While more funds are being piled into the defence as managers in Fantasy Premier League go big at the back, it means cheaper forward options are required, and the most popular purchase ahead of Gameweek 10 is Crystal Palace’s Jean-Philippe Mateta (£7.7m).
So Kelly Somers and the FPL Pod team discuss whether the Crystal Palace star is a must-have, why a four-man defence is so important and if it’s time to start looking at Manchester United players.
Listen to the FPL Pod
Running order:
- Four at the back (09m 19s)
- Joao Pedro problems (15m 57s)
- Must-have Mateta? (18m 38s)
- Man Utd potential (30m 26s)
- Differential of the week (36m 27s)
- Transfers and captains (38m 44s)
Podcast presenters
Kelly Somers
Kelly is a presenter and reporter who has become synonymous with FPL, hosting the FPL Pod for the past four seasons, alongside the Fantasy Show.
Alongside this, she also leads coverage on BBC Sport - including Football Focus, live Women's Super League and Final Score, and on radio for 5live Sport. She is also their England reporter - having been in camp at the last three major tournaments.
This summer she was one of the lead presenters for DAZN’s coverage of the FIFA Club World Cup - a job that convinced her that Joao Pedro had to be one of the first names in her FPL team this season - and she’s also previously presented for Optus Sport, Channel 4 and Amazon Prime.
Kelly is, by her own admission, a football and FPL obsessive - and says the only deadline she has ever missed is following the birth of her daughter! Somehow she still made the top 50k that year, but blames the continuous lack of sleep for her drop off last season - as well as Juls and Sam’s constant, successful attempts to influence her picks! Her new season resolution is to follow her gut and not leave her chips until the last minute.
Julien Laurens
Julien is a French football journalist based in London. He reports on the Premier League for RMC Sport, TNT Sports, BBC Radio 5 Live and ESPN.
He is a keen FPL manager who likes to get ahead of the curve by spotting high-performing differentials. Arsenal fan Juls always needs his boy William Saliba and all Paris born and bred players!
Juls watches every minute of football possible to make the most informed Fantasy decisions and help the FPL Pod listeners with their weekly dilemmas. The 2023/24 season saw Juls register his highest-ever FPL finish, inside the top 5k!
Sam Bonfield
Sam is an experienced FPL pundit and one half of the popular YouTube channel the https://www.youtube.com/c/fplfamily, with husband Lee.
In her 15 FPL seasons, Sam has developed a keen eye for spotting differentials. However, she prefers making sensible decisions supported by underlying stats and the eye test wherever possible to help her find those all-important green arrows.
Sam also regularly appears on the Fantasy Show, as well as Sky Sports News, talking all things Fantasy.