FPL Gamemonth October: Free Hit

As you can see from the title I'm going with the free hit for Gamemonth October. However, before that we'll look at the late summer fruits of Gamemonth September.

Since I hit the wildcard in GW7 it's been nonstop green arrows. I'm now up to 3.5m from around 6.5m. So it's been pretty good.

(GW7 was postponed of course)

(Gamemonth September team points

- click to enlarge)

Almiron in particular has worked wonders coming off the bench. Making my bench picks a lot more worthwhile than they were with my Gamemonth August side.

GW12: The Free Hit

The free hit has chosen itself really. The few injuries aside my team has been ticking along pretty nicely, and I'm fairly hopeful that it'll cope well enough for the rest of October. With Manchester City and Arsenal blanking in GW12 though I would've been struggling to get a team out this particular week. So it makes good sense for me to free hit now to navigate it.

The free hit was always going to be a tricky chip to use with me playing monthly. Only being allowed to make changes once a month means you want to make long term changes when you do get the opportunity. So a one-week tinker around isn't ideal when you have systemic issues with your team.

With my team looking fairly solid though this feels like the perfect opportunity to maximise the chip. It allows me to keep my City and Arsenal players long term, whilst also allowing me to get an optimal side out for the one week I would've had problems.

Hopefully it works out well and I get a little rank boost from it.

(Gamemonth October Wildcard)

As I sit typing we're just waiting for the Tuesday night fixtures to start [the above image shows points as I had to wait for the game to update to grab a screenshot 😠]. They're not glamourous ties - Brighton vs Nottingham Forest and Palace vs Wolves. I've bet big on Wolves and Forest not scoring though, so the success of my free hit will in large part be decided tonight. So we have some minor excitement.

I then need my big hitters to come in tomorrow to finish the job.

November should be a fairly comfortable month to deal with, as there are only two gameweeks. So I just need my guys to get me through the rest of October once this week is done.

Overall Points: 568

Overall Rank: 3,451,708

FPL Gamemonth September: We Finally Got There

All Queenly detours aside this is how I eventually went on the wildcard.

As I type Fulham are currently 3-1 up, but Mitrovic has nothing. It's typical of course given I missed all his previous returns, but I was expecting it. This is just what the fpl gods do to us.

With GW12 now being a blank I'll probably have to make that the week I choose for Gamemonth October too. So much for the degree of flexibility. I'll have to take Martinelli out just to get a full eleven out, and that's assuming no other issues arise.

It may have been foolish given the blank to go with three City plus Martinelli, but City are so good I want three both before and after the blank.

As you can see Haaland is captain. This feels like the super sensible choice, but things are rarely that simple. I was very tempted to stick with Son. I like the Spurs fixtures, but I feared it was sentiment getting the better of me. (How can you go against Haaland at this point?)

Originally I had Luis Diaz instead of Kulusevski before the postponements. I'm planning on heading back in that direction in October (transfers allowing). I did have James in place of Trippier too. So the effective cancellation of GW7 has changed my team slightly, but only in a few positions.

Almiron is my little bench punt (an extravagance afforded by these forced downgrades). Obviously I'll need him for certain this week, so hopefully he plays and looks involved (I've actually made zero effort to check if he's even nailed on to start, so I hope I don't have cause to regret my laziness. I think he should be okay though.)

Oh, and before I go - the keepers. I know, I know, Ward has been dreadful, but the price is irresistible and I really needed that cash to shore up my team. Surely Leicester can't continue to be that bad in defence. So it's a beggars can't be choosers situation for me. I'm in no position to be going for luxury keeper options.

The Forest v Fulham game has now finished. Fulham won 3-2. Impressive start to the wildcard. Toney will probably blank too now. Pereira did pick up a yellow though, so with luck I've missed his one-pointer.

The "Minute's Applause" Is Why We Have No Football

So, no games this weekend. I think this was the wrong decision ..however

I agree that any attempts at showing respect would've been a complete mess had the games went ahead. Football fans (including most well-meaning ones) have simply lost the ability to stay silent for 60 seconds.

Football needs to reflect on this.

One of the worst things to happen to football in this regard was the "minute's applause". I'll explain why.

When someone dies the natural response is one of sorrow - or, if you weren't close to the deceased person you show tact and consideration towards the friends and family members that were. Clapping is not a natural response to death in everyday life. If you meet someone who's recently lost a relative you give a few kind words of support and condolences, then you give them space to speak and grieve. You don't clap.

Silence is a fitting response, as you're showing self-restraint in an effort to give the grieving people the time and space they need. It also gives you yourself the time to think about those people and the person they've lost.

During a minute's silence you're supposed to be taking a few quiet moments to think about the person who has died and what they meant. It's a period of reflection.

You can't do that if you're clapping like a seal. Surrounded by other people that are clapping like seals.

