RADIO
Welcome to Gameweek 8 of the FPL season, RotoBallers! This is the third year covering FPL on the site, and we are bringing you more coverage than ever before. We will publish the Gameweek Preview, consisting of a Staff Roundtable and our weekly rankings every week. Then, once a month, we will publish our newest article, The Watchlist, a review of the previous month and a look ahead to the upcoming fixtures.
Seven gameweeks down, 31 more to go. Just when you thought the Premier League was getting predictable, Man City and Liverpool lost their first games of the season. In Gameweek 8, Man City faces a tough Sunday night test against Arsenal. Meanwhile, the Reds look to bounce back from their heartbreak with a fixture against Brighton. Elsewhere, it's a battle of two high-flying squads as West Ham welcomes Newcastle to London on Sunday afternoon.
The Fantasy Premier League Gameweek 8 deadline is 6:00 AM EST on Saturday, October 7, for the Luton Town-Spurs matchup. Also, look out for the rest of our excellent soccer coverage as the squad gets you all set for every English Premier League, Major League Soccer, and UEFA Champions League slate from a DFS and betting perspective.
Fantasy Premier League Staff Roundtable - Gameweek 8 Preview
The Staff Roundtable is an attempt to get you inside the mind of our FPL staff. Our top soccer writers will answer questions each gameweek to give you an idea of how they view the games. So, without further ado, let’s kick off Gameweek 8!
Gameweek 8 is the final weekend before an international break. Should any injuries crop up, would you try to roll your transfer to have two available?
- Euan Leith: It's always a good idea to roll a transfer if possible. You'll never know when you'll need that extra flexibility. Two free transfers are excellent because a third transfer will cost you four points but almost become a mini-Wildcard. It's even more critical these days with European competitions well underway.
- Jamie Steed: I would recommend doing that. Unfortunately, I don’t have that luxury, as I’m currently nursing three injured defenders and have three more players carrying knocks. The international break can create havoc on FPL teams, so a ‘wait-and-see’ approach is my preferred route.
Man City lost its first game of the season and has Champions League during the week. Do you expect any Pep Roulette to pop up ahead of the weekend?
- Euan: Usually I would, but Man City doesn't feel as deep as it has in recent seasons. I expect Phil Foden, Erling Haaland, and Julian Alvarez to remain in the starting eleven on Sunday afternoon. They play on Wednesday in the Champions League though, so we must ensure everyone makes it through their match unscathed.
- Jamie: There is no way Man City will play anything but their strongest XI away at Arsenal on Sunday. I’m still not entirely sure what that XI is, so other than four or five players, it’s a coin toss for who starts week-to-week.
Is Bukayo Saka Arsenal’s penalty taker? Or should FPL managers expect rotation the whole season?
- Euan: There were several other frustrating FPL moments in Gameweek 7, so this went under the radar. Saka gave up not one but two penalties to his teammates. Fortunately, he still grabbed a goal earlier in the game, but it raises some eyebrows. Part of Saka's appeal is his penalty-taking role, and if that's not certain, then FPL managers could look elsewhere.
- Jamie: Yes, however, it’s not an exclusive role. Saka was carrying a knock into Saturday’s game. He proceeded to take multiple kicks throughout the game, so I believe he wasn’t comfortable taking the spot kicks. If he wasn’t comfortable enough to take them, given the other options Arsenal has, it makes sense he won’t always take them.
Bukayo Saka (£8.7m) recovers from a knock to start for Arsenal. He has six attacking returns this season, including a goal, an assist and a 13-point haul against Spurs last Gameweek 🔴
Backing him to do the business at Vitality Stadium?#BOUARS pic.twitter.com/KjU4y5pqSt
— Fantasy Premier League (@OfficialFPL) September 30, 2023
More Wildcards have been activated this week. Who are your top three targets for the medium term?
- Euan: Tottenham's fixtures are good enough that you should have Son Heung-min and James Maddison now and then switch them to Arsenal players in Gamewek 10. Also, after Liverpool's game against Brighton, Mo Salah and the gang will face Everton and Nottingham Forest in back-to-back games. Salah's teammate, Darwin Nunez, is worth a punt if you try to make significant gains in your mini-league.
- Jamie: Newcastle’s fixtures are pretty appealing, and Kieran Trippier makes sense if you have the available money. Six of Villa’s next seven games come against teams with a fixture difficulty rating of two. I advised about picking up Ollie Watkins a fortnight ago, so I’d make sure he and another Villa player were on my team. Moussa Diaby, Douglas Luiz, John McGinn, or any full-back is a sound option.
Spurs controversially conquered Liverpool, but a win is a win. Do you think its lack of Europe pushes Son Heung-min and James Maddison into almost essential territory?
- Euan: If you could only have one, it would be James Maddison for my squad. However, I am activating my Wildcard this week and grabbing them both. The only argument to go against Son would be to fit Kieran Trippier into your squad. While that's tempting, I always lean toward the attacker, especially when that player has a fixture against Luton Town on Saturday afternoon.
