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. Razor425
    • 6 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    In a bit of a dilemma here, original plan was BB but not so sure now, appreciate all thoughts,

    Current Squad:
    Johnstone (McCarthy)
    Coufal, Robertson, Stones, Taylor, (Alisoki)
    Salah, Fernandes, Soeuck, Son, (Alzate)
    Kane, Bamford, (Rodrigo)

    Options:
    1. Kane, Son, Alioski > Dias, De Bruyne, Antonio (-8, benching Taylor)
    2. Kane, Alzate, Alisoki > Dias, Foden, Antonio (-8, benching Taylor & Bamford)
    3. Option 2 with a BB of McCarthy, Taylor, Bamford & Rodrigo on the bench
    4. Option 1 with KDB as TC

    Thanks in advance, all opinions appreciated

    1. istanbul05
      • 10 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      4

    2. Emp
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 12 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      1

    3. FPL Forward Thinker
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 5 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      i like 2 then 4

    4. Genji3lade
      • 6 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      Just 1 imo

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

    Which 1?
    A. Fernandes to KDB and captain KDB.
    B. Keep Fernandes and captain Salah?

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

      B

    2. Aussie Rules
      • 11 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      B

    3. FPL Forward Thinker
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 5 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      b

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

    So tempted to captain Antonio....

    1. Cok3y5murf
      • 7 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      Really? Not even confident about owning him

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

      No chance, not with his injury record.

    3. Homer21
      • 7 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      The very definition of a rank outside punt!

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

      I'm looking at buying him but not even confirmed that he likely to start

    5. FPL Forward Thinker
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 5 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      get some sleep or go for a run (depending where in the world you are)........ or what planet you're on. LOL 🙂

    6. FPL Forward Thinker
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 5 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      And did you ????

  4. istanbul05
    • 10 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    Which of the below do you prefer?

    A) Trent, Son to Cancelo, KDB (-4, 9 DGW players)
    B) Lewis, Son, Kane to Cancelo, KDB, Antonio (-8, 11 DGW players)

    Current team:
    Martinez,
    Trent, Dias, Coufal,
    Salah, Son, Fernandes, Grealish, Soucek,
    Kane, Bamford.

    Forster, Lewis, Dallas, Brewster.

    Thanks guys

    1. Monkeyslut96
      • 3 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      On paper B but I am not entirely confident Antonio starts both games since he’s only coming back from injury

    2. jonnybhoy
      • 11 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      A +captain kdb

    3. Razor425
      • 6 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      B

    4. Old Gregg
      • 7 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      Just Son + Kane > KDB + Antonio or Vardy?

    5. Genji3lade
      • 6 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      Cancelo will likely only play 1 of the DGW games. Still a good pick long term but Dias better short term

    6. FPL Forward Thinker
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 5 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      I think Kane will outscore Antonio

      I'd go A as better GW20 fixture for City (WBA away) and Trent plays Son.

      Son price drop and KDB price rise tonight (if that even matters).

  5. Hart-ake
    • Fantasy Football Scout Member
    • 6 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    Which one should be first bench:

    a) Saka (New, h)
    b) Dier (SHU, a)

    1. Cok3y5murf
      • 7 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      Dier

    2. istanbul05
      • 10 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      a

    3. FPL Forward Thinker
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 5 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      I'd prefer Saka as 1st sub for Monday at Home v Newcastle and Dier 2nd Sub on Sunday away at Sheff Utd (Seems more fun) but many defenders have scored double digits v Sheff Utd (more defenders have than Forwards or Martial to be exact... have against Sheff Utd). Thus you never know what Dier may offer. Rather look for Attacking Returns than waiting for a Clean Sheet.

  6. marcos11
    • 3 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    What reason would there be for having Leeds vs Southampton back in gw19?

    1. Homer21
      • 7 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      If Shrewsbury have Covid issues

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

      Shrews game with saints being called off again

      1. marcos11
        • 3 Years
        3 years, 2 months ago

        Is it likely to happen? Or is there not enough info about it yet?

