkeepers – two budget defenders or a cut-price fifth midfielder/third striker could be harnessed in the same way.

Subscribers can have a play around with their own combinations using the Season Ticker in the Members’ Area, details of which are at the bottom of the article.

Last Season’s Pairings

The exact pairings for 2018/19 – at least before blank/Double Gameweeks came into operation – were as follows:


Team 1Team 2
BournemouthCrystal Palace
FulhamChelsea
Huddersfield TownBurnley
LiverpoolEverton
Manchester UnitedManchester City
Newcastle UnitedBrighton and Hove Albion
SouthamptonWest Ham United
Wolverhampton WanderersLeicester City

To illustrate the problem with rotating players, we have looked at the case of Southampton and West Ham – a pairing we picked out in June 2018.

Selecting Lukasz Fabianski as a “set-and-forget” goalkeeper would have yielded 143 points over the season.

Alternating the Polish goalkeeper with whoever was between the posts for Southampton (Angus Gunn/Alex McCarthy/Fraser Forster) and playing the shot-stopper with the home fixture would have returned only 123 points.

Cherry-picking the best fixture, home or away, would have meant that Gunn/McCarthy would have been benched for clean sheets at Palace and Chelsea and owners of Fabianski may have missed out on shut-outs against Arsenal and Spurs.

Selecting the most favourable West Ham/Southampton fixtures (granted this is subjective) on any given Gameweek would, coincidentally, have yielded exactly the same score that Fabianski achieved on his own (143 points):

BUR (11) | BOU (2) | LEI (2) | WOL (3) | BHA (0) | CHE (11) | wol (2) | bha (3) | bou (6) | NEW (6) | BUR (1) | hud (5) | ful (1) | new (8) | CAR (9) | CRY (1) | ful (9) | hud (3) | WHU (2) | bur (2) | BHA (2) | lei (3) | EVE (2) | CRY (2) | bur (4) | CAR (1) | FUL (3) | FUL (7) |NEW (6) | car (2) | HUD (1) | bha (6) | che (2) | WOL (2) | new/wat (4) | BOU (1) | SOU (6) | HUD (2)

Rotating goalkeepers, then, wouldn’t have gained any advantage in this case although there may have been other pairings used with more success and few FPL bosses would have kept the same two shot-stoppers for the duration of the season.

The above example, though, at least illustrates the types of drawback associated with rotating assets, whatever the position.

USING THE FIXTURE TICKER

The 2019/20 Season Ticker is now live in the Members’ area. By selecting any side in the Ticker and clicking “Sort by Rotation”, you will be able to see teams ranked according to their suitability for rotation with the highlighted club.

You can apply this using both the attacking and defence filters to analyse rotation pairings in attack and defence. For a guide to using this feature, visit this chapter of our preview movie.

READ MORE FIXTURES ANALYSIS

167 Comments Post a Comment
  1. Legomané
    • Has Moderation Rights
    • 6 Years
    4 years, 9 months ago

    ‪Salah v Mané ‬

    ‪Assuming both are mids again, what FPL Price difference would make this a difficult choice?‬

    1. SADIO SANÉ
      • 8 Years
      4 years, 9 months ago

      2m

    2. BobbyDoesNotLook
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 6 Years
      4 years, 9 months ago

      1m

      1. BobbyDoesNotLook
        • Fantasy Football Scout Member
        • 6 Years
        4 years, 9 months ago

        If you think of end of season, TAA targeted lots of times Mane with crosses which (partially) led to Mane's and TAA's great form during the end of season. Would assume they continue from that and that could benefit a bit Mane. At the same time on feeling basis I think Salah will do better than last season.

        1. Legomané
          • Has Moderation Rights
          • 6 Years
          4 years, 9 months ago

          It's interesting for sure. With those early fixtures piling in on both may be sensible for the first couple of weeks, with one of them switching to a City mid GW3

    3. Maximus Bonimus Pointimus
      • 14 Years
      4 years, 9 months ago

      Over 2m...

      Mane historically operated at 150-160 points a season....

      Salah has nearly 600 points in his last 75-ish appearances

      An 11.0 price tag is going to weigh heavily on Mané I feel... could be wrong of course, maybe he’ll kick on again

      1. Legomané
        • Has Moderation Rights
        • 6 Years
        4 years, 9 months ago

        Think I'd be surprised if Mané regressed significantly this season. Feels like he's been building up to this. Genuinely expected him to be Liverpool's top scorer ahead of the season before last, felt like it was brewing just missing a spark. The Salah season seems to have been the catalyst. He wants that limelight, and has now resolved to grab it with both hands!

        1. Maximus Bonimus Pointimus
          • 14 Years
          4 years, 9 months ago

          He has always been explosive for sure (had scored premier league hattricks at Southampton before joining Liverpool)... and he has everything in his locker and is he right age...

          But equally he had a superb season and Salah still managed to outscore him by 30 points, whilst being a little “below par” compared to his best

          For sure Mané could do well, but I think he could possibly turn into more of a troll figure this year with that price tag he will be under scrutiny like never before from an FPL perspective and there’s no forgiveness for blanks once you go over the 10.0/11.0 mark

          If it’s somehow the other way around it’s always an easy swap from Mo > Mané anyways, and most will want double Liverpool defence so can’t get them both!

