Sky Sports continues its weekly column bringing you essential tips from the best Fantasy Premier League managers in the world.
In our latest column, Holly Shand and Lee from FPL Family discuss their FPL teams ahead of the restart, why they have decided to sell or buy certain players and reveal their strategies post-World Cup.
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Did you learn anything from the World Cup that will impact your FPL strategy?
Holly Shand: The World Cup won’t have much impact on my strategy as it means we have an empty form book: I think those players who have been at the World Cup will perhaps gain more momentum than those who have had six weeks off.
Lee from FPL Family: We’ll need to keep an eye on Premier League players that made it to the semi-finals. I’d expect most that went that deep into the competition to be afforded some rest before they’re launched back into action. That aside, I’ll be targeting players that didn’t play in the World Cup, as they should in theory be well-rested and ready for the restart. Mohamed Salah, Erling Haaland and Miguel Almiron are three good examples of players I’ll be looking to target for that reason.
Should we consider form from before the World Cup or go with fixtures from now?
Holly Shand: Fixtures is the only thing we can really look at now, and the upcoming double gameweeks for Fulham, Chelsea, Manchester City, Spurs and Arsenal a key consideration. I’ll likely be tripling up on Manchester City and Arsenal assets for the restart as they were the superior sides from the first phase of the season. While we may see fluctuations in individual player form, we should still see consistency in club form.
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Lee from FPL Family: I’ll mostly be scouting the fixtures and form from before the World Cup. There are a couple of players that have been performing well in the mid-season friendlies however, so have an element of being in form coming into the restart. Dejan Kulusevski has looked good for Spurs and Darwin Nunez, having come back from Qatar earlier than he might have hoped, bagged two in a recent Liverpool friendly with AC Milan.
What is your team for Gameweek 17?
Holly Shand: Kepa, Ward; Trippier, Cancelo, Gabriel, Dalot, Botman; Salah, Saka, Foden, Almiron, Andreas; Haaland, Mitrovic, Nketiah
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Lee from FPL Family: Kepa, Ward; Cancelo, Trippier, James, White, Bueno; Salah, Foden, Rashford, Martinelli, Almiron; Haaland, Darwin, Greenwood
Who have you signed/sold and why?
Holly Shand: I’ve sold Nick Pope and Callum Wilson as I needed to rejig my Newcastle United players to get in form man Almiron and budget pick Sven Botman. I was determined to get in more Arsenal players with a triple-up now of Gabriel, Bukayo Saka and Eddie Nketiah. Aleksander Mitrovic now comes back into the attack since he’s back fit and providing great consistency this season.
Image: Bukayo Saka remained in top form during the World Cup, scoring three goals
Lee from FPL Family: I’m changing strategy a little and investing more in midfield and defence. It’s a risky strategy, given there are lots of forwards we may want as the season progresses, but by acquiring a £4.2m forward to sit on the bench each week, enables a really strong midfield and money in the bank to stay flexible over the first few gameweeks.
I’m really unsure on a number of things – can Liverpool improve? What impact will Jesus’s injury have on Arsenal? How will Man United react in the post-Cristiano Ronaldo era? There are a lot of unknowns, so keeping some money in the bank to jump quickly on key assets as we gather information in the first few weeks is key to my strategy.
Who are your favourite differentials?
Holly Shand: I really like Kyle Walker as a budget route into the Manchester City defence, he will be a key player now he’s back from injury. Manchester United’s Anthony Martial is also on my radar as they look to improve their attack after the departure of Ronaldo. Kulusevski could be set for a bigger role in Spurs attack while Richarlison is sidelined with a hamstring injury.
Lee from FPL Family: Kulusevski will have a point to prove and will want to have an impact in the second half of this season for Spurs. I also expect he’ll see plenty of game time, with Richarlison unfit for a number of weeks.
Secondly, I’ve got an eye on a couple of the Man Utd assets. Their first three fixtures back after the break should see them hit the ground running, so while I expect Marcus Rashford to be a popular pick for his price, if you’re looking for differentials and you can’t afford £9.8m for Bruno Fernandes, Antony comes in at £7.5m and at time of writing, is only selected by 4.5 per cent of FPL managers.
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