Pre-Season

The best budget FPL defenders for 2020/21

Our position-by-position analysis of the Fantasy Premier League player price list begins with a look at budget defenders.

In this piece, we will scrutinise the 91 defensive assets currently available at £4.0m or £4.5m and pinpoint the players who stand out – as well as those to avoid.

With there being a glut of premium midfield options in FPL this season, budget-freeing players in defence may be in particularly high demand.

Indeed, six sub-£5.0m defenders currently have double-digit ownership at the time of writing.

£4.0m Bench Fodder – Or Better?

Lundstram delivers on recent promise as Grealish misses penalty

The 2019/20 golden goose that was John Lundstram (£5.5m) has been reclassified and handed a price rise ahead of the new campaign, leaving a £4.0m-shaped hole in FPL ahead of the new campaign.

It seems very unlikely that we’ll get a repeat of the erstwhile Fantasy defender’s out-of-position heroics from another source this season but there are always one or two names who emerge from the FPL bargain bin to establish themselves as bench fodder options or better.

Pre-season will be a good indicator of which of these assets may come to the fore and it was in Sheffield United’s friendlies last summer that it became apparent that Lundstram was going to be more than just a back-up option.

While very unlikely to match Lundstram’s achievements, Nathan Ferguson (£4.0m) could still replicate what Aaron Wan-Bissaka (£5.5m) did at Crystal Palace a few seasons ago.

Ferguson joined the Eagles from West Bromwich Albion this summer, having almost done so in January.

Able to play in either full-back position and at centre-half, Ferguson’s versatility could come in handy as Roy Hodgson’s side have a number of first-team defenders who are struggling to be fit for the new campaign.

Right-back is the role in which he will reportedly challenge in the medium term, however, with Joel Ward (£4.5m) at risk.

Teammate Tyrick Mitchell (£4.0m), who deputised for the injured Patrick van Aanholt (£5.5m) in two matches at the back-end of 2019/20, is also available at this price point and we’ll be eagerly awaiting news on the Dutchman’s recovery ahead of the new campaign.

While we would never wish misfortune on any player, an injury to Trent Alexander-Arnold (£7.5m) would see Neco Williams’ (£4.0m) ownership figure sky-rocket.

The back-up Liverpool right-back saw plenty of pitch-time once Liverpool’s title win was in the bag but will be reduced to playing second fiddle at the start of 2020/21, unless anything happens to Alexander-Arnold – otherwise, the occasional start in periods of congestion or late-game substitute appearance is about the best he can hope for.

Much of what we have written about Williams also applies to most of the other £4.0m assets, in that they will be reliant on injuries befalling their positional rivals in order to get game-time.

Wing-back Oskar Buur (£4.0m) and centre-half Max Kilman (£4.0m) are some way down the pecking order in their respective positions at Wolves, while Manchester United’s Teden Mengi (£4.0m) has had only six minutes of senior football (in the Europa League) in his fledgeling senior career.

Newcastle United youngster Kelland Watts (£4.0m) and Burnley’s out-of-favour Ben Gibson (£4.0m) may well depart their club on loan or permanently, meanwhile.

Bernardo (£4.0m) will play back-up to Dan Burn (£4.5m) at Brighton, while Sam Vokins (£4.0m) is another understudy left-back on the south coast, this time at Southampton.

It’s worth monitoring the cases of Jarrad Branthwaite (£4.0m) and Ben Johnson (£4.0m) over the summer.

Branthwaite impressed at centre-half in injury-hit Everton’s final four fixtures of last season but will now face increased competition from the Toffees’ fit-again Mason Holgate (£5.0m) and Yerry Mina (£5.5m).

Right-back Johnson was the beneficiary of Jeremy Ngakia’s decision to leave east London on a free in June, starting West Ham’s last three matches.

Ryan Fredericks (£4.5m) was recalled to the team in Gameweek 38+ but Johnson still kept his place, switching flanks to cover for West Ham’s two injured left-backs.

Finally, a word on Leeds United’s £4.0m-rated quartet.

Leif Davis, Oliver Casey, Barry Douglas and Pascal Struijk started just eight Championship matches between them last season, with set-piece whizz Douglas responsible for six of them.

Most are expected to be back-ups if they stick around next season although Struijk, interestingly, started Leeds’ last two Championship matches in central midfield (admittedly because of injuries and there being nothing tangible to play for) and impressed.

With Leeds still no closer to securing Ben White‘s (£4.5m) permanent signature at the time of writing, Struijk could even be in the shake-up for a start at centre-back in Gameweek 1.

Newly Promoted £4.5m Options

On the subject of Marcelo Bielsa’s side, there are four more Leeds defenders available at £4.5m.

Garnering the most attention from FPL managers at present are Stuart Dallas and Luke Ayling, who are currently the third and fourth most-owned FPL defenders at the £4.5m price point.

Those two players were Leeds’ first-choice full-backs for much of the season, registering eight attacking returns apiece in a side that kept 22 clean sheets and conceded on just 35 occasions.

Dallas and the equally versatile Ezgjan Alioski (£4.5m) were both deployed ‘out of position’ by Bielsa on several occasions and it’s worth keeping an eye on the Whites’ pre-season friendly line-ups to see if there are any clues ahead of Gameweek 1.

Dallas seems to find a space in Bielsa’s side no matter if his services aren’t required at left-back, having started all but one of his side’s 46 Championship matches last season.

You can read much more on Leeds’ defence, including centre-back Liam Cooper (£4.5m), in our special player-by-player guide to the newly promoted outfit.

With the £5.0m-rated Semi Ajayi the stand-out option in the West Brom defence, there is little left to cheer in the £4.5m bracket.

