Pro Pundits - Lateriser

‘Enjoy the ride, adapt and stop planning’ – FPL’s reigning India winner says to focus on the short-term

The Double Gameweeks are here.

But it hasn’t been a smooth ride. Fantasy Premier League (FPL) managers have had so many unexpected detours (a lot of off-roading) on the way, but battered, bruised and with a lot of dents, we’re finally here.

Just know that you are not the only ones facing these twists and turns. It won’t be the last time unexpected rescheduling happens either.

FPL managers all over the globe have been meandering their way through these unexpected times and you’ve just got to enjoy the ride and adapt. It’s the only option you have really.

So what do I intend to do differently? First off, stop planning. Be more short-sighted. Normally, when making moves, I look at the next five to six Gameweeks.

Instead, I am going to play for the points available and have a more short-term approach when planning my moves.

This means I’ll likely look at the next three Gameweeks when making my moves and no more than that.

Why? We could literally have unexpected cancellations and changes (Double Gameweeks) at any time. So planning mid-term doesn’t have much value in my opinion.

Secondly, and I have said this multiple times this season, I’m all for wanting to chase price rises, but honestly, I can’t say it enough, this is the season to delay your transfers as far as possible.

The fantasy landscape is changing daily and new bits of information are appearing on a daily basis, which might drastically affect your transfer strategy.

You might think that your transfers might not be affordable the next day, but when you look closer, there is always another way.

Has the recent Double Gameweek news for Aston Villa and Newcastle and the lack of a double for Leeds United and Southampton changed my plans?

FPL Transfer Traps Gameweek 6 1

I currently own only Patrick Bamford (£6.6m) from the two teams and before Blank Gameweek 18, I sold Jack Grealish (£7.7m) and Che Adams (£6.0m).

I had heard murmurs of the Leeds vs Southampton game being called off and I just don’t trust the fitness of Villa’s players and the lure of two premium Manchester big hitters was too much for me.

It was a gamble and it won’t be the last time I’ll need to roll the dice this season.

It just seems like a season of difficult decisions given the sheer number of consistent big hitters but it is what it is.

Just a small note on Aston Villa, the nature of the COVID-19 outbreak is unknown at the time of writing and we don’t necessarily know how the squad has been affected.

It is a very thin squad that is very reliant on 10 to 14 players and if the majority of the first team squad is affected, I don’t know how much I’d trust them.

Keeping this in mind, their players come into the don’t buy/ don’t sell category for me until we know more about them.

Auto Draft 1

Speaking of difficult decisions, one big decision that FPL managers will likely be making this season is whether to sell Son Heung-min (£9.8m) or Harry Kane (£11.1m) for a premium Double Gameweek asset in Gameweek 19.

The one thing I’ll say is if you’re doing it to get in a premium big hitter like Mohamed Salah (£12.5m) or Kevin De Bruyne (£11.8m) who are genuine captaincy options, then it makes sense to me.

If not, it becomes a very difficult decision (one that might not necessarily be the right one) given their fixture in Gameweek 19.

Then it comes down to gut and the kind of FPL manager you are.

If I was to hold one of Son or Kane, at the moment I’d lean towards holding Son primarily because of the price difference.

I see a lot of people selling their Arsenal and Leeds United assets for Double Gameweek players.

It is important to not have the blinkers on for the doubles because both of these teams in addition to Spurs have very good games in Gameweek 19 and it might not be the smartest thing to sell them just to buy additional minutes in the Double Gameweek.

You need to look at the next couple of Gameweeks while making these decisions and then make the call.

A few things I have noticed in the last few weeks is that players like Son, Bruno Fernandes (£11.3m) and KDB have looked very tired in the last 30 minutes of games and I feel like in comparison, Liverpool and Chelsea both having some time off will play into their hands.

I’m personally expecting an upturn in performances for both of these teams in the coming weeks.

Having some time on the training ground with the full team without playing games can be underestimated and I think that will show.

It is worth noting Chelsea have all their players fit now including their full-backs and it’s easy to forget that when they, along with Hakim Ziyech (£8.1m) were fit, Chelsea were creating chances for fun.

They have a decent looking Double Gameweek (both Leicester and Fulham are in the worst five teams for big chances conceded at home this season) and I quite like their fixtures in the mid-term as well.

There are some good picks in that team both in attack and in defence should you fancy it.

Some of you are wondering about whether you should Bench Boost or not.

In my opinion if you have players from the likes of Leeds who have a good Gameweek 19 fixture, I’d still use the chip and play the Bench Boost.

The case for you to Bench Boost is even stronger, especially if you have used your Free Hit chip in Gameweek 18.

I say that is the case because if you wildcard in Gameweek 25 for the Double Gameweek in 26, your bench spots will need to be likely focused on Blank Gameweek 29 and that is something to consider while you’re making your decision.