        1. Kay317
          • Fantasy Football Scout Member
          • 4 Years
          3 years, 2 months ago

          From what I'm seeing online it's still going ahead.

    3. FPL Forward Thinker
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 5 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      Reason ????? Maybe someone having a dream?

      It would need to be called by Monday am i'd reckon. I'd guess unlikely but you never know.

      BHA at home is good .....
      .....so play Leeds boys but dont Buy Leeds boys

      Southampton ... bla... bench them

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

    Martinez
    Coufal - Robertson - Dias - James
    KDB (C) - Salah - Grealish - Fernandes - Soucek
    Antonio

    (Peacock-Farrell) (Bamford) (Dallas) (Brewster)

    0 FT - 1.3 ITB

    Finally made my transfers thought I was ready to go. Now I'm getting tempted by James to Cancelo for a hit. I'm just overthinking it aren't I? Slap the TC on KDB and go to sleep?

  8. umerlfc
    • 8 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    Would you:

    A) Start Bamford
    B) Start Wood
    C) Wood - > Antonio (-4) and Start him

    1. OBAMA
      • 9 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      A

    2. marcos11
      • 3 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      A

    3. Homer21
      • 7 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      A

    4. FPL Forward Thinker
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 5 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      A

  9. Homer21
    • 7 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    Any idea why Bruno being sold by alot according to FPL Stats?

    1. Scholes Out For Summer
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 10 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      4 YCs

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

      The only reason I was thinking of selling him, was to get KDB

  10. OBAMA
    • 9 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    Martinez in the WC too risky??

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

      Should be alright. Even if he were to miss a match this GW for whatever he's a good long-term investment with good fixtures in the short term & games in hand.

      1. OBAMA
        • 9 Years
        3 years, 2 months ago

        true, you make sense Hazz.

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

    Johnstone
    Robbo, Coufal , Dallas
    Salah, KDB, Bruno, Grealish, Raphinha
    Watkins, Bamford

    Mccarthy, Adam, KWP, Taylor

    Adams to Antonio (-4) bench Raphinha???!

  12. FantasyHero
    • 7 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    Pick one. On FH:

    1. Bruno coufal zouma
    2. Rash cresswell chilly

    1. Aussie Rules
      • 11 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      1

    2. Emp
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 12 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      2

    3. marcos11
      • 3 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      1

  13. FER FUSCH AKE
    • 7 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    Worth a -8?

    Kane, son, KWP to Coufal, Antonio, Salah

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

      I would

  14. Bart82
    • 3 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    Son and Bamford to Foden and Vardy for -8 ?

    1. Scholes Out For Summer
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 10 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      Nah

      1. Bart82
        • 3 Years
        3 years, 2 months ago

        thnx!

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

      Nope

      1. Bart82
        • 3 Years
        3 years, 2 months ago

        thnx

    3. Homer21
      • 7 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      No

      1. Bart82
        • 3 Years
        3 years, 2 months ago

        thnx

  15. Jam0sh
    • Fantasy Football Scout Member
    • 11 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    Hello guys. I'm on -4 with this team and contemplating whether it could be worth it to take two more hits to be able to bench boost.

    Pope
    Cancelo, Dias, Coufal
    Grealish, Fernandes, Salah, Soucek, KDB
    Bamford, Watkins

    Subs --- Meslier, KWP, DCL, Bernardo --- 0 FT, 0 ITB

    A) Stick and good to go (no BB)
    B) DCL & Bernardo -> Antonio and Justin for -8 (make it total -12)

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

      A

  16. Scholes Out For Summer
    • Fantasy Football Scout Member
    • 10 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    Which would you prefer for the double and beyond?

    A) Son + Antonio (-4)
    B) Kane + Raphinha

    1. OBAMA
      • 9 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      B

    2. Jam0sh
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 11 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      Probably B

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

      B

  17. AppleDunk
    • 10 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    Worth to BB this lot?

    Non-playing goalie, Dallas, Bamford, Taylor

    Leaning towards No atm...