Our society took a wrong turn when we decided to go down this "minute's applause" route. I understand the argument: by clapping we're "celebrating the life" of that person, so it's a positive gesture. This is just a lazy untruth though, hiding the fact that it's just easier to clap mindlessly than to make the effort - and that the clapping and noise masks any uncouth shouting or noise that would otherwise ruin an actual minute's silence.

It's such a weak argument: A few idiots may be disrespectful and make some noise, so let's all just make some noise. Let's all respond to death in a completely unnatural and inappropriate way, because there may be one or two bad apples in the crowd.

The Messiness.

It's not just the principle too, it's also the practicality. I've been to football matches where fans aren't even sure what to do when there's a minute's respect. Where you can't even hear the announcement because some fans have started clapping and cheering before the announcer has even finished speaking. Then everyone else just joins in, as they clap turning to the person next to them to ask; "Who's died??"

Back before the advent of the minute's applause you'd hear the announcement begin and that would be the cue to stop talking to your friends and to start listening. Slowly silence would descend on the stadium as the announcer finished giving his or her short tribute to the recently departed. The referee's whistle would blow, distinctive against the sheer silence. Then there'd be 60 seconds of quiet dignified reflection. Finally capped by a rapturous burst of sound once the moment of respect had passed. The noise against the silence as stark as day against night.

Sure, the odd idiot would occasionally shout something and ruin things a little, but it only reflected badly on them, not on the countless standing in respect; and the shame of an entire stadium would aim in their direction. The basic tenet that you show respect to the recently departed being such a universal cornerstone of human culture.

The minute's applause has confused all this though. It's helped to uproot us from basic human behaviour. So now we just have a cacophony of noise and uncertainty when we're supposed to be marking someone's death.

We go to football matches precisely to make noise and have fun. The idea of the minute's silence is that for a moment we pause and reflect. It's a moment where we stop what we're doing to consider something more important. Now however there's often more noise during that minute's tribute than there is during the entire game - at some stadiums it's easier to reflect upon your own mortality when the players are actually on the pitch.

I'm joking a little of course, but be honest, would the tributes at football stadiums have been anything other than a huge mess this weekend had games went ahead? The minute's silence would be announced and some people would be clapping, some people would be silent and some would start singing 'God Save the Queen'. All well-meaning no doubt, but it would've been a discordant muddle.

Not everyone wants to sing 'God Save the Queen' (or indeed King). There are many people that don't share the politics of such a sentiment. However, everyone regardless of politics can show 60 seconds of silent respect for a recently deceased human being. (The people that haven't at recent games - those that have booed and so forth really do need to do some self-reflecting. As a human being you should be able to show a moment's silence for another human being that's just died - even if they were your worst enemy.)

Whatever people's views and politics now would be a fitting moment to bring back some dignity and respect by bringing back the minute's silence. Not just for the Queen, but for all recently deceased people.

(a human being)

FPL Gamemonth August: In The Mirror

Gamemonth August was painful. It's left me with a rank of 6,659,032.

(GW1 - GW6, top left to bottom right

- click to enlarge)

Captaincy Fail.

The obvious failing was captaincy. Son got just one assist in six games - 17 points in total. Salah in comparison delivered over twice as many points with 38.

And this is before we even mention Haaland, who already has 67 points on the board.

Obviously I would never have captained Haaland, but Salah was the obvious set and forget captain, and the template had both players. So a set and forget August side following the norm would've sailed along fairly nicely I suspect.

In fact, this is my main disappointment. I don't mind the rank, I'm really enjoying playing this way. However, I feel I've let the experiment down a little by going so heavily against the template. I've been enjoying myself a little too much. A gamemonth template side would've been a much more interesting comparison from a neutral perspective.

Son was my favoured pick though, and from a personal point of view I'm glad I went with my instinct. I feel I've been a little unlucky too - I don't think Son has been that far from returning in games (and sneak preview I'm actually keeping him on this week's September wildcard - I'll do another post revealing that team later this week).

The Rest of the Team.

I actually don't think the rest of the team was too bad. I was a little unlucky with Mitrovic staying benched each week - I never expected zero injuries or suspensions in the first six games. The Liverpool defence was over the top in hindsight, but the logic was there. Going Saka over Jesus was another anti-template fail, but only a minor one - in the end Jesus outscored Saka by just 5 points. So all in all the negatives all stem from avoiding Salah and Haaland.

Once again reminding us all that the template is the template for a reason.

Enjoyment.

From a pure enjoyment point of view this style of playing the game has been great so far. I'm super laidback about fpl. Even this week doing my wildcard I'm very relaxed. I also enjoy how invested I am in my players. The two goals Mbeumo got me in particular were really enjoyable.

I'm actually weighing up Mbeumo vs Toney on the wildcard right now. I'm sure the desire to keep Mbeumo is largely just pure sentiment (though that extra million or so would be quite useful).

