An Index of FAQs, Tips and Add-Ons ..................................................................................................POST 1

Page 1 Post 1: An Index of FAQs, Tips and Add-Ons including 'Wyld's 'Tips, tricks and advice for the FPL game'.

Page 1 Post 2: Where To Post - Forum advice on what type of posts go where.

Page 1 Post 3: How To Show Us Your Team including;
'How To Post a Screenshot of Your Team'
'How To Post A Link To Your Team'
'How To Embed a Web Link into Text'
'How To Use The FISO 'WWW' Button To Link To Your Team'.

Page 1 Post 4: Wildcard Strategies.

Page 1 Post 5: Advice on How To Play the Wildcard for Profit.

Page 1 Post 6: URkiddingMe's Mini-Tutorial for Increasing Real Team Value (with the Wildcard).

Page 1 Post 7: Useful FISO Information Threads including:
08/09 Free Kick/Corner Kick Specialists/Penalty Takers
The FA.com Suspended Players List
The FA.com Players Awaiting Suspension List
Team News and Injuries

Page 1 Post 8: FISO Competitions & FISO FPL Side Games.

Page 1 Post 9: FPL: A Guide for Beginners Part 1 - Picking Your Squad.

Page 1 Post 10: FPL: A Guide for Beginners Part 2 - The Player Classes.

Page 1 Post 11: FPL: A Guide for Beginners Part 3 - Transfers and Money.

Page 1 Post 12: The FISO FPL 'Crack The Code' or 'Price Change' Site - What is it? Where is it?

Page 1 Post 13: Understanding the Price Change Site (the 'Crack The Code' or 'CTC' site).

Page 1 Post 14: A 'Crack The Code' Query and Response - Why is the CTC inaccurate?

Page 1 Post 15: 'Short', 'Long' and 'Double' Gameweeks - an explanation.

Page 1 Post 16: This Year's Gameweek Deadlines (08/09).

Page 1 Post 17: FPL Transfer Statistics for the 07/08 Season.

Page 1 Post 18: What Constitutes a Good Weekly Score in FPL?

Page 1 Post 19: FPL Slang Glossary - An explanation of slang and abbreviations commonly used here at FISO FPL.

Page 1 Post 20: FISO FPL Add-Ons (work in progress).

Page 1 Post 21: How To Post a Screenshot of Your Team - Easier Method



Editor's Note: The following is the first post of Wyld's original 'What You Need To Know' thread, started in June 2007. This thread can now be found here in its original state.

As time has passed the need for a clearer guide has grown and I've taken it upon myself to edit the old thread down to the relevant parts and add the Index, above, to assist in searching for particular issues. Note: Some posts have been moved and edited to improve continuity and clarity.
I am endebted to Wyld, and to all who contributed to the original thread.
Flyman.


Wyld's Tips, tricks and advice for the FPL game

Like most fantasy football games, FPL is won by scoring the most points over the course of the season. However, with well over 1million players, the chance of you winning are pretty slim! A score of 2000 points by the end of the season is a pretty good score. If you make it, give yourself a pat on the back.

Points are accumulated by fielding the best possible team of players each week whilst minimizing points lost through error and excessive transfers.

The best players to buy are the ones who will score most points for their price, i.e. the ones who offer the best value for money (VFM). This is a fundamental point that seems to be lost on many people who play the game, including many FISO regulars! So never ask "Is Gerrard better than Lampard?" Ask instead "Is Gerrard at £10.0M better value for the money than Lampard at £11.5M?"

VFM = points scored / price

In FPL, the price set of the player at the start of the season is set by the game administrators, and thereafter by the market. Over time it can be assumed that a player’s price will move to reflect his long term points-scoring potential. However, as the FPL pricing mechanism is asymmetrical, recently ”hot” players will tend to be overpriced.

Points Scored is determined by many factors. Long-term factors include:

Skill – how good he is
Age – how old he is
Playing Position – is he a defender, attacker?
Responsibilities – does he take free kicks? Penalties? Corner?
Team Strength – does he play for Chelsea or Derby?

In FPL, most of these long term factors are already be factored into the market, so generally they can be ignored. There are, however, a couple of important exceptions.

Firstly, defenders and goalkeepers are undervalued compared to midfielders and attackers. This is because most players like to invest in attack, and to play attacking formations (3-4-3, etc.). Furthermore, the best value for money lies with the most expensive defenders, so pack your team with them, and play with a defensive formation like 5-3-2 ("The Full JLo")*. Ignore any advice about playing "three cheap defenders", or putting most of your cash into the midfield. That advice is simply rubbish.

Secondly, the team strength of promoted clubs can be underrated (Wigan 04-05, Reading 05-06) so look for bargains in the best of the promoted clubs. Look also for bargains in clubs which have been crap for a long time but have suddenly had an injection of funds.

