FPL expert Harry Daniels reveals his approach as FPL Challenge kicks off in Gameweek 30, with managers getting an unlimited budget.
AVOID Man City players?
The first week of the Fantasy Challenge starts in Gameweek 30!
It's an additional game mode in FPL that adds an element of fun and the ability to pick some different, more exciting players, without having to worry about the future prospects of your team.
For example, we can buy Aston Villa players this week at home to Wolves and not worry that they go away to Manchester City in Gameweek 31!
We can also enter our team at ANY TIME throughout the weekend, up until 14:00 BST on Sunday when there are only two fixtures left.
On top of this, some differentials and some more explosive, rotation-prone players could become appealing as we get the team line-ups throughout the weekend and can react by making changes to our FPL Challenge team. For managers like myself who have generally been cautious with our Fantasy picks in the past, this should be a lot of fun!
Gameweek 30 offers us a dream opportunity of having an unlimited budget. We can have ALL the big-hitters like Erling Haaland (£14.3m) and Kevin De Bruyne (£10.5m).
But do we actually want to pick those players this week? Man City have a tough match against Arsenal so I actually plan to steer clear of some of the most expensive players and instead target those who have more potential for big scores.
In particular, as a Chelsea fan, I'm relishing the chance to pick FOUR Blues players at home against Burnley, taking advantage of the fact that we can select up to FIVE players from the same club in FPL Challenge.
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My line-up
In goal I have gone with Bernd Leno (£4.8m). He contributed to my pain in Gameweek 29 of "normal" FPL, where I used my Free Hit and got a grand total of 15 points… Leno kept a clean sheet but was on my bench! Fulham continue to show good form and their fixture away against Sheffield United could bring more points.
In defence I'll add to this with Antonee Robinson (£4.6m), who has more attacking returns than any other Fulham defender. We have seen Sheff Utd suffer badly recently, particularly at home, where they feel more obligated to attack.
With Trent Alexander-Arnold (£8.5m) still likely out injured, Conor Bradley (£4.1m) will be in my defence with a nice fixture at Anfield against Brighton. If Trent was to make a miraculous recovery, I would look to use the ability to make transfers after the Liverpool line-up has been announced, and sell Bradley to buy Trent. After all, money's no problem this week!
Finally in my defence is Malo Gusto (£4.2m), the first of my Chelsea quartet. He has a good fixture and offers great attacking threat down the right side, linking up with "Cold" Palmer (£5.7m).
The two defenders on my bench are Pedro Porro (£5.8m) and Kieran Trippier (£6.7m), who also have good fixtures and attacking threat. Explosivity is the name of the game in Fantasy Challenge I think!
Into midfield, although it's not particularly ground-breaking, I'll have Mohamed Salah (£13.1m). I'm unlikely to own him in my regular FPL team this weekend, so I at least I can smile through the pain of my red arrow when he scores, knowing I own him in Fantasy Challenge. I'll likely captain him as well.
I'm also picking Son Heung-min (£10.1m), but that may change when the Spurs line-up is revealed! If Richarlison (£6.9m) starts and likely pushes Son out to the left flank, with Richarlison up front, then the Brazilian could come in. It would just feel strange selling a premium-priced player for a cheaper one in a week where I've got an unlimited budget!
The final two starting midfielders are both Chelsea players. Palmer is a must-have given the season he is having and how important he has been. Then I'm planning to take a punt on Mykhailo Mudryk (£6.3m), who has shown exciting form recently. Although he's mainly been coming off the bench, I believe a start is coming and this could definitely be his time against a Burnley side leaking goals.
Luis Diaz (£7.5m) will sit on my bench as my fifth midfielder.
Up front we start with a boring pick in Ollie Watkins (£9.0m), but he could have a great game at home to a Wolves side who continue to struggle with injuries.
The second forward is Nicolas "Yellow Card" Jackson (£6.8m), my fourth Chelsea player, who has three returns in his last three matches and not a booking to show for it either!
Finally, up front is rising star Rodrigo Muniz (£4.6m) of Fulham - a player I wish I picked on my disastrous Gameweek 29 Free Hit. He's in great form and has a good fixture against Sheff Utd, who have conceded 16 goals in their past three home matches. Once again, I find myself picking a cheap player in a week where money is no object!
There are some exciting players in this team who wouldn’t naturally make it into my FPL plans. Each week in Challenge we can target the best fixtures, and it opens up a greater pool of players for us to choose from.
My main worry is that with such a strong bench, there's every chance of a repeat of my Leno nightmare in Gameweek 29 of FPL, and that Diaz, Trippier or Porro will outscore some of the players in my starting XI!
Good luck to everyone in Fantasy Challenge this weekend.