          1. Legomané
            • Has Moderation Rights
            • 6 Years
            4 years, 9 months ago

            The ease of a Mo > Mane switch is an excellent point...

    4. Legomané
      • Has Moderation Rights
      • 6 Years
      4 years, 9 months ago

      I'm going 1.5m...mainly because of captaincy.

      I think 1m makes Salah an easy choice as he's the better captaincy option in home and away fixtures imo (may be particularly of interest GW2)

      At 2m I think I'd wager Mané can do enough in his home matches (based on last season), provided there is adequate variety of alternative juicy captaincy options covering those less favourable Sadio away days.

    5. Revival
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 11 Years
      4 years, 9 months ago

      About 2m. If we know Milner is not starting then that puts Salah on penalties and already a more favourable position to warrant an extra outlay on him.

      1. BobbyDoesNotLook
        • Fantasy Football Scout Member
        • 6 Years
        4 years, 9 months ago

        This is actually something that is going to be very valuable for Salah. I would pay at least 0.5 more if he was always on pens.

      2. noquarternt
        • 8 Years
        4 years, 9 months ago

        But with VAR he won't get nearly as many pens for diving like he does at the moment.

    6. Jaws
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 9 Years
      4 years, 9 months ago

      Mane scored 155 points at home...and wasn't injured (he always missed a string of games due to injury before. This is the main reason for his FPL returns).

    7. Peter Ouch
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 5 Years
      4 years, 9 months ago

      If it's less than 2m Salah is no brainer

  2. Ginkapo FPL
    • 12 Years
    4 years, 9 months ago

    Does anyone have a link to the rotation spreadsheet?

  3. diesel001
    • 7 Years
    4 years, 9 months ago

    The key to successful defensive rotation is avoiding the Top 6 (and probably avoiding Wolves, Leicester, Everton who are best of the rest).

    Last season a combo of CPL / NEW achieved this, accumulated points and was cheap (e.g. AWB).

    This season the go to combos look like (there may be others):

    CPL / EVE
    WAT / BHA
    WOL / WHM

    Far better to rotate two cheap DFs who are penalised more for conceding compared to GKs who can still amass save points.

    1. *sigh*
      • 12 Years
      4 years, 9 months ago

      Thinking O’Donnell and Schär rotation depending on price ofc.

      1. *sigh*
        • 12 Years
        4 years, 9 months ago

        *Oconnell

      2. diesel001
        • 7 Years
        4 years, 9 months ago

        SHU / NEW is an interesting combo. Gives you some tough fixtures in GW9 and GW23. There is also a lot of Leicester, Everton and Wolves in there (GW3, GW7, GW14, GW20, GW21, GW24, GW34, GW36)

        Compare to CPL / EVE that has no Top 6 and only two occasions of Everton, Wolves, Leicester (GW11, GW33)

        The other question is whether you trust the clubs to keep CS. I don't really trust WHM and WOL. But CPL and EVE have shown a propensity to keep CS. At the prices WAT / BHA probably offer a cheap alternative.

        NEW are a good pick, but do you trust SHU?

        1. *sigh*
          • 12 Years
          4 years, 9 months ago

          I’m looking at price mainly. Wouldn’t want a combo costing more than 4.5/5. Sheff U should have at least one 4.5m defender and even at 5m Schär would be value if the takeover happened and Rafa stays but its wait and see obvs. I fancy attacking returns also from those two.
          CPL and Eve are good however I personally wouldn’t be alternating Digne or Coleman.

          Robertson Digne OConnell Schär ANOther

          1. *sigh*
            • 12 Years
            4 years, 9 months ago

            If Scott Dan is 4.5 that would be handy.

            1. *sigh*
              • 12 Years
              4 years, 9 months ago

              My spelling is atrocious tonight.

            2. noquarternt
              • 8 Years
              4 years, 9 months ago

              Not Dann again...been waiting for that goal for about 3 years.

      3. diesel001
        • 7 Years
        4 years, 9 months ago

        If you are looking at SHU then a SHU / AVL combo or a SHU / BOU combo is good. Avoid all the Top 6

  4. EgyptianKing
    • 5 Years
    4 years, 9 months ago

    With fixtures out I think my checklist currently is composed by:

    TAA, VVD, Salah
    Laporte, Sterling, Bernardo
    Digne, Brooks, Richarlison

    Should be possible to fit them all in a squad I would say.

    Who would you remove // add to that list?

    1. noquarternt
      • 8 Years
      4 years, 9 months ago

      What prices do you think they'll all be?

      Can see TAA, VVD and Laporte being 6.5+, Bilva surely can't be lower than 8.0 with the others likely getting big rises?

      1. EgyptianKing
        • 5 Years
        4 years, 9 months ago

        Hi mate.

        According to FFix (and in my opinion these are acceptable prices for the above mentionned players) their prices will be:

        TAA, VVD and Laporte 6.5
        Salah 13
        Sterling 12
        Bernardo 8.5
        Digne 5.5
        Brooks 5.5 (I think he might be more expensive tbh)
        Richarlison 8

        1. noquarternt
          • 8 Years
          4 years, 9 months ago

          Yeah they seem fairly reasonable.

          Think Digne is gonna get a lot of love.

          What do they reckon Jimenez, Doherty and Wilson as?

