Panning for Gold: How Much is Your Fantrax EPL Fantasy Team Worth?

Sure, the official FPL platform has price increases. So far, Liverpool’s Sadio Mane has already jumped by £0.3 up to £9.8, while Everton’s Richarlison and Manchester City’s Benjamin Mendy have each gained £0.2 up to £6.7 and £6.2, respectively. But those rises are mere molehills next to the salary mountains of Fantrax! With absolutely volcanic price swings, it’s been a bona fide gold rush from adding top performers in on the barndoor or simply keeping big players of your own in the first two weeks in the Fantrax game(s).

Just take a gander at my team. Mendy by himself has risen over $10.00 since I grabbed him on the barndoor after GW1, while fellow Citizen Sergio Aguero jumped over $6.00 following GW2’s 39-point hattrick haul that thankfully I was privy to. Tottenham’s Kieran Trippier nearly doubled in price (another barndoor add) owing to his Beckham-esque free kick goal, while the likes of Bournemouth’s Ryan Fraser, Wolverhampton Wanderers’ Ruben Neves, and Liverpool’s Andrew Robertson and Sadio Mane are up roughly 50% each.

The rest of my players have climbed in value to lesser degrees, except of course for Richarlison who is my lone retail purchase; I had $18.08 left for my last spot, which wasn’t nearly enough to be able to afford Mo Salah, and Richarlison seemed like the best high-priced alternative.

The beauty — and inevitable heartache — of Fantrax is that once GW1 starts, it forces you to balance short-term with long-term thinking. You want to lock in players who offer long-term value, but you also want to mix in those who can provide short-term gains.

I had some tough decisions to make in the GW1 barndoor regarding my defenders. I liked both Andrew Robertson and Trent Alexander-Arnold, but I went with Robertson only. Even though I think TAA can score a better points per game average, I expect Robertson’s position to be locked down, whereas TAA may rotate a bit more. It’s always painful taking zeroes, a constant worry in the 11-man standard league. Instead I went with the cheaper (and higher scoring in GW1) Aaron Wan-Bissaka of Crystal Palace, who promptly got a red card. Trippier to the rescue on the GW-2 barndoor!

Of course, the midfield is even tougher, with so many strong, affordable (but not for long!) choices. Ryan Fraser, James Maddison, James Milner, Ruben Neves, Roberto Pereyra, Paul Pogba, Jean Michel Seri, Gylfi Sigurdsson and Bernardo Silva are among the plethora of middies who you could have grabbed (and in some cases, still can nab) for a song, and may pay off mightily down the road.

At forward, I’ve got Kane, Kun and Mane, who are all in fine form at the moment. But should I drop one for Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang or someone else who could explode thanks to an easier fixture list? Should I sell Richarlison along with someone else and make a double switch to make sure Salah fits? Or should I have filled that spot with a cheaper player whose value was certain to rise, leaving some dead money now waiting to be spent in the future? Oh the delicate balancing act, never easy. The problem with panning those seemingly bountiful waters for golden nuggets is that you may end up with a big bag full of pyrite.

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Which players did you grab at what are now discount prices? Whom do you have at retail? How many spots do you plan to turn over prior to the GW-3 deadline? And how do prices compare in the Fantrax NMA + Bench league? Take the poll below and be sure to let us know how your fantasy team-building is going!

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Note: The easiest way to see all of your players’ current salaries is to click on “Players” and then use the “Status/Team” drop menu to select your own team. Then be sure you’re looking at GW-3 and not some earlier week.

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