Otherwise, one of the prime advantages of having used the Bench Boost chip is so that it’s out of the way and you can focus funds on your starting 11 (plus two bench spots) rather than spreading them over 15 players.

It is very difficult to give an answer with regards to this conundrum because it is very team dependant but generally when it comes to using your chips, there will be many more mini Double Gameweeks in play the way the season is going, so there are going to be more opportunities than you think for chip deployment.

I intentionally decide to just talk a little bit of macro-philosophy with this article ahead of the Double Gameweek but all of you are aware of the numbers and the good picks so I thought it might be worthwhile to outline a few things that might not have caught your attention.

I’ve been making steady progress with my season after a terrible start.

Despite having games called off for my Manchester City and Spurs assets and despite not deploying my Free Hit chip in Gameweek 18, I’ve climbed from a 3.1 million Overall Rank (OR) in Gameweek 12 to a 1.54 million OR at present.

I was very happy to get a 300,000 sized green arrow in Gameweek 18 despite taking a hit, owning nine players and not deploying the Free Hit chip which tells you that quality matters over quantity.

If the odds are stacked against you in a particular Gameweek in terms of numbers of players, it still isn’t the end of the world because if you have the right players, you could still climb up the table.

Also, it is worth mentioning that Zophar & I had the pleasure of interviewing the creator of LiveFPL.net recently and it was a pleasure getting to chat with Ragabolly.

He’s a PHD in quantum physics and still claims to not be a genius.

He’s a very humble guy and it’s an interview worth watching if you haven’t already. You can see it here.

We also did our standard podcast of The FPL Wire where we talk about Double Gameweek 19 in depth which you will find below. Thanks for reading and good luck this Gameweek!

5,989 Comments Post a Comment
  1. Nespinha
    • 8 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    For a - 8, with 9 DGW players:

    A) Taylor + Balbuena - - Coufal + Dawson

    B) Balbuena + Adams - - Cancelo + Brewster

    C) Balbuena + Adams - - Coufal + Antonio

    D) don't do - 8

    1. Greyling
      • 7 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      C

      1. Nespinha
        • 8 Years
        3 years, 2 months ago

        This would require benching Raphinha or Bamford

  2. Dannyb
    • 6 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    Son Laca and Kane to Antonio Salah and Vardy? Worth the hit?

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

      No

  3. Greyling
    • 7 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    Which move to make for -4?

    1. Button to DDG
    2. Walker-Pieters to Diaz/Cancelo
    3. Mitchell to Stones

    1. waldo666
      • 13 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      2 Dias

  4. LLoris
    • 5 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    Gotta love when Dyche says Taylor is a "maybe for West ham

    1. The Ilfordian
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 6 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      It’s like he just doesn’t care about fantasy football players

  5. paza12
    • 13 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    KWP and Son to Stones and KDB for -8? Cheers!

    1. DavidHopkin
      • 13 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      If you have Kane, probably.

  6. Albrightondknight
    • Fantasy Football Scout Member
    • 8 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    Really can’t decide on whether to go Watkins to Antonio for -4 or not?

    If you could give a reason for why in your reply that would be great.
    I always said I would get a Antonio if he was fit but is he - probably not fit enough for 2 * 90 we have to assume

    Watkins so frustrating to own but it’s not just a double but good fixtures afterwards but I think I don’t want him anymore - watching all those missed chances is a killer.

    One final thing I also have Coufal and Soucek and the fixtures aren’t great after the double so maybe a triple is not a great idea?

    1. mgilbert86
      • 11 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      Definitely wouldn't, he could have a double if not sick so its not worth it.

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

      Watkins and Antonio Could easily score the same each. So wasting a -4 for that reason would not be worth it to me.

      1. FPL_Crisis
        • Fantasy Football Scout Member
        • 13 Years
        3 years, 2 months ago

        Which one would you choose until gw25 wildcard?

        1. Avery
          • Fantasy Football Scout Member
          • 4 Years
          3 years, 2 months ago

          I have both of them. Personally I think Watkins has the superior fixtures to gw25

          1. FPL_Crisis
            • Fantasy Football Scout Member
            • 13 Years
            3 years, 2 months ago

            Guess the question is which one is less annoying

    3. Albrightondknight
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 8 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      Consensus seems to be not to take the -4, so as I asked for advice I better take it. Thanks all and GL for the dgw.