          1. davidfromkent
            • Fantasy Football Scout Member
            • 10 Years
            4 years, 9 months ago

            Jiminez 8.5, Doherty 5.5, Wilson 8.5

  5. Gav's Gunners
    • 7 Years
    4 years, 9 months ago

    3 City and 3 Pool seem to be a given but whatever the fixtures, with VAR wont it be best just to include as many penalty takers as possible. Mili Siggy Vardy etc

    1. *sigh*
      • 12 Years
      4 years, 9 months ago

      Some say var could actually reduce the amount of penalties. Still it’s always been a good ploy to plump for a player with pens in his locker.

    2. Richd
      • 11 Years
      4 years, 9 months ago

      I’m not buying the penalty thing that much. I think it’ll be the same importance as always.. nice but not gonna seek it out.

      If it turns out I’m wrong, can always adjust down the line.

    3. SADIO SANÉ
      • 8 Years
      4 years, 9 months ago

      Siggy missed 3 pens and still scored 182, he's a pretty good pick regardless - Vardy is too. It will be interesting to see how Mili scores though, it's hard to believe he will get many more pens than he already has done but I guess it's possible

    4. Epic Fail
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 13 Years
      4 years, 9 months ago

      Just get the players you think will score the most points whether they are on pens or not.

  6. Ragabolly
    • 14 Years
    4 years, 9 months ago

    Elmohamady scores for Egypt in a friendly (Salah rested), he's been a constant threat (Doherty style) all game. Will monitor him in AFCON, could be the only promoted player in my team.

    1. Tony Moon
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 14 Years
      4 years, 9 months ago

      Good shout. Will be a defender in fpl too.

    2. PBC
      • 12 Years
      4 years, 9 months ago

      Unlikely to start IMO. Too suspect at the back. Villa signed a RB from France called Guilbert who is rated.

      1. Tony Moon
        • Fantasy Football Scout Member
        • 14 Years
        4 years, 9 months ago

        True. Forgot about him.

      2. Ragabolly
        • 14 Years
        4 years, 9 months ago

        Seem comments from Villa fans suggesting he would be first choice after a superb season, but yeah will wait and see

  7. Majestic Chanka
    • 7 Years
    4 years, 9 months ago

    WELCOME BACK JOE

    1. Majestic Chanka
      • 7 Years
      4 years, 9 months ago

      Dial up I know but started the podcast and hadn’t seen the article earlier 🙂

  8. Pumpkinhead - I'm ITK …
    • 14 Years
    4 years, 9 months ago

    Not seeing many perfect 10s on here fellas. Who's ya daddy ?

    1. Gnu
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 14 Years
      4 years, 9 months ago

      Don't know where mine is.
      Bar stewards enquiry. 🙂

    2. Tony Moon
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 14 Years
      4 years, 9 months ago

      I was 9 all last year. No idea why I'm not a 10 too now lol

      1. Thomas Jerome Newton
        • 7 Years
        4 years, 9 months ago

        Might be by date started and not seasons?!

        1. Tony Moon
          • Fantasy Football Scout Member
          • 14 Years
          4 years, 9 months ago

          Very true. Cheers.

    3. FPL Virgin
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 7 Years
      4 years, 9 months ago

      Double figures. Respect.

    4. Triggy
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 13 Years
      4 years, 9 months ago

      There are a few about.

    5. Epic Fail
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 13 Years
      4 years, 9 months ago

      Loser.

    6. Syd.
      • 14 Years
      4 years, 9 months ago

      Testing Testing

      1. Syd.
        • 14 Years
        4 years, 9 months ago

        Still a 9 has been for the last 2 years

        1. Pumpkinhead - I'm ITK …
          • 14 Years
          4 years, 9 months ago

          So close. But yet so far ...

        2. Gnu
          • Fantasy Football Scout Member
          • 14 Years
          4 years, 9 months ago

          They started last summer Syd, ya nugget.

          1. Syd.
            • 14 Years
            4 years, 9 months ago

            Feels like 2 years 😆

            1. Gnu
              • Fantasy Football Scout Member
              • 14 Years
              4 years, 9 months ago

              True. 🙂

      1. Gnu
        • Fantasy Football Scout Member
        • 14 Years
        4 years, 9 months ago

        😆 😆 😆

    7. Arn De Gothia
      • 13 Years
      4 years, 9 months ago

      🙁 still not there

    8. Chungwit
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 14 Years
      4 years, 9 months ago

      10 years of fully paid-up lurking here.

    9. Leaf
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 14 Years
      4 years, 9 months ago

      9 still ?

      1. TorresMagic™
        • Fantasy Football Scout Member
        • Has Moderation Rights
        • 14 Years
        4 years, 9 months ago

        Just check your profile. Won't be til March.

        1. Gnu
          • Fantasy Football Scout Member
          • 14 Years
          4 years, 9 months ago

          I was here before you, it's another FFS conspiracy.

          1. TorresMagic™
            • Fantasy Football Scout Member
            • Has Moderation Rights
            • 14 Years
            4 years, 9 months ago

            I've played an extra season than you.

