In Gameweek 2 of Fantasy Challenge, managers have to select one goalkeeper and FOUR forwards within a £35.0million budget, with goals being worth double points.
Remember, you can enter a squad up until 16:30 BST on Sunday, when Liverpool kick off against Brentford in the final match of the Gameweek, picking any players whose club have not yet started their fixture in Gameweek 2.
But managers should be aware that selecting your team from only Liverpool and Brentford forwards will limit your options.
Here, FPL expert FPL Focal reveals his approach for Gameweek 2.
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Tricky to fit in Haaland
We’ve got a £35m budget for this week’s FPL Challenge. This makes it extremely hard to fit Erling Haaland (£15.0m) in.
Haaland, who averaged 1.33 goals per 90 minutes against promoted sides last season, has a plum home fixture against Ipswich Town in Gameweek 2.
In order to own the Man City star, managers would need to opt for a £4.5m goalkeeper and then two £5.0m forwards and a £5.5m forward. But in Gameweek 1, NONE of the £5.0m forwards started, and all those who came off the bench scored only one point:
- Marc Guiu (£5.0m) – played 23 minutes
- Daniel Jebbison (£4.5m) – played 21 minutes
- Cameron Archer (£5.0m) – played 19 minutes
- Ali Al-Hamadi (£5.0m) – played 15 minutes
- Norberto Beto (£5.0m) – played 14 minutes
- Danny Ings (£5.0m) – played five minutes
- Jay Stansfield (£5.0m) – played one minute
If you go for Haaland this week, you are accepting that two of your other forwards are unlikely to start. So as a result of there being no appealing options, I’ve opted to spread the money around with some mid-priced forwards.
My first pick is Danny Welbeck (£5.5m), who produced a goal and an assist in Gameweek 1. Welbeck has a home fixture against his former club Manchester United and also had a great pre-season under new Brighton head coach Fabian Hurzeler. I also considered Southampton’s Adam Armstrong (£5.5m) for the same price. Armstrong is playing at home against Nottingham Forest, but I opted for Welbeck given his superior form.
Next up is Alexander Isak (£8.5m). Gameweek 1 was very much a “what could have been” for him after the Fabian Schar (£5.5m) red card, which completely changed the dynamic of the game against Southampton. He’s an elite finisher, had an impressive pre-season and is in my main FPL team too, so hopefully I’ll have two reasons to celebrate if he does well at AFC Bournemouth on Sunday. The Swede will also take the captain’s armband.
My third forward is Richarlison (£7.0m). I had originally selected Dominic Solanke (£7.5m), but after he was ruled out with an ankle injury, I’ve gone for his Brazilian team-mate, who has a point to prove. Everton are missing several defenders through injury, while Ashley Young (£4.5m) is suspended and James Tarkowski (£5.0m) is also a doubt.
Lastly, Fulham’s Rodrigo Muniz (£6.0m) gets the nod. He had a quiet Gameweek 1, but a trip to Manchester United was always going to be difficult. This week, Fulham have their first home fixture of the season against promoted Leicester. This is very much a fixture pick, and I’ve got good memories of his purple patch of form last season. Hopefully he can replicate that on Saturday.
For my goalkeeper, I’ve picked Ederson (£5.5m). The only other ‘keeper I considered is Alisson (£5.5m), but City look more likely to keep a clean sheet.
This team actually has £2.0m left in the bank. I just couldn’t find anywhere to use it! Kai Havertz (£8.1m), Armstrong and Joao Pedro (£5.5m) were a few names that narrowly missed out. I just prefer to play the fixtures of Spurs, Newcastle and Fulham to those of Arsenal and Southampton.
Good luck everyone!