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In last week’s column, we looked at the nuts and bolts of the FanTeam fantasy game.

This week, it’s time to cut to the chase and get down to some picks and strategy.

Firstly, a reminder that there’s a £35,000 jackpot on offer for 1st Prize in the FanTeam Season Game which boasts a Minimum Guaranteed Prizepool of £175,000.

Not bad for an entry fee of just £10.

There’s also a great offer below for new users.

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Now, let’s put some cards on the table.

FIVE MUST HAVES

Mo Salah (Liverpool) 13.5M

A no-brainer and the analysis could stop with the fact that Salah was the highest scoring player in the game last season. But, for a GW1 pick, the argument is even more compelling as Salah has scored more goals (9) on opening day then any other player in the history of the Premier League. Liverpool open with a home game against Brentford, an obvious way for the Reds’ winger to move that number into double figures. Last season’s Golden Boot winner and Assists king is a points machine and even if MW2 and MW3 (Newcastle away and Arsenal home) look tough, Salah has an outstanding record against both clubs.

Declan Rice (Arsenal) – 6.5M

A nailed on starter for Arsenal and one whose points tally should rise in 2025/26. While his overall numbers from last season may not take the eye as much as other midfielders, playing a more advanced role later in the campaign showed that the England man can rack up the points. Starting from March, Rice banked eight goals and four assists for the Gunners in all competitions so looks value at 6.5M. A trip to Old Trafford (Rice scored there last season) and a home clash against Leeds present early opportunities.

Florian Wirtz (Liverpool) – 9.0M

While Salah and Rice are absolutely tried and tested in the Premier League, Wirtz is new to it all. But if you’re going to bank on one overseas summer signing hitting the ground running, it has to be the German playmaker. Over the last two seasons for Bayer Leverkusen he banked 21 goals and 23 assists in the Bundesliga and Wirtz joins a Liverpool team who look full of goals. Already in pre-season he’s shown some intriguing early passing link-ups with Salah while Wirtz scored his first goal for the Reds in the win over Yokohama F.Marinos in Tokyo.

Jarrod Bowen (West Ham) – 8.0M

It’s too simplistic to judge scores over a whole season and when we split the 2024/25 campaign into two halves, Bowen’s appeal is obvious. From GW20 to the end of the season, he racked up eight goals and five assists as the spearhead of the West Ham attack. If new boss Graham Potter fell short in other areas, he certainly got it right when getting the best out of Bowen. West Ham have a relatively soft run of fixtures to start the season and an away trip to Sunderland on opening weekend gives Danny Dyer’s son-in-law the chance to make a splash.

Rayan Ait-Nouri (Man City) – 6.0M

It’s a simple thought process with Ait-Nouri. If he can rack up four goals and seven assists in a struggling Wolves team last season, imagine what he might do with Manchester City following his summer move. City’s full-backs play a big part in terms of attacking output and Rodri’s return to anchor the midfield should help the clean sheet numbers return to former levels. Ait-Nouri will certainly be motivated for his debut – a return to Molinuex.

FIVE VALUE/DIFFERENTIAL PICKS

Jordan Pickford (Everton) – 5.5M

The England stopper made the third-most saves in the Premier League last season. And he also kept the third-most clean sheets. That’s an ideal combination for a game that awards +4pts per clean sheet and +0.5pts per Goalkeeper Save. In that sense, he offers appeal whoever the opposition: a lesser team that the Toffees keep at bay or a better one who peppers him with shots. Everton start with games against Leeds (a), Brighton (h) and Wolves (a).

Daniel Munoz (Crystal Palace) – 5.5M

It’s tempting to add in more than one Everton defender (they conceded the same number of goals as Manchester City last season). But, if you want to spread the risk, Daniel Munoz offers plenty of appeal. Palace will get their share of clean sheets (11 last season; Liverpool had most with 14) while he loves to bomb forward. Munoz was a little jumpy in front of goal at the start of last season but ended with six in the League/FA Cup as well as seven assists, including setting up the winner in the FA Cup final.

Danny Welbeck (Brighton) – 6M

Welbeck hit double figures for the first time in his Premier League career in the last campaign and, notably, he hit the ground running. The Seagulls striker bagged six in his first nine starts but also finished pretty well with three in the final seven. Evan Ferguson has moved on so Welbeck’s top-flight know-how is clearly valued at Brighton.

Jorgen Strand Larsen (Wolves) – 6.5M

Talking of players whose path has been further cleared, Jorgen Strand Larsen should really be the main man in attack for Wolves this season with Matheus Cunha moving on to Manchester United. The Norwegian striker, without much fanfare, racked up seven goals and two assists in his final nine games of the season and has the potential to kick on in his second full campaign in the Premier League.

Morgan Gibbs-White (Nottingham Forest) – 7M

Midfield slots in a fantasy team are precious. There are just so many contenders. But Gibbs-White is a potential bargain given his influence in the Nottingham Forest team. The England man may have been hot property with fantasy managers had he been running out this season in a Spurs shirt but, ironically, I think he’ll score more points having been persuaded to stay at the City Ground. Forest have a favourable first-six matches, playing Brentford (h), Crystal Palace (a), West Ham (h), Arsenal (a), Burnley (a) and Sunderland (h).

WEEK 1

To get the 10 above players into the starting XI for GW1 leaves us with 26.5M to fill the remaining five slots.

That’s one starter and four for the bench.

To get there, we could make Liverpool’s Virgil van Dijk (6M) the third starting defender (home to Brentford adds to his already obvious appeal) and have bench of: GK Caoimhin Kelleher (Brentford) 5.0M, Ezri Konsa (Aston Villa) 5.0M, Murillo (Nottingham Forest) 5.0M, and Raul Jimenez (Fulham) 6.0M.

That gives us a 15-man squad of 2 goalkeepers, 5 defenders, 5 midfielders and three forwards and is bang on the 100M budget.

It could be taken literally but think of it as a starting point. Inevitably there will be some tweaks before kick-off – bench players being promoted or new additions if relevant injury news breaks – and note those changes can be done until the deadline without accruing any penalties.

That deadline runs right up to kick-off in the the opening game: the 8pm clash between Liverpool and Brentford on the August 15th.

Not long now and, oh, how about the captain?

It’s hard to get away from Salah but if Alexander Isak joins the Reds between now (article published July 31st) and kick-off, it may cause a rethink!

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