FPL Notebook

A notebook for my weekly FPL decisions- Scout, Debate, Lock.
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[FPL Notebook @MyFplnotebook]

GW3 Review — More information, Better decisions

Another week, done and dusted. I did wait a few more days to see how the Champions League fixtures played out.

We started with Ipswich-Liverpool and I was surprised it ended 2-0. I thought there were a lot more goals in that game for both sides. Ipswich weren't particularly poor going forward, but Liverpool looked very good, and I think we're getting a much better sense of what this Liverpool attack can be. Isak is looking more and more like the player we know he can be. There's still a gap, but we're seeing it now. His relationship with Gakpo is improving while Barcola playing on the right in the Champions League opens up the possibility of Barcola-Gakpo-Isak as a front three.

From an FPL perspective, those three are probably the most attractive attacking combination, although fitness for both Gakpo and Barcola remains something to monitor.

Newcastle-Bournemouth was another interesting one. Both are playing well and both look like good, solid mid-table teams who should continue to do well. I didn't go for Hall last week because I expected goals from both sides — and that's exactly what happened. Sometimes these are simply teams where we need to play the fixtures rather than predict the score. I'm still less convinced by Wissa because his role could fluctuate between number nine and number ten & if he spends more minutes away from the nine, that obviously diminishes his appeal. Elanga and Harvey Barnes are perhaps the more interesting attacking punts but they're difficult to predict even with good fixtures. Newcastle's defence, however, looks more predictable, so I've gone for Hall this week. Let's see how that pans out.

Brentford-Sunderland was the bet that just didn't work. Three blanks for Thiago, and this was something I'd already noted before the gameweek: he just doesn't seem completely connected with the rest of Brentford's attack. Brentford are playing well, but the connection isn't quite there and it's showing. So I moved him out and upgraded to Isak. Brentford remain a good attacking team but it's becoming difficult to predict where the goals are going to come from, and the fixtures are about to get considerably tougher. Time to sit back and reassess.

City-Coventry was useful- I had reservations on using TC chip and rightly so in hindsight. We're getting a better understanding of this City attack and for me the big question remains Haaland. I know he'll score goals. The concern isn't Haaland himself — it's whether City are currently maximising his potential. They're still figuring things out, and if that continues, we may have to think differently about how we use him: perhaps attacking certain fixtures rather than treating him as an automatic captaincy/hold-every-week asset.

Cherki looks like a good option, but I'm really concerned about his minutes. Foden could get more opportunities but exactly how he is used remains difficult to track. The same applies to Enzo. There are good players here; the difficulty is knowing which ones will consistently get the right role and minutes. So I feel we may have to go with Haaland alone from city attack as Semenyo has been pushed really wide to create his usual impact. I did sell Semenyo this gw to sponsor my moves above.

( Other fixtures soon)

@OfficialFPL #fpl #fplcommunity

[FPL Notebook @MyFplnotebook]

📒 Notebook | GW2 Review — Patterns, Not Conclusions

GW2 is finally done. It felt like a very long Gameweek, particularly as a non-Bruno owner waiting through that United fixture but we've now got another valuable set of data points. The interesting bit is that some of our GW1 assumptions have strengthened, while others have started to wobble. That's exactly what the Notebook is for.

Arsenal — GW1 looked like pure attacking football. Tzolis explosive, Kai linking, Saka back to his usual self and the midfield functioning beautifully. GW2 was almost the complete opposite. The attack looked much closer to last season. Tzolis was rattled by Cash physically and struggled to settle; Kai was poor but still played 98 minutes, which itself is useful information. Saka improved after half-time but the White–Ødegaard–Saka chemistry we saw earlier simply wasn't there.

Calafiori, however, was excellent positionally. He repeatedly found the space behind Villa's first defensive line but Arsenal couldn't find him often enough. I now feel much more confident about his minutes even in the Chelsea fixture. White was unusually poor but still picked up a bonus point; with the Mpsquera concern, Konaté becomes an interesting £1m cheaper replacement route if needed. The broader Arsenal thesis remains intact, but the attacking certainty has definitely reduced. I expect Tzolis to start chelsea but not UCL away so there is no urgent need to sell him unless you want to upgrade to Saka ( 11 defcon actions against Villa)

Spurs — Much better than GW1. The physical gap has narrowed considerably and tactically they looked more settled. Newcastle are a very rigid, well-coached opponent, so this was useful information. My bigger concern is still the squad construction: lots of names, lots of money spent but the attacking unit hasn't quite come together yet. Kudus coming back changes that. We've seen what he can do when fit & if he gets through the next week or two, Spurs suddenly have a genuine game-changer. Still work in progress but increasingly interesting hence we monitor.

Newcastle — Very clean performance. They know what they want to do with & without the ball and importantly, what weaknesses they want to attack in the opposition. Wissa continues to look like a really attractive FPL pick. The interesting question is his role now that Pardo has arrived. Does Wissa remain central or eventually move towards No.10/left?

Elanga continues to impress too. At the back, Dedic and Hall both caught the eye. With Newcastle's fixtures improving in a couple of weeks, these are names worth having on the Notebook rather than simply waiting for the fixture turn to arrive.

