Pre-season sneaky tips

[Billy Bongo]

Hard to track all the pre-season tours, will try though. But some little things can be 'clues'. Playing FPL is similar to how Gecko got his edge, seek information , anything, that gives an edge

Like this

http://www.90min.com/xposts/2322039-ins ... new-ground

I think Swans could be next seasons Saints. Possibly

[Notned]

Yes I agree on Swansea, could be a real surprise package. Well I say surprise, probably not so much after such an impressive season last time out... Cracking squad they are assembling, and Monk is really proving his mettle as manager. Think I'll be starting with a couple of their players; decent run of fixtures to begin with, and should still be reasonably priced too.

[fred1266]

West Ham seems to my Southhamton for next season that Payet move was brillian

[Billy Bongo]

Long pre season and an unknown quantity as manager, a wait and see for me

[owenclass]

Bournemouth could do well

[Notned]

Bournemouth could do well

I expect they'll still go down, but given their attacking style and first few fixtures they're definitely worth a look for some bargains

Mings, Francis, Ritchie, Atsu, Wilson all look promising, price dependent. Think I'll be starting with at least one, possibly two, of them.

[ctibbits]

Bournemouth could do well

I expect they'll still go down, but given their attacking style and first few fixtures they're definitely worth a look for some bargains

Mings, Francis, Ritchie, Atsu, Wilson all look promising, price dependent. Think I'll be starting with at least one, possibly two, of them.

Looking likely to be my punt at the start but as with everything else it is purely dependent on pricing.

[Notned]

Bournemouth could do well

I expect they'll still go down, but given their attacking style and first few fixtures they're definitely worth a look for some bargains

Mings, Francis, Ritchie, Atsu, Wilson all look promising, price dependent. Think I'll be starting with at least one, possibly two, of them.

Looking likely to be my punt at the start but as with everything else it is purely dependent on pricing.

Ritchie is the one I would ideally be interested in, but expect he will be at that awkward price point where he is too expensive for a fifth mid, but a bit too much of a punt for the fourth spot. A sub 5m Atsu could be a very shrewd alternative.. I'll definitely be weighing up the price and merits of the two, also.

[asm_fanz]

There's no way Atsu will be 4.5m

[Mav3rick]

A lot of the pre-season tours are starting in the next few days, so we may actually have some things to talk about even if FPL doesn't open quite yet. From memory a lot of the early games tend to have less senior players involved, but even so there will surely be some talking points.

Southampton, Sunderland, Watford and WBA have their first friendly tomorrow (8th).

FFS has probably the best coverage of the pre-season:
http://www.fantasyfootballscout.co.uk/p ... orm-guide/

[Billy Bongo]

J Roddddd!!

[thekitkatshuffler]

Everton have just beaten Swindon 4-0

Two for Mirallas and one for Lukaku, McAleney got the fourth and stole the show with a couple of assists too.

Sounded like Deulofeu had a good game.

[Mike James]

Liverpool 4-0 True Thai All Stars

Goals: Sakho, Lallana, Markovic, Origi.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/footba ... ppens.html

[NoEyeDeer]

I was following the match live, and live updates had Henderson running the show like a boss when he came on apparently.

Commentator said just about everything was coming from Henderson in an attacking sense. From a results point of view, he got the assist for Lallana and should have had a pen.

I know it was only against Thailand, but early signs look like I may have to reconsider reconsidering him, lol.

[Mike James]

I was an idiot to remove him late on last season. He had the stats to prove he would return regular points, although not high & in fact began to get more than expected. He has increased on price though but I'm definitely still considering Henderson again. Rabona assist as well for Henderson. What is happening!

[Red Eye]

Will be interested to see how he and Milner dovetail - both very reliable performers at the same price. Would expect Milner to get forward more myself.

[Mav3rick]

Will be interested to see how he and Milner dovetail - both very reliable performers at the same price. Would expect Milner to get forward more myself.

I'm not sure how BR is going to setup with Firminho, Milner, Coutinho, Lallana and Henderson behind Sturridge and/or Benteke (maybe). Any of them could do well and Milner being probably the most versatile probably has the best chance of playing 90 every game. If Milner gets some set pieces I think he'd be my choice although Henderson could be working on that box-to-box role and has improved year on year.

Milner has had a 180+ season too.

[davidoff]

Ashley Williams will sh*t bonus points this season. Mark my words.

[deanfar]

Cameron Jerome just scored another 2 goals for Norwich(Half time), doing pretty good so far.

[NoEyeDeer]

Will be interested to see how he and Milner dovetail - both very reliable performers at the same price. Would expect Milner to get forward more myself.

Milner was quoted as saying he'd run through a brick wall for Rogers, so I'm staying well clear of him!

