It was a good start for both For Foot Sake teams in the opening round of FPL, as we look at some of the standout performances, things to look out for and words of warning with our FPL Gameweek 1 Analysis. This will be repeated each week throughout the season, in the hope to provide some insights and tips for the gameweeks ahead.
My Squad
A very respectable start, with 60 points meaning I start the campaign in the top 1.5m players. It was a horrible start for my three United assets, who picked up five points between them, and I’m very glad I went with Verbruggen ahead of Kinsky between the sticks. Calafiori and Guehi justified their positions in the team with attacking returns, as did Tzolis and Szoboszlai. I won’t win any imagination points for my attacking duo of Joao Pedro and Erling Haaland, but the former did give me something to consider ahead of gameweek 2 in terms of the captaincy, with Chelsea looking a major threat going forward.
I’m also not going to jump the gun on Bruno Fernandes and Mbeumo just yet, Mbeumo forced two great saves from Hull’s new goalkeeper and on another could have had a big haul. On the bench Diego Gomez proved a good pick, as did Bobby Thomas as the 4.0m defender, picking up the defensive contribution bonus. He may come into the side this weekend.
For Foot Sake Squad
64 points made for a decent start to the campaign, with Calafiori, Gvardiol, Rogers, Odegaard, Havertz and Joao Pedro all returning. The captaincy went awry with Haaland blanking, but he had a couple of really good chances, so no need to go overboard and consider dumping him. Man Utd were more of a concern, looking awful at the back, but they have the perfect opportunity to bounce back against Ipswich at home next week, so holding fire on those assets makes sense for now.
The bench also contributed 13 points which bodes well, and gameweek 2 already looks like giving us a plethora of options.
FPL Gameweek 2 Pointers
Maxim De Cuyper already a must-have – De Cuyper played in midfield for Belgium at the World Cup, and was seen on the left wing in gameweek 1 in Brighton’s demolition of Aston Villa. A goal, assist and clean sheet meant he stormed away with the three bonus points, and with Leeds, Sunderland, Coventry and Crystal Palace coming up for the Seagulls in the next few weeks, he looks a fantastic asset to own.
Mamadou Sangare a standout – Brentford look to have a settled team but the star of the show in their opening win against Tottenham was new man Mamadou Sangare. He was talked up by a lot of managers in the FPL community before the season, and now we see why. His powerful display was seriously impressive, and with Leeds, Sunderland and Bournemouth to come in the next three weeks, he’s worth strong consideration as a budget option in mdifield.
Work needed for Spurs & Villa – It’s no secret that Tottenham and Aston Villa are going to active in the transfer market before the window closes, and both sides looked an absolute mess in gameweek 1. Worth avoiding their assets until they have the chance to gel.
Don’t panic on premium assets – While Cole Palmer, Bukayo Saka, Joao Pedro and a number of other premium assets hauled in gameweek 1, the likes of Erling Haaland, Bruno Fernandes and Alexander Isak, the three most expensive players in the game, all blanked. One of the golden rules of FPL is to play with at least four gameweeks in mind, so keep the faith, the cream usually rises to the top, and there’s no need to throw all your planning out the window if you did get off to slow start.
Head back here tomorrow for my preview of my team for Gameweek 2.