GW Points: 40
Overall Points: 335
Overall Rank: 152,489
Transfers: None used
After a poor game week 5, I didn’t think things could get any worse. I was wrong. Game week 6 was another horror show. It still appears to be a case of not being able to do right for doing wrong as I had previously made some positive changes but it’s just not paid off (yet hopefully). A great example is moving on Kane for Lukaku. Lukaku looked relentless in front of goal and in a much better team. Kane and Spurs in general were struggling – he didn’t touch the ball in the box against Palace. Spurs continued to struggle and slumped to defeat against Arsenal, yet Kane comes off the bench in Europe and hits a hat trick. Of course Lukaku has done very little since either. In this situation there’s very little that can be done and at the time the transfer made absolute sense and still does in all honesty. The same goes for swapping Benrahma for Grealish. Grealish was surely an upgrade with Benrahma potentially being injured, again since the move was made Benrahma has racked up a decent points total and Grealish has done very little. Going into game week 7, I need a massive change of fortune and could really do a with a week where the front three are firing on all cylinders. The problem with getting off to such a bad start is that your players start to drop off in value and those who started better than expected quickly become out of reach (Chelsea defenders). What’s also reasonably interesting is that I monitor player ownership in a fairly competitive mini league that I’m entered into (it has two previous winners of the whole competition in it – to the best of my knowledge): https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1oNHCjgqkm4vfkaVdmDgXdB55Cs-W8Aij8pIpuz0_kDE/ my players are highlighted in green. As you can see, I’m generally making the same decisions as everyone else so I can’t be the only one who has found this season a struggle to begin with.
Positives:
A star man performance from De Gea resulted in him getting 8 points for the week. This was a good result given his value. Man Utd haven’t been good defensively but to put his points total in perspective, he’s only 2 behind Ederson and 3 behind Alisson. It’s difficult to be too unhappy with that at this stage in the season.
21 points for Salah but his ownership is so high that it hardly matters anyway.
7 points for Ronaldo was a decent result but I’d have liked more from two fixtures.
Potential issues
It’s hard to know where to begin with the issues for the team:
Alexander-Arnold and Robertson both contributed very little across the game week and had a bad result against Brentford. I’m very tempted to move both on for Chelsea defenders, as their fixtures are by far the best out of any in October.
Bertrand returned -1 point. Leicester haven’t found any form defensively yet this season and I’m hoping this changes quickly. I think Bertrand is good value still but he needs to start returning something before it becomes a problem.
Grealish and Torres achieved 0 points between them. More worryingly Torres didn’t get a single minute on the pitch across two fixtures. Not sure why considering he was one of the regular starters earlier in the season. This will have to change quickly if they are to remain in the team. I’m tempted to switch Grealish for a City defender after the international break as they have good fixtures and clean sheets are probably more likely than goals for Grealish.
Traore was benched for Wolves at the weekend, I can’t justify sticking with him if that’s going to be the case going forward. I’ll hold this weekend to see what happens but with Wolves not being in Europe he will have to go if he keeps starting on the bench. I must admit I was surprised to see him not starting considering the ratings he had been getting in Dream Team.
My front three haven’t had a big week collectively at the same time but at the moment I still think they are the strongest front three to have throughout October. Kane is a worry but you can be sure if we swapped Lukaku for Kane, that Lukaku would get a big return the game after so it’s not worth tinkering too much.
Tips for Game Week 7
I plan to make some changes for game week 7 but I’m not doing anything too radical. Liverpool and Man City face each other and I wanted some Chelsea defenders anyway based on their fixtures. As a result, I’ll probably swap Robertson and Alexander-Arnold for two Chelsea players. Other than that, I probably won’t make any moves as we’ve got an International break the week after. This will leave me with three transfers after the break. Where I’ll consider swapping Grealish for a City defender and will also review what to do with Torres/Traore/Bertrand depending on what happens this weekend. Despite taking Benrahma out, he’s also a player back on my radar to bring back in. With 5 transfers a month, I think it’s important not to be stubborn and admit mistakes. I thought Benrahma might have been a bandwagon player whose form might slip but he appears to be keeping it up so bringing him back in might be a wise move. As always I’d recommend having a look at the fixtures below:
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1vAtgJN53MKh-u007SOFmPKu8lwbyD7eYVlB1-CLm0qo/
lucky enough I kept Benrhama and kane.
still not sure as to swap Kane for Lukaku.
they have some great fixtures, still pondering
what to do.