Uncertainty in the full-back positions and indeed alongside Ajayi at centre-half means that we wouldn’t be able to call Slaven Bilic’s first-choice defence at this early stage and all eyes will be on West Brom’s pre-season fixtures, along with any Albion movement in the transfer market.

You can read an in-depth, player-by-player guide to the Baggies’ backline here.

As with West Brom, there are question marks over the competency of Fulham’s backline, as well as the personnel within it.

January signing Michael Hector (£4.5m) looks a secure starter after having had a transformative effect on the Cottagers’ defence in the second half of the season, although he didn’t particularly pose much of a goal threat after his arrival.

Neither did the ageing Tim Ream (£4.5m), starter of 44 of Fulham’s Championship matches, who was preferred over Alfie Mawson (£4.5m) as Hector’s partner this calendar year.

Scott Parker may well bring in a right-back this summer (especially if Denis Odoi departs), with Cyrus Christie (£4.5m) and Steven Sessegnon (£4.5m) his existing options in that department.

Again, we won’t retread too much over old ground and instead point you in the direction of our detailed player-by-player guide to Fulham’s defence.

Big Six Back-Ups and Potential Starters

 1

Brandon Williams (£4.5m) has been handed a price rise by FPL after his breakthrough season in 2019/20, although he is still in budget defender territory.

Given how prone to injury Luke Shaw (£5.0m) can be, we Fantasy managers will be watching with keen interest over the coming weeks to see if the more senior left-back has recovered from the ankle problem that prematurely ended his season.

Axel Tuanzebe and Timothy Fosu-Mensah are the other back-up United options available at this price point but it’ll be Williams who the FPL world will be monitoring once the Red Devils’ season gets underway in Gameweek 2.

Ole Gunnar Solskaer’s troops kept clean sheets in nine of their final 14 league matches last season, while Williams made 11 starts in the whole of 2019/20.

Juan Foyth‘s one league start under Jose Mourinho saw the Argentinean hooked at half-time, so it remains to be seen if the sole £4.5m Spurs defender is anything but surplus to requirements this summer.

Across north London, there is more intrigue in the £4.5m bracket.

While two of Arsenal’s four-strong contingent at this price are currently crocked, there could potentially be a bargain to be had in the shape of William Saliba.

The highly-thought-of teenage centre-back was signed for a whopping £26m at the age of 18 and is fresh back from a loan spell at St Etienne.

Saliba is thought to be the long-term plan on the right-hand side of Arsenal’s defence and, with positional rivals Calum Chambers (£4.5m) and Shkodran Mustafi (£5.0m) sidelined, may find himself starting a Premier League game sooner than thought.

Rob Holding is also available at £4.5m, but despite starting the Gunners’ last three league matches and the FA Cup final, was way down the pecking order until injuries stacked up at centre-half and may find himself struggling for game-time yet again.

Top-Half Understudies

All eyes will be on Nuno Espirito Santo in this summer’s transfer market, as any inactivity from Wolves could present us with a £4.5m-rated route into an impressive backline that kept clean sheets in nine of their final 14 games.

A serious injury to Jonny (£5.5m) has temporarily paved the way for Ruben Vinagre (£4.5m) to start at left wing-back but Wolves are reportedly in negotiations for Napoli’s Faouzi Ghoulam, which would swiftly nip the Vinagre bandwagon in the bud.

Teammate Ryan Bennett (£4.5m) was farmed out on loan by Santo in the second half of last season and may move on this summer.

Sheffield United’s one remaining sub-£5.0m defender, Jack Robinson (£4.5m), will again be reliant on left-sided centre-half Jack O’Connell (£5.0m) picking up an injury in order to be given game-time.

Leicester City’s quintet of £4.5m-rated FPL defenders are all back-ups when the first-choice options are fit but with Ricardo Pereira (£6.0m) not thought to be back until October, James Justin (£4.5m) could be given a stay of execution at right-back for a favourable run of games in the first five Gameweeks.

Luke Thomas (£4.5m) may also start the season on the left if Ben Chilwell (£5.5m) fails to recover from injury or departs for pastures new – although if that latter situation occurs, Brendan Rodgers will surely dip into the transfer market.

Jonny Evans‘ (£5.5m) three-match ban also temporarily opens up a spot at centre-half but the Leicester boss may very well reinforce his options at the back with only veteran Wes Morgan (£4.5m) and the untested Filip Benkovic (£4.5m) for cover.

Vinagre is the only £4.5m defender currently owned by more FPL managers than Charlie Taylor.

The Burnley left-back is one of five Clarets players who are available at this bargain price despite the fact that only Manchester City kept more clean sheets than Sean Dyche’s (15) side last season.

Four of those options are admittedly competing for two positions and, while the tussle for the right-back slot between Matthew Lowton (£4.5m) and Phil Bardsley (£4.5m) seems set to drag on, Taylor was mostly preferred over Erik Pieters (£4.5m) at left-back when he was fully fit.

Admittedly, there isn’t a great deal of attacking threat posed by these cheaper alternatives to James Tarkowski (£5.5m) and Nick Pope (£5.5m) and Burnley do blank in Gameweek 1.

But this is a tried-and-tested backline with little risk of rotation when things are going well, so plenty of us will be revisiting the Clarets from Gameweek 2 onwards.

The Best of the Rest

Walker-Peters has fixtures but as yet unproven pedigree as a budget FPL defender

Southampton are one of the sides we picked out for the right reasons in our first Frisking the Fixtures piece of 2020/21.

It could be that three of their starting back four are available for £4.5m in their Gameweek 1 clash with Crystal Palace, with new arrivals Kyle Walker-Peters and Mohammed Salisu joining Jan Bednarek at this price point.