            1. Gnu
              • Fantasy Football Scout Member
              • 14 Years
              4 years, 9 months ago

              That's not what we're discussing.
              I was on FFS before I started playing FPL.
              Did wonder what the captain lark was all about as Telegraph and others didn't have it. 🙂

              1. TorresMagic™
                • Fantasy Football Scout Member
                • Has Moderation Rights
                • 14 Years
                4 years, 9 months ago

                It's about signing into the new server at the time. You mustn't have been around in the off season until later.

                1. Gnu
                  • Fantasy Football Scout Member
                  • 14 Years
                  4 years, 9 months ago

                  Get your story straight. 😉

            2. Gnu
              • Fantasy Football Scout Member
              • 14 Years
              4 years, 9 months ago

              So has the criteria changed, I was under impression it was how long on FFS not how long playing FPL?

          2. George Sillett
            • 8 Years
            4 years, 9 months ago

            Outrageous accusation.

            1. Gnu
              • Fantasy Football Scout Member
              • 14 Years
              4 years, 9 months ago

              Too much Slouch, too much. 😆

              1. George Sillett
                • 8 Years
                4 years, 9 months ago

                Slightly controversial accusation.

    10. Norman Conquest
      • 10 Years
      4 years, 9 months ago

      mine hasn't changed for 2 years

      1. TorresMagic™
        • Fantasy Football Scout Member
        • Has Moderation Rights
        • 14 Years
        4 years, 9 months ago

        August, numbers only available last season.

  9. jtreble
    • 7 Years
    4 years, 9 months ago

    Do we have any idea where Ryan Babel may end up? Curious.

    1. NIKO.
      • 6 Years
      4 years, 9 months ago

      Back to Turkey with Galatasaray they recon

    2. Syd.
      • 14 Years
      4 years, 9 months ago

      Barbers if I was him

  10. joersherman
    • 7 Years
    4 years, 9 months ago

    Hi guys does anyone know when the FPL tends to be up and running for the new season?

    1. noquarternt
      • 8 Years
      4 years, 9 months ago

      July

      1. Epic Fail
        • Fantasy Football Scout Member
        • 13 Years
        4 years, 9 months ago

        4:00am

        1. Buck The Trent
          • 12 Years
          4 years, 9 months ago

          Monday 4.00 am to be precise

  11. Bad Kompany
    • 6 Years
    4 years, 9 months ago

    Does anybody have any idea what weeks the fixture swings are?

    1. Syd.
      • 14 Years
      4 years, 9 months ago

      You can’t beat a good bit of Home and Away swinging.

    2. Fiz
      • 10 Years
      4 years, 9 months ago

      Follow Ben Crellin on twitter. He breaks them down

    3. noquarternt
      • 8 Years
      4 years, 9 months ago

      You've got the fixtures now, could do it yourself?

  12. Lovren an elevator
    • 8 Years
    4 years, 9 months ago

    I'm thinking potter can be a success at Brighton with their opening fixtures, seriously looking at Groß, any other attacking picks people think are worth watching?

    1. noquarternt
      • 8 Years
      4 years, 9 months ago

      He's got a lot of turning around to do. But Groß could be super cheap...

  13. Marmalade Forest
    • 6 Years
    4 years, 9 months ago

    No talk of Sarri to Juve, or any Chelsea, United or Arsenal players mentioned.

    Are all premium players picked going to be Liverpool and City?

    1. noquarternt
      • 8 Years
      4 years, 9 months ago

      Check out last season's table and points scorers.

      Man U are useless.

      Arsenal have Laca and Auba but neither are 100% nailed.

      Chelsea just lost Hazard and will likely have a transfer ban.

      Spurs could be alright, but Eriksen could go and cause trouble for Kane.

      Unless much else changes think all the talk is gonna be Pool and City I'm afraid.

      1. SAY MY NAME
        • 6 Years
        4 years, 9 months ago

        I think it's gonna be 6 x pool+city, plus whatever else fits within budget, so maybe options from everton/wolves/Leicester/Bournemouth type teams

        of course summer transfers and prices will impact this, but at this point considering last seasons performances from city and pool it would seem foolish not to load up on them, interested to see what price KDB comes in at, if he stays fit he could be a premium at a 'semi-premium' price

        1. pingissimus
          • 5 Years
          4 years, 9 months ago

          6 is going to be mighty hard to fit in with a week 1 budget - unless like me you’re actively considering Ederson in a double double defence.

          Who is the third City? I’m assuming Laporte and Sterling here. Kun? He’ll be pricey and could well block Mo. KdB looks tempting and likely affordable but very brittle. Is Bilva really a better bet than Siggy?

          Last season not many had consistent triple City despite their dominance and I can see that repeating. Or put another way the double triple up is a goal to aim for when funds are there.

