Top 10 Tips for FPL Beginners

By Fantasy Football Pundit · 22 July 2021

Fantasy Premier League continues to grow every season which means there are always beginners competing in the game.

If you're one of them, it will be difficult to go toe-to-toe with grizzled veterans but these tips can give you a chance. With a bit of luck too, you might even be able to crack the top 100k.

With that said, here are our top 10 tips for Fantasy Premier League beginners

1. FPL Research

This is the most important tip. It's a lot more complicated than just looking at who are the best players.

Here are some key points to consider when picking your team:

Keep an eye out for injuries and suspensions
Know the fixtures
Keep track of player prices
Check out who the best budget and premium players are in different categories
Listen to the pre-game and full-time analysis
Plan your future transfers

Doing this research is a lot easier said than done but if you can, then you're already ahead of most FPL managers.

2. No Place for Emotions

Massive Southampton fan? It's not a good idea to have three of their players in your FPL team.

The same goes for the majority of teams in the Premier League.

Leave your biases at the door and pick players who bring in the points, even if you might not like them. Emotional investing can hurt your point totals, and therefore overall ranking.

3. Beginning of the Season

It is advisable to start with a template team. A template team comprises of at least 5 to 8 highly owned FPL players.

Add to that a mix of three or four differentials (players with low ownership) and you're all set.

Furthermore, don’t invest too much in bench players. Focus on your starting 11 which is where points are earned.

4. The Budget

This is where it can get tricky. You have £100 million to pick 15 players.

Do you go for the heavily priced forwards or pack your midfield with superstars?

There is a section of players who even spend big in defence. And why not when defenders are becoming an increasingly potent source of points.

Which position you prioritise is ultimately up to you, the correct strategy is still debated today.

However, as mentioned above, don't spend too much on your bench.

5. Transfers

Transfers are an integral part of fantasy football.

When you're making at least 37 of them, likely a lot more, those transfers will have a big factor on how successful your team is.

Transferring in the right players is easier said than done. However, if you stick to picking players with good fixtures and who are in good form, then you shouldn't go too far wrong.

Then there is the question as to when you should implement the transfer. This can vary from gameweek to gameweek but there are two schools of thought:

Transfer upon completion of fixtures - this way you catch potential price rises
Transfer just before the deadline - this way you maximize information, ie team news

The transfer deadline is 90 minutes before the first game of a given gameweek.

6. Team Value

Some managers jump early on bandwagons and pick up players who are due to rise in value. This is an interesting move best deployed early on in the season.

If you have a greater team value, you can pick a balanced side with many higher value players come the end of the season.

7. Transfer Hits and Chips

Hits are good fun but should be avoided where possible. That means if you have a good starting 11 then penalizing yourself 4 points for a needless transfer isn't an astute move.

FPL chips are crucial in determining where you end up in the global rankings. Careful thought and execution can pay dividends. Get them right, and you can have 50–80 point swings in a single Gameweek.

It's important to save them for double gameweeks (when teams have 2 games in a single week). This way you maximize the benefit of them as players can play twice.

8. The Christmas Bench

You can opt for a strong starting 11 throughout the season. As long as your bench players play you should be fine because rotation comes more into play around cup games.

It is prudent to go with a strong bench during December and January period. This is because games come thick and fast in this period, managers rotate heavily, and you need bench players who can make an impact.

9. Your Captain is Essential

Believe it or not, by the end of the season, most managers secure around 25-30 percent of their total points just through their captains.

Don’t be too clever here; just hand the armband to a premium heavy hitter with a favorable fixture. Your captain marvel can save an otherwise disastrous week.

Our best FPL captains page lists the best choices by likelihood of scoring and assisting.

Choosing a differential captain can be a high-risk, high-reward strategy. This should be reserved for if/when you're behind in a mini-league or really need to hit an overall ranking target.

10. End of the Season

The run-in is where you can make big jumps in your rank. You can also end up making severe misjudgments and end up in the red. There are several reasons why:

Teams with nothing to play for: They are not going down to the championship, nor are they going to Europe. Picking players from these teams can be a risky proposition as they have nothing to play for.
The top 4 race: You must pick many players from teams during this period who will leave no stone unturned for that coveted Champions League spot.
The relegation fight: Choosing players who are in teams fighting to stay in the league can be rewarding. These teams sometimes pull off massive upsets during this period. Even if they are going down, key players from such teams tend to do well as they look for a move to bigger and better clubs.

If you're thirsty for more information, then make sure to check out our weekly Fantasy Premier League tips and various live data tools across the website.