The week in Fantasy Premier League: Assessing the new wave of midfielders
Hallowe’en didn’t have much impact on Fantasy Premier League managers this week - we had enough scares already in GW10.
As the teamsheets arrived, it soon became apparent that some of the most highly-owned and trusted players in FPL weren't on them.
Suddenly everyone was looking nervously at who they actually had in those second and third bench positions, which is never a nice feeling. Some even had to endure the nightmare scenario of not having a captain to play.
I feel sick. Like, actually sick. Totally uncalled for #FPL. pic.twitter.com/SByMv2iMGC
— FPL Viper (@FPLViper) October 28, 2018
owners finally had their day in the sun and even saw his value, along with their sanity, duly restored.
All of this combined to produce some widely divergent scores, leading many managers right back to the drawing board as they looked for ways to change the direction of their season - with one option growing ever more appealing.
Moving money from attack to midfield
The recent decline in the output of attackers has been nothing short of alarming.
's lack of minutes was just about tolerated until the returns dried up - something which has happened twice now in the last three weeks.
Similarly, , and cannot be guaranteed 90 minutes.
has gone down with the Fulham ship and is an automatic sell after he scores against Huddersfield this week.
, and have also gone off the boil, ’s knee is a concern, and the less said about , the better.
Does Arnautovic just walk with a constant limp now? #fpl
— #FPL Penguin (@FPL_Penguin) October 31, 2018
Yet despite the apparent potential such a move could bring, moving to five in midfield is fraught with problems.
First of all, it commits you to playing either a 3-5-2 or 4-5-1 formation. The option may sound reasonable - it certainly paid off at times in recent seasons - but limiting yourself to three defenders could be less than optimal this season, given how well they have been performing. Eight defenders have scored 50 points or more so far, compared to seven midfielders - and they're generally cheaper, too.
This leaves , and although it may seem temptingly logical, it would take a brave manager to commit to such an inflexible system. It means buying at least one bargain-basement attacker for a start which, this week, has seen upwards of 42,000 FPL managers seeing what they want to see in.
He may be the next big thing, but he hasn't even completed 90 minutes for the Hornets yet, and should he lose his place to club captain , you'll need to find the funds to upgrade him when the injuries rack up or the template shifts - whichever happens first.
As mentioned last week, £4.5m defenders and midfielders offer both better points potential and peace of mind. Surely if Gameweek 10 has taught us anything, it's that we need to at least strive for a playing bench?
But for those brave souls determined to make a clean break from the template, an exciting new wave of midfielders might just have come at precisely the right time.
Roberto Pereyra
Blame the availability heuristic for your surprise at seeing come out on top in almost all stats in the comparison above.
No returns from GW3-8 saw him banished from our memories, but he remains the second-highest points scorer in the sub-£8m bracket, behind.
Lately, his goal against Huddersfield has inspired mentions of 's classic strike in Argentina, when Moses in the Red Sea would surely be the more apt comparison.
He does offer one thing his three rivals can't, however - an apparent season-long guarantee of starts; and these days, that's a prized commodity.
Ross Barkley
A massive 36 points in his last three games have made hot property in FPL right now. However, the fact that he only managed three shots on target in that time, coupled with his relatively withdrawn position, would suggest that these kinds of returns may not last much longer.
His minutes are also far from secure in the long term. The England man has started just four league games so far - always at the expense of the more defensively-inclined .
Three of these starts have come against poor attacking teams. Upcoming fixtures against the firepower of , , and arguably even could see Sarri revert to type and leave the goalscoring to Hazard and the gradually improving contribution of and .
The main appeal of is, of course, his price, and he is widely expected to start against Palace after Kovacic's cup outing in midweek. However, despite his recent form, he's not crucial to this team - unlike our next contender.
Anthony Martial
It's hard to rely on any Man United asset these days - even the untouchable got benched last week - but it's becoming steadily harder to believe that can afford to drop the player who has probably kept him in a job.
The fact that he has now taken personal credit for resurgence would also suggest that the Frenchman's place in the team is secure for now.
"He took quite a long time to understand what we want from him, took quite a long time for his brain but also his body to be ready to play the way we want him to play."