          Another point that interests me is that last season the Liverpool defence was a double winner in tv and points. I don’t expect that this time as their prices may simply fluctuate as per Mo last season and not go through the roof. Tv rises will likely have to come from elsewhere this time

          1. SAY MY NAME
            • 6 Years
            4 years, 9 months ago

            yep, agree with what you say, for city I reckon laporte+sterling, and then bilva or kdb - I think bilva has a good chance of higher points this season - kun will be too expensive if I have sterling, ederson certainly an option as city had plenty of clean sheets and may be worth the probable 6m outlay (rather than guessing which 4.5m goalie will be the value pick in the coming season, ederson is nailed and set and forget option, he did well for me last season, and may in fact be a better pick than laporte, although I did get stung by the odd laporte goal last season)

            kdb I think I will assess as pre-season progresses, if it looks like he will be back to starting I think it would be worth a punt to see how he does in early gameweeks, easy to adjust if he's not looking back to old form

            I plan on going cheap in attack, with no premiums, either 4-5-1, or 5-4-1, so depending on prices should have enough for well balanced side in the rest of my team

            TV has been much harder to build in the last couple of seasons, price change algorithms seem to have changed, so the old tactic of building tv has disappeared to some extent anyway, and anyone who really goes up in value will probably not be worth trading in, think I want a good core and then see what bargains show themselves as the season progresses

            once prices are released that's when the real planning starts

    2. The 5% Team
      • 5 Years
      4 years, 9 months ago

      yeah, probably a strong template with predictable (or logical) picks. I'm afraid of a pretty boring season because of this.

  14. Evil Greg
    • 14 Years
    4 years, 9 months ago

    4.5m 4m
    Trent Digne 4.5m 4.5m 4m
    Sterling Mane Richarlison Fraser 4.5m
    Vardy Firmino 4.5m

    or...get all the penalty takers you can!

    VAR DOOM

  15. TorresMagic™
    • Fantasy Football Scout Member
    • Has Moderation Rights
    • 14 Years
    4 years, 9 months ago

    Toronto Raptors win 1st NBA title!

  16. gaurava1216
    • Fantasy Football Scout Member
    • 8 Years
    4 years, 9 months ago

    The GK options:

    When it comes to GK' s the options for most are either a 6 or 5M keeper (Set/forget) with 4M fodder or 2 4.5M rotating keepers (Home/Away).

    Premium GK 6M + : Ederson or Alison (10M Combo with 4M Set/Forget)
    Mid Price 5M : Fabianski or Pickford (9M combo with 4M set/Forget)
    Low priced Season Rotation: Norwich/Palace or Bmouth/S'hampton

    ( I don't see Burnley/Newcastle/ keepers at 4.5M this season) For me, at least to start i feel like this option to start the season with Rotating Home/Away looks challenging.

    For me based on Fixtures the only options are:
    Ederson or Alison + 4M
    Pickford + 4M

    1. Andy_Social
      • 11 Years
      4 years, 9 months ago

      For me based on Fixtures the only options are:
      Ederson or Alison + 4M
      Pickford + 4M

      Right, rotating goalkeepers never work for me - always the points are sat on the bench.
      You'll be wanting 3 outfield Pool and City assets, so given Everton's opening fixtures, Pickford is a no-brainer for me.

  17. gaurava1216
    • Fantasy Football Scout Member
    • 8 Years
    4 years, 9 months ago

    The Defender:

    I think most of us here are Likely to have Double Liverpool Defence/GK

    TAA will most likely be cheaper than Robbo/VVD so for me he will be highest owned defender in the game.

    Laporte of course is most nailed on- however, if Mendy can find his form/fitness and we get any indications he will start- for me he is a great option- could even be 0.5 cheaper than Laporte.

    Digne seems to be stand out- especially with the favourable fixtures

    The questions is- where is the value on the other 2 Defenders' spots?

    1. Andy_Social
      • 11 Years
      4 years, 9 months ago

      "The questions is- where is the value on the other 2 Defenders' spots?"

      You have to focus on the big 2. The leftfield possibilities are Zinchenko and Gomez.

  18. gaurava1216
    • Fantasy Football Scout Member
    • 8 Years
    4 years, 9 months ago

    Fair to say this back 4 will cost 27m?

    TAA(7) Robbo (7.5) Laporte(6.5) Digne(6)

    1. CloudSky
      • 7 Years
      4 years, 9 months ago

      At least.

  19. Andy_Social
    • 11 Years
    4 years, 9 months ago

    For me, value's in midfield, so 5 in the middle, 3 premium defenders, one up top. With a nailed keeper, that's 10 starters who'll cost money, a 4m unused GK and 4 super-cheapies. Touch 'n' go whether the budget will stretch.

    1. Witty Pun: Not good at this…
      • 7 Years
      4 years, 9 months ago

      3 premium defenders in a 3 at the back makes structure unbalanced in my opinion.

      1. Andy_Social
        • 11 Years
        4 years, 9 months ago

        Not for me when 2 of them, Robbo and TAA will play effectively as midfielders (remember Alonso 2 seasons back?)
        My third defender, Digne, could rank amongst them too. They'll all outscore midfielders in the same price bracket.

  20. Andy_Social
    • 11 Years
    4 years, 9 months ago

    My draft at the moment:

    GK Pickford (4.0)
    DEF Robbo, TAA, Digne (4.5, 4.0)
    MID Salah, Sterling, Fraser/Brooks, Redmond/Ward-P, Milivoivich
    FWD Aguero (IF can afford), Wilson for 1st 2 GW or DCL, (cheapest starter)

    1. Gringo Kid
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 5 Years
      4 years, 9 months ago

      That team will cost 107-108 at least

      1. Andy_Social
        • 11 Years
        4 years, 9 months ago

        Yeh, probably. The simple 'fix' is to sacrifice Aguero for fodder. I have perma-captain options in Salah and Sterling. A couple of solid starters up top would be fine altho' of course I'd grimace every GW Kun, Kane or Auba hauls, but that's the game! I do have a cheap Rashford at the back of my locker, though.

