Category: Draft

It was a mixed performance for the draft squad this week as we continue to look up at the top spot in the 8-team league. A final score of 53 points saw my move 19 points close to the top spot, now trailing by 49 overall points, I feel confident I have a good squad to make that ground up. As for Gameweek 11, we enter the break in form and will look to make a few transfers to shore up a questionable defense. I might have to look at swapping out my bench, as I got caught with 2 players who didn’t start this weekend, but only one available off the bench.
Continue reading “Premier League: GW11 Draft Retrospect”

It was an off week for my draft squad as I scored just 30 points on the week and maintained my position in the league rankings, holding the number two spot. However, I dropped 35 points and now sit 67 points behind the top spot with many games still to play. I feel confident I can chip away at that lead.
Continue reading “Premier League: GW10 Draft Retrospect”

Unlike the traditional FPL game, many of the moves I have made in FPL Draft have worked to my advantage. On the week I finished with 54 points, which took my up to second place, just 32 off the top spot. Prior to GW9 I claimed John Stones, Wilfried Zaha and Tammy Abraham, all of whom took their place in my starting XI.

There has been no set formation for my draft squad, this week I ran out a 3-5-2 with the addition of Zaha and Abraham. Initially Aaron Cresswell got the nod, but illness sidelined up and Alderweireld took up the third defender spot for the weekend. Defensively, my squad fared well, led by Azpilicueta and his second goal of the season (7 points). I’ve doubled up with Man City, John Stones and Ederson recorded the clean sheet, combining for 12 points. It was the Spurs leaky defense at Wembley against Liverpool that saw Alderweireld with no return. Overall, I am pleased with my defense. If Chelsea can turn things around I will double up with David Luiz.

On paper, my 5-man midfield looks solid. Although Dele Alli has been under performing, but this year has mirrored last year in terms of performance. Maybe this 9 point return is what he needed to kick start his run of returns. Still pleased to have Coutinho back, but he played uninspired football in their Sunday loss, but still expect solid numbers to come. Last week’s transfers, Richarlison and Chuopo-Moting combined for 10 points, while newcomer, Zaha finished with 3 points. Not great, but really need Coutinho to up the offensive game.

Up front I introduced Abraham to partner with Aguero, who got off the mark with a successful spot kick and bonus point. Depending on fixtures, I could see Abraham moved to the bench in favor of a 4 man defense as part of a 4-5-1 formation.

On the week I have already put in a claim for Rooney, not sure he will remain part of my squad for any length of time, but in the short term Everton appear to have some good fixtures; lei/WAT/cry. Will have to wait and see if a new manager can reverse the poor start Everton has had this season.

It was a very off week for the draft team, much aligned with how the overall gameweek went for many in the traditional game. A overall score of 26 didn’t help my case, as I dropped down to third place, now 52 points off the top spot and just 5 points out of second place. All is not well with my squad, as I have been struggling to find offensive points with Aguero still sidelined due to injury. Thankfully I do feel I have strengthened my squad through transactions.

Defensively, Alderweireld was the only player to show up and return 7 points, on the back of a CS and a single bonus point. Chelsea losing to Palace saw Azpilicueta and Luiz combine for zero points, giving up an own goal and Luiz picking up a knock headed into GW9. Between the sticks, I thought City would keep it clean against Stoke, but Ederson gave up two goals, while Fabianski (bench) recorded his 4th CS of the season.

With the recent acquisitions of Richarlison and Chuopo-Moting, I look to play a 5-4-1 or a 4-5-1 to take advantage of some good midfielders. Richarlison was my top midfielder, picking up the assist. Alli and Coutinho each picked up a point for a CS and Pedro still not got on track with just a goal and assist on the season.

Up front, I moved Hernandez, but retained Carroll, even though he picked up a red last week. Thankfully he wasn’t starting as he took a -2. Aguero still injured resided on the bench with no intentions of dropping him. So it was Joselu making his second appearance in my squad. Great underlying statistics, but still came up with no attacking returns.

This week I have claims in for 3 new players in Tammy Abraham, John Stones and Wilfried Zaha, all of whom could make a start this week. Luiz is currently flagged with a calf injury, but going 4 at the back would not be a problem, given the players I will hopefully get when waivers is run.

It’s still early in the season and my squad if performing. The top squad is living off the likes of Lukakau, Mhkitaryan and Jones from United, as well as Eriksen. However this team is getting Morata back, which could only strengthen the hold on the top spot.

It was the best week on record this season for my draft squad, overall points of 59, which pushed me up the table to second place. It could take some time, as I now sit 31 points behind the leader, but we have much football to play.

The return of Coutinho to my squad has been welcomed, with 5 weeks of no returns, he got on the board with 13 points. Dele Alli returned 2 assists after going scoreless the past 3 games. New boy, Matt Ritchie was quiet and didn’t return. It was Pedro, on my bench who struck for 8 points, which could potentially push him up the ladder to start in GW7 against City.

Up front, Kun Aguero got it done with a goal and assist for 11 points. Joselu, who’s got great underlying stats, still couldn’t finish. An injury to Benteke will have been scrounging the wire for a #3 forward. My 5-2-3 is in jeopardy with injuries an lack of consistency up front.

Defensively it was Azpilicueta and Stone providing 20 points. “Dave” returned 2 assists for Chelsea, while Stones picked up a CS. Unfortunately, Mendy left after 26 minutes with a knee injury, his stats is unknown. After back to back returns, Lascelles and Newcastle was quiet.

