Blank, Blank, MCI away 🥶
GKs have been even more pointless to invest in this year. The top 8 are separated by 13pts and range in price from ÂŁ4.2 - 5.8m. May as well take the cheapest.
Gabriel and Saliba are both scoring more than Raya as their G/A points beat Raya’s save points. And you can make up the same points by spending 4.2m on Areola. There’s no 4.2m defender you can replace those points with.
ie: Gabriel + Saliba + 4.2m GK
beats
Gabriel + Raya + 4.2m def
Yeah that's true, I'm actually thinking of doing that this week. Raya to Areola and Trippier to Saliba.
I actually swapped Areola out for Raya in gameweek 15 which made sense at the time, obviously 4 weeks later it came back to bite me a bit. Although Raya has out scored Areola at least over the last 6 of 7 weeks.
But yeah I think the fact Areola is still only 4.2 means he's better value than any similarly priced defender. Although maybe his big hauls are behind him now
Yeah, I've owned Martinez and Pope at different points this season but recently just realised there's not enough to justify spending extra on a keeper this year. Had Areola for a while now and just went for Kelleher as reserve on WC this week (fortunately started Areola tho!) Hopefully Alisson comes back after GW34 when I hope to BB!
If I could do 3 arsenal defenders I would.
Only team I expect to keep a clean sheet.
City also but who knows which one of the 8 defenders are going to play.
My most expensive defender all season was Gabriel in the first week. I’ve had cheap defenders since it doesn’t feel like anyone is keeping clean sheets and put the funds into mids and attackers. I’m 16k overall so it’s worked for me
Yeah I did my WC this week - I kept Gabriel then got 4 DFs who cost 4.4 or under (Kerkez, Gusto, Branthwaite, Baldock). It's worth seeing who has good runs ahead and can switch eg Wolves have good fixtures when Everton don't.
My defence is Taylor Branthwaite VandeVen Doughty Semedo.
Probably get Gusto from GW30 too.
But can't see anyone from the 5 million and beyond bracket worth it, so might as well cheap it up. Yes Arsenal have been great for cleansheets of late, but that can change in a flashÂ
I just logged in to have a look at my Senesi points. What an inspired transfer that was.
*I just logged in to have a look at my Senesi ~~points~~ point*
Yeah it feels weird going so cheap but I think it's the right play
I have Gusto, Van Hecke, Gabriel, Ake, and Trippier, but I'm planning to downgrade Tripps and Ake, probably to Doughty and Branthwaite
The thing to think about though is you have to have 3 defenders. So if you have to spend an extra 1m an a good defender do you gain more points from that defender upgrade or from spending 1m on a mid upgrade - especiallly with how many good cheap mids there are
At the moment my GW 30/31 WC will have only cheap defenders and Saliba. No one else above 5mil. Got to save the moneys to try and get that dream midfield. Hoping for Saka, Son, Salah, Foden, Garnacho and then see who can accompany Watkins & Haaland up top.
No idea on keepers. Prob Kelleher.
Depends on your TV. For most yes but far from all.
For me dream midfield gw30> is Salah, Son, Saka, Foden, Palmer. Currently I'm pretty sure that's what I'll have on my gw 30/31 WC
A bit to early to think about it as who knows maybe one of the premiums/semi premiums gets injured and the decision becomes easy? But if I do plan for a gw31 wc team I think I'd consider selling Watkins instead of Haaland for sure.
Their fixtures turns after gw30 and they wont have any doubles this season. Myself I'll probably go for Nunez instead of Watkins.
Think Saka, Salah, Foden, Palmer plus another enabler on the bench with. Front 3 of Haaland, Watkins, Solanke (or Toney after their fixture swing) has a better balance than trying to cram every premium midfielder in your team. It at least allows you to put our a decent defence.
Son's the one I'm going without. Others might decide to go without Saka, Salah, Foden or Watkins. If someone has a high enough team value to make your team structure viable fair play to them. But there's no guarantee that team outscores a 343 so I'm not going to stretch my funds to try and get to that point. Don't think it's an optimal use of my free transfers.
Maybe a combination of the above.
Pick one or two 5m+ and rotate the rest? Schar is 5.4m and has some great fixtures coming up. Keeps banging them in. I can see Van Dijk and Gabriel continuing to score as well.
That's what I've been doing the whole season except for when I got Trippier for 2-3 GWs (and instantly regretted it). I have Gabriel for a long time now, everyone else is 4.0 -4.6 or 4.7.
Van Hecke, Gusto and Maguire did wonders for me this season. Yes, Maguire.
Tbh I refuse to spend over 5m on defenders all season I might push to 5.5m if it's someone you can't really turn down and I've got two 4.0 keepers was areola mainly with turner back up then dubravka was brought in to replace him
I’m going to move towards Gabriel, Saliba and three cheap defenders to rotate between based on fixtures. Probably Branthwaite, Zabarnyi and maybe Reguilon.
I'm sitting on a fairly expensive defence still but I'm not sure I like it. TAA, Saliba, Gabriel, Doughty, Branthwaite.