Salisu could be competing with Bednarek for the left-sided centre-back role and, although the Pole could potentially move over to the right, perhaps the safest cheap route into the Saints backline – for now – would be Walker-Peters.

The former Spurs man impressed in the run-in after a slow start to his Saints career, although only four chances created from Gameweeks 31+ to 38+ was hardly a ringing endorsement of his FPL potential.

Jamaal Lascelles faces a race against time to be fit for the new season but, when available, the Newcastle centre-half is the most-nailed of the Magpies’ seven £4.5m FPL defenders – three of whom are right-backs.

Simply put, Lascelles starts every match when not on the sidelines.

The Magpies’ opening four matches are reasonably appealing but Steve Bruce’s recent change to a more attacking 4-2-3-1 has perhaps come at the expense of their usual solidity at the back, with only two clean sheets arriving in the post-lockdown era.

Crystal Palace are another team who have traditionally been a good bet for a clean sheet when playing the Premier League ‘also-rans’ and the Eagles have an excellent run of matches at Selhurst Park to begin the season with.

Three of their five £4.5m defenders are currently flagged in FPL, however, in the form of centre-backs Gary Cahill, Mamadou Sakho and James Tomkins.

Having ended the season with a patched-up defence and eight matches without a win, it may be another makeshift backline involving Joel Ward (£4.5m) and Martin Kelly (£4.5m) that is sent out to face Southampton in Gameweek 1.

There are eight Brighton defenders available at £4.5m but Dan Burn, Tariq Lamptey and Adam Webster are the three who had established themselves alongside Lewis Dunk (£5.0m) in Albion’s first-choice backline towards the season’s end.

Where new signing Joel Veltman, who is able to play at right-back and centre-half, and Leeds target Ben White fit into all this is another question, and Graham Potter’s unpredictable rotation will be enough for many FPL managers to bypass the defence and head straight for risk-free goalkeeper Mathew Ryan (£4.5m).

Aston Villa were much improved from a defensive perspective after the restart in June, with only three clubs conceding fewer big chances.

There’ll still be some mistrust at a side that conceded more goals than all bar Norwich City last season, however, and a Blank Gameweek 1 is another black mark against them.

Kortney Hause‘s (£4.5m) set-piece threat really caught the eye when he briefly made Dean Smith’s starting XI and the assist potential of Matt Targett (£4.5m), creator of more opportunities and ‘big chances’ in 2019/20 than any other defender in this piece, has been well-documented, but there’ll realistically be few takers.

Finally, few of us will be going near West Ham United’s £4.5m-rated defenders anytime soon with the Hammers bottom of our Season Ticker from Gameweeks 1-8.

That should give us plenty of time to see if Ryan Fredericks (£4.5m) or the £4.0m-related Johnson is David Moyes’ first-choice right-back ahead of the fixture swing in Gameweek 9.

Best players by position:

1,293 Comments Post a Comment
  1. Flynny
    • 9 Years
    4 years, 2 months ago

    Pick 1 to start the season with...

    A....ings in a 343

    B...son in 352

    Thanks

    1. Miguel Sanchez
      • 8 Years
      4 years, 2 months ago

      A

    2. Flair
      • 4 Years
      4 years, 2 months ago

      A

    3. Madame R.
      • 4 Years
      4 years, 2 months ago

      A for me too.

      1. Flynny
        • 9 Years
        4 years, 2 months ago

        Cheers

        1. Ser Davos
          • 9 Years
          4 years, 2 months ago

          Yes A

          Pondering Ziyech and Mitro combo over Ings and Pereira

    4. Fpl Richie
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 9 Years
      4 years, 2 months ago

      Interesting - I posted the same yesterday and got the mirror opposite response

      1. Goonsquad245
        • 8 Years
        4 years, 2 months ago

        I think B fwiw!

  2. Flair
    • 4 Years
    4 years, 2 months ago

    Wanted a WC GW10 to hit City and Liverpool's fixture swings but around GW4 looks better perhaps... Spurs fixtures look much better offensively, Wolves have it very easy, with Liverpool you can dodge Chelsea + Arsenal then double up on defense. Not exactly difficult to jump on City anyways when the time comes, Kane -> Aguero falls almost perfectly, KDB probably already in the team and if Sterling looks on fire than easy swap as a premium. Obviously having a set WC strategy isn't ideal but I'd like to have a good idea of when I want to so I can plan GW1 accordingly. Thoughts?

    1. Madame R.
      • 4 Years
      4 years, 2 months ago

      Liverpool assets have always scored highly for me in the past at home v Arsenal, a fixture we are terrible at in recent seasons!

    2. Fulchester's New Centr…
      • 7 Years
      4 years, 2 months ago

      Looks like a plan, but if nothing appears to be broken at week 10 then I'd hold out rather than being strictly wedded to the plan.

  3. Madame R.
    • 4 Years
    4 years, 2 months ago

    McCarthy (Nyland)
    TAA, VVD, Doherty (Taylor, Ferg)
    Salah, Auba, Madds, SaintMax, Soucek
    Ings, Jimenez (Davis)

    Plan is GW3 Auba/Madds > KDB/Greenwood.

    Looks ok long term, just GW2 is a bit of a nightmare, maybe just keep fingers crossed and grin and bare it!

    1. Fulchester's New Centr…
      • 7 Years
      4 years, 2 months ago

      Madds is the only real question mark

      1. Madame R.
        • 4 Years
        4 years, 2 months ago

        Yes, he's a bit of a punt, could always bench Greenwood and use him in GW2 against Palace.

