FPL Gameweek 2 Tips – I Got Chills…

Fantasy Premier League (FPL) gameweek 2 is already staring us in the face, it feels early to give tips but here we are anyway. Your old faithful Full90FPL.

In this FPL Gameweek 2 tips piece, we will cover our advice on early transfers, the upcoming fixtures, injury news, transfer news and our regular should I buy/should I sell and captaincy corner.

Before we get into it, its worth considering the scores we have seen. Six out of seven teams in my semi-serious league scored 70 or more points. If you take the game seriously then you probably have something similar and you should take your first week with a pinch of salt.

If you are here desperately looking for FPL gameweek 2 tips because your first week was below average. Stop. Take a breath. We have only had one week. Everything we learned so far is caveated by the fact that it is only one week’s worth of information.

Presumably, you made your gameweek 1 choices for good reason. Don’t stress too much. Your season isn’t defined by one bad week. Last year

And, if you think you’ve had a shit week, just consider Ange Postecoglu. Not only is he forced to manage a Spurs without Kane, but he’s also had to pull out of his FPL league.

James Maddison gets to keep his team. He got 70 points this week, check out how you did against the actual PL players on FPL Focal’s Twitter. Give us a follow whilst you’re there?

Our Key FPL Tip for Gameweek 2 – Hold Those Knees!

I want to start this piece with two caveats.

The first is that a lot of this piece, like our regular previews, will be about players you might want to bring in. But, generally, our key tip is to advise against making a transfer going into Gameweek 2 in FPL.

And that’s because of the second caveat. We have such a limited amount of information right now. One gameweek is not enough for us to draw absolute conclusions.

Circumstances Have Changed…

There is one exception to my caveat above. And his name is Ben Chilwell.

We didn’t expect Chelsea to be playing a back four before the season started which is why he was not in our teams at the start of the year. But, off the back of that performance where he was the furthest forward attacking Chelsea player, I would be delighted to get him in my team (and I already have bought him).

There is the caveat that we aren’t sure they will stick with five at the back. It was very strange to see them line up like this after the pre-season where they only played four at the back. But, hopefully with the addition of Caicedo and Lavia, they will also look better defensively so even if they go to a back four then we will be happy to own him.

If you came here for confirmation that you’re a genius. Well done! You can leave now. Please click an advert on the way out

If you don’t own him. And, you can’t get him without a hit or unless you sell Alexander-Arnold. Then, I would just hold steady. Wait until next week. You can get him then anyway. At this point in the season, 0.1 is 0.5. 0.2 is also 0.5. Plus, Chilwell is probably injured by then anyway.

Why Nobody Else?

Others will be attracted to Maddison and Joao Pedro. With regards to Maddison, yeah I like him. He’s a great player. But, if I didn’t own him I wouldn’t be very stressed about getting him. He plays against United next who are pretty good. Bringing him in can wait.

As for Pedro, this guy scored a penalty. That’s great. But, he also missed a sitter. And, his previous in the Premier League isn’t great (three goals, one assist in 28 appearances). Last season (IN THE CHAMPIONSHIP!!!!!) he got 11 goals and four assists in 35 appearances. Yes, he’s 5.5 and that’s a great price for a player like this in historical context but everyone is cheap this year.

For more context. Consider Carlton Morris of Luton Town. Also 5.5 but 20 goals and six assists in the championship in 44 appearance last year. Also scored a goal from the penalty spot in gameweek 1 and nobody gives a shit.

Yes, Brighton are a better team. No, Luton don’t play in gameweek 2. But, it’s interesting how the narrative develops from “this guy is an exciting prospect” to “he scored a high xG chance so let’s all buy him!”

I’m not selling Pedro if I own him but guys… let’s all take a breath here.

Upcoming Fixture Ticker

This will be a regular stalwart of our pieces throughout the year. We will look at which teams have the best fixtures over the next five gameweeks to help you plan your transfers.

Teams in capitals are home fixtures and teams in lowercase are away fixtures.

As you can see, Chelsea fixtures are super good over the next five weeks. We should be looking to move their assets in this week or next. We probably want to be doubled up for Luton at home.

Similarly, Arsenal have great fixtures. And, I’d also like to at least be doubled up.

I’d double up on Man City too, if I had any idea who was going to play…

Injury News

There were a lot of injuries in the first gameweek and they all look to be serious. Kevin de Bruyne pulled his hamstring again… Belgian press think he is out for six months and the Guardian are reporting he could miss all season.  It’s a difficult injury to recover from and has a serious chance of recurring problems. So, if you have him, he has got to get out of your team. Even in draft.

It’s unclear who benefits most from Kev’s injury. In last year’s Champion’s League final, Foden came on when de Bruyne was injured and he was the main beneficiary. But, last season, we also saw Alvarez play when de Bruyne wasn’t fit. The transfer window is still open and the Guardian reported that City are interested in Paqueta. Regardless, if you want one of them you have to acknowledge the risk that they just don’t play.

It seems like Tyrone Mings is going to be out for a long time. Pau will be the main beneficiary of this. We know that Villa were dreadful against Newcastle but we think that was a strange result that will prove to be the exception and not the rule.