I ran through a plaster wall once and I was out for two weeks. Imagine how many he'd be out for once he runs through that brick wall?!!

[Rich2086]

I think Liverpool have done decent business this summer they have got in the players this season that they should have got in last year.

[fredtered]

I'm not so sure about this "overpaying" matra that I sometimes hear. Football is a market economy, so you pay what the market will stand. Similar in principle to the housing market or Sky TV subscriptions. Price Point X is supported by vendor numbers Y. Whilst Y is stable or rising, there's no need for X to fall. Morally questionable, sure, but in practice it's simple economic theory and the baseline won't change until Y starts falling.

[NoEyeDeer]

IMO, I think clubs these days only 'overpay' for potential rather than proven 'superstardom'.

I don't think anyone would disagree with a club paying $150mil for a Messi or Ronaldo in their prime.

Problem is these are once in a generation type players, and it may be a few more generations before we see their standard grace our fields again.

But these guys have set a new standard and desperation in football to find that next Messi or Ronaldo, and that desperation has left clubs willing to spend mega bucks on unproven youth, in hope they can lock them away before they hit their prime 'superstardom' peak, and in turn increase their value into the $100mil arena.

Of course this has had an affect on the whole market and driven prices through the roof in only a few years.

When you think about some transfer fees from only a few seasons back for proven stars, it is hard to comprehend a 49 million pounds fee for someone like Sterling.

Take nothing away from Sterling, as he is a promising player with plenty potential, but 18-23 million pounds sounds more around his value. Maybe even less.

He reminds me of a Shaun Wright-Phillips, rather than a future Messi, lol.

Anyway, that's the current market, and who can blame these kids for lining their pockets when there's always someone willing to pay.

Just thought I'd share my thoughts .

[deanfar]

EVERTON VS STOKE (0-0) Pen (5-4)

Everton with the most and better chances of the game with Stoke having a couple but nothing serious except for a good/lucky save by Howard from right in front of goal.

Stoke's Goalkeeper Haugaard played a good game.
In defence both teams weren't excellent but with good perfomances by Jagielka and Cameron for each side.
In attack good game for Naismith, unlucky for Lukaku and some good runs by Delofue, and nothing much coming from Stoke.

[Red Eye]

Always surprises me that people don't factor in age with these things. £49m for Sterling sounds a lot but spread over the 10 years at least he could be a city player and in years to come I would say quite confidently it will be considered peanuts - even if he gets no better and just performs at the level he has for the last two years. If he doesn't stay that long then they will most likely sell him for more than they paid, unless his career bombs.

Only time will tell but if you compare to say Depay you could argue it's overpriced, but he helps fulfil the homegrown quota, which for city is vital, given their team building 'strategy'.

For top young players you often pay a premium and scrimping for a lesser player is usually a false economy I think. Firmino I can't comment on as haven't seen him play but South Americans arguably more of a risk.

[Red Eye]

EVERTON VS STOKE (0-0) Pen (5-4)

Everton with the most and better chances of the game with Stoke having a couple but nothing serious except for a good/lucky save by Howard from right in front of goal.

Stoke's Goalkeeper Haugaard played a good game.
In defence both teams weren't excellent but with good perfomances by Jagielka and Cameron for each side.
In attack good game for Naismith, unlucky for Lukaku and some good runs by Delofue, and nothing much coming from Stoke.

Yes - think he missed a penalty in the shootout but Van Ginkel looked interesting (albeit I was only half-watching).

[fredtered]

South Americans arguably more of a risk.

Yes, you don't know if you're getting the next Gabriel Batistuta or the latest Afonso Alves .

[SuperGrover]

Mignolet
, Lovren, Sakho, Toure, Wisdom, (Coates is better than any of those central defenders and he's gone)
Allen, Markovic, Borini, Lambert, Ballotelli.

Amongst others

Don't disagree with the general points, but Sakho is twice the player Coates is. There's a reason why he started all but one game for France in the last WC.

[quarky]

If Benteke goes to Liverpool, is Henderson still worth the money? He is going to take a bonus points hit this season anyway, but he still looked good value due to being on penalties. If Benteke arrives though, I assume he will be on pens, so Henderson loses some potential there..

Is Henderson still a good sneaky tip in that case? I am going to assume a big "yes", but curious as to what others think?

[davidoff]

I assume he will still be on penalties. BR has given him the captain's armband and wants to put responsibility on him. I said to myself I will have Henderson in my team this year due to him having a growing influence for Liverpool. He will be taking all set pieces and should grab a couple of assists here and there as well as goals. For his price, I think he is excellent value and allows you to have higher priced midfielders. In addition, I think he will play 90 mins every game which is always a bonus.