  4. Botman and Robben
    • 8 Years
    4 years, 2 months ago

    Anyone on here toying with bringing in one Manchester asset, e.g Bruno/Greenwood and benching for GW1?

    1. Andy_Social
      • 12 Years
      4 years, 2 months ago

      Yes, I have a roadmap.
      GW1 Martial (on the bench, obvs)
      GW3 Auba+Soucek > Bruno+Greenwood
      (need money itb for price rises)

      1. Botman and Robben
        • 8 Years
        4 years, 2 months ago

        What is your attack with Martial on bench?

        1. Andy_Social
          • 12 Years
          4 years, 2 months ago

          Werner and Adams

          1. Andy_Social
            • 12 Years
            4 years, 2 months ago

            and Auba and Salah if you want to count them

            1. Botman and Robben
              • 8 Years
              4 years, 2 months ago

              Not bad

    2. FOO FIGHTER
      • 5 Years
      4 years, 2 months ago

      I would never want to bench a premium player.

      1. Andy_Social
        • 12 Years
        4 years, 2 months ago

        I'm keeping to a strategy I outlined a few weeks ago. Coast a little in the first 5 weeks as I build up my optimum squad, whilst others blow hits, chips and wildcards. I believe I'll smash it in the longterm.

        1. Ser Davos
          • 9 Years
          4 years, 2 months ago

          Tortoise and hare stuff

          Patience is the key to this game

    3. Madame R.
      • 4 Years
      4 years, 2 months ago

      Yes, either Greenwood benched or a punt on Maddison for a couple of weeks.

    4. Ask Yourself
      • 8 Years
      4 years, 2 months ago

      Yeah martial bench for me too with Auba > KDB/Sterling GW3. Soucek can stay as a reliable bench boy who can score in any game from a set piece. I am happy with martial only for the medium/long term given the fixtures

    5. Jordan.
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 14 Years
      4 years, 2 months ago

      just couldnt be bothered yesterday after fixtures release ,no mancs or indeed burnley just spoilt it,back into it today ,have listened to the educated points of view on here and my strategy is to bench people i will be buying gw1,i dont trust myself with this placeholder theory ,bound to be a reluctance on my part to say jettison auba or son if they do well gw1,gw2 this is draft #1

      mcarthy

      trent / vvd / justin / ferguson

      (s)alah / asm / ziyech

      antonio / mitrovic / adams

      nyland / branthwaite / kdb / rashford

      not everyones method i understand ,but ok with me today...

      1. Andy_Social
        • 12 Years
        4 years, 2 months ago

        Looks alright actually, although Antonio has a nasty run of fixtures from GW2

        1. Jordan.
          • Fantasy Football Scout Member
          • 14 Years
          4 years, 2 months ago

          yep he,ll be my transfer out probably gw2,i just think im unlikely to use hits or chips this way whereas i deffo think people without mancs will gw2&3...

      2. Goonsquad245
        • 8 Years
        4 years, 2 months ago

        You've got it right.

    6. Soto Ayam
      • 5 Years
      4 years, 2 months ago

      Green and Bruno on the bench for me

      1. Indpush
        • 6 Years
        4 years, 2 months ago

        Same, Green and Bruno

    7. Dr Van Nostrand
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 9 Years
      4 years, 2 months ago

      Yep Rashers and Taylor. Only problem is need to divert some funds to a better bench initially

  5. Don Kloppeone
    • 7 Years
    4 years, 2 months ago

    Bottomed

    I don’t know why because he keeps delivering, but I’ve never been a fan of Auba in my teams but with the need to bring in MCI/MUN mids his price point makes him pretty unavoidable imo. With that said, this is what I’m on atm. What do you reckon? Any improvements you’d make?

    0itb
    McCarthy
    TAA, VVD, Doherty, Vinagre
    Salah, Auba, Son, Armstrong
    Werner, Mitro
    (Nyland) (Stephens, Ferguson, Davis)

    Main issue I see for now is the weakness of the bench...

    Cheers

    1. Miguel Sanchez
      • 8 Years
      4 years, 2 months ago

      That looks good for GW1 but might have a trickier time in GW2. Solid enough XI but the planned transfer for the Manchester club players will be problematic for most.

      1. Don Kloppeone
        • 7 Years
        4 years, 2 months ago

        Thanks MS

        I’m torn tbh vs keeping Greenwood and benching and saving a sure transfer afterwards.

        The way I see it with this squad if all the placeholders fire then I could feasibly hold off a week or two on the moves anyway

        1. Miguel Sanchez
          • 8 Years
          4 years, 2 months ago

          I think there is some merit in keeping someone like Greenwood with his price on the bench GW1 with the likes of ASM and Soucek have decent first couple of fixtures. Just find a 4.5 def with a good GW1 fixture and bench Greenwood.

          1. Miguel Sanchez
            • 8 Years
            4 years, 2 months ago

            Son to Greenwood and Stephens to ASM would allow you to bench Greenwood GW and play ASM. Then in GW2 you can play ASM at home in place of Vinagre when Wolves play City.

  6. Siva Mohan
    • 12 Years
    4 years, 2 months ago

    Everton Pre-season

    Blackpool vs Everton - Saturday 22 August (3pm BST)

    Blackburn Rovers vs Everton - Tuesday 1 September (6pm BST)

    Third warm-up fixture to be announced

  7. FF Dirtbag
    • 13 Years
    4 years, 2 months ago

    Hows it looking at the mo?

    McCarthy Nyland
    TAA Bavies Vinagre Justin Ferguson
    Salah Auba Son AsM Stephens
    Ings Jimenez Mitrovic

    0 left in the bank

    1. Kaz77
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 6 Years
      4 years, 2 months ago

      I would like to see Chelsea for GW1. Werner in for Jiminez and downgrade Mitrovic? You may need to switch to 5 in mid.