Mendy is the main concern and I’ve already gone to the wire to replace him. I am aiming for Wesley Hoedt at So’ton, as the Saints still have some solid fixtures through GW11. Lascelles might be shortlisted as they face Liverpool, which means I would look towards Mustafi, with hosting Brighton this weekend.

While I was unavailable all weekend, it appeared my starting XI were off to a great start on Saturday behind the foot of Sergio Aguero who fired home 3 goals against Watford. However “it got complicated” on Sunday and while I had a fair score, when compared to the other 7 teams in my league, I struggled to gain any ground on those above me. Prior to the start of GW5 I made 6 moves bringing in new talent in hopes of trying to gain an advantage to close the gap on the top three teams.

Gameweek 5 wasn’t too kind, as I introduce 6 new players to my 15-man squad, 5 of which were inserted to the starting XI. The only exceptiong being Fabianski, because of his match up away to Spurs. Little did any fantasy manager know he would shutout Spurs and gain 11 points on the day! It was my hope that bringing new players in would put me in a better situation it chip away at the leaders this week. In fact, I did gain all the three managers above me in the standing, which sees me 41 points behind the top spot.

On the day, nearly half my points came from Kun Aguero, scoring 20 points on his 3 goals/1 assist game. Unfortunately, his new strike partners failed to return, as I brought in Christian Benteke and Joselu. The Benteke move was more to prevent another manager from picking him up, while Joselu, like Kane had some great underlying stats.

In the midfielder, Philippe Coutinho made his first start on the season, lasting 78 minutes but not returning. From what I heard, his position was a bit deeper than where we saw him last season. He partnered with Dele Alli, who gained one addition point because of the clean sheet against Swans. Jese and Mooy, on the bench were both ineffective on the weekend. Pedro left at halftime, as he picked up knock, scoring just a single points. Change could be necessary in the upcoming week.

Much like my traditional FPL team I have leaned towards a #5mandefence for much of the season. This week I brought in Trent Alexander-Arnold, Charlie Daniels and Ben Mendy, all as starters. TAA was a punt against Burnley, but was left with no return as the game finished 1-1. Daniels was brought in for Yoshida (8 points in GW5) against Brighton looked promising, but the attacking defender was left with no return, leaving me in a -6 deficit. Hegazi out for Mendy in was a wash, as both finished with clean sheets (6 points). Elliot started the week between the sticks and even with a save bonus, he scored just 3 points.

Overall I have scored 202 points, with 57 for the current game week. As noted I did gain points on all the managers above me, but still have some transactions forthcoming in order to strengthen my team. As of today I have put in two waiver claims.  The first claim is to move TAA in favor of John Stones, doubling up on Man City defenders. Ritchie is still on the free agency list and has 4 assists in the last 3 games and and Brighton in GW6. If no other manager claims him, I will bring in and move Mooy out. Pascal Groß is currently the highest (32 points) midfielder on the free agency list.

 

The FPL Draft game just isn’t doing it for me. Chalk it up to 37 years playing fantasy (NFL) football, but I find this version of the game boring. No other way to explain it. After 4 weeks I am 4th in my league on 145 points overall. For GW4 is was a score of just 30 points, which meant I didn’t lose my current ranking, but 5th place is creeping close, now just 6 points back.

Prior to the start of the weekend games, I made two waiver moves in order to better my starting XI. In hindsight, the moves only accounted for 3 points. With Britos on a red card, I picked up Phil Jones. Unfortunately United couldn’t keep a CS and drew with Stoke City, 2-2. The other move was dropping Dusan Tadic in favor of Aaron Mooy, who didn’t return away to West Ham.

Defensively I was led by “Dave” aka Azpilicueta, backed by his second assist scored 7 points to lead all defensive players. Hegazi, Jones and Lössl accounted for an additional 2 points. Needless to say, Hegazi is now on a short list to move out. Why I didn’t play Alderweireld against Everton, I am not quite sure.

Still holding onto Coutinho, who should see his first EPL start in GW5. Midfield is where I am struggling, as it’s been a rotation of players through to find someone who may hit, based on fixtures. Jesé, Pedro and the aforementioned Mooy accounted for 6 points, with none of them returning. Alli gets a small bump as Spurs kept a clean sheet. Of the 5 midfielders, he is the one I expect to perform on a regular basis.

Up front, it’s been a challenge with Agüero, Hernandez and Rooney. A pair of goals for the later two, but they haven’t done anything lately. Currently, I am on the verge of moving Rooney, but Everton does trail to Old Trafford, as Wayne faces his old team. Revenge factor? Hernandez hasn’t looked good, then again neither have the Hammers. But who in the free agency pool is better? Not much, but I’ve been considering a move.

That leaves Kun Agüero to pull his weight, scoring 9 points on the back of a goal and assist. However those are his first points since GW1. It also appears Pep favors Jesus as well. I still expect good numbers from Kun the rest of the season, so he will remain a starter.

For the week I have already submitted 5 waiver claims in order to strengthen my team and potentially take a shot at 3rd place this weekend.

City is coming into form with some good fixtures. While I don’t expect much defensively from Pep’s boys, I will be looking for offensive returns from Mendy. Daniels would make his second appearance in my squad, as I had him from through GW3, opting for Britos that week. Mooy or Groß? Call this a knee jerk reaction to his 18 point haul in GW4. Brighton does have some favorable games. Ederson’s injury is a concern, but it will be Lössl making way (the graphic isn’t correct).