FPL gameweek 33 – FFGeek contributors on what to do about Harry Kane?

Contributors, Fantasy Premier League

Harry Kane’s unexpected rise from the bench for last week has prompted much discussion for FPL gameweek 33 from the FFGeek contributors.  Here Joe, Rob, Alex and myself talk about our Harry Kane plans.  There’s also a poll at the end so you can see what other readers have planned

FPL gameweek 33 – FFGeek contributors on what to do about Harry Kane




Rob Reid (the FPL Vet)

Sir Harold of Kane’s return off the bench against Chelsea was certainly a welcome sight for Spurs and England fans. Poch was at his usual cagey best when it came to divulging the nature (and this recovery period) of the ankle injury he suffered away to Bournemouth, leaving us with far more questions and answers. Despite this, it was still a bit surprising to see the EPL Golden Boot winner from the previous 2 seasons fit enough to be on the bench at Stamford Bridge.

The bad news? It’s created another set of dilemmas for us FPL managers! For those currently on their Wildcard, there’s the question mark about (a) whether to bring him in this week, (b) have a plan to get him in for any of GW33,34, 36 or 37 or (c) do we get him at all. For those of us just off our Wildcard then it’s did we have a plan for him and if not (a) do we need a plan or (b) are we going to go without him. And for everyone else, well pretty much any of the above I guess.

First up I guess is do we need him? For me the answer is yes, it’s just a question of when. Why yes? He’s explosive. He can score against anyone and score big. He traditionally scores a lot of goals at the end of the season and he’ll be goal hungry as he tries to hunt down current Golden Boot leader Mo Salah. The downside with getting him is that he’s the most expensive player in the game so you need to have a careful plan for how you’re going to afford this outlay.

As for when? GW33 has potential – he has a good record against Stoke, though is it a little soon after his injury? In GW34 he has a double, though one of these is against Man City and he may be rested for the second fixture at the AMEX as Spurs have a vital FA Cup semi-final a few days after. GW36 is a tempting home fixture against Watford, Spurs could go big here against a dodgy Hornets defence. And then there’s GW37 being the more appealing double – away to the likely relegated West Brom and home to Newcastle. There’s a case for any of these weeks to be fair.

So what’s my plan? I’m going to stay pretty fluid. The only certainty I know is that I won’t be buying him for GW33. He doesn’t present enough of an OR risk to me to justify taking a hit on him this week and I’m keen to carry my transfer over into GW34 to load up on more DGW players. I could buy him in GW34 – it would probably mean taking a hit to get the players I’d want; I’d sell Aubameyang, Firmino and probably Hazard to get him, buying Lukaku, Kane and a DGW midfielder under £7.5m. GW36 is a possibility – again this would involve taking a hit and if I don’t have him by then, I’ll certainly buy him in GW37.

This was one of my reasons for hedging on Hazard in midfield. Putting all those funds in one place rather than spreading them between a couple of players makes the upgrade to Kane a little easier. And if Hazard goes big against West Ham? No problem – Son or Mahrez could also easily be used as the cash cows, though granted with a more budget replacement. Whatever I do, I’m set on having him by GW37 at the latest as he’s one of the top candidates for my Triple Captain chip. Keep an eye on contribution in the weekly team article and I’ll keep you posted of my plans!

The potential injury news and Liverpools potential advancement in the Champions League and the obvious rotation that could bring means that Salah is now another option as a cash cow for Kane in GW34.

Joseph Crilley (Spurs supporter)

If I’m completely honest, when I activated my wildcard, I was certainly not expecting the return of Harry Kane to come so soon and it’s confused matters somewhat. My plan had always been to have Lukaku in my team for the double gameweek in GW34, play my free hit in GW35 and then bring Kane back in for the United man the week after. I still like this idea as Lukaku has fantastic fixtures in his double gameweek, but the lure of Kane is so difficult to resist.

Therefore, my intention is to sit tight in GW33 and assess the situation. Kane has a tendency to take a bit of time to get up to full speed following injury so if he doesn’t look 100% against Stoke, then it would tempting to stick with the plan to wait until GW36 to get Spurs’ star man. I would then transfer Aubameyang out for Vardy in GW34 to give me the required cash. On the other hand, if he comes back firing then I may have to bite the bullet and get him in for the double gameweek by using my 2 free transfers to replace Aubameyang. Options to remove from my team in order to raise the cash would be Gross, Son, Willian and Alonso.

The potential injury to Salah would pose an interesting solution as if he were ruled out for a period of time then he can be used to raise the cash for Kane. However, for now I would like to hold the transfer in GW33 to give myself the maximum flexibility for the double gameweek and assess the situation with the Spurs man. I could also keep an eye on the players that I would need to sell for the extra cash such as my Chelsea assets who are looking a little out of sorts currently. So to summarise, I don’t particularly know what I’ll be doing with Kane! Therefore, I’ll be saving my transfer this week and hoping the situation becomes clearer before the double.

Alex Ball

Do I want Kane before the Stoke game? Simple answer; yes! I saw a stat today that upon his return from injury over the last 3 seasons, he has a 1 or 2 pointer in his first game back (the Chelsea game) and then more often than not he returns points in the following game. Let’s not forget that Stoke have conceded 7 in the last 3 games.

Onto my own situation. My plan is to use transfers to build a team for GW35 and use my chips as follows; FH34, WC36, BB37. So it’s not feasible to get Kane for the Stoke match but I will get him for my free hit team in 34 and the back in for my wildcard team in for 36 (remembering he doesn’t have a game in 35). And of course prey he has a quiet game against Stoke!

Good luck on your decision.




The Geek

My wildcard teams have been set up on the basis of 2 premium forwards in Kane and Aubameyang for 33 and Lukaku replacing Aubameyang for 34.

However those who’ve come onto the site for any amount of time at all will know that nothing is ever certain with procrastination, indecision and uncertainty dogging me until I finally have to do something as time ticks away and the dice is thrown on another 50/50 decision.

Much as I have major doubts about Lukaku the fixtures for 34 are too good so it’s difficult to see him leaving the team.

So assuming Lukaku  stays then the choice in my free hit lost team is:

Kane, Christensen, Dummett, Gudmundsson and Barnes vs Austin, Alonso , Tarkowski , Alli and Wood.

Alonso, Alli and Wood being the upgrades for the sacrifice of Kane to Austin.  2 premiums also gave me flexibility to introduce Aubameyang or Jesus in 37 although last nights UCL has possibly changed any requirement for Aguero rotation which could reinstigate the striker job share.

In the free hit intact team its Kane, Barnes, Lewis Cook, Christensen and Cedric vs Austin, Wood, Alli, Alonso and Stephens.

I keep changing my mind as to what is the best option is but as yet I’ve not moved to the single striker option of Kane over Lukaku due to the Man Utd’s players fixtures and a long last ability to get some bonus points.  That coupled with City maybe still needing to beat Spurs to win the league if they rotate at the weekend and Mourinho parks the bus successfully to avoid having to congratulate Pep has edged Lukaku over Kane if I do decide to drop one premium striker.

Even in that situation Kane would return for 36 when he’s home to Watford

The Salah injury hasn’t changed anything at the moment although I’m still digesting and it may still do.  He could easily be benched by Klopp  in 33 and then has rest/rotation risk with the UCL semis between 35/36 and 36/37.  It’s just a risky sell as well and the sell vs buy back price difference is huge.  No obvious replacement jumps out for me although a pread of funds could help the team.  More thinking required.

So the short answer Kane will come in it’s just 33 or 36 and as is it part of a 2 premium strike force or a single premium striker force.

Good luck whatever you decide

The Poll


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