Medium-term factors include:

Confidence – both self-confidence and of teammates (e.g. Shevchenko, Berbatov)
Fitness – niggling injuries, tiredness, flu
Team Tactics – defensive, long-ball, free-flowing, 4-5-1, etc

These medium-term factors may be reflected in rises and falls in market prices, however the factor will generally change faster than the price so there may be gains to be found in this area. Team tactics will change with the arrival of a new manager. Confidence can be boosted by a goal (bandwagon affect), or by missed penalties, early substitution, etc. Read match reports, pay attention to managerial changes, and make sure you read UEM's Hot Prospects on this board.

Short-term (S) factors include:

OppositionStrength – which team is he playing this week?
Home/away – are we on the road? Is it a derby?

These short-term factors provide most gains as they are less likely to be tracked by the market. Always try to field players playing at home against weak opposition. This implies having a full squad with strong substitutes allowing rotation. Avoid fielding players away at ManU, Arsenal, etc.

Make sure you always have a full of playing substitutes, plan double gameweeks several weeks in advance, maintain an extremely tight transfer policy (avoid double transfers!), choose captains carefully (or if Ronaldo is playing, simply choose him).

And remember, its a marathon not a sprint!

*FPL Tactical Formation Tips

...can be found here (the 'J-Lo' thread).

For more tips about FPL, read your way through the rest of this thread. There are some great tips in here!

Where To Post....................................................................................................................................................................POST 2

Where To Post

Hi. This post is for the attention of all members of FISO FPL, but especially those who have recently started posting. I thought that a few words on where to post threads might help those who are new to FISO or just to new to posting here.

Members will have noticed that a lot of threads are being moved these days as the moderators try to keep this enormous site in some sort of order - for the ease of use of all of us. To help facilitate this:

1) Always check around for a similar question before you ask yours - chances are, it's already being talked about on the forum.

2) If you've a straight question that requires a straight answer, don't start a new thread about it, just ask in 'The Rounded Keeper' (stickied) - someone will answer you there soon enough.

3) If you have a question about FPL Price Changes, post in 'The FISO Guide To Price Changes' thread (stickied).

4) If you want advice on your FPL team, start a 'Who Should I Captain' or 'Rate My Team' thread in the FPL Team Advice (RMT, etc.) Forum (stickied) - or, better still, re-visit your last one, if you already have one.

Following these simple guidelines will leave the main FISO FPL thread index free for discussions and debate about what we are all here for - the game itself, and about players and teams in the context of the FPL game.

Finally - a 'DON'T!'
Do not 'hijack' another thread by posting something that will take it off its stated topic. This includes posts asking for team advice posted on someone else's RMT thread.
Hijacking tends to confuse contributors and generally annoys the thread creator so don't do it! If you have a point to make that might hijack a thread then start a new thread in the appropriate forum, copy the address, then return to the original thread and post a link to your new discussion to alert members to it.

Thanks, folks.

How To Show Us Your Team................................................................................................................................POST 3

If you want other FISO members to rate your team, the best way is to let them see it!
You can do this in any of three ways - a screen shot, a posted link or a permanent link to your team that appears on every one of your posts - the 'www' button.
Note: Team links don't work in the pre-season, so before the season starts screen shots are the only option:

How To Post a Screenshot of Your Team*
* See also Post 21 below for Dixie's Alternative Method.

I expect some computers are configured differently, but this works for me:

1) Log onto your team.
2) Take a screenshot (PrintScreenSysRq on my keyboard).
3) Open 'Paint' (via 'All Programs -> Accessories -> Paint), click on 'Edit', then 'Paste'. This should bring up the last screenshot you took.
4) Use 'Paint' to crop the screenshot down to just your team, then 'save' it as a jpeg file.

5) Now open a web browser page and visit a free file hosting site. There are several available. Links are provided to a few below.
6) Follow that site's instructions for hosting your jpeg file.
7) Copy the appropriate url thus provided for use on a forum (leave this page open in case you need to return to it!).

8) Log on to FISO in a new window and navigate to your post where you wish to add the screenshot (or any picture you choose to have hosted).
9) Paste the url where you want it.
10) Click on 'Preview' to ensure you have things right! (If not, return to your hosting site browser page and try a different Forum url).

And that, (I think!) is that!

A couple of free file hosting sites:
ImageShack
xs.to

RomynPG added:



How To Post A Link To Your Team

Here are two methods which link FISO to your team. Use these once the season is under way.

Follow either of these instructions:
Flyingkillercob's method: This method will always bring up your last gameweek's squad.
The easy way -
1) Log onto your team.
2) Click on a league that you have joined and copy the link that leads to your team.
3) Paste the link into your post. The forum software will automatically make it into a link for you.

The hard way - click on "Latest Points" and copy the address, but (and this is the crucial part), remove the "&event=xx" part from the URL, where xx is the current GW number. Otherwise, your link will always point to a particular GW, and not the most recent one.

Flyman's method: This gives your team's Latest Points' page for a particular gameweek
1) Log onto your team.
2) Right click on 'Latest Points - Gameweek XX' to the centre right and copy the link address.
3) Paste the link into your post. The forum software will automatically make it into a link for you.