It’s virtually impossible to know given what we’ve seen so far this season
I think the only thing Paul, that could of yielded more pts, would of been to put a Chelsea & Man city defensive asset in from the start, as long as we still had a good 3/4 man midfield, & three of the big hitters up front, 2 transfers to start with will be TAA out for Azpilcueta, was going to go Grealish, but agree with you in saying that Chelsea defenders could outscore Grealish in October, don’t think Torres will start on Sunday & a very tough fixture if he did, so it’s time to transfer in Benrahma, leave Bruno for now, better home fixture to Everton , than his potential replacement De bruyne, same thinking with Degea, who will be moved on to Ederson on week commencing the 16th, leaving me with this team by the 16th October
Ederson
Walker
Azpil
Rudiger
Alonso
Benrahma
De bruyne
Moura
Ronaldo
Lukaku
Salah
Last transfer will be Moura out, Jones at Liverpool getting a run in the team now, but don’t think it will be long-term, Barnes struggling at present, Leicester only have 1 PT from their opening 2 games in the Europa League, they have Spartak Moscow home & away, they surely have to play their best 11 in those 2 games in October if they want to progress, 3.3 million budget for this player, if anyone has any suggestions, I’ve heard Kovacic mentioned but when everyone is fit, I think he will be on the bench, frustrated like everyone else, but just keeping it in perspective, ultimately having good logic has to win out doesn’t it.
Looks a good team to me, very solid for the month going forward.
I thought I would share my blog entry here for the first time. So that I can share my bad times as I don’t want people to think I only brag and post when I do well. One of the things I like to do is write down my thoughts, my mistakes and learn from them and be a better manager for the future. Note I ended on Thursday morning so my game week ended on a high with Benrahma’s 13 points so I am in a better mood now.
A Tough Week in Sun Dream Team
Saturday 25th September – Still recovering from my cold. It started on Thursday so sorry I couldn’t write a decent report that day. I was suffering from brain fog and I couldn’t think properly. Anyways I start the game week as usual, nervous how the game week will go: good or bad. You done the work, picked the team and tactics now it is up to the players on the pitch (added worry whether they will turn up).
So the weekend kicks off with Chelsea vs Man City and Man Utd vs Villa, both kick off at 12:30. I watch the game of the heavyweights whilst keeping a brief look on the other game. I am very impressed with City’s pressing at the start, they look up for this game. I feel Chelsea are missing Mount to link up the play from midfield to forward Lukaku. I wasn’t surprised to see Tuchel play 5-3-2 (or 3-5-2) but maybe the likes of Havertz and Ziyech to give more attacking emphasis. I had high hopes for Ziyech when he joined Chelsea as he is a very good player but it just hasn’t worked his way so far. It’s a good tactical battle between these two teams. I thought Dias was amazing and so was the city defence. I got to invest here next month. As for my players, Torres was on the bench and stayed there and Lukaku had a tough game so a blank from him today.
The other game has more interest fantasy wise as I have four Utd players. Half an hour in and Shaw gets booked 🟨 and to compile the misery he gets injured and is replaced. I then read that Maguire goes close with a header from a Fernandes free kick. That would be nice if it went in but at least he is now a 7+ rating. Oh no, now he is substituted with an injury. I think on the positive side and say they got their clean sheet points and their injuries might not be too bad. Can it get any worse? Yes it can with Villa scoring in the 88th minute. Right now, Fernandes looks for Star Man with a 7.8 rating. Penalty to Utd in the last minute. Question is who will take it? Ronaldo or Fernandes. It’s Fernandes so yeah I am thinking he should score (as he has a great record from the spot) that’s 13 points from him with a goal and star man in the bag. However, I feel the fantasy football gods laughing at me as he blazes over the bar 🤬. What happened to the usual hop, skip and place it in the corner? So the game ends and I end up with Maguire 3pts, Shaw -1, Fernandes 0 and Ronaldo blank plus two injuries.