The low rank doesn't annoy me (probably because playing this way gives my ego an excuse), however seeing the sheer badness of it has made my competitive urges kick in now. So as much as I'm enjoying playing like this I still want to do well.

When you look at the upcoming fixtures and try to pick a set and forget captain for the next month or so you realise how restrictive playing this way is. However, I'm down so far now because of my own decision to go with Son. I can't blame that on the system. So maybe if I get my decisions right there'll be benefits to playing this way too.

Saying this though God only knows how badly I'll do if I do get injuries and suspensions lol. I certainly wouldn't have gotten many points from Undav these first six weeks had I needed him. So as I continue my wildcard I need to make sure this first month doesn't make me complacent about how important the bench may be.

Perhaps that Mbeumo million may be needed after all.

FPL Gamemonth August: Let's GO

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.

Fixtures: We Have The Gamemonth Skeleton

So I finally looked at the Premier League fixtures today. It's not too bad, though it makes it quite stark just how few gameweeks I'll have to tinker.

We have ten months:

(The weeks with just the one date will obviously have a spread of dates once the televised fixtures are assigned to Friday/Sunday/Monday slots, etc.)

GAMEMONTH ONE: AUGUST

GW1: 5 AUG - 7 AUG

GW2: 13 AUG

GW3: 20 AUG

GW4: 27 AUG

GW5: 30 AUG - 31 AUG

GAMEMONTH TWO: SEPTEMBER

GW6: SEPT 3

GW7: SEPT 10

GW8: SEPT 17

GAMEMONTH THREE: OCTOBER

GW9: OCT 1 (Saturday - so a Friday game would move this to the month of SEPTEMBER)

GW10: OCT 8

GW11: OCT 15

GW12: OCT 18 - OCT 19

GW13: OCT 22

GW14: OCT 29

GAMEMONTH FOUR: NOVEMBER

GW15: NOV 5

GW16: NOV 12

GAMEMONTH FIVE: DECEMBER

GW17: DEC 26

GW18: DEC 31

GAMEMONTH SIX: JANUARY

GW19: JAN 2 ( - is a Monday)

GW20: JAN 14

GW21: JAN 21

GAMEMONTH SEVEN: FEBRUARY

GW22: FEB 4

GW23: FEB 11

GW24: FEB 18

GW25: FEB 25

GAMEMONTH EIGHT: MARCH

GW26: MAR 4

GW27: MAR 11

GW28: MAR 18

GAMEMONTH NINE: APRIL

GW29: APR 1 (Saturday, so a Friday game would move this one to MARCH)

GW30: APR 8

GW31: APR 15

GW32: APR 22

GW33: APR 25

GW34: APR 29

GAMEWEEK TEN: MAY

GW35: MAY 6

GW36: MAY 13

GW37: MAY 20

GW38: MAY 28

Initial Thoughts

The first half of the season doesn't look too bad for me. I'm not so keen on the second half however. It's going to be a struggle to negotiate chips and blank gameweeks when you see it on paper like this.

I think I'll most definitely be Bench Boosting in GW1 - I mean Gamemonth One. It'll simplify things straight off the bat. Especially when I'm going to have to pick a playing squad that'll last me to at least GW6.

Looking at the specific fixtures teams have I think I'll most definitely have to have Salah. I was hoping that maybe I could avoid having him to save cash, but that doesn't look an option at first glance. The City fixtures look decent too. As with Salah I was hoping it would be possible to avoid the rush and clamour for Haaland as well, but it's not looking good.

Son has very decent fixtures on top of this, so given I have to have 15 playing players in my squad I think my first eleven will suffer heavily in comparison to what other people have. Still though, it's hard to really judge until the game updates and we get to play around with what's available.

Whichever week I choose to make changes in Gamemonth September I'm guessing I'll be using the first wildcard. This is assuming there aren't any major changes to chips, etc when the game does update of course. Perhaps there'll be some surprises.

GW38: Season's End

A good last week, but it couldn't rescue the season.

Gameweek Points: 82

Gameweek Rank: 395,449

Overall Rank: 114,631

I finished outside the top 100k, but not too far out, so I can't complain. Plus there was a fair bit of luck this last week. Coutinho off the bench with 8 points was a huge bonus.

I'm now firmly focused on next season - with my "gamemonth" plan. Having finished with a disappointing rank this season I'm slightly tempted to have another crack at playing normally, but I think that's just my ego feeling slighted, so I'll stick with the program. Playing a different way will definitely freshen things up for me. I really have just been going through the motions these last few seasons.

This rank added to my others gives me an average of -  85,039  - for my five seasons playing fpl so far.

I updated my graph to illustrate things.

(I didn't have the full season data for my first season, but that year (17/18) I finished 109,229.)

So 85,039 is the benchmark against which I'll be judging next season.

Overall Points: 2494

Overall Rank: 114,631