      1. FF Dirtbag
        • 13 Years
        4 years, 2 months ago

        Don't trust Chelsea. I wanna see them play with basically a new attacking line up... They haven't played competitive matches together yet!

        1. Kaz77
          • Fantasy Football Scout Member
          • 6 Years
          4 years, 2 months ago

          True, but Ziyec has been with the team since last season and could be worth the risk if they hit the ground running - just as Fernandes did with Man U. Not convinced Fulham will be scoring much.

  8. rozzo
    • 11 Years
    4 years, 2 months ago

    Is Robertson worth the extra. 5 over Van Dijk?

    Robertson has 24 assists over the last two seasons. Ridiculous numbers for a defender if you think about it.

    I guess the only problem is he will miss the odd match with Van Dijk playing every minute?

    1. FF Dirtbag
      • 13 Years
      4 years, 2 months ago

      VVD was basically the same points as him last season and rarely gets rotated.

    2. Miguel Sanchez
      • 8 Years
      4 years, 2 months ago

      Not for me - VVD could well outscore Robbo this season with the new signing coming in around the time of the UCL games.

    3. Ser Davos
      • 9 Years
      4 years, 2 months ago

      I think Robbo is worth the .5 extra as the assists trickle in regularly

      The saving on VVD means you have to be more patient for when a bullet header explodes

    4. ow00019
      • 8 Years
      4 years, 2 months ago

      VVD has more or less covered him the last 2 seasons and is .5 less. Seems an easy choice to me. I was hoping trent was gonna be 8.5 and Van Dijk would've been a no brainer.

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

    Going off the strategies being posted on here, the player values of Auba, Son + Salah/Mane will have massively dropped by GW3 regardless of how they preform in GW 1 + 2,

    1. Christina.
      • 14 Years
      4 years, 2 months ago

      and why is that?

      1. Gabbiadini
        • 7 Years
        4 years, 2 months ago

        people trading them to Fernandes, KDB, Martial, GW, Sterling etc.

        1. LangerznMash
          • 8 Years
          4 years, 2 months ago

          ^ this

        2. Christina.
          • 14 Years
          4 years, 2 months ago

          most will do that on a WC, last time I looked those trsfrs dont effect price movements
          Either way, points over price

    2. Ask Yourself
      • 8 Years
      4 years, 2 months ago

      Yep. Fairly promising for those who want to risk going Salah-less for the start

      1. LangerznMash
        • 8 Years
        4 years, 2 months ago

        Indeed. I'm having Kane until around GW9 when the fixtures turn. Hopefully his price will have risen (due to scoring lots in easy starting fixtures) and Auba/Salah fallen for me to accommodate an easy swap. Might only cost £1.0m instead of £1.5m

        1. Christina.
          • 14 Years
          4 years, 2 months ago

          How can you plan so long in advance?

          1. LangerznMash
            • 8 Years
            4 years, 2 months ago

            You only get one free transfer per week so you have to plan for some of your players to be in your team for at least nine weeks or else you are taking multiple point hits or using wild card early.

    3. Goonsquad245
      • 8 Years
      4 years, 2 months ago

      And then Salah's price goes back up again once he gets a couple of hauls and people tear their teams up to get him back in.

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

        Those "couple of hauls" scenarios are much more rare than perhaps you're giving him credit for... He's definitely been on a bit of a downswing since ~Jan'19/the last ~24 months or so...

        Since GW24 of 2018/19:
        - 49 Appearances (48 starts, 1 sub)
        - 2 treble returns
        - 7 double returns
        - 17 single returns
        - 23 blanks

        So whilst he has returned in just over half of his appearances (26/49)... when it comes to "hauls"... he really only has two big ones:

        - Home to Huddersfield GW36 2018/19 - 2G 1A - 18 points April'19
        - Away to Brighton GW34 2019/20 - 2G 1A - 18 points Jul'20

        Beyond that it was really 7 double returns (each between 12-14 points - very good scoring)

        Then the remaining 40 appearances were either blanks (23) or lots of little 5-9 pointers (17)

    4. ow00019
      • 8 Years
      4 years, 2 months ago

      How much of what you hear do you think is talk? If Auba/Salah fire and MU/MC have had no real pre season to speak of how keen are people going to be to sell their assets?

  10. Siva Mohan
    • 12 Years
    4 years, 2 months ago

    Leeds United will push for a deal for Freiburg central defender Robin Koch in the next 48 hours, according to The Athletic.

    It has been reported that Leeds have failed in their third bid to sign Ben White from Brighton and Hove Albion in the summer transfer window.

    1. Flair
      • 4 Years
      4 years, 2 months ago

      Doesn't look good for Leeds defense. Played every single minute last season

      1. ow00019
        • 8 Years
        4 years, 2 months ago

        Heard hes pretty reasonable. Think he might even have a cheeky appearance for Germany.

    2. Gabbiadini
      • 7 Years
      4 years, 2 months ago

      Rodrigo (Valencia) also being linked to Leeds

  11. Gabbiadini
    • 7 Years
    4 years, 2 months ago

    GW3...
    Salah and Greenwood
    or.
    Fernandes and Martial

    1. Christina.
      • 14 Years
      4 years, 2 months ago

      crawl before you walk

      1. Gabbiadini
        • 7 Years
        4 years, 2 months ago

        at this stage... influences starting selection.

        1. Christina.
          • 14 Years
          4 years, 2 months ago

          GL, not sure anyone can give you an answer on that Q

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

        This.

        Sorry about GW1 now, GW3 later.