My mood lightens after shopping mainly because Raphinha and Sarr score for my FPL team and they are scattered in a few TFF teams. I am putting a bit more effort in FPL this season as my friends and family banned me from our Sun game mini league and am competing against them in the FPL format instead. I am ready to watch Brentford vs Liverpool. It should be a cracker of a match and it doesn’t disappoint. Salah has a shot cleared off the line and then so does Mbeumo has one cleared moments later. He looks good as a midfielder playing upfront with Toney. Brentford score after overloading on Trent’s side of the pitch. A good tactic after they score their three goals that way as they focus attack on their left side with Henry, Toney and Pinnock/Wissa tripling up to give poor TAA no chance. So TAA ended with minus 2pts whereas Mo Salah scored his 100th league goal for Liverpool ⚽️ and looks in great form.
Sunday 26th September – Start the morning by watching last night’s Match of the Day on iPlayer over breakfast (Sat night is movie night). I forgot that I had Benrahma playing yesterday as West Ham beat Leeds 2-1. I see him go close to scoring with a good curling shot well saved by Meslier. He had a good game so showing some form at the right time. I am glad I kept hold of him – probably the best (and only) decision I made so far. So Benrahma got me 3 points. Every point counts in this poor game week so far.
Two games today with the first game being Southampton vs Wolves. Traore is dropped to the bench so doubtful I will get any returns out of him. I lay down on my couch to watch the game as I have a tinkle of interest in players from both teams in other fantasy football formats but hardly expecting much excitement as they both been struggling to score goals. In fact I don’t last long after kick off before I nodding off for a nice Sunday siesta. I wake up just in time to see Sa boot the ball down the field to assist Jiminez to score. Traore doesn’t do much after coming on a sub late in second half.
Second game is Arsenal vs Spurs. No players from either side for Dream Team but I always enjoy watching the North London Derby. It’s a horror show from Spurs as Arsenal rip them apart in the first 30 minutes. Spurs are ranked bottom for shots and chances created. They have covered the least amount of distance so work rate may be a big problem.
Monday 27th September – It’s Monday night football and it’s Crystal Palace vs Brighton. I got some interest as I have Sanchez in goal. I am not expecting a clean sheet as I read beforehand that Zaha loves to score against Brighton and he duly does before half time with a penalty. I like the look of Palace as they have brought well over the summer especially with Anderson and Guehi at the back. As for Sanchez, I noticed that he receives the ball a lot from the Brighton defence and hits the ball long. It’s a route one football but not very effective as Maupay doesn’t look good in the air or holds the ball up but the Sanchez’s long passing strength nearly bags an assist as his long punt puts Welbeck through but the striker sadly can’t finish. Brighton score in the last minute. Veltman saves my FPL game week with an assist but my bad luck in Dream Team continues with Sanchez looking like gaining 3 points from a 7 plus rating at the end but then stupidly gets booked 🟨 after the final whistle with some bad blood spilling over between the two teams. Minus 1 and an incoming price drop.
Tuesday 28th September – There are two champions league games tonight with PSG vs Man City and Porto vs Liverpool.
I am going to watch City in action. The city backline will do well to keep Neymar, Mbappe and Messi quiet. I have watching City closely and he seems to have one left footed and one right footed attacker on each flank. So he will like B. Silva/Foden and Grealish on the left flank and KDB and Mahrez on the other flank. Tonight it felt strange to see Grealish and KDB combining on the left flank with B. Silva and Mahrez in close proximity on the right. I don’t agree with Sterling up front as I don’t think City have scored this season when they have him in that position. There is disappointment as Torres plays no part this week. However I enjoy the PSG goals especially with Messi scoring a brilliant goal. This result should see City players drop some value as I eye up the likes of Ederson and Cancelo next month.
Next Liverpool comfortably beat Porto as Man on Fire Mo Salah scores two goals ⚽️⚽️. Unfortunately I get news earlier that Trent is ruled out with an injury and very unlikely to play this weekend.
Wednesday 29th September – Team news from Utd as they meet Villarreal – no Maguire or Shaw as expected. Maguire out for a few weeks and Shaw might be available for the weekend but very much doubt it. I can’t believe all my defence is injured. Fernandes gets an assist 🅰️ for Telles goal and the man for the big occasion Ronaldo scores a last minute winner ⚽️ and gets booked 🟨 for taking shirt off (I hate this kind of thing – silly rule).
