FPL First Draft Update

I'm still fairly happy with the first draft team I posted over a week ago now. It's mainly the forward position and my bench that I'm still playing around with. Pretty much three positions.

(the three problem positions)

I'm now finding myself having cold feet about Sharp. He's 33 so may not be guaranteed the minutes I was hoping for. Plus Sheffield United have now signed another two attacking players. Lys Mousset from Bournemouth and Callum Robinson from Preston North End.

Mousset is only 5m on FPL, which is a very nice price if he plays. So he now enters the equation. Robinson is down as a midfielder so I can discount him. Newcastle are also currently in the process of signing the Brazilian forward Joelinton. So it'll be very interesting to see how he's priced, as with Newcastle's current lack of options he'll almost certainly be a starter.

Villa have also signed the Brazilian forward Wesley Moraes who's priced at 6m - the same as Sharp. He could be a good alternative if he's their first choice forward.

I'm actually enjoying selecting the forwards. I'm definitely sticking with super cheap options, so it's quite fun trying to find the value. I can't say the same for the fifth midfield position though. The options in the 4.5m bracket are just terrible. Many people are going with Leander Dendoncker, who seems like the best pick at the moment. I'll probably end up going that way too, but I'm a little unsure about going with Wolves players. Mainly because of the Europa League. Plus you'd expect they'll make some signings sooner or later. He does look fairly nailed on as it stands though.

It feels a bit boring picking a player everyone will have. Especially when you can gamble a little bit with the bench options, but if it makes obvious sense then I guess that's the way to go.

People might be a little bit sniffy when they see Kanté in the above line up, but I'm sticking with him as it stands as he feels like a very safe option. He plays, so at that price I'm happy. Greenwood is a free hit at 4.5m so I'm happy with that choice too.

In fact, as with Kanté, given I'm going so cheap up top I'm just looking for any players that play to fill the other two striker slots. If I can find two regular starters for under 6m that'll be very nice.

First Draft For 19/20

First draft.

(click to enlarge)

I'll keep it short. I don't want to go overboard as I'll no doubt end up changing it round several times before the season starts.

I've stuck to my plan though. Big on defence, super cheap up top.

I can't imagine many teams will be starting with Billy Sharp as the lone striker 😅 So that no doubt looks a little odd. He is a natural goalscorer though, so perhaps he could nick a few in the Premier League. I think he takes penalties too.

Kanté is a bit of a dull pick, but having went with Sterling, De Bruyne and Salah I'm a little strapped for cash. He is at least pretty much guaranteed to start though, which is quite reassuring given how weak my bench is.

Shane Long and Mason Greenwood are my 2nd and 3rd choice strikers (!) Pretty bad, but cheap is cheap. I'm just hoping Long will get some game time for the weeks he's needed off the bench, and Greenwood is very much a pick based on sheer hope. It's possible he could get some minutes for United, which creates the slight possibility that I may have a United player coming off the bench some weeks.

Guendouzi is a bit of a cliched 4.5m midfield pick. However, looking at the options in that price bracket he still seems like one of the more reliable when it comes to getting minutes on the pitch. Especially given how little I know about the cheaper midfield options for the teams that have came up. Last season he either started and came off, or was benched and came on. So he always seemed to guarantee at least a point, which I guess will have to do for the time being.

It's probably quite obvious why I've picked the defensive players. With them all being high priced it also means I'll easily be able to switch to different options if other players look better. Wan-Bissaka is a bit of a gamble. As are United in general. He'll surely start each game though given the price they've paid for him.

If Zaha goes to Arsenal that could give me a bit of a headache as at 7m he looks great value. As things stand though I'm hoping City will start full throttle and I'll gain the benefit from having both Sterling and De Bruyne. If that doesn't pan out I'll probably downgrade one and re-balance my side.

Again though, still a long time before the season starts, so plenty of tinkering still to go no doubt.