How To Embed a Web Link into Text
For instance, to embed a link to your team's score that week, follow steps 1) & 2) above, then return to your post:

1) Write 'My team is here.', or similar, highlight it, and click URL from the boxes above.
It should now look like this: [url]My team is here[/url]'.
2) Now add a '=' into the first [url], so that you now see '[url=]My team is here[/url]'.
6) Then paste in the copied FPL.com address after the '[URL=' but before the closing ']'.

When you click 'Preview' it should now look like this: My team is here.


How To Use The FISO 'WWW' Button To Link To Your Team

Many of us use the 'www' button that appears below each post to provide a link to our FPL.com team. This is useful for those playing some of the FISO FPL.com side games and for anyone asking for advice on their squad.

Follow these instructions:

1) Log onto your team.
2) Go to a league you are in and 'Copy Shortcut' from your team name.
3) Log on to FISO and click 'Profile' (see the very top of the page).
4) Under 'Profile Information' you will see 'Website'. Paste your team's address into this window.
5) Click 'Submit'.

All other users will now be able to view your team as it was in the previous gameweek with ease.
Note: Teams cannot be viewed until GW 1 has started.

We are endebted to dandg for this inspired usage of the 'www' button.

Note: Teams cannot be viewed until GW 1 has started.


New for 09/10 - the "FPL" button

new-fpl-web-link-button-t60262.html

Wildcard Strategies.......................................................................................................................................................POST 4

In FPL there is a wildcard which you can play at any time. When you play it, all that gameweek's transfers are free. Some playing options:

1) Play very early (GW's 2-6). Surf the crest of the market, selling players after they have risen .2m in the hope of boosting your team's value for the whole season. Possible gains: 10-30 pts over the course of the season through healthier bank balance. Make sure you pick a long gameweek to try this so you have time to play the market. Low risk strategy.

2) Play very late (GW's 33-38). Hope for late fixture congestion caused by cup matches and snow around Xmas, with the possibility of two-for-ones, three-for-ones. Medium risk. Possible gains: 20-40 pts over the last couple of weeks, provided that fixture congestion actually happens.

3) Play ahead of a double gameweek. The idea is to cram your team full of those players who will play twice in the week. Possible gain: twice your normal weekly points score. However, you will then have a team full of those double gameweek players.

4) Use as get-out-of-jail-free (GW's 5-32). Play when your team is stuffed by injuries, or you've selected your way into a hole. Low risk. Possible gains 10-30 pts.

5) Play by accident. The so-called "Wayne Wildcard" strategy. Not recommended.

Advice on How To Play the Wildcard for Profit.................................................................................POST 5

Having decided that the time is right .....

1) Divide your team into three units:
a) Players you want to keep who have made a profit already.
b) Players to sell who have made no profit or are about to fall in price.
c) Players to sell on 0.1m profit (+0.1m, +0.3m, etc.).

Players in a) are never sold during this week.

Players in b) can include players you wish to keep but who have made 0.0m price increase. They can be sold and re-bought later. Players whose price has fallen, or whose fall into loss is imminent, and who you want rid of, are also here.

Players in c) must be monitored during the week for pending price rises, upon which they may be sold for a profit (buy your targets nearest to a price rise first).
If you don't have enough b)s on Saturday (in the required positions) then you must sell the 0.1m risers who are least likely to rise again that week. Sacrifice a falling star for a rising one.

So, this gives you a pool of players with whom you can play the market, starting on Saturday. Try not to sell any player at +0.1m yet to play that week, unless their price will fall that night, as they might have a stonker - you wouldn't want to have to buy them back for more!

Next, divide the gameweek up into two periods:
1) The Stock Exchange.
2) The Shops.

1) The Stock Exchange: This starts on the first day of the wildcard week. Using the Crack The Code site and that day's FPL scores work out which players are most likely to attract the most buyers that week.

Then buy these players, using your b) class players first, if possible selling any close to dropping first.
If a hot prospect can't be bought with the b)s, then you must choose which of your c)s is least likely to increase that week and sell him to free up the space - bank allowing.
If you haven't the capital available use these 'rules' to pick the first appropriately valued player to sell.
Observe the market daily and trade to maximise profit throughout the gameweek.

2) The Shops: From the beginning of the week you should have a clear idea of what team you want by the end of it.
Those a) players you have never move from your squad if their price has increased at all.
If it hasn't ever risen you could trade them out during the week, making sure they are re-bought (by selling any suitable player) before any price rise occurs.
The new 'Must Haves' - the players you mean to bring in and keep - should be clear in your mind, too.
You'll need to juggle between them possibly rising in price and needing to be bought immediately and wanting that 'slot' to nurture a 0.1m riser to a 0.2m riser before selling on for the profit!
You can't always manage it, especially in the forwards where we have only 3 slots and great scope for fast profit. If in doubt, always buy the target man and sell the fatted calf.

Towards the end of the week your team should be filling up with the long term targets as they replace the profit players.

Of course you must pay attention to upcoming fixtures when selecting players unless, like Lampard, Ