Pro Pundits

Three-time top 200 finisher Lateriser on Shaw, a strong bench and transfer strategy

The reigning FPL champion of India, Lateriser, tackles an assortment of issues in his latest Pro Pundits column.


In this season of absolute fails for me, there is finally some reason to cheer. In the last two Gameweeks, I’ve gone against the grain with my captaincy calls – and both picks came through.

I captained Harvey Barnes (£6.9m) in Gameweek 21 and Bruno Fernandes (£11.4m) in Gameweek 22 and I’m finally close to breaking into the top one million for the first time this season, as my fight for respectability continues. I’m eight points away from that landmark rank, so I’m hoping to pass it sooner rather than later.

Some time ago I realised that if I was to have a respectable finish this season (so difficult from where I am sitting because the template is so strong at the moment), I will have to take some calculated gambles. Captaining Bruno ahead of the popular Mohamed Salah (£12.7m) was one of those decisions.

This wasn’t a shot in the dark as I weighed up Southampton’s injury problems, their worsening underlying defensive numbers and Brighton’s form. While we know that Salah sees a higher percentage of returns without his Sengalese compatriot, I personally thought Liverpool would find it difficult against a tough Brighton outfit without him. I was assisted by an early red card for Southampton and some dodgy decisionmaking but given the season I’ve had, I’ll take this small win with both hands.

That’s enough about me. This is going to be one of those freestyle articles where I talk about all things I find relevant to FPL.

LUKE SHAW

First up, let’s discuss Luke Shaw (£4.9m). I talked him up in this article I wrote in early January and he is currently emerging as one of the best-value picks in the game.

Manchester United are in the best five teams in the league for big chances and shots in the box conceded in the last four matches and have a decent run of fixtures on the horizon, with a potential Double Gameweek 26.

With Shaw, you are not just dependant on clean sheet points. He’s become incredibly vital to the Red Devils and is a ball progressor and an attacking outlet on that left-hand side. In the last six Gameweeks, Shaw has created 19 chances, which is top amongst all defenders. Shaw is also top for big chances created (five) in the same period and is on some set pieces and corners.

For those in the market for a defender, Shaw is a very good cut-price pick and definitely offers value. Personally, I wouldn’t worry too much about rotation when it comes to him. He’s very much first choice and will only miss the odd game, which you can afford at this price point.

There is a lot of talk about people being impatient with Salah and looking at selling him, which seems like a little bit of an overreaction to me right now. He has decent fixtures coming up, including a likely Double Gameweek 26, and has very strong underlying numbers as well. In the last two matches, he is top of the league amongst all attackers for shots, second for shots in the box and third for xG non penalty. All his underlying numbers are moving in the right direction and I would urge more patience.

Macro Strategy

Kane and Son both return in new formation as Spurs breeze past Sheffield United 3

Let’s talk a little bit about macro strategy now. A lot of Fantasy Premier League managers have a lot of cash flying around with the plethora of budget midfielders and forwards in play. That said, having that cash handy is very easy only because it gives you a lot of flexibility to jump very quickly without any surgery to the premium attackers that emerge.

Tottenham Hotspur potentially have a very strong-looking Double Gameweek 26 and the return for Harry Kane (£11.0m) and Kevin De Bruyne (£11.8m) isn’t too far off. Be patient with that cash as the timing could be crucial.

For those looking to Wildcard in Gameweek 25, there is a good opportunity to punt on Manchester United, West Ham and Chelsea assets in the next few Gameweeks. With there being a Double Gameweek 24 as well for Everton (and three others), there is the freedom to gamble on an extra Toffees player or two in the knowledge that they can be got rid of in the Wildcard in Gameweek 25.

I’m personally hoping for Brighton to beat Leicester in the FA Cup, which makes the in-form Seagulls a very attractive target for a Gameweek 26 Bench Boost, with cheap defenders available.

It looks as of now that Aston Villa, Manchester City, Spurs and Liverpool are the teams to target for the big Double Gameweek 26 but anything can happen in the FA Cup and we will have a clearer picture after the fifth round in the coming midweek.

In case you don’t plan to Wildcard in Gameweek 25 (which is very much possible as it might be do-able to field a good team without it), you can wildcard after the big Double Gameweek and have a relatively thinner bench. That said, we’ve seen the bench be very useful this season and with the Champions League and Europa League coming back very soon, having one or two good substitute players might be very useful in the latter stages of the season.

If you’ve already used your Wildcard, it might be worth saving a transfer this week so that you’re able to make your moves next week with a lot more information, as the FA Cup ties will have been played.

BENCHED POINTS

Tomas Souchek punishes doubters as West Ham move into top four 3

A lot of people have been moaning about a lot of benched points lately. Let me just give you the flip side. When the City defenders and Raheem Sterling (£11.6m) were rested against Sheffield United, most had good options coming off the bench while I had non-playing bench fodder. Trust me, I’d rather be in your position than mine and take a few points hauls on my bench. You aren’t going to get all your benching decisions right but it is a good problem to have and one that will be very useful when the random benchings occur, which they will as the season continues to remain congested and European football returns. The frustration you face is only psychological. Take it on the chin, trust the process and move on.

Those on double or triple Manchester City defence shouldn’t be too worried given their upcoming run. They are still the best defence in the league by a distance and I still expect them to keep more than a fair share of clean sheets in the upcoming Gameweeks. Since I’m on a triple Manchester City defence, I’m looking to shift one defender and get an attacker instead to balance things out. But I see no problem in holding City defenders as they are by far the best defensive options in the game at the moment and I don’t expect that to change.

That’s it for me this week with the quick turnaround and when it comes to captaincy, I will be making my decision after watching Son Heung-min (£9.7m) play tonight against Chelsea.

If you want more of my thoughts, you can watch the latest episode of The FPL Wire below. Good luck this Gameweek!

What is FPL Upside Chasing and how can I implement it in 2020/21?
824 Comments Post a Comment
  1. KGFC
    • 7 Years
    3 years, 1 month ago

    Can you WC and BB in the same GW? Thanks!

    1. rnrd
      • 9 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      no

    2. Captain_Shirokov
      • 5 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      one chip per gw

    3. MoSalalalalalalalalah
      • 5 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      Nope, can only play 1 chip a week

    4. potatoace
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 12 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      No.

    5. the dom 1
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 9 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      No

    6. KGFC
      • 7 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      TA!

  2. MoSalalalalalalalalah
    • 5 Years
    3 years, 1 month ago

    Bench Sterling or Gundogan?

    1. Captain_Shirokov
      • 5 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      gundo

    2. Sanchit
      • 8 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      Surely some other options to bench?
      With Liverpool's form, I wouldn't rule out a city win by a couple of goals

  3. Captain_Shirokov
    • 5 Years
    3 years, 1 month ago

    Every week I go for the obvious/template captain pick and every week they blank.

    F**k it, time to have some fun with the captaincy picks.

    1. JELLYFISH
      • 11 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      captain picks have been my achilles heal this season.....got it wrong most weeks

      1. Captain_Shirokov
        • 5 Years
        3 years, 1 month ago

        they are the missing piece of the puzzle for me, nailed most transfers so far

    2. Athletico Underachieving
      • 3 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      I’ve had DCL week before last, then Salah last week and now going Antonio this week. I’d take a bloody assist right now

      1. Captain_Shirokov
        • 5 Years
        3 years, 1 month ago

        I had the same two. Think I'll go Bamford this week.

  4. rnrd
    • 9 Years
    3 years, 1 month ago

    I was set on WC25 and BB26, but I am now afraid of overplaying the BB in 26.

    Anyone consider you Wildcarding in 26 and Bench boosting in maybe 27 or during another opportunity.

    Actually a BBoosted team in 26 (which has been wildcarded in 25) leads you to a very unbalanced team for the rest of the season if you want to really maximise your BB in 26.

    1. Vlekz
        3 years, 1 month ago

        Can you elaborate the last paragraph? Like how does it become unbalanced?

        1. Sanchit
          • 8 Years
          3 years, 1 month ago

          Too much value on the bench I guess

      • Sanchit
        • 8 Years
        3 years, 1 month ago

        Depends on the GW26 fixtures

    2. Jet5605
      • 9 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      Am I G2G with team and bench order? Planning to do Robbo > Dias next week.

      Pope
      Dallas - Justin - Coufal
      Salah - Bruno - Soucek - Raphinha - Gundo
      Antonio - Bamford

      Martinez - DCL - Stones - Robbo

    3. Jinswick
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 13 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      For those with all chips & WC left, where you at?

      A) WC25, BB26, FH29, TC later
      B) TC26, FH29, WC & BB later

      Was originally set on A), but reckon I can get a pretty decent set of doubles out for 24/25/26 with B)

      1. HonestBlatter
        • 13 Years
        3 years, 1 month ago

        A here

      2. Big Al Stankovic
        • 11 Years
        3 years, 1 month ago

        Yup, having a good team for the coming dgw. Think I’m keeping the wc as long as possible, but will pay close attention to dgw26.