        1. pingissimus
          • 5 Years
          4 years, 9 months ago

          My guess when budgets come in is that it’s going to be a straight choice between Kun and Sterling for most - especially if it’s Mo over Mane.

          If Senegal and Egypt go all the way in the Afcon then it becomes really intriguing for the first couple of weeks.

          1. Andy_Social
            • 11 Years
            4 years, 9 months ago

            I'm assuming Kun will still be 2m+ more expensive than Raheem. If the difference is insignificant, I'd take Kun over Sterling as I don't see Jesus as a current threat.

            With Salah and Mane, again I'm assuming the former will still be 2m more expensive. If the gap is greater I'd take Mane. I'd have to completely think again if either are re-positioned as strikers, mind.

            I already have it penciled in that Wilson steps up for a benched Salah/Mane, and he gets flogged to free up cash GW3.

            1. pingissimus
              • 5 Years
              4 years, 9 months ago

              Yikes

              What price do you see Kun and Sterling as then? I’d’ve had them both as being around the 12 mark - being pessimistic.

              I hadn’t thought there would be a serious price difference

              1. Andy_Social
                • 11 Years
                4 years, 9 months ago

                You're probably right. I just checked and they both started last season at the same price, 11m. I thought Kun was higher. Yeh, 12m each is a good call. Think I'll go for Kun as nailed-on striker and captain, and lose Sterling for a decent nailed mid at half the price. Mind you, KdB could sneak in at a bargain price.

                1. Majestic Chanka
                  • 7 Years
                  4 years, 9 months ago

                  Kun
                  201
                  169

                  Raz
                  229
                  234

                  That’s last two seasons, Jesus may not rotate in too much but will play when Kun is injured. And Kun will get injured.

  21. Christina.
    • 14 Years
    4 years, 9 months ago

    Any decent third striker / 5th defender rotations floating around?

    1. Andy_Social
      • 11 Years
      4 years, 9 months ago

      I'm looking a Bur/AV for 4th/5th defender. Cheapest viable 3rd striker I can think of is DCL.
      Way I see it, BUR defenders will be cheap after last season but without Euro, should start better.

      1. pingissimus
        • 5 Years
        4 years, 9 months ago

        Agree on Burnley defender.

        Soton? I’d have them as a real option as a team with a full pre-season to work on systems and not just picking it up as they go along. Valery and Bednarek won’t be so cheap again I suppose but they could work out nicely.

        1. Andy_Social
          • 11 Years
          4 years, 9 months ago

          Southampton should be a decent mid-table team and they start with decent fixtures. I've got them and Bournemouth ear-marked for one player each. I'm going for midfield options because they seem decent value (before seeing the prices, of course). If there's a nailed-on Southampton defender at 4.5 I'm certainly interested if Redmond or JWP are 0.5 or 1.0m too high.

      2. Eze Really?
        • 9 Years
        4 years, 9 months ago

        Marco Silva will never give you value for money striker. DCL is a class player who is limited due to the lack of freedom afforded to him.

        1. Andy_Social
          • 11 Years
          4 years, 9 months ago

          Quite possibly, but I'm thinking last season Richarlison got off to a good start, and with Siggy in there I can see enough chances being created. If DCL gets minutes he should put a few away. My main interest in him is his price though, hence value. If he's only 5.5 again, he'll be ideal as a cheap punt.

  22. circusmonkey
    • Fantasy Football Scout Member
    • 13 Years
    4 years, 9 months ago

    What do you think the price of Zinc will be? Will it be classed as a defensive commodity and will it be regularly used?

    1. Andy_Social
      • 11 Years
      4 years, 9 months ago

      He ought to be re-classified as a Defender. He was back-up to Mendy, so it depends on whether Mendy is fit, sharp and trusted by Pep. My hunch is Zin will nail down that left-back position at a price of 5m. It would be a gamble, and LaPorte would be more nailed, but I'd see him as my #1 differential.

      1. 32chickens
        • Fantasy Football Scout Member
        • 13 Years
        4 years, 9 months ago

        Laporte is the man
        Pep will mess us about with Otto,stones,zinc,Mendy and delph

        1. Eze Really?
          • 9 Years
          4 years, 9 months ago

          This^

    2. Back on the horse
      • 13 Years
      4 years, 9 months ago

      I thought this was a commodities question for a second

  23. Eze Really?
    • 9 Years
    4 years, 9 months ago

    Every year rotation pairings rears its head.
    So much time put into analysis.
    All I can say in the last 2 years rotation has hurt rather than helped.

    Please let me know of any rotation success stories?
    Wolves comes to mind with me a tiny amount, but the likes of Doherty would be on the teamsheet every week.

    1. Andy_Social
      • 11 Years
      4 years, 9 months ago

      With Wolves, they start with Europa and tricky PL fixtures, so I won't have any in my GW1 squad.
      I don't go for rotating keepers - always get burned. The only ones I consider are 4th/5th defenders at 4.5m apiece.

      1. Eze Really?
        • 9 Years
        4 years, 9 months ago

        Basically my view. Too much time wasted on rotation pairings.
        I was talking Wolves last year. This year I will steer well clear of Wolves, especially with expected price increases and Euro football.

