EPL GW-11: How Did You Do?

Two days into 2021’s last international break, and I’m already pissed off by the lull. The only positive about this one is that we don’t have to deal with another until March 2022. While we are enduring these two-weeks without EPL or even UCL, let’s take a look at how we performed in the last game-week. This might also be helpful to prepare and strategize for the next few game-weeks.

FPL

GW-11 was disappointing for the majority of Premier League strikers, and that was a drag on the points earned by FPL managers. Popular strikers Cristiano Ronaldo, Jamie Vardy, Michail Antonio, Gabriel Jesus and Ivan Toney all failed to deliver any goal contributions. Arsenal’s Pierre Emerick Aubameyang went one step further by failing to convert a PK and also made offside contact with Martin Odegaard’s goal-bound effort. The no-show from most of the league’s strikers meant that just twenty goals were scored this week, West Ham vs Liverpool accounting for 25% of them.

GW-11 also saw most big teams dropping points. Chelsea, Liverpool, Tottenham and Man United all failed to pick up the maximum. Arsenal’s win against Watford saw the Gunners jump to 5th, and Man City’s derby win over eternal rivals Man United leapfroged the Citizens over Liverpool into second place. Tottenham’s drab encounter, in which the Spurs failed to muster even one shot on target, showed that Antonio Conte doesn’t own a magic wand.

This game-week also saw two managers get the sack. Norwich’s Daniel Farke was relieved of his duties just after winning his first game since leading the Canaries back up to top flight. The weird timing of the sack made it seem like finally winning a Premier League match might be a punishable offense. And after a run of five consecutive Premier League defeats, Aston Villa also put an end to its three year relationship with Dean Smith. Other Premier League managers going through tough times should probably make it a point of note to seek advice from Ole Gunnar Solskjær about how he has been able to hang on at Man United.

My midfielders were the safety net I needed in a disappointing game-week for my strikers and defenders. Leaving Takehiro Tomiyasu on the bench is a decision I now regret due to another clean sheet for Arsenal.

I had a slightly disappointing game-week which saw me finish with just 56 points. My 56 points saw me move up to 345,154 overall, but I definitely need to do a muchbetter if I’m to break into the top 100,000 as I stated in my last piece.

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Moving on…

Now is the time for FPL managers to sit back and reconsider the strategies they have adopted this season. We are fast approaching the busy holiday period of non-stop Premier League football. At times, the deadlines will come thick and fast, and we might even have some weather postponements / rescheduled matches (mini-DGW) before the FA Cup intrudes to give us (but not our players) a weekend off in January.

Take a look at your current position; compare to the goals and aspirations you had at the beginning of the season. Are you anywhere near where you hoped or planned to be? If you are far from where you planned to be, take note of the things you might be doing wrong and seek to make corrections. Taking a look at GradyBri’s piece on FPL tricks and secrets might also help you make improvements. If you are around where you planned to be or doing better, take note of the things you are doing right and keep on doing them.

For me, I believe it’s time to invest more in my defense as the so-called big-name strikers aren’t really living up to expectations this season. Better value might be found in relying on budget-friendly strikers and high-end defenders. My next point of action is to find a way to bring in Joao Cancelo and Alexander Arnold. I will be patient with my recruitment process as I have learnt overtime that incurring -4 hits to bring in players hardly pans out as expected.

Fantrax NMA-11

If I’m being honest, I must confess that I haven’t been paying much attention to my Fantrax teams. I was actually keeping tabs on my NMA-11 team, mostly because of the NMA Blog Cup, but I fell in the second round. My failure knocked what little steam I had left out of me.

The lack of attention is obvious in the fact that I was able to muster only 53 points in GW-11. Lukaku still being in my team almost 3 weeks after his injury (and Alonso 3 weeks after being demoted) is a clear indication of an abandoned team.

Fantrax NMA-17

Just like NMA-11, my NMA-17 has also been abandoned. This is evident by the fact that I had eight inactive players in the last game-week. The total of 46 points accumulated in GW-11 is even below the 53 points I had in NMA-11. Well, I guess that just shows how badly managed my team is.

Which players came through for you, and which ones hurt your returns? How was your weekend in the world of fantasy? What are your plans going into the festive period? What do you think about my plans? Please join us in the comments and let us know — how did you do?

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