    1. Scholes Out For Summer
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 10 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      Def not.

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

        Cheers

    2. Aussie Rules
      • 11 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      No - doubts whether Taylor plays and maybe only away to Liverpool

  18. HonestBlatter
    • 13 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    Martinez-Forster*
    Justin-Coufal-Cancelo-Dier*-Bellerin*
    Rashford-Fernandes-KdB-Gundogan-Saka*
    Watkins-Kane*-Bamford*

    Which 8p hit would you take:

    Rashford-->Salah (C)
    Saka-->Soucek
    Bellerin-->Strujk

    or

    Saka-->Salah (C)
    Kane-->Antonio
    Bellerin-->Strujk

    1. OBAMA
      • 9 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      A

    2. Scholes Out For Summer
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 10 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      Honestly neither. Strujk for a hit is blah

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

    Which is better??
    A) Taylor for Dawson
    B) Stones KDB for Robbo Son (-4)
    C) Stones Vardy for Kane Taylor (-4)

  20. Alli
    • 6 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    A. Kane, KWP > Vardy, Stones (-4)
    B. Son, KWP > Foden, Diaz (-4)

    McCarthy - Johnstone
    Robbo - Coufal - KWP - Justin - Dallas
    Salah - Bruno - Son - Soucek - Raphinha
    Kane - Adams - Bamford

  21. FDMS All Starz
    • 8 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    Would you do O’Shea/Alioski to Stones for a -4 or just start one of O’Shea/Alioski?

  22. EIE
    • 5 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    Evening all. What a season, eh?

    Here's a question for you. I hate that I ever got him but... Mahrez: what would you do? Stick or shift for KDB/Sterling? And can I really expect Firmino to deliver anything despite the double?

    Would Son, Firmino, Mahrez > KDB, Antonio, Grealish for -8 be madness?

    Martinez
    Stones Dias Justin Coufal, Kilman
    Salah Bruno Mahrez Son Bissouma
    Bamford Firmino Watkins

  23. iL PiStOlErO
    • 4 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    GTG? KdB(C)?

    McCarthy
    Cancelo Justin Coufal
    Kdb(C) Salah Bruno Soucek
    Kane Antonio Bamford

    Forster Dallas Lowton Romeu

  24. tuturututu
    • 3 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    Bench boosting this bench?

    Meslier, Bamford, Giroud, Alioski

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

      Is it worth it?

  25. Aussie Rules
    • 11 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    A) Ayling to Stones
    B) Kane and Bissouma to KDB & Brewster (or sub 5.2) for -4

    Have Cancelo and Dias already

  26. Old Gregg
    • 7 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    Play -

    a) Wilson
    Or
    B) Konza

    1. YEAH PITCH!
      • 5 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      Wilson

    2. marcos11
      • 3 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      Wilson

  27. james 101
    • 12 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    GTG?

    Martinez
    Robbo Stones Cresswell
    Salah(TC) Rashford Bruno Soucek Maddison
    Firmino Vardy

    Good luck gents!

    1. Luton_Fan
      • 14 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      Ooh never considered firmino

      1. james 101
        • 12 Years
        3 years, 2 months ago

        He’s scoring ok

        Solid fixtures

  28. damiang2233
    • 14 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    A lot of love for Stones? Laporte is due back 20th Jan?

    1. OBAMA
      • 9 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      dont think thats fully confirmed/likely

  29. OBAMA
    • 9 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    Cancelo over Dias on a WC worth the risk?

    Worried pep is gonna drop Cancelo for one of the games

  30. Connor's Calling
    • Fantasy Football Scout Member
    • 14 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    Looking at a 0.3 valid swing if I wait to do transfers tomorrow - given the deadline is 11am, am I ok to do them now? Are we likely to get much news tomorrow pre 11am?

    1. Aussie Rules
      • 11 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      I would do them before the final price changes given that difference and close to the deadline