        1. Gabbiadini
          • 7 Years
          4 years, 2 months ago

          with option 1 being 2 mids and option 2 being a mid and a fwd I will have to decide GW1 if my 7.0 placeholder is a fwd or a mid otherwise an extra trade (-4) will be used.

  12. Siva Mohan
    • 12 Years
    4 years, 2 months ago

    nited should send Ed Woodward to defend Maguire, he'll be able to get an 18 month sentence knocked down to 18 months after negotiating for 3 weeks.

    😀

    1. Andy_Social
      • 12 Years
      4 years, 2 months ago

      Boom boom! 🙂

  13. FOO FIGHTER
    • 5 Years
    4 years, 2 months ago

    Keep on making changes to my forward line and everytime I end up with Mitrovic when I never wanted him in the first place. Has to be a sign so now I will just go with him 😀

    1. Andy_Social
      • 12 Years
      4 years, 2 months ago

      Ha ha, been exactly like that with me. Hope I've settled on Adams now, but no promises!

    2. Ser Davos
      • 9 Years
      4 years, 2 months ago

      Exactly. Knew he'd end up in our teams since they were to face hoodoo Brentford in the play offs. FPL destiny

      Wondering if there's an alternative like Pereira?

    3. Nomar
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 14 Years
      4 years, 2 months ago

      Nailed on and on pens.

      Seriously, the best I’m hoping for from him is 10 goals and 4 assists. But I’ll happily take that at that price point and have a guy I know will start every week and be involved in most of his team’s goals.

      That’s all I’m asking from him, so once you look at it like that he becomes a solid, but unspectacular, pick.

      1. Ser Davos
        • 9 Years
        4 years, 2 months ago

        If it is a repeat of two years ago and he's in for 4-8 GWs, he's got you a brace and then move him on for the inevitable breakout emerger then it is job done

    4. ow00019
      • 8 Years
      4 years, 2 months ago

      I think he's a pretty reasonable punt. I often feel some of promoted teams best performances come at the start of the season when their tails are up so I hope to see some early value.

  14. King Kohli
    • 12 Years
    4 years, 2 months ago

    Quite happy with this draft. Thoughts?

    McCarthy
    TAA Doherty Saliba Vinagre
    Justin
    Salah Auba ASM
    Werner Ings

    Button Soucek Greenwood Wickham

    Gw 2 : Salah > Bruno
    Gw 3 : Auba > Kdb

    1. Ser Davos
      • 9 Years
      4 years, 2 months ago

      Looks great

    2. Fulchester's New Centr…
      • 7 Years
      4 years, 2 months ago

      Lovely stuff

    3. Fpl Richie
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 9 Years
      4 years, 2 months ago

      Nice. Obviously play Soucek gw1

    4. King Kohli
      • 12 Years
      4 years, 2 months ago

      Cheers guys

  15. h3nh3n
    • 4 Years
    4 years, 2 months ago

    Wanting constructive criticism on this team:

    McCarthy - Ryan
    TAA - Vinagre - Ferguson - Douglas - Thomas
    Auba - Salah - Son - Armstrong - Poveda-Ocampo
    Werner - Mitrovic - Davis

    3.5M itb, what would you do with it?

    GW2 Salah > Bruno
    GW3 Son > KDB

    Where would you go with this?

    1. Fulchester's New Centr…
      • 7 Years
      4 years, 2 months ago

      Would be tempted to spend at least 0.5 of your savings on beefing up def.

      Transfer plan looks orthodox.

      1. h3nh3n
        • 4 Years
        4 years, 2 months ago

        Ok thanks

    2. Arron Wan Bissaka Nil
      • 8 Years
      4 years, 2 months ago

      Id go 4m backup instead of Ryan, an extra 4.5 in defence (Justin, Dallas, Taylor) instead of Douglas and Soucek instead of Poveda... would be a nice team in general though

      1. h3nh3n
        • 4 Years
        4 years, 2 months ago

        Cheers

  16. Arron Wan Bissaka Nil
    • 8 Years
    4 years, 2 months ago

    Vardy - wba, BUR, mci, WHU, AVL
    Werner - bha, LIV, wba, CPL, SOT
    Jimenez - shu, MCI, whu, FUL, lee

    Who scores the most?

    1. Siva Mohan
      • 12 Years
      4 years, 2 months ago

      Werner

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

      Potentially, Werner.

      Chelsea could run up the score against West Brom, and Brighton look like they’re going to be one of the relegation favourites.

      Vardy has nice first game but some tricky ones v Burnley, City and Villa.

      Jimi will tick along nicely.

      1. Christina.
        • 14 Years
        4 years, 2 months ago

        BUR and VILLA should be ok for Vardy?

        1. Nomar
          • Fantasy Football Scout Member
          • 14 Years
          4 years, 2 months ago

          Tricky, Burnley have a decent defence and Villa’s improved post lockdown.

    3. pokern1nja09
      • 11 Years
      4 years, 2 months ago

      Vardy

  17. bobbyg
    • 12 Years
    4 years, 2 months ago

    Ings and ASM
    or
    Jimmy and Armstrong?

    1. Soto Ayam
      • 5 Years
      4 years, 2 months ago

      1

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

      A

      Really like ASM as a pick this season.

  18. Bobby Digital
    • 7 Years
    4 years, 2 months ago

    Ok here's a tough one:

    A. Jimenez, Mitro and Stephens(bench)
    or
    B. Werner, Soucek and Davis(bench)

    1. Cojones of Destiny
      • 6 Years
      4 years, 2 months ago

      A looks a bit stronger to me

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

      Probably A, just.