      3. FPL Daniel
        • 14 Years
        3 years, 1 month ago

        WC 26 BB in GW 24 FH in 29 TC later on

    4. Captain_Shirokov
      • 5 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      Looking for more thoughts. Play one from each combo:

      A) Soucek
      B) DCL

      1) Dier
      2) Dias
      3) Coufal

      1. Big Al Stankovic
        • 11 Years
        3 years, 1 month ago

        A3

    5. fplking14
      • 9 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      Tarkowski or AWB?

      1. Big Al Stankovic
        • 11 Years
        3 years, 1 month ago

        Awb

      2. potatoace
        • Fantasy Football Scout Member
        • 12 Years
        3 years, 1 month ago

        Awb has the form, but tark if you want to build for the dgw

    6. Vlekz
        3 years, 1 month ago

        Bottomed. RP
        For gw 24(my this week's transfer depends on it)
        A)laca(leeds) + sterling (c)
        B)salah (lei) + gundo(c)
        TIA

      • b91jh
        • 6 Years
        3 years, 1 month ago

        Way too crazy to start Ben White over Salah?

        1. Big Al Stankovic
          • 11 Years
          3 years, 1 month ago

          Yes. Just sell him, if you can’t play him.

      • Spiritof99
        • 3 Years
        3 years, 1 month ago

        A ) Salah Davis -> Rashford, Antonio
        B) Salah Davis Mitchell -> Grealish, Antonio, Azpi for -4

      • SomeoneKnows
        • 7 Years
        3 years, 1 month ago

        Would you BB the following team during GW24?

        Pope
        Cancelo, Stones, Digne
        Salah, Bruno, Son, Gundogan
        DCL, Antonio, Bamford
        (Martinez, Grealish, Coufal, Dallas)

        It has 6 DGW players and the rest of team including bench also has rather favorable games:

        Martinez & Grealish vs BHA
        Coufal & Antonio vs SHU
        Dallas & Bamford vs ARS

      • Alonso The Great Midfielder
        • 12 Years
        3 years, 1 month ago

        I want to take punt on Pepe for next two fixtures. Or saka better value and form than him?

        1. Parsnips
          • 3 Years
          3 years, 1 month ago

          I've had Saka and he's been a legend to have

        2. URMothersLover
          • 14 Years
          3 years, 1 month ago

          Saka... all day long.

        3. Alonso The Great Midfielder
          • 12 Years
          3 years, 1 month ago

          cheers..

      • Big Al Stankovic
        • 11 Years
        3 years, 1 month ago

        For those with city double/triple up. Are you playing all of your city defenders and Salah this week? Or are you benching some of them?

        1. potatoace
          • Fantasy Football Scout Member
          • 12 Years
          3 years, 1 month ago

          Benching both City def
          Playing salah and gundo.

          1. Hulk Smash
            • 8 Years
            3 years, 1 month ago

            Same

        2. Captain_Shirokov
          • 5 Years
          3 years, 1 month ago

          Playing Salah and Cancelo, benching Dias.

        3. Parsnips
          • 3 Years
          3 years, 1 month ago

          playing Cancelo, because he's so attacking. Playing Salah, because it's Salah. Playing Gundo, good form. Benching Stones, can see Liverpool scoring

        4. fplking14
          • 9 Years
          3 years, 1 month ago

          Depends on your team. I'm getting Tarkowski so will play him over 1 City defender and start one. Will also start Salah.

          If I didn't get Tarkowski I would play both City defenders and drop Salah for one of my strikers

      • Steve The Spud
        • Fantasy Football Scout Member
        • 4 Years
        3 years, 1 month ago

        Pool V City predictions? I think it might be quite tight

        actually going for a 0-0

        1. Captain_Shirokov
          • 5 Years
          3 years, 1 month ago

          I'll go 2-0 City.

        2. Gudjohnsen
          • 7 Years
          3 years, 1 month ago

          1-2 City

      • internal error
        • Fantasy Football Scout Member
        • 11 Years
        3 years, 1 month ago

        I've got a massive headache with who to bench in gw24. I might use my BB that week. Anyone else thinking of using it then?

      • Lightbody
        • Fantasy Football Scout Member
        • 14 Years
        3 years, 1 month ago

        Hey all, do we think Soucek's output is likely to suffer with Lingard in the team?

