Well, it's been a while since I've posted on here, but I'm returning just in time. The 22/23 season begins tomorrow ..it's Gamemonth August!
Yes, I'm delivering on my promise to play "gamemonths" instead of "gameweeks". I won't rehash all the rules again, but it basically means I can only make changes one gameweek per month.
With GW1 naturally being the first week it means this is the gameweek for August.
There are five gameweeks in August, so the team I'm locking in tomorrow evening won't have any tinkering, transfers or attention until GW6 at the earliest (I imagine I'll probably wildcard that week).
My Team
So this is how my team is looking at present:
BENCH
Obviously I need a decent bench. If I get injuries and suspensions these guys will be all I have, so I need three playing bench options. As you can see though I have Undav in there, who's unlikely to start, so I'm already struggling. The pull to have a decent first eleven was just too strong.
Still though, I'm at least hopeful. Undav should at least get some minutes from the bench, and the Brighton fixtures are decent. Especially gameweeks 4 and 5, which are the weeks where it's more likely he'll be needed as my team will be more decimated by then.
Of course, it could end up completely decimated by that point. I may end up with a team that's 4, 5, 6 players down. It is just five gameweeks though, so fingers-crossed it won't get that bad.
I like having Mitrovic as the first sub. Hopefully I won't need him in GW1 when he faces Liverpool, but after that the fixtures aren't as poor. So he's an exciting player to have coming in if needed.
Andreas Pereira is the obvious midfield bench option. Cheap, but playing, so he's a handy fit.
Then we have Ward as back-up keeper in goal, which again is very handy given the price, assuming he does indeed start for Leicester.
GOALKEEPER & DEFENCE
My defence/goalkeeper is all Liverpool and City. It looks very odd and lopsided, but I want to have the maximum number of players from those two sides given the fixtures. I also want players that are highly likely to play each week, so defence, especially for City, is where I've gravitated towards.
MIDFIELD
Obviously three Liverpool defenders means no Salah. This could be a huge miscalculation. However, I prefer Son. I thought he was the best player in the league in the second half of last season. I also wonder what Liverpool will be like going forward. Diaz and Darwin are exciting signings, so we're expecting them to be formidable again, but things are different. Mane was a super player - very direct, hardworking and unselfish. He's left the Premier League with little fanfare - I think people began to take him for granted - but he's also left big shoes to fill. People like shiny new signings, but you can never be entirely sure just how well new players will do, no matter how good they are.
The shifting dynamics of the attack could potentially affect Salah. The Firmino/Salah/Mane combo was amazing. With Salah being the more selfish of the three. Things could be different now.
Again, it's foolish backing against Salah given his record, and with the fixtures in particular he could easily be head and shoulders above other options yet again. Still, I think there's a tiny window of opportunity. He dropped off a little bit (just a little bit) in the second half of last season - after Luis Diaz arrived. So maybe this might be a different Liverpool side, where the chances for Salah are weighted slightly differently.
(Famous last words)
Alongside Son (who will also be my captain for the entirety of August) I have Kulusevski, Martinelli and Saka. I like Spurs under Conte, so I feel confident with Kulusevski. I'm expecting Richarlison to take minutes from Son and Kane more so than Kulusevski. It's a long season and Son and Kane can't be playing 90 minutes each and every week, especially given their injury history, so I'm expecting Richarlison to lighten the burden for them.
I'm not quite as optimistic as many people are about Arsenal - I don't think they're a trustworthy side - but obviously the games are great and the potential upside is huge. I'm hoping Saka will outshine Jesus too. I've never been a huge fan of Jesus, so it really is just my historic bias that's made me not select him. Like avoiding Salah it could be a big mistake, but I feel so much better going with my instinct.
FORWARD
Finally, and last but not least, I have Mbeumo as my lone cheap striker up top. I like the price and the fixtures, so it works for me.
Hopefully this side won't do too badly. It's unlikely I'll be able to sustain a decent rank playing this way, but I'm really enjoying it, and I'm looking forward to just sitting back and watching how this team does over the coming weeks. Players like Mbeumo could be real heroes for me by the time we get to September. I have to really root for these players and hope they do well. I can't just ditch players after one or two weeks anymore. I have to show faith.
It's possible I could tinker a little more before tomorrow's deadline, so this isn't quite set in stone just yet. It feels like we're pretty near the mark though. We're about to begin.