High praise indeed!
Still just 6% owned despite his four goals, one assist and eight bonus points from his last three games, he won't be a differential for long should this kind of scoring continue.
Gerard Deulofeu (£5.4m)
Long regarded as a classic FPL troll, the Barcelona graduate is back to tempt us once more with his frustratingly obvious flair and skill.
He flattered to deceive at Everton, but did show promise at Watford last season before his injury, and his goal whilst operating as a against Huddersfield made us all sit up and take notice.
A run of starts in his new position could herald a breakthrough season, or it could all end in tears. Which basically makes him a cheap like-for-like replacement for , then.
You'll have to wait until before Watford have a decent home fixture, but taking a plunge now could bring huge rewards for relatively little outlay.
QUICK TIP
Don’t be in a hurry to sell Bournemouth attacking players just because their fixtures appear to be stiffening. Their next three opponents - (home), (away) and (home) - are deceptively poor at the back.
United have a single clean sheet to their name this season, Arsenal have just two (neither of which came at an away match) and, for all their caution, Newcastle have yet to register a shutout at home.
BUY
As continue to post their prodigious attacking numbers, it’s becoming increasingly clear that we’re all going to have to take the rotation on the chin and lay claim to our own piece of that midfield.
Did we really believe for a while there that was brought in without the manager’s full consent? The Algerian may not have played much in those first few matches, but Pep had a look at him in every match, and now, it appears, he likes what he sees.
Having started the last three league games, Mahrez is finding form again with goals in his last two. Still available at a discount, the former Player of the Year is turning on the style once again.
Can Mahrez be our City mf of choice? Last 3 has played 269/270 mins. Significantly 2 of these were Pool&Spurs (a) Has he gained Pep's trust?
— FPL Renegades (@RenegadesFpl) October 30, 2018
- Versatile
- Share of set pieces
- Down to 8.6
- Pen touches 21
- Shots (in box) 10(9)
- Chances (big) 4(2)
- Mins/shot 27#FPL Drew⚽️ pic.twitter.com/Ux0dl3FcKN
TRY
Still surprisingly off the radar after his goal against Leicester, could be a solid long-term pick for managers looking to free up cash elsewhere.
There could even be more goals on the horizon for the Paraguayan, who has been quietly registering some of the most impressive underlying attacking stats among defenders this season, and now has the fixture list to start converting more of them into FPL points.
Interesting player to watch in next few weeks is Fabian Balbuena (4.4M) from West Ham. 5 shots and 2 attempted assists in last 2 gameweeks. Ownership only 0.3%.
— FPL MacGyver (@FPLMacGyver) October 22, 2018
Has already 9 shots from inside the box this season! That is one per game! #FPL
Look at those fixtures. 👀 pic.twitter.com/QmdTFt3YJ1
His baseline bonus numbers are also sky-high, so he should clean up once the Hammers start picking up clean sheets. Granted, they’ve only managed one so far - but they rarely concede more than a single goal, and with liabilities like Wilshere and now Noble sidelined, expect that record to improve.
Balbuena also rotates perfectly with defenders like and in GW13 when West Ham play Man City while Wolves are at home to Huddersfield. Although you probably shouldn't be benching Doherty in the first place, to be honest...
Matt Doherty had seven penalty area touches and SIX shots yesterday vs Brighton - the most of any player in #GW10 so far.
— FPL Swot (@FPLSWOT) October 28, 2018
Tricky next two fixtures but then Huddersfield and Cardiff on the horizon for Wolves.
£4.9m is a steal.#FPL pic.twitter.com/qeZwfSLres
GOODBYE
It's now six games and counting since registered an attacking return in FPL. Without so much as a shot or touch inside the penalty area to show for his efforts against Man City, that was always unlikely to change.
Still inexplicably present in almost a fifth of active FPL squads, a return for the likes of and should see his run in the Tottenham team come to a merciful end soon.
Top of the League
We have a new name at the top of . An impressive 86-point haul from ’s side was enough to send him three points clear of ’s in second.
Points from Ryan, Alonso, Salah and Wilson did the business for him. Last week’s leader, , slips to third but remains well in contention.
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