fantasy premier league teams GW5 – some early thoughts on the FFGeek team

Here’s our fantasy premier league teams GW5 article where we give our early thoughts on the FFGeek team for GW5. We look back at gameweek 4 and give our thoughts on the gameweek ahead including potential transfers and captain choice.

fantasy premier league teams GW5 – some early thoughts on the FFGeek team

Firstly if you’re new to the site my last 3 seasons overall ranks are 36k, 17k and 21k

Geek note: If you join our Patreon site you will get access to an FFGeek contributor tracker team which combines the contributors individual FPL teams each week to show their favourite players, transfers and captains. It will always be completed on a Friday/Saturday in a normal gameweek. There will also be a spreadsheet of each managers teams, transfers and captains so you can drill down further.

You also get:

Joe’s interactive transfer planner and points projection tool

Weekly podcasts with myself and the contributors

FFGeek private leagues

Access to the FFGeek Slack channel for discussion with the contributors and members

$2 and $3 tiers per calendar month. No commitment beyond 1 month

Gameweek 4

GW4 points: 61 -4 (FPL average 57) Total points 253, Gameweek rank 2,431k, Overall Rank: 203k, red arrow 72k, Team Value: £100.7m

Here’s the points:

61 points less a 4 point deduction for an extra transfer.  Overall rank of 203k and a red arrow of 72k

It’s not every gameweek that 6 returning players including 2 double point hauls ends up with a chunky red arrow and  a gameweek rank of 2.4m.  I guess that’s the price of Sterlings blank and Aguero’s 16 points doubled as the 2nd captain favourite.  I was only 30k down until the Arsenal v Spurs game but Aubameyang and Kane goals cranked up that red arrow a bit more.

The pleasing thing was the Man City and Liverpool defence clean sheets but the double clean sheet stress while watching the game isn’t fun that’s for sure. Despite having a torrid time against Traore Digne still found time to get an assist which is the worth of someone with attacking potential.  Interestingly I heard some stuff about Iwobi making a decent amount of tackles in the game against Wolves and touches in his own third.  While I only saw the highlights he was no where to be seen when Digne was doing his best against what is a difficult player to say the least in Traore.  A double up seems the only way to slow him down.

The thing to remember is that overall rank is incredibly volatile at the moment so don’t get it out of perspective.

In our last podcast I talked about why I like to transfer late in the week.  It’s not about injuries or press conferences more because it takes me a while for me to decide on my transfer such is the procrastination and cogitation involved.  This week I would like to think if I went early I would have gone for David Silva and possibly been better off if you add Siggys points and no 4 point hit but I’m not sure that with a ticking clock at my head I wouldn’t have gone for Felipe Anderson. In the end luck was with me and for at least this week De Bruyne was a good returner as an alternative to Anderson.

It’s marginal at the moment whether I call De Bruyne template (you’ll see the schedule below) but assuming I do that means my only 2 non template players are Ings and Pope.  Nothing was ever coming from Pope although a 0-0 v Liverpool would have been welcome but pretty obvious early on it was never going to happen.  Ings I had some hope for but despite a good schedule he’s well off where he should be even on a 90 minute basis and that’s exacerbated by the fact that his average minutes to date is 65.  I’d like him to become Haller but there’s no easy pathway unfortunately.

Player classification

If you’re a regular reader you’ll know I classify players in my team as template, template replacement and difference makers.  I won’t go through the definitions now but you can see them in last weeks early FFGeek team thoughts post

Here’s how the team is classified now.  You’ll see in the upcoming 10 top FPL managers the template.  De Bruyne is owned by 6 so on the edge of my 7 template definition but I think his score and Norwich next could drag him into that classification so that’s how I see him for the moment.

Transfer thoughts

I generally like to make 2 transfers by carrying over a free transfer each week but this week I will almost certainly make a transfer.

Firstly we need to talk about Sergio

That’s Aguero not FFGeek contributor Torija.  Although with Sergio Torija’s excellent 78 this game week and sitting 2nd in the FFGeek contributors league he is worth  a couple of words saying well done 😁.

If you’ve followed the trials and tribulations of my team over the recent years you’ll know that Aguero is pretty much a staple in the team.  In fact he was in my very first draft team this season.  However a 2 designated captain strategy, Sterlings form, Aguero’s late arrival back from Copa America and Jesus’s threat to his minutes not only in starts but at around the 70 minute point in games meant I went with Sterling as my City designated captain option.

Aguero did average 78 minutes when he started last season but there were 8 games in the 31 starts where he was subbed at less than 70 minutes.  Sterling this season has played 4 90 minute games.  Now no one can predict Pep but Jesus is still a threat to Aguero’s minutes for me.  GW4 Jesus was injured but GW3 Jesus didn’t get on v Bournemouth.

Now even in a equal minutes situation it’s difficult to pick out who will be the best option of the 2 so I wouldn’t argue against anyone getting Aguero over Sterling.