  7. Avery
    • Fantasy Football Scout Member
    • 4 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    DGW19 anytime scorers %

    https://twitter.com/fpl_salah/status/1350219099289354247?s=21

    1st GAMES
    Laca: 52%
    Vardy: 52%
    Kane: 47%
    Bamford: 46%
    Salah: 46%
    Abraham: 44%
    Werner: 44%
    Giroud: 43%
    Jesus: 42%
    Sterling: 42%
    Son: 41%
    Auba: 40%
    Mahrez: 40%
    KdB: 39%
    Foden: 38%
    Maupay: 37%
    Antonio: 36%
    F.Silva: 35%
    Mane: 34%
    Neto: 33%
    Pulisic: 33%

    ——
    2ND GAMES

    Salah: 57%
    Mane: 49%
    Jesus: 47%
    Sterling: 46%
    Antonio: 43%
    Cavani: 42%
    Bruno: 41%
    Watkins: 40%
    Vardy: 40%
    Rashford: 38%
    Martial: 36%
    Firmino: 35%
    Werner: 34%
    KdB: 33%
    Giroud: 33%
    Mahrez: 32%
    Foden: 32%
    Torres: 31%
    Bowen: 30%

    1. The Ilfordian
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 6 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      That’s brilliant although they seem to have missed Martial’s hatty in the first match. Nice to see my Laca punt is well supported

      1. Mr.K
        • 10 Years
        3 years, 2 months ago

        It's not really a DGW for the players that have a single fixture.

    2. HuttonDressedasLahm
      • 14 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      Combined....
      Salah 103%
      Vardy 92%
      Werner 78%
      Guroud 76%
      Jesus 89%
      Sterling 88%
      Antonio 89%
      Mane 83%

      1. Avery
        • Fantasy Football Scout Member
        • 4 Years
        3 years, 2 months ago

        Is that a weighted average or an average of an average?

  8. MattysFantasyFooty
    • 10 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    Pull trigger?

    Son, Wood to KDB, Brewster -4pt hit

    1. OleBall
      • 3 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      Go for it

    2. waldo666
      • 13 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      As long as Brewster is on the bench.

      1. MattysFantasyFooty
        • 10 Years
        3 years, 2 months ago

        he is

    3. The Ilfordian
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 6 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      If Brewster non playing bench

  9. Salalalalah
    • 5 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    Bottomed out

    For managers doing BB, are you worried about AVL players if they are out with covid, like Martinez, El Ghazi ir Grealish? Any news on who is out?

    1. Mr.K
      • 10 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      Replied there as well but I'm staying away from AVL. So yes I'm worried.

    2. Kingtekkerz
      • 6 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      Both Grealish and Martinez has posted IG stories of them training, so they are not affected now atleast

  10. wowo
    • Fantasy Football Scout Member
    • 3 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    when were the covid in villa announced? 14 days till when? i m
    wondering if players are able to make the game if tested negative before the first game in gw19

    1. Kiwivillan
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 9 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      January 8th

  11. wulfrunian
    • 7 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    *sorry bottomed
    Do you expect that Cancelo will get at least one rest?

    1. Epic Fail
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 13 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      I recently brought him in so yes, probably.

    2. just a man
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 12 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      Pep indicated in presser that “even Cancelo” isn’t safe from rotation due to wanting competition for all positions. I still think he plays both personally but def a risk.

    3. wulfrunian
      • 7 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      cheers

  12. Bedlamballer
    • 3 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    Looking to BB this DGW...

    Mendy, Johnstone
    Chilwell, Stones, Coufal, Dallas, W-Peters
    Grealish, Fernandes, Salah, Son, Lookman
    Bamford, Wilson, DCL

    Bring in Soucek & Vardy for Son & DCL for -8?

    Yay or nay?????

    1. Warby84
      • 8 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      Yay

  13. Drogo
    • 11 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    I captained Salah for GW 15-16-17 and he blanked all of those. With that said, surely I aint going for Salah for gw19? Please talk me out of it and tell me to go KDB instead.

    1. Mr.K
      • 10 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      It's a coin toss with both Salah and KDB. You could literally toss a coin? Or just pick whoever, doesn't matter.

  14. DavidHopkin
    • 13 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    Current team as follows.

    Johnstone
    Chilwell, cancelo, coufal, Justin
    Salah, Bruno, son*, soucek
    Kane*, bamford*

    McCarthy*, Dallas*, raphinha*, Adams*

    Any of the following worth it to BB?

    A. Kane, adams > vardy, Antonio (-4)
    B. A + Dallas > stones (-8)
    C. Just Kane > Vardy and no BB

    B would be 11 DGWs

  15. Tmel
    • 13 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    Better option for next few weeks:

    1) Antonio (BUR + WBA, cry, LIV, avl)
    2) Wilson (avl + ars, LEE, eve, CRY)

    1. Coys96
      • 6 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      a

    2. DavidHopkin
      • 13 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      1

  16. Pep's Money Laundry
    • 8 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    Which one guys

    A. Play Bamford (BRI)
    B. Play Maguire (liv, ful)
    C. Bench above and get Antonio for - 4

    I'm currently on B

    1. Coys96
      • 6 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      Could you do C & bench boost?

      1. Pep's Money Laundry
        • 8 Years
        3 years, 2 months ago

        Unfortunately I have a non playing keeper, I'd rather not take - 8 just to BB

    2. waldo666
      • 13 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      B

  17. FPL_Crisis
    • Fantasy Football Scout Member
    • 13 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    DCL to Antonio or Watkins?
    This will be until I wildcard around gw25

    Have Bamford and Rodrigo

    1. waldo666
      • 13 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      Antonio

  18. Coys96
    • 6 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    Decided to bench boost

    Forster / Bamford / Raphinha / Dallas

    Did Forster to Johnstone (-4)... right decision?