    2. diesel001
      • 7 Years
      4 years, 9 months ago

      CPL / NEW defence last season. I have posted my thoughts on rotation above in this article. It is NOT about home and away rotation.

      1. Eze Really?
        • 9 Years
        4 years, 9 months ago

        Who mentioned home and away?

        1. diesel001
          • 7 Years
          4 years, 9 months ago

          Look at this article. The first thing it goes on about is Home and Away pairings. Home and Away rotation is a fallacy of FPL. The key thing in keeping CS is the strength of the opposition.

          If you find a rotation pairing that avoids the Top 6 and ideally the best of the rest (Wolves, Everton, Leicester etc.) AND also from teams that have a history of keeping CS (Newcastle, Burnley, Crystal Palace etc.) then you are onto a winner generally.

          I started with a AWB / Lascelles defensive rotation last season - it worked very well for me. I did similar with Dunk and Dawson the season before (after my first WC).

          Rotation can work

          1. Eze Really?
            • 9 Years
            4 years, 9 months ago

            I think we are at cross purposes.
            My view is the home away rotation does not work. (In my case anyway)
            For rotation we are looking at the cheaper end of the market and nobody springs to mind that I would nail into "a good away fixture"
            Each to their own but when I see rotation I tend to ignore the post.
            If you structure a 5.5 mid pairing it could have benefits but the amount of times I do the rotation it invariably backfires with my points sitting on the bench.

  24. 32chickens
    • Fantasy Football Scout Member
    • 13 Years
    4 years, 9 months ago

    Remind me,what is Leeds gw1 fixture and what do their first 6 look like?

    1. Andy_Social
      • 11 Years
      4 years, 9 months ago

      You'll find out in a week. I've not been a fan of DirtyLeeds these last 50 years, but I'm gutted not to see Biela duking it out with the best of 'em.

      1. 32chickens
        • Fantasy Football Scout Member
        • 13 Years
        4 years, 9 months ago

        Never too early for
        Leeds,Leeds is falling apart again...
        But yes I'd bring their manager( without the team) to brighten up the PL

  25. FPL Maldini
    • Fantasy Football Scout Member
    • 9 Years
    4 years, 9 months ago

    How expensive do you think Brooks is going to cost next season?

    a) 5m

    b) 5.5m

    c) 6m

    d) 6.5m or more

    1. 32chickens
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 13 Years
      4 years, 9 months ago

      6.5 on the n9se

    2. Eytexi
      • 5 Years
      4 years, 9 months ago

      B but if Fraser is overpriced then maybe C for consistency.

    3. Andy_Social
      • 11 Years
      4 years, 9 months ago

      Given BOU had a meh season, Brookes and Fraser ought not get a price hike. Fraser started last season 5.5 so I'm hoping he'll be max 6.5 and Brooks should be in the region of 5.5.

      1. Maximus Bonimus Pointimus
        • 14 Years
        4 years, 9 months ago

        I think Fraser’s getting a massive hike personally... he outscored every striker bar Kun/Auba & outscored every mid bar the top 4 & Siggy

        I think 7.5-ish, 7.0 possibly too small & 8.0 possibly too big

        After getting him for 5.5 last year I can’t bear to pay that much for him this year, as good as he is when Wilson’s on the pitch

    4. Majestic Chanka
      • 7 Years
      4 years, 9 months ago

      B or C for me, trying to look at other FPL players who got about 120pts in first season.

      Fraser should be at least £8m so £6m feels most likely to me, £5.5m would be braw though!

  26. Majestic Chanka
    • 7 Years
    4 years, 9 months ago

    Seeing a lot of people high on Vardy, we reckon he stays at same price?

    I could see a rise to £10m for him, 4th top striker last year but crucially has a lot of history of similar seasons so not a 1 hit wonder.

    1. Witty Pun: Not good at this…
      • 7 Years
      4 years, 9 months ago

      Scored more points last season and he didn't rise

    2. pingissimus
      • 5 Years
      4 years, 9 months ago

      One difficulty he could present is that Bobby F and Laca aside there may not be anyone in his price range to swap in and out if you’re aiming to maximise premium transfers.

      Bobby F seems a non optimal Liverpool choice and Laca could yet be on his way - though that talk seems to have died down a bit.

    3. Maximus Bonimus Pointimus
      • 14 Years
      4 years, 9 months ago

      I hope he doesn’t go above 9.0 as witty says, he played more minutes, scored more goals and scored more points 2 seasons ago and was only 9.0 last year

      FWIW, I think he’d be worth 9.5 and possibly 10.0 but hoping we’ll get lucky with a 9.0 tag

      1. Andy_Social
        • 11 Years
        4 years, 9 months ago

        Leicester have a great young squad (and Vardy) but with iffy opening fixtures, I'll not have any in my GW1 squad. I'll have Vardy on my watchlist along with Maddison and Tielmans if he's still there.
        Rashford might be a shout if Lukaku goes.

        1. Maximus Bonimus Pointimus
          • 14 Years
          4 years, 9 months ago

          I think(/hope) he’s set for greatness & will be close to fixture proof under Rodgers

          Even last season he seemed to do pretty well vs tougher teams - I think he managed 5 G/1A in 4 starts/2 subs vs City/Arsenal/Chelsea/Spurs/Utd

          Fitness may prove to be the bigger obstacle than form or fixtures, but will cross that bridge

  27. Maximus Bonimus Pointimus
    • 14 Years
    4 years, 9 months ago

    Ok, having a guess at some prices now that we know fixtures - anyone look wrong/over-called?