- Jamie: Close, but not quite. They’ve certainly had their fair share of luck recently, and I’m dubious whether it holds up much longer. No doubt, not playing regular midweek games helps the duo, and I wouldn’t think twice about rostering one or both of them.
Who is keeping a clean sheet in Gameweek 8?
- Euan: They let in two on Monday, but Fulham will bounce back against Sheffield United this weekend. The Blades look blunt in front of goal so far this year, and this feels like a Bernd Leno nine or 10-point game in the making.
- Jamie: Chelsea players have been a colossal letdown this season, but Monday saw them keep their third clean sheet of the season, and they have only allowed one goal in three other games. I fancy their defensive reliability to see them secure another clean sheet at Burnley on Saturday.
No Premier League side has kept more clean sheets than Chelsea in the opening seven Gameweeks 🧤
Three low-owned assets for your consideration 👇#FPL pic.twitter.com/Xc2OxqSFDO
— Fantasy Premier League (@OfficialFPL) October 3, 2023
Which defensive player is providing an attacking return?
- Euan: Pedro Porro assisted the game-winning own goal in Spurs' win over Liverpool in Gameweek 7. Spurs failed to break Liverpool's low block after it went down to nine men. It was only when Porro went out wide that they finally looked dangerous and eventually scored. It could be a similar script this weekend against Luton, and Porro has been outstanding in recent games.
- Jamie: I’m going outside the box with Luton’s Alfie Doughty this week. I tried to bring him in last weekend before a technical issue prevented me from doing so. He ranks fourth in the league for shot-creating actions per 90 minutes (5.80/90 mins). That’s among all FPL players. He tallied an assist on Saturday and faced a Tottenham team that’s conceded six goals in their last four games.
Luton's creative spark ✨
Who's looking at Alfie Doughty for the upcoming Gameweeks? 👀 #FPL #LUTBUR pic.twitter.com/dolgBWT18x
— Fantasy Premier League (@OfficialFPL) October 3, 2023
Who's a midfielder or forward rostered on less than 10 percent of teams that will grab us those FPL points?
- Euan: Dominic Solanke is on 2.3 percent of FPL squads, but that number is about to shoot up. The Englishman has three goals and an assist this season. His 4.4 points per match is ninth in the game, and he has a fantastic run of fixtures. It starts this weekend with a game against Everton.
- Jamie: It may seem contradictory, given I’ve criticized Chelsea’s attack for much of this season. However, Cole Palmer is rostered by just 0.3 percent of FPL managers and is my pick here. Palmer made his first start for Chelsea on Monday and bagged an assist. There’s no guarantee he starts on Saturday, but Chelsea faces a Burnley team that’s conceded 12 goals in four home games this season. It’s worth a gamble.
Who is the player you want to, but can’t, have for the Gameweek 8 fixtures in Fantasy Premier League?
- Euan: I can have anyone I want with the Wildcard activated. After Erling Haaland and Mohamed Salah, I must make a tough choice between Kieran Trippier and Son Heung-min. If I go with Son, I have to drop down to a £5.0m defender, and there aren't many intriguing options. However, if I roll with Trips, I could substitute Son with Jarrod Bowen or James Ward-Prowse. I'm leaning toward the latter pairing, but there's plenty of time before the deadline.
- Jamie: Kaoru Mitoma is someone I suspect has an excellent game this weekend. He has four goal involvements in four home games this season. He blanked on Saturday, and in the previous two games he blanked so far, Mitoma bounced back with a goal or assist the next time out. He gets a challenging match against Liverpool on Sunday, but Brighton beat them 3-0 in this fixture last season and drew the away match 3-3.
Talk about leading by example @trippier2 ⚫️⚪️#FPL pic.twitter.com/MGLMbQA5jE
— Fantasy Premier League (@OfficialFPL) October 1, 2023
Who's getting the Captain's armband?
- Euan: It's always nerve-wracking to back the early kickoff, but Son Heung-min or James Maddison tempts me against Luton Town. Salah versus Brighton should be a high-scoring contest, and it's tough to picture going against Haaland versus Arsenal. If everyone makes it through Europe without a knock, I will slap the armband on Son.
- Jamie: I’m sticking it on Jarrod Bowen this weekend. It might seem like a home game against Newcastle isn’t ideal,l but the Geordies 8-0 win on matchday six ended a run of ten away EPL games without a clean sheet. Bowen has already scored five goals this season, including strikes against Liverpool and Brighton. A sixth of the season on Sunday wouldn’t surprise me in the slightest.
Finally, what’s your bold prediction for Gameweek 8?
- Euan: After beating them in the Community Shield, Arsenal gets another victory over City in an early title-tilting battle. Elsewhere, Darwin Nunez scores two goals at Brighton, Burnley grab a point against Chelsea, and Bournemouth beat Everton at Goodison Park.
- Jamie: With so many midweek European games, it’s difficult to navigate. I can see Brentford adding to Manchester United’s woes and Bournemouth picking up a first league win at Everton. Brighton are more than capable of upsetting Liverpool. With both teams playing on Thursday, it’s not a game I’m too confident in predicting.
Is there a question you would like to have answered every week? Hit us up on Twitter @RotoBaller. We would love to hear your feedback and ideas!