Obviously it’s not impossible to have both.  For me unless I sold Salah I would end up with 3 £4.5m mids if I sold Ings and De Bruyne for Aguero. I personally am not ready to sell Salah as he’s my alternative captain option.  A 3 way designated captain structure affects the rest of the team too much for me and having 2 players from the same team means 1 very expensive player probably won’t be used as a captain which seems an imperfect use of funds.  Even having De Bruyne in there at £9.7m and never being a captain option seems a pretty inefficient use of resources for me at the moment and isn’t sitting well.

At the moment I can’t see Aguero coming into my team but indecision and procrastination does funny things to an FPL manager and I never say never to anything, I just call it being flexible or adaptable! 😬

It’s one of those key 50/50’s where you have to go with your own view on the matter.

Transfer thoughts

1 free transfer and £1.1m in the bank

I would prefer not to make a transfer but I don’t think that’s going to be possible.

The issue

At the moment I have a situation where I have 10 starters for my FPL who will start for me every week.  Player number 11 is a rotation at the moment between Cantwell and Dendoncker.  Cantwell’s xG and xA are very good but a check on volumes shows that he doesn’t shoot much but his key passes are ok as are his minutes played.  Dendoncker hasn’t brought in his end of  last season form to the PL at all and his stats are just overall terrible in every respect.

I also don’t like the idea of playing 2 Norwich attacking players.  Despite all the attacking accolades they have received they are 13th in xG and 16th in shots per game.  Yes they played Liverpool and Chelsea but they also played Newcastle and West Ham and to be honest Chelsea are looking a mid table defensive prospect anyway at least until the fixer Kante is fit to clean up after the likes of Mount and Barkley have been bypassed.

So I’m looked to find an upgrade to either Rico or Greenwood in order to generate a 3 way rotation for that last spot.  Eddie Howe must really have a problem with Rico if after Charlie Daniels is injured he plays his best CB in Ake at LB rather than play Rico.  There has been some stuff written saying he’s been a transfer target from Spain but I find it a stretch to believe that’s why he’s been left out.  All that is why Rico is a target for an upgrade.  Greenwood if he didn’t play v Southampton after Martial was injured looks less likely to start going forward so he is also another potential upgrade.

The defensive options

I have £5.1m if I transfer out Rico so my options seem to be

Soyuncu Leicester £4.5m

Maitland Niles £5.1m

Yes that’s the list all of 2.  I have no faith in Southampton, Newcastle, Villa, Palace, Sheffield United, West Ham, Brighton or in picking which of the £5.0m defenders Lampard will pick.  Walker Peters and Foyth are also injured.  Aurier now he’s not going in the European window after the Sanchez RB disaster has potential but it’s a bit of a leap of faith to say the least this gameweek.

I’ve also ruled out Wolves and Burnley players as they conflict with Pope and Dendoncker.

Leicester are probably the best of the defensive options although Soyuncu offers little in attack.

After the defensive debacle vs Spurs and my rather scathing gameweek review it may seem quite bizarre (and that I’ve gone completely mad)  that I’m looking at an Arsenal player and it certainly feels that way but at least he offers some attacking potential. That’s especially so if Emery continues mimicking Liverpool and plays a narrow front 3 and gets width from the fullbacks.    Arsenal did get 7 clean sheets at home last season as well. There is an issue which needs monitoring in Bellerin maybe coming back sooner than thought as it seems he could return to training relatively soon.  That may stop me doing the unthinkable.

Luckily I have 2 weeks of looking vacant thinking about it while people in my life try to have meaningful conversations with me.  I can’t see Maitland Niles going up in price.

The attacking option

Speaking of Sergio, Torija that is he made the inspired decision to get in Jordan Ayew this week who returned 9 points.  He is the only upgrade at £5.1m that I could get on Greenwood to give an additional rotation option.  His stats in past seasons are pretty uninspiring but at least he’s started the last 2.

Here’s how the 3 rotations would look:

Soyuncu is my favourite option as I write this but lets see what this week and the next brings

Captain thoughts

Both Salah and Sterling are good options.  The polls will be interesting but my initial reaction is Sterling.

Lineup issues

The 11th man will be the issue and it will be between Dendoncker and Soyuncu if he’s transferred in.  Maitland Niles would start if it’s him and Dendoncker would start if Ayew is transferred in.

The team

This is before any transfer is made:

That’s it hope your gameweek was ok.

eek note: If you join our Patreon site you will get access to an FPL contributor tracker team which combines the contributors individual teams each week to show their favourite players, transfers and captains. It will always be completed on a Friday/Saturday in a normal gameweek. There will also be a spreadsheet of each managers teams, transfers and captains so you can drill down further.

You also get:

Joe’s interactive transfer planner and points projection tool

Weekly podcasts with myself and the contributors

FFGeek private leagues

Access to the FFGeek Slack channel for discussion with the contributors and members

$2 and $3 tiers per calendar month. No commitment beyond 1 month

FFGeek league code codes:

fantasy premier league:  fnqq66

Sky Sports fantasy football:  fantasyfootball.skysports.com/leagues/join with PIN 8426114

Telegraph fantasy football:  passcode 8693.  PIN code 8000919.  The telegraph have also offered a prize of £100 to the winner.

Sun Dream Team:

Classic League PIN:  SGDKX9Y3

H2H PIN:  SGFU3CR9

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