        1. Gudjohnsen
          • 7 Years
          3 years, 1 month ago

          Good point. Haven't thought about that.

        2. potatoace
          • Fantasy Football Scout Member
          • 12 Years
          3 years, 1 month ago

          Well man utd used to 🙂

      • MoSalalalalalalalalah
        • 5 Years
        3 years, 1 month ago

        I don't understand, so will there be a DGW in GW26 as well?

        1. Captain_Shirokov
          • 5 Years
          3 years, 1 month ago

          yes a big one

          1. MoSalalalalalalalalah
            • 5 Years
            3 years, 1 month ago

            So would it be better to BB then?

      • CAPA
        • 5 Years
        3 years, 1 month ago

        Is Lingard likely to start again this weekend?

        1. MoSalalalalalalalalah
          • 5 Years
          3 years, 1 month ago

          Can't see him being benched after scoring a brace

          1. CAPA
            • 5 Years
            3 years, 1 month ago

            Is he going to keep Bowen out again?

      • MoSalalalalalalalalah
        • 5 Years
        3 years, 1 month ago

        Start 3 & Bench 3?

        A) Cancelo
        B) Sterling
        C) Gundogan
        D) Digne
        E ) DCL
        F) Dallas

        1. No Kane No Gain
          • 5 Years
          3 years, 1 month ago

          Start ABC

          Bench CDE.

          Be prepared that one of the city players might be benched or have low scoring but it cannot be predicted who

      • No Kane No Gain
        • 5 Years
        3 years, 1 month ago

        What captain could you say is worth -4 this week?! I’m chasing so I don’t want to captain Bruno.

        1. fplking14
          • 9 Years
          3 years, 1 month ago

          Antonio or Bamford

      • dbeck
        • Fantasy Football Scout Member
        • 6 Years
        3 years, 1 month ago

        g2g?, will float a transfer, seems wise as then can move knowing the FA cup moves

        Ederson
        Dias Digne Mee
        Soucek Mo Son Bruno Grealish
        Antonio Watkins

        Johnstone Robbo Stones Brewster

        Bench right order?

      • Captain_Shirokov
        • 5 Years
        3 years, 1 month ago

        Martinez; DCL, Dias, Coufal.

        Jaysus, my bench might even be worth a BB this week.

      • Toothless
        • Fantasy Football Scout Member
        • 10 Years
        3 years, 1 month ago

        Sick of Johnstone. FT ->

        a) Pope
        or
        b) Sanchez

        Pope guaranteed double (cry, FUL) in gwk 24.
        Sanchez £1.1m cheaper and potential dgwk in gwk 26.

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

          Go Pope especially if no plans to wildcard any time soon

      • Jdpz
        • 4 Years
        3 years, 1 month ago

        Play
        a) Cancelo
        b) Alioski
        c) Justin

      • Harmonica1967
        • 6 Years
        3 years, 1 month ago

        Best Chilwell replacement? 0 ITB and already have Cresswell, Cancelo, Targett, Pieters

        A). AWB
        B). Shaw
        C). Alonso
        D). Rudiger
        E). Justin
        F). Other

      • BOATIES FC
        • Fantasy Football Scout Member
        • 5 Years
        3 years, 1 month ago

        lose TAA or Robbo ? rest of defence is Dias Stones Ayling

        1. Captain_Shirokov
          • 5 Years
          3 years, 1 month ago

          taa

      • dshv
        • 6 Years
        3 years, 1 month ago

        SON OWNERS

        Do you trust him to give him the captain band against west bromich ?

        1. Captain_Shirokov
          • 5 Years
          3 years, 1 month ago

          no

        2. OLB
          • 8 Years
          3 years, 1 month ago

          Not this week, I'm on Antonio, but Kane transferred back in next week.

      • Flynny
        • 9 Years
        3 years, 1 month ago

        I have Johnstone and martinez in squad.

        I'm bringing in pope for the weekend?

        Which of my keepers do I lose? A lot invested if I have martinez and pope - but don't want to lose martinez if he will have additional dgws to pope.....have played bb

        Thanks

        1. Captain_Shirokov
          • 5 Years
          3 years, 1 month ago

          could just bring in a BUR defender instead

          1. Flynny
            • 9 Years
            3 years, 1 month ago

            I could but want to save that place for digne

      • George James
        • 9 Years
        3 years, 1 month ago

        With Silva looking to be out at weekend do you think that makes James any more nailed? Or is this wishful thinking....