  19. Cojones of Destiny
    • 6 Years
    4 years, 2 months ago

    first draft team pls share your opinions lads

    McCarthy
    TAA, Vinagre, Aurier
    Salah, Auba, Armstrong, Willian, Soucek
    Werner, Jimenez

    subs/Fodder/Ayling, Fergusson, Davis

    itb 0,5 (you know the reason)

    1. Nomar
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 14 Years
      4 years, 2 months ago

      I’m curious about the £0.5. I assume Willian to Pullisic?

      1. Cojones of Destiny
        • 6 Years
        4 years, 2 months ago

        bingo!

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

      Would keep an eye on community shield to see if WIllian starts.
      I assume he will play 10 , with Saka Auba and Pepe upfront

      1. Cojones of Destiny
        • 6 Years
        4 years, 2 months ago

        yep thats da plan thx

    3. Cojones of Destiny
      • 6 Years
      4 years, 2 months ago

      *Arm/Jim can be Ings/ASM

  20. Ser Davos
    • 9 Years
    4 years, 2 months ago

    Remember when Bamford inevitably destroys the Pool clean sheets to keep calm and carry on

    1. Nomar
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 14 Years
      4 years, 2 months ago

      Have you seen Bamford play?

      1. Ser Davos
        • 9 Years
        4 years, 2 months ago

        Exactly

    2. Nightcrawler
      • 5 Years
      4 years, 2 months ago

      Good thing pool defenders will already be on attacking returns like noriwch last season

    3. LangerznMash
      • 8 Years
      4 years, 2 months ago

      Even though I have TAA, I'm almost certain Leeds will score.

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

      Not gonna get double Pool defense to start.

      Last season I started with them and by GW 3, I did VvD > Soyuncu.

    5. Ask Yourself
      • 8 Years
      4 years, 2 months ago

      They could have Rodrigo up top instead by then

  21. farmerfat
    • Fantasy Football Scout Member
    • 9 Years
    4 years, 2 months ago

    OK FRIENDS.
    Thoughts would be much appreciated.
    Mccarthy 4.0
    TAA Vinagre Justin Davies
    ASM JWP Salah Auba
    Vardy Werner

    2.0 ITB
    GW2- JWP to Greenwood
    GW3 - Auba - KDB/Raz

    thanks!

    1. Slimzspaghetti
      • 4 Years
      4 years, 2 months ago

      Too much Vardy. Take Kane instead

      1. farmerfat
        • Fantasy Football Scout Member
        • 9 Years
        4 years, 2 months ago

        Not a fan (:

    2. Goonsquad245
      • 8 Years
      4 years, 2 months ago

      If you're going to buy Greenwood GW2 just get him from the start and bench him.

  22. Noor.capetown
    • 4 Years
    4 years, 2 months ago

    Can't wait for an exciting experience

    "Cape town city"?

    Classic: 40aqna
    H2H. : gqa8ou

    https://fantasy.premierleague.com/leagues/auto-join/gqa8ou

    1. farmerfat
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 9 Years
      4 years, 2 months ago

      You from SA?

    2. Christina.
      • 14 Years
      4 years, 2 months ago

      nice weather here at the moment

      1. farmerfat
        • Fantasy Football Scout Member
        • 9 Years
        4 years, 2 months ago

        Disagree, they sent their cold front to us!

        1. Christina.
          • 14 Years
          4 years, 2 months ago

          Im in CT. gonna Braai tonight

          1. farmerfat
            • Fantasy Football Scout Member
            • 9 Years
            4 years, 2 months ago

            Lekker! Aweh

          2. Slimzspaghetti
            • 4 Years
            4 years, 2 months ago

            Same. We can finally braai again 😀

    3. Miguel Sanchez
      • 8 Years
      4 years, 2 months ago

      Love Cape Town, one of my favourite cities.

  23. Gudjohnsen
    • 7 Years
    4 years, 2 months ago

    So how many LFC players for gw1?

    1. Nomar
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 14 Years
      4 years, 2 months ago

      2 TAA and Salah.

    2. Madame R.
      • 4 Years
      4 years, 2 months ago

      3 for me.

    3. Jordan.
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 14 Years
      4 years, 2 months ago

      3 and a huge chance most of the season
      trent / vvd / salah

  24. Ser Davos
    • 9 Years
    4 years, 2 months ago

    One strategy is to build a team for two GWs and save the FT

    -ignoring City's tough game at Molineux and use it as a scouting mission for Sterling v KDB, see if Mahrez and/or Foden gets game time... Jesus or Kun to emerge?

    -MUN have that plum fixture v CPA, but I'm even more unsure how to utilise their four assets more than Citeh's. Give them the CPA to scout and see if value from the likes of Greenwood and Rashford emerges

  25. Hangman Page
    • Fantasy Football Scout Member
    • 6 Years
    4 years, 2 months ago

    Really good read that, I think Taylor looks the pick of the 4.5s at the moment but if Saliba starts the Charity Shield he's surely a lock in a lot of teams.

    1. rozzo
      • 11 Years
      4 years, 2 months ago

      I dont get the Saliba hype.

      In a list of good defenses Arsenal are way down the list for me

      1. Camzy
        • Fantasy Football Scout Member
        • 14 Years
        4 years, 2 months ago

        Two good starting fixtures though...

      2. Hangman Page
        • Fantasy Football Scout Member
        • 6 Years
        4 years, 2 months ago

        Agreed their defence isn't great but I'd be happy to bet 4.5 on it improving with him in the side.

      3. ow00019
        • 8 Years
        4 years, 2 months ago

        Decent punt at 4.5m. Also gonna bet on Arsenal defence being better this season under Arteta as I expect everything else to improve.