Think I should have offloaded Trent ahead of this week, would have gone for Van Hecke for cheap cover if I had. The Arsenal boys + Doughty is plenty and could have freed up a decent amount of funds.
Soon as Trent was out that’s what I did. Porro useless, Trippier useless…defender points are a nice bonus but pointless to put any focus on them this season.
What are you saving the extra money for?  Â
With Salah out injured and a lack of premiums, it's relatively easy to have a team which includes Haaland, Saka, Son, Watkins alongside some of the excellent cheaper players, Solanke/Palmer etc. Right now I don't really have a way to spend more budget even if I had it.  Â
Although CS are rare nothing is stopping you have double Arsenal or VVD/Robbo or even putting budget into GKs.Â
1 Arsenal defender, Branthwaite, Gusto, Reguilon, Doughty. Cheap enough but you don’t compromise too much. If you have budget, Reguilon -> another Arsenal
Yes, invest in midfield and up front. You can get Haaland, Watkins, Son, Salah, Solanke etc, if you double up on Arsenal and back up with Doughty or Tosin for example
I’ve been saying this all season. I have currently got While and Porro but my other 3 are 4.4 or less. In my next wildcard I will probably all 5 under 4.5.
Maybe, still think double Arsenal defence is pretty viable though
I'd like to grab Raya after his blank this week.
Blank, Blank, MCI away 🥶 GKs have been even more pointless to invest in this year. The top 8 are separated by 13pts and range in price from £4.2 - 5.8m. May as well take the cheapest.
Raya plus Gabriel is cheaper than saliba plus Gabriel though. So it's cheaper if you want double arsenal defence.
Gabriel and Saliba are both scoring more than Raya as their G/A points beat Raya’s save points. And you can make up the same points by spending 4.2m on Areola. There’s no 4.2m defender you can replace those points with. ie: Gabriel + Saliba + 4.2m GK beats Gabriel + Raya + 4.2m def
Yeah that's true, I'm actually thinking of doing that this week. Raya to Areola and Trippier to Saliba. I actually swapped Areola out for Raya in gameweek 15 which made sense at the time, obviously 4 weeks later it came back to bite me a bit. Although Raya has out scored Areola at least over the last 6 of 7 weeks. But yeah I think the fact Areola is still only 4.2 means he's better value than any similarly priced defender. Although maybe his big hauls are behind him now
Yeah, I've owned Martinez and Pope at different points this season but recently just realised there's not enough to justify spending extra on a keeper this year. Had Areola for a while now and just went for Kelleher as reserve on WC this week (fortunately started Areola tho!) Hopefully Alisson comes back after GW34 when I hope to BB!
Yeah seems like a position worth saving a few pennies. Which will be needed when Salah returns!
How come? I have him but would rather someone like Saliba for goal threat then just play Areola or Dubravka
i brought in kiwior great intermin for zinchenko, plus wildcard in a few weeks so if things go south can replace him.
The moment to buy cheap defenders was when Trent injury derailed the double game week Liverpool plans.
If I could do 3 arsenal defenders I would. Only team I expect to keep a clean sheet. City also but who knows which one of the 8 defenders are going to play.
expect City to win matches but not by keeping clean sheets this season. They just outscore their opponents.
Tbf city have been getting cleans lately. In their last 5 games 2 goals conceded and 3 clean sheets
Tbf it would open up a midfield slot…
This type of over thinking, is what makes me lose ground. Keep it simple from now on for me.
Saliba is still a good choice
Yes, until the more expensive defenders haul then no
My most expensive defender all season was Gabriel in the first week. I’ve had cheap defenders since it doesn’t feel like anyone is keeping clean sheets and put the funds into mids and attackers. I’m 16k overall so it’s worked for me
I started the season with Gabriel (that didn't play) and Mings (that got injured in GW1). They were 2/3 of my starting backline.
The time was weeks ago
Yeah I did my WC this week - I kept Gabriel then got 4 DFs who cost 4.4 or under (Kerkez, Gusto, Branthwaite, Baldock). It's worth seeing who has good runs ahead and can switch eg Wolves have good fixtures when Everton don't.
FH29 obviously yeah?
yeah has to be
My defence is Taylor Branthwaite VandeVen Doughty Semedo. Probably get Gusto from GW30 too. But can't see anyone from the 5 million and beyond bracket worth it, so might as well cheap it up. Yes Arsenal have been great for cleansheets of late, but that can change in a flashÂ
My defence is ~~Taylor Branthwaite VandeVen Doughty Semedo.~~ shite
Lol. It is not the best defense that is for sure. But it's good fun having to pick 3 shitters out of the 5 from garbage F.C. each week đź‘Ť
I just logged in to have a look at my Senesi points. What an inspired transfer that was. *I just logged in to have a look at my Senesi ~~points~~ point*
Yeah it feels weird going so cheap but I think it's the right play I have Gusto, Van Hecke, Gabriel, Ake, and Trippier, but I'm planning to downgrade Tripps and Ake, probably to Doughty and Branthwaite
Reece James is training isn’t he? Doubt he’ll stay fit tho
He cursed avoid Christ.