    1. waldo666
      • 13 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      Could work out well, plenty BBing with three Leeds benched.

    2. Mr.K
      • 10 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      I'm thinking of Meslier to Johnstone for -4 on my BB but haven't pulled the trigger yet....

  19. Will J 256
    • Fantasy Football Scout Member
    • 3 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    Hi guys, before I switch off for the night, thoughts on this -8? Playing the BB in GW19 and this would help set me up nicely!

    Kane, Son and Tierney to Antonio, Salah, and Chilwell?

    1. Coys96
      • 6 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      Like it

    2. El Lobito 10
      • 6 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      Kane and Son play the worst team in the division mate and you actually want to take a hit to get them out?

    3. HollywoodXI
      • 9 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      These are the exact same moves I’m debating. Tough call.

  20. EWH2020
    • 10 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    Start who?

    A) Som
    B) Bamford

    1. Coys96
      • 6 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      a

    2. Boberella
      • 7 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      Son

  21. OleBall
    • 3 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    Pieters > Stones for -4?

    Already have Dias, would mean -8 this GW

    1. waldo666
      • 13 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      Na

  22. Kingtekkerz
    • 6 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    Which one?

    A) Kane, Son, DCL—>Vardy, Salah, Antonio (-8)
    B) Kane—> Vardy

    1. mezza
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 9 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      A if you’re going to captain Salah

  23. jimmy.floyd
    • 7 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    A Holding Kane to Coutal Vardy (-4)
    B Kane Son to Antonio Salah (-4)
    Have Cresswell

    1. The Ilfordian
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 6 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      Misread A. Like the Arsenal defender’s Holding the Wolves defender’s Wily.

      Think B is more higher ceiling choice

  24. jdp219
    • Fantasy Football Scout Member
    • 7 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    Which City defender:
    1) Cancelo
    2) Dias
    3) Stones

    fwiw - I only have 5.8 to spend, so 1 and 2 means nothing left in the bank.

    1. jimmy.floyd
      • 7 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      Three

    2. tm370
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 9 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      Dias

    3. The Ilfordian
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 6 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      Going to complete the set, Cancelo for me - seems nailed and will get on scoresheet soon. Depends what you’d do with the other.8 though

  25. Tmel
    • 13 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    Still have wildcard left but no FH:

    a) TC KDB
    b) TC Salah
    c) Save TC

    1. jimmy.floyd
      • 7 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      A

    2. Coys96
      • 6 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      C

    3. All de Gea
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 8 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      Well, I have the same option and saving

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

      C

    5. Rococo
      • 9 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      C

  26. Vazza
    • 3 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    Would you do any of these for free

    A. Watkins to Antonio
    B. C. Jones to ESR
    C. Roll FT

    I’m bench boosting this week..

    1. All de Gea
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 8 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      A or save.

  27. Camzy
    • Fantasy Football Scout Member
    • 13 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    I feel like lateriser has almost given up try-harding this season. He's just in the YOLO mood and is picking players for fun. Picking up Werner in a -8 where has to field Keinan Davis as part of his starting XI is peak troll.

    1. Coys96
      • 6 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      He's called lateriser for a reason 😉

    2. The Gambler.
      • 14 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      Man crush on Werner is weirder

    3. Sean
      • 14 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      In fairness if there’s any season to not try and have a laugh it’s this one

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

      His plan is to use Mitchell in the upcoming weeks, Davis playing is a one-week thing.

  28. OneDennisBergkamp
    • Fantasy Football Scout Member
    • 8 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    Reece James or James Justin?

    I am leaning towards RJ but not sure on fitness?

  29. Corona is not good 4 U
    • 3 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    A) Play Bamford
    B) Adams -> Antonio for - 4, play Antonio and bench Bamford.

    Thank you!

    1. HaffNanner
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 6 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      A

    2. All de Gea
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 8 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      Not much in it really. I'm conservative so would probably play Bamford and bank the transfer

  30. Bobby Digital
    • 6 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    McCarthy
    Holding Targett Coufal
    KDB Bruno Son Grealish Soucek
    Kane Watkins

    Forster Clark Lewis DCL

    0.4M ITB, 1FT, Roll transfer or any other ideas?

    1. All de Gea
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 8 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      I'd be tempted by Kane to Vardy for free