In the other game, I don’t follow the Chelsea game closely but they didn’t seem to play well as they made 4 substitutions by the hour mark. Lukaku had a few glimpses of goal but now has gone 4 games without a goal. Still a hold as Chelsea’s fixtures now turn in his favour. Only got Benrahma left for tomorrow evening but likely to see him on the bench.
Thursday 30th September – My fantasy football week from hell ends on real low. In Sun Dream unrelated news, I can’t seem to log in my FPL team via the FPL app. I then ask for the password reminder but wait for 10 minutes but don’t get an email. I curiously set up another account using my work email and my worst fears are confirmed: I have been hacked and my team at top has the team and manager name changed. I don’t why me as I was only on 394 pts (700k) and don’t how it was possible as I don’t use third party FPL related apps. It’s very frustrating but what can do. Maybe I wished they hacked my Sun Dream Team instead.
So my toughest week in fantasy football ever ends with 35 points and the overall rank is 110,738. I am not happy with my performance so far. It’s a steep mountain but intend to keep going forward and hopefully upward.
So that concludes my team report this week. Sorry guys it carried a slightly negative tone but it’s good to get all thoughts – positive or negative but mostly the former – out there. Writing this report has been therapeutic for me and I look forward now to the international break.
Good luck to me and everyone else for game week 7.
Thanks for sharing RR, it’s interesting to see that a few of us have made a pretty poor start to the season. I’ve struggled to pinpoint exactly where it’s all gone wrong for me, I’m not sure I’d have done things too differently. Would you have?
I am sure I have made mistakes this season as it is not all down to bad luck. Although my game week from hell was a case of bad luck – penalty miss, injuries, booking after game, player no shows. I don’t think I have written so much after a poor game week but I felt the need to as when the season ends it would be good to review all decisions made and how to improve in the future.
Yes it’s been a poor start but I am used to it as every season I start poorly. I tend to get better as the season goes on and usually do well from Nov-April. I also end the season badly in May. Maybe run out of gas in the marathon. My biggest strength is defiance – I never give up even the cause looks lost and never be the one that says see you next season even when are in October. It’s not over till it is over. Last season in December, my team was lowly ranked in the DTT mini league (probably in 100th pos) and 100 points behind your team. I took that team from 20k to 150th position overall and top 10 in the top 10 of the mini league. For me that is a successful story.
I am brave enough to play a few risks and look for those differentials that push up the ranks. I feel my next strategy and transfers for October/November could have a big impact on my season and make or break it. After studying the game for over 5 years, I got a few tricks up my sleeve.
Definitely never give up and things should even themselves out. Willing to share anything thoughts on what you’ve got up your sleeve for October/November?
Nice one Paul. It’s wasn’t all that bad tbf. Maybe it’s best get Benrahma back in the team for Traoré or Torres. Dropping Trent or Robertson for Alonso I suppose would free up a bit of cash I’m guessing. Antonio still banging them in! He’ll score against anyone I reckon. Dropping Lukaku for him would free up a nice big of cash to strengthen up at the back. Just throwing suggestions out! Anyways. Catch ya later 👍🏻
Wouldn’t be wise to drop Lukaku now, not with Chelsea’s fixtures for October at least.
It’s a tough one, it’s hard to make a case for taking Lukaku out given the fixtures Chelsea have. Benrahma probably needs to come in but this can wait until after the break. I think two Chelsea defenders for the two Liverpool defenders might be a good option given that they play City this weekend?
I can see Liverpool beating City this weekend! I wouldn’t think you really put a foot wrong Paul. Just unlucky. People got lucky with Chelsea and City defenders. Alonso was on his way out of Chelsea back in summer!
No plan of getting De Bruyne in?
My team atm is:
De Gea – (Ederson)
Trent – (Thiago Silva)
Tierny
Shaw – (Alonso)
Bruno
Grealish – (De Bruyne)
Benrahma
Traore – (Kovacic)
Salah
Ronaldo
Lukaku
However I have enough funds to bring in Ederson, Thiago Silva, Alonso, De Bruyne, Kovacic
I think that should do me for this month at least.
What you guys think?
That looks pretty solid to me, first team I’ve seen with both of them in and pretty solid elsewhere as well.
Trent out Alonso in
Grealish out De Bruyne in ??
Any Chelsea players in today Paul.
Just heading out the door but I’ve put a post up with my transfers