Last weekend provided a bag of mixed results for the majority of FPL teams as Romelu Lukaku blanked and Trent Alexander-Arnold was unwell while Mo Salah and Cristiano Ronaldo delivered positive returns. Aston Villa ran riot against Everton as Matty Cash delivered the goods, while Chelsea and Liverpool’s defensive assets scored well yet again. But that is all in the past, here are our three tips for success this week.
Don’t give up on Torres- yet!
We see this type of mistake every single year in FPL. Once a player, particularly a Manchester City player under Pep Guardiola has been rotated for one week, managers move quickly to ship them out. This weekend, 220k managers so far have ditched Ferran Torres ahead of Guardiola’s trickiest tests of the season, away matches at Chelsea and Liverpool.
You can see the logic - managers don’t want to take a risk over these two gameweeks with the likes of Ismaila Sarr and Demarai Gray offering cheaper options but these two fixtures will give a true barometer of where the title challengers lie. Having been rested against Southampton, Torres is almost guaranteed to start as the forward in both of these fixtures, and scored midweek against Wycombe before being replaced.
Although you may be brave about getting rid of him due to his upcoming fixtures, if there is a Man City midfielder playing as an out of position striker, I cannot justify getting rid just yet.
Target Norwich City
Norwich are once again the worst team in the Premier League this season. Their lack of investment and tactical instruction from the sidelines leaves them as sitting ducks against the big guns and although it may be a tragic watch for those with an East Anglian persuasion, it does mean that there are points on offer if you are clever.
This weekend they face Everton away and although Dominic Calvert-Lewin is out injured, it is surely worth making sure you have another attacking option from the Toffees involved, even for this week only. Demarai Gray is probably the obvious choice but with Richarlison also out, could Salomon Rondon bag a couple here? Consider using one of your free transfers to pick an attacking option that is playing against the Canaries this term.
Golden time for Bamford and Co.
If you like to keep a close eye on FPL’s fixture difficulty graph you will be well aware that Leeds appear to be hitting a golden streak when it comes to fixtures. Having only lost to Manchester United and Liverpool so far in the league, now could be the perfect time to bring in some of their attacking options.
Patrick Bamford hasn’t quite hit the heights of last term just yet but this spell could see him return to the scoresheet while Raphinha, although doubtful with a hip injury, could be worth a gamble at just £6.5m. He was on the scoresheet against Newcastle United last time out and against West Ham, you’d back the Elland Road crowd to inspire them to the first win of the season.