City — Haaland being Haaland was extremely useful information for those of us who went without Bruno and backed him. A brace makes that decision look considerably better. But the underlying question remains: City are still figuring out how to create for him. The volume of big chances we became accustomed to isn't quite there. At £15.5m, that matters. Cherki was superb in the second half and probably deserved even more creative output. The question is whether his role has longevity given Enzo may come in as LCM. For the next 2–3 weeks, though, I struggle to see Maresca dropping Cherki while City are still searching for creativity.
Liverpool — Glad we didn't jump into Pool attack or defence, massive work in progress. Szoboszlai continues to play deeper than the FPL community would like to admit. Isak is getting closer to himself but the Liverpool attack still needs to click properly around him. Barcola could be hugely important here. Gakpo is a brilliant finisher but Barcola gives Liverpool something different creatively, and I don't see either being naturally shifted to the opposite wing just to accommodate the other. That potentially makes Gakpo's role the vulnerable one. Munoz is doing fine, but we're still waiting to see whether he can genuinely provide the attacking output you'd want from a starting Liverpool asset.

Chelsea — This one has surprised me. Brighton were unusually poor defensively but Chelsea weren't exactly reassuring either. Two consecutive games conceding plenty of chances, with the two-man midfield leaving significant gaps. Winning 4–3 doesn't necessarily make it a good FPL defensive performance. 25% possession at home was also striking. Perhaps Alonso deliberately accepted this because Brighton's openness gave Chelsea counter-attacking opportunities but Arsenal is a very different test.
And that is probably the most interesting tactical question going into next week.

Does Alonso stick with 3-4-3 against Arsenal?

A two-man midfield against Rice, Ødegaard and Bruno Guimarães could be asking for trouble. Bruno G looked increasingly fit and involved and that midfield has enough quality and work-rate to dominate the central areas. Alonso is adaptable, so I'm expecting him to have a plan.

João Pedro was excellent again although the missed chances are becoming a bit of a theme. Palmer remains the player I want to understand through match state rather than simply output. GW2 was another reminder of how quickly he can come alive when the game opens up.

Brentford-Dominated Leeds for entirety of first half but could not create distance between them and hence, came out with a draw. Schade had a fantastic goal and performance but Thiago dropped 2nd stinker I would say. His positioning feels peculiar, often feels he is shying away from the ball and finds himself away from action despite being close to it.

The bigger takeaway for me after two GWs: Don't confuse a result with a pattern. Two weeks is now enough to start questioning our preseason assumptions but nowhere near enough to declare them dead. And with so many clubs still settling their squads and systems, I'm increasingly interested in what changes next rather than simply what happened last weekend.

That's where the next set of FPL edges will come from.

Dilemmas for me personally:
1. Thiago- I want to sell- Wissa is easiest and long term pick but we don't know impact on fpl with positioning change. I do like a short term Fulham fwd move ie Gonzalo attacking Palce at home.
2. Cherki- Do I jump in knowing the mins risk, do I swap with Semenyo or go for a triple attack City.
3. Shaw- Easy thing to do is move to NUFC or Brentford defence.
4. Tzolis- I would think upgrading to Saka makes sense and allows me a Haaland Palmer, Saka combo to negate bruno effect long term but let's see how I reach there.

I will still gather a bit of information before making my moves, 3 transfers max at a hit or 2 without one is my target.

@OfficialFPL #fpl #fplcommunity

[FPL Notebook @MyFplnotebook]

Martin Odegaard and his values shines.. want to see more of such examples from footballers whom really do earn at highest tier in our society to keep giving back to it .

[Jalan Arsenal @JalanArsenal]

Interview of Der Spiegel journo Christoph Winterbach on Football Leaks.

He found so many manipulations in the business that dissuaded him from being a football fan

Asked any positivity he found from the leaks, he singled out Martin Odegaard’s father, a shining light in the dark

[FPL Notebook @MyFplnotebook]

@FPL_Gaurav Palmer , Bruno Imo

[FPL Notebook @MyFplnotebook]

@CitehSide Yeah abuse next after this.. typical city fan.

[FPL Notebook @MyFplnotebook]

@edman7462 @CitehSide More like crying tbf.. they don't have one defender who can stand upto him.

[FPL Notebook @MyFplnotebook]

@CitehSide Didn't take it more than a few days after I called Bernado silva out . Dirtiest player on football today.

[FPL Notebook @MyFplnotebook]

@CitehSide You don't understand facts. He was formally charged on July 5 2025 after his contract was expired for us. We never played him after charged, we couldn't.

[FPL Notebook @MyFplnotebook]

@_chrisdunne @UtdJBT Thought early on with United he has injury issues.. last season was first time he appeared in all 38 games. Wasn't even close for most of his seasons in 12 years. Overall though he is giving all he has, i don't see any major reason for slander.

[FPL Notebook @MyFplnotebook]

@FPL_Gaurav ghost injury- ffs gyok do the same.

[FPL Notebook @MyFplnotebook]

@mayankredkop His reply was "he is not well" with an evil smirk- wtf does that mean even- he was injured, he did not play. what do you think was the reason ?

[FPL Notebook @MyFplnotebook]

@FPL_Gaurav Gyokeres

[FPL Notebook @MyFplnotebook]

@FPL_Spaceman 🤣🤣🤣🤣

[FPL Notebook @MyFplnotebook]

@athemvedfpl Bruno Fernandes won't suit all styles of football- United is perfect for him as much as he is perfect for United.

[FPL Notebook @MyFplnotebook]

@AK22_12 @CitehSide Are you saying physical contact isn't allowed anymore.. ? If you go back and check duels with brobbey among your defenders- you won't get a single one where defender is only focused on him. For every 4 images of yours I have plenty more.

[FPL Notebook @MyFplnotebook]

@FPL_Analytic No problem thank you, I just wanted to check if you have looked at the data in terms of variances and if there are any interesting observations around the same as fpl managers use it for decision making. Thank you for your revert.

[FPL Notebook @MyFplnotebook]

@CitehSide Maybe you had your blinders on coz he played for your club, one of the dirtiest players on the field.