Cianan’s Column: The gameweek from Hell

Well, that certainly was a thrilling weekend of football, with some scintillating matches, including Tottenham’s shock result against Manchester City away from home, Everton’s first win at their new stadium as they saw off Brighton, and Liverpool’s last-gasp winner at St. James’ Park to beat Newcastle. However, in terms of FPL, it was a deeply frustrating gameweek, with many of the most popular assets faltering in majestic, but equally painful, ways.

Let’s list some of the guilty parties off. Palmer (49.3% TSB – ‘Team Selected By’) failed to even make it onto the pitch in Chelsea’s 5-1 win against West Ham, with the midfielder set to face an injury that leaves many managers, including myself, questioning his long-term viability. As a £10.5m premium player, he has proven nothing but a liability thus far – it seems those funds could be better spent elsewhere. Reijnders (32.9% TSB) and Haaland (30.8% TSB) blanked for City, as did Tottenham’s Kudus (29.9% TSB), Villa’s Watkins (22.6% TSB), and Forest’s Wood (22.5% TSB). Several well-owned Liverpool assets also underperformed despite their smash-and-grab victory over Newcastle, with Wirtz (25.5% TSB) and Van Dijk (24.5% TSB) failing to deliver. However, Ekitiké (24.2% TSB) continues to impress, and it may be worth planning how to manoeuvre for him by GW4, where the Reds have an almighty fixture run of Burnley (A), Everton (H), and Crystal Palace (A).

The most impressive failure of the bunch was that of Fernandes, with the Manchester United captain disappointing 20.9% of managers by skying a penalty against Fulham. He managed to hit the DEFCON threshold, and thus, if not for his penalty mishap, a mighty double-digit haul could have easily been on the horizon. Some weeks in FPL are just like this: a glorious green arrow appears possible, if not probable, only to be stolen away by unexpected catastrophe after catastrophe. All of the underperforming assets I’ve just listed (bar Palmer) need not be sold in panic, but should be closely monitored over the next few gameweeks. These assets all retain high ownership, and thus detrimental performances are not extremely punishing at this early point in the season. However, making the call on when to cut losses can be fruitful, albeit risky, if you bet against the popular options and come up short.

In terms of transfer ideas, here is some food for thought which ought to be particularly useful for Saka owners who are being forced to part with the £10m midfielder following his newly acquired injury. Semeneyo’s price keeps jumping up week-on-week, with the Bournemouth powerhouse having appreciated £0.2m on top of his £7m starting price in only two gameweeks. It’s not hard to see why, either, as he’s already netted twice and procured an assist, with the Cherries set for a solid fixture run until GW10. While Palace may not have an ideal GW3 fixture, as they face Aston Villa (A) (although they have themselves looked poor so far this season), the following two fixtures against Sunderland (H) and West Ham (A) are primed for goal contributions for Sarr, who comes in at a cost-effective £6.5m. Gibbs-White also merits a lot of promise, although he is the most expensive of the bunch at £7.5m, but this is more than made up for with his stellar fixture run – with Forest facing West Ham (H), Burnley (A), and Sunderland (H) in the next four gameweeks.

Striker-wise, Solanke needs to be sold. Richarlison has been nothing short of electric and is far cheaper, averaging 8.5 points per match so far this campaign, making him an easy replacement, as well as a worthy punt more generally. Wood and Pedro are alternating on who is the better forward option, with the former firing well in GW1 and the latter netting a whopping 15-pointer in GW2. The best idea moving forward may be to own both, or one of them, to pair alongside Liverpool’s Ekitiké, who, as discussed previously, is a red-hot option, particularly beyond the upcoming gameweek.

Rapid Recommendations

● When the transfer window closes, if Liverpool haven’t signed any more attackers, Gakpo will be a sensational option, as he is currently the second-highest-scoring midfielder in FPL and will likely have assured minutes.
● West Ham have looked horrific so far this season. Sell any of their assets you have, and target teams who are playing against them from here on out (Nottingham Forest host the Hammers this week).
● Tottenham look extremely promising this year, particularly defensively. It’s worth owning at least one of Van De Ven or captain Romero.
● Don’t knee-jerk to Everton assets. Their defenders are almost always worth owning, but their point-scoring did flatter what was a somewhat mediocre performance, and it remains to be seen whether Ndiaye and Grealish can retain last weekend’s output – they’re easy to hold, but aren’t a necessity to own.
● As a piece of general advice, if you’ve saved two transfers this week and intend to use them, plan ahead! Those who act in haste, repent in leisure.

The Boar Standings

1st: leif the door open (139) – managed by Hannah Guthrie
2nd: parths11 (128) – managed by Parth Malik
3rd: Frim Pong Ball (125) – managed by Jack Kingston