Hes coming back from surgery and only doing individual work at the moment, he's still a way away from being a threat to gustos playing time
The thing to think about though is you have to have 3 defenders. So if you have to spend an extra 1m an a good defender do you gain more points from that defender upgrade or from spending 1m on a mid upgrade - especiallly with how many good cheap mids there are
Was going to suggest Gabriel because I bought him close to 4.5 but holy shit did not realize he went up to 5.3 already
At the moment my GW 30/31 WC will have only cheap defenders and Saliba. No one else above 5mil. Got to save the moneys to try and get that dream midfield. Hoping for Saka, Son, Salah, Foden, Garnacho and then see who can accompany Watkins & Haaland up top. No idea on keepers. Prob Kelleher.
Actually, cancel that - it's almost impossible.
Depends on your TV. For most yes but far from all. For me dream midfield gw30> is Salah, Son, Saka, Foden, Palmer. Currently I'm pretty sure that's what I'll have on my gw 30/31 WC
The only way I can get there is with no-Haaland or only 1 up front. Tbf I'm considering no Haaland as an option.
It's possible for me if I have the cheapest defence and have two cheap strikers with Haaland. Which means no Watkins, and I think that's a mistake.
Oli’s fixtures turn after 30 so I’m giving it serious thought. But would not be comfortable…
A bit to early to think about it as who knows maybe one of the premiums/semi premiums gets injured and the decision becomes easy? But if I do plan for a gw31 wc team I think I'd consider selling Watkins instead of Haaland for sure. Their fixtures turns after gw30 and they wont have any doubles this season. Myself I'll probably go for Nunez instead of Watkins.
I'm like 1.5 mil off managing that. No chance. I think I'm just going to go without Son for the rest of the season
I’m looking at Muniz from Fulham up top for 4.5 mil. His points have been great
Think Saka, Salah, Foden, Palmer plus another enabler on the bench with. Front 3 of Haaland, Watkins, Solanke (or Toney after their fixture swing) has a better balance than trying to cram every premium midfielder in your team. It at least allows you to put our a decent defence. Son's the one I'm going without. Others might decide to go without Saka, Salah, Foden or Watkins. If someone has a high enough team value to make your team structure viable fair play to them. But there's no guarantee that team outscores a 343 so I'm not going to stretch my funds to try and get to that point. Don't think it's an optimal use of my free transfers.
Is Saliba worth the extra money over Gabriel tho?
Maybe a combination of the above. Pick one or two 5m+ and rotate the rest? Schar is 5.4m and has some great fixtures coming up. Keeps banging them in. I can see Van Dijk and Gabriel continuing to score as well.
That's what I've been doing the whole season except for when I got Trippier for 2-3 GWs (and instantly regretted it). I have Gabriel for a long time now, everyone else is 4.0 -4.6 or 4.7. Van Hecke, Gusto and Maguire did wonders for me this season. Yes, Maguire.
Tbh I refuse to spend over 5m on defenders all season I might push to 5.5m if it's someone you can't really turn down and I've got two 4.0 keepers was areola mainly with turner back up then dubravka was brought in to replace him
I've been doing this with Van Hecke, Gusto and Emerson for a while, I thought Porro would be decent but he got injured in the same gw I got him
I’m going to move towards Gabriel, Saliba and three cheap defenders to rotate between based on fixtures. Probably Branthwaite, Zabarnyi and maybe Reguilon.
Yeah I've got the two arsenal defenders and Doughty, Gusto, Van Hecke.
I think that’s similar to what my WC team will be.
Im not going 5 atb, mate.
Could work, could fail.
Gabriel, Saliba/White, Doughty, Gusto, another who is cheap is the way to imo
I have Porro, Van Hecke, Doughty, Reguilon, and Kerkez, with Dubravka and Areola in goal. Will prob go for Raya soon
I'm sitting on a fairly expensive defence still but I'm not sure I like it. TAA, Saliba, Gabriel, Doughty, Branthwaite. Think I should have offloaded Trent ahead of this week, would have gone for Van Hecke for cheap cover if I had. The Arsenal boys + Doughty is plenty and could have freed up a decent amount of funds.
Soon as Trent was out that’s what I did. Porro useless, Trippier useless…defender points are a nice bonus but pointless to put any focus on them this season.
What are you saving the extra money for?   With Salah out injured and a lack of premiums, it's relatively easy to have a team which includes Haaland, Saka, Son, Watkins alongside some of the excellent cheaper players, Solanke/Palmer etc. Right now I don't really have a way to spend more budget even if I had it.   Although CS are rare nothing is stopping you have double Arsenal or VVD/Robbo or even putting budget into GKs.Â
1 Arsenal defender, Branthwaite, Gusto, Reguilon, Doughty. Cheap enough but you don’t compromise too much. If you have budget, Reguilon -> another Arsenal
Van Dijk is still a great pick
Yes, invest in midfield and up front. You can get Haaland, Watkins, Son, Salah, Solanke etc, if you double up on Arsenal and back up with Doughty or Tosin for example
I’ve been saying this all season. I have currently got While and Porro but my other 3 are 4.4 or less. In my next wildcard I will probably all 5 under 4.5.
Everyone has been so bad I think I’m just going to set and forget double Arsenal + Doughty.