Similarly, the rumours about Jurien Timber suggest ligament damage which will be a long-term injury. Zinchenko might be fit by next week but if he isn’t then perhaps Arsenal will keep Tierney instead of selling him and play him.

Transfer News

After Buendia’s injury, Zanniolo has joined Emery’s Villa. Roma and Galatasaray fans have been saying that this guy is dreadful. I remember that he was tipped as a prospect a few years back but it doesn’t seem like he fulfilled that potential.

It was also confirmed that Raya was joining Arsenal on a season-long loan with option to buy. It’s not like you’re wasting a transfer in this position either way and I would still hold Ramsdale if I had him but its not good FPL news for either asset. Flekken, on the other hand just got a bonus.

Free-kick merchant James Ward-Prowse has returned to the PL to join West Ham. He has been price revealed at £6.0mn. He’s not worth bringing in now, but could be an option later in the season (depending upon how West Ham play). He could be worth a punt in particularly deep draft leagues right now in the off chance you catch lightning in a bottle, but that seems unlikely.

Adama Traore is also making a return to the Premier League. He joins his former Wolves colleague, Raul, at Wolves. Traore is a dreadful FPL pick though. He is all flash and no substance. I have no interest in him until he breaks this image in my mind.

Should I Buy?

So, in this section, we will look to answer the most basic question. Should I buy this player?

It’s worth noting the caveat at the top – to wait another week for more information. BUT, if you don’t have Chilwell or if you have made a mistake or if you have an injured player then here are some thoughts on some of the most purchased players this week.

• Rodrigo – Absolutely not. He rose in price purely because he scored a goal but he is a BAD FPL Pick.
• Saka – Yes. Great player with great fixtures.
• Eze – No. Not right now. Palace really struggled to score last week against poor opposition. I love Eze as a player but I would rather have Mbeumo for the next five weeks given his incredible fixtures.
• Isak – No. It’s too early to know how the Newcastle rotation will work this year and, whilst I loved how good they were in attack against Villa, they play Man City next and you want to avoid that game.
• Estupinian – Sure. Two good fixtures and he’s attacking.
• Saliba – Yeah. He seems nailed, is a good pick and has good fixtures.
• Ake – We don’t know if he is nailed and they play a good Newcastle this weekend. No thanks.
• Luis Diaz – He played well against Chelsea but again, we don’t know if he is nailed to start  so I probably wouldn’t.
• Reece James – If it’s a simple move (without hits) then sure, it feels fine. I’m certain he will get injured at some point though. So, a -4 feels very bad.

Should I Sell?

As above, note the caveat. We are not super keen to make moves this week.

• Kane – 100% sell. He left the league!
• De Bruyne – Yes. As above. Get rid. Don’t mind a double move to get Chilwell in. Or, if you want to get Salah and cap him (even in two moves) then that is fun.
• Stones – I don’t mind selling him. Particularly if you don’t have to take a hit to get him up to Chilwell. But, if you bought him, you knew he was a rotation risk so I’d question why you’re panicking straight away. This was the reason I didn’t have him in the first place.
• Gabriel – So, I have sold him. But I don’t feel good about it. I would have kept him if I already had Chilwell. If getting to Chilwell is easy and doesn’t cost you a hit, then just get him. I would not swap Gabriel to Saliba – that feels very sideways and a waste of transfer.
• Fernandes – No. It’s too early. Yes, United were shit. But hold on. If you thought Bruno was a good player going into the season, then you have to trust that.
• Rashford – No. I would much rather sell Bruno. I wouldn’t sell either. But Rashy is way better an asset.
• Eze – He has bad fixtures. But you must have known that at the start of the season. Just hold him for the next two weeks.
• Mings – Yeah. Sell the fucker if you need to. Henry, Pinnock both have good fixtures. I’m not sure Wan Bissaka or Colwill play every week. Botman’s fixtures are too bad if you need him to play. Pau or Cash are probably alright if you just want villa coverage straightaway.
• Darwin – I probably wouldn’t sell ahead of Bournemouth. If you bought him, you must have known it was a realistic possibility he didn’t start. I think I would rather take a chance this week against poor opposition and then mini wildcard.

Captaincy Corner

If you have Salah then I think you should captain him. He looked great against Chelsea and Bournemouth are dreadful. But, I wouldn’t tear my team up to get him.

If you don’t, then Haaland is your best bet. City are ABSOLUTELY the best team in the league. If they don’t win it, then that’s a failure. Haaland scored with his first touch of the season. He was the best FPL player in the league last season. Just don’t overthink it.

If you want an outside bet, which I don’t recommend this early, then consider Alexander-Arnold or Watkins. Trent has an excellent fixture but you need him to get a clean sheet to make captaincy worthwhile. And, we can’t trust that.

Watkins is one of the best forwards in the PL. No doubt. But, he plays for Villa. Emery’s Villa, sure. But Villa aren’t Man City.

That’s it

Hopefully this tips piece on Gameweek 2 in FPL has helped your thought process.

Watch out for our news piece on Friday for the latest information. And remember it’s a Friday deadline again!

Good luck and have fun everyone!