  26. Sedemuda
    • Fantasy Football Scout Member
    • 7 Years
    4 years, 2 months ago

    McCarthy
    TAA Bednarek Vinagre Taylor
    Salah Auba Greenwood Traore Saint-Maximum
    Werner Ings
    Nyland Ferguson Taylor Wickham
    Watchlist
    VVD, Doherty, Dunk, Ayling, Mitchell, Saliba, Struijk
    Mahrez, Son, Fernandes, KDB, Barnes, Pulisic, Armstrong, Foden, Ziyech
    Jiménez, Kane, Jesus, Antonio, Brewster, Martial

    1. Sedemuda
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 7 Years
      4 years, 2 months ago

      Taylor bench, not two!

    2. Hangman Page
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 6 Years
      4 years, 2 months ago

      That's enough Fantasy Football Scout for the day I think.

      1. Sedemuda
        • Fantasy Football Scout Member
        • 7 Years
        4 years, 2 months ago

        Well you know how to sign out I take it. Have a good day!

  27. Rhodes your boat
    • 8 Years
    4 years, 2 months ago

    Hi all! Thoughts on this draft... 0.5 ITB

    Rodak
    Taa Vinagre saliba kwp
    Salah auba maddison pereira
    Werner mitro

    Fabri Ferguson smallbone martial

  28. Bartowski
    • 14 Years
    4 years, 2 months ago

    Are people not concerned that Werner could be this season's Haller?

    1. farmerfat
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 9 Years
      4 years, 2 months ago

      Or a Torres, Shevchenko, Higuin, Morata??

      1. Bartowski
        • 14 Years
        4 years, 2 months ago

        I was talking more about everyone getting really excited about Haller pre season last year and pointing to his record in Germany.

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

      He could be... But Werner is twice the forward of Haller. He's extremely fast and a great finisher. Haller is more lumbering. Werner is also in a better team.

      1. Bartowski
        • 14 Years
        4 years, 2 months ago

        True certainly a better team but I imagine Abraham will still get some starts.

        I'm personally going to avoid anyone with no PL experience outside of possibly bench fodder.

    3. Klaren
      • 7 Years
      4 years, 2 months ago

      He plays for a much better team, I’m not sure it’s fair to compare the Chelsea team to Pellegrini’s West Ham.

      1. Bartowski
        • 14 Years
        4 years, 2 months ago

        Well considering Chelsea's record of buying very good strikers and them not doing too well, as pointed out above, I'm not sure it's as clear cut as that.

        1. Klaren
          • 7 Years
          4 years, 2 months ago

          Torres and Shevchenko are very old examples and Chelsea was managed by a different manager and had a completely different team so no relevance really.

          Despite his later performance, Morata started off quite well when he joined. So did Diego Costa. Higuain was already past his best and wasn’t having a good season anyway when he joined Chelsea.

          I’d personally rather look at player performance and team stats/chance creation under their current manager rather than other transfers in the history of the club but I appreciate everyone has different approaches.

    4. Fpl Richie
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 9 Years
      4 years, 2 months ago

      I'll be honest I was talking up Haller here last year. Shame it didn't work out but he did have two great wide forwards at Frankfurt and diddly squat at WH for most of last season.

      1. Bartowski
        • 14 Years
        4 years, 2 months ago

        Oh yeah they played him completely differently, I've no idea why.

    5. The Hunt
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 15 Years
      4 years, 2 months ago

      I reckon everyone will have Werner by fireworks night. Jeez, Abraham's an absolute donkey and he still somehow managed to bundle 15 over the line last season, Imagine what damage a quality player like this guy will do.

      1. Bartowski
        • 14 Years
        4 years, 2 months ago

        Abraham isn't a donkey nor was he scoring goals by bundling them over the line.

    6. Madame R.
      • 4 Years
      4 years, 2 months ago

      Newbies always a concern for me, had to give Bruno a few weeks before I caved.

    7. Pipermaru
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 9 Years
      4 years, 2 months ago

      If he's firing from the start - great, if not - easy switch to a number of strikers including Ings, Jimenez, Martial, Kane, Aguero, Vardy etc. No reason to overthink. Plus he plays for much better team than Haller and he's probably a better footballer overall.

  29. SADIO SANÉ
    • 9 Years
    4 years, 2 months ago

    is Obafemi an injury away from starting? but also very likely to get 20/30 mins at the end of games?

    tempted to upgrade one of my 4.5s just to have a point off the bench...but he could actually be better than that if luck comes in...

    1. Gabbiadini
      • 7 Years
      4 years, 2 months ago

      as a Saints fan, I am Long over Obafemi.
      There's also talk we may bring in a striker, links to Nunez.
      Obafemi if he gets a transfer otherwise I would just go Brewster

      1. SADIO SANÉ
        • 9 Years
        4 years, 2 months ago

        ok cool, cheers - yeah will just get Brewster if he's loaned out

  30. pablo discobar
    • 14 Years
    4 years, 2 months ago

    Wasn't there talk of saving the first wildcard for gw 18 or something as it's a strange one? Or later for another reason?

    Corona is another reason entirely of course!

    1. farmerfat
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 9 Years
      4 years, 2 months ago

      gw 16 it expires

      1. FPL Theorist
        • 4 Years
        4 years, 2 months ago

        I'll still use it then to prepare for the expected BGW18/DGW19.

    2. Klaren
      • 7 Years
      4 years, 2 months ago

      You can save it till GW16 latest. Yes it’s a good point but as far as I know we don’t know how they’ll deal with those in fpl yet. I’d rather use my WC early when I need it and take hits later if I really need to.

      I think early WC will be very useful this season as I can see United and City player prices skyrocketing as soon as GW1 deadline passes. But it all depends on your strategy and how many United/City you are planning to get in long term etc.