    Henderson(4.5)
    Robbo(8.0), TAA(7.0), Laporte(6.5), Digne(6.0), Ritchie(6.0)
    Salah(13.0), Sterling(12.0), _____
    Vardy(9.0), _____
    (4.0, 4.5, 4.5, 4.5)

    This would leave 11.0 for two outfield attackers, either 2 striker or 2 mids, or 1 of each... or 10.0 for two attackers and a wee bit more of a bench etc -maybe a 4-way 5.0 attacking rotation even to pad out the two blank spots

    If there happens to be one or two decent playing 4.5 mids/strikers then Could actually afford a 6.0/6.5 in one of the blanks - Dwight McNeil at 4.5 would be interesting for example

    1. Andy_Social
      • 11 Years
      4 years, 9 months ago

      Looks a decent call. Who's this Lionel Ritchie?

      1. Maximus Bonimus Pointimus
        • 14 Years
        4 years, 9 months ago

        Super Matt Ritchie... FPL May be set to throw us a bone apparently by reclassify him to a defender - pens, FK’s, and corners for a Def usually equal carnage points wise

        1. Andy_Social
          • 11 Years
          4 years, 9 months ago

          You'd really pay 6m for him?
          Toon have nasty opening fixtures and there's uncertainty over Rafa - I'm staying clear for now.

          1. Maximus Bonimus Pointimus
            • 14 Years
            4 years, 9 months ago

            Yeah i’d defintiely pay 6.0 (maybe even 6.5)

            If he’s a defender he instantly goes into that exclusive bucket of being a player who realistically could score double figures in literally any game, even without a clean sheet

            Agree though if Rafa goes maybe think twice defensively... but then again if a new man came in & moved him further forward he could be even more dangerous

            1. Queenofthestoneage
              • 4 Years
              4 years, 9 months ago

              What makes you think he might be reclassified as a defender?

              Sigurdsson at 8.0m. VVD at 7.5m. Aguero at 11m. Jimenez at 8m. Fraser 7m.

  28. boc610
    • 12 Years
    4 years, 9 months ago

    astonishing sea change taking place in management at the moment...just being a respected ex pro or 'club legend' with "fresh ideas" seems to be enough. no hard grafting from the bottom up needed. Lampard potentially getting the Chelsea job is utter insanity. he has done absolutely nothing as a manager other than nearly get Derby to the playoffs, which countless others have on their CV. but just add it to the pile of OGS at united, giggs at Wales, Stevie G at Gers, and even Woodgate and robbie keane at Boro.

    1. Andy_Social
      • 11 Years
      4 years, 9 months ago

      Very true - all out of their depth. But with Chelsea on a transfer ban, losing their best player and their entitled fans hounding out a manager who could not have squeezed more out of them, who realistically would they get? It's prob not a bad thing in the long run if Lamps and Jody Morris use the next year to bed in younger players. From a FPL POV, the simple message is - avoid!

    2. Maximus Bonimus Pointimus
      • 14 Years
      4 years, 9 months ago

      It’s been this way since day dot - Gullit, Vialli, John Barnes, Roy Keane and many more - all given big jobs on the back of their playing career rather than their management ability

  29. The Mighty I
    • Fantasy Football Scout Member
    • 11 Years
    4 years, 9 months ago

    A BOU-WHM defensive/GK rotation results in 6 out of the first 10 fixtures against newly promoted sides.

    1. Andy_Social
      • 11 Years
      4 years, 9 months ago

      Yeh but Bou defence badly let me down last season - altho' I think the few cleanies they did get were about promotees, Hudd and Brighton. I think I'll just get Brooks and from them this time.

      1. The Mighty I
        • Fantasy Football Scout Member
        • 11 Years
        4 years, 9 months ago

        I agree that Bournemouth defensively are hardly solid but they did lead the way in shots conceded outside the box during the last 10 gameweeks.
        Save points could negate that somewhat.

  30. Marmalade Forest
    • 6 Years
    4 years, 9 months ago

    Is anybody interested in seeing big sweeping changes?

    More of the wingers in 433s last season becoming forwards?

    Dropping the 553 squads?

    Forcing a proper team with wing/fullbacks, at least two centrebacks and at least one holding midfielder?

    Players being able to play multiple positions, or scoring points based on where they actually play?

    1. Epic Fail
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 13 Years
      4 years, 9 months ago

      No. Leave it as it is.

    2. Eze Really?
      • 9 Years
      4 years, 9 months ago

      Time for change IMO.
      1 wild card
      No TC
      No BB
      No FH
      Put players in their positions (Salah is a forward for example)
      Maybe add 4 free transfers to cover poor luck in injury situations.

      1. Wrong Captain Choice - Ag i…
        • 14 Years
        4 years, 9 months ago

        I agree.
        The chips add a real luck element to it and in any-case they are normally all kept by people at the end of the season who still have interest in the game.

        I would also like proper positions defensive midfielder etc, wingback etc.

        1. Eze Really?
          • 9 Years
          4 years, 9 months ago

          100%
          The game is too lucky as is. Chips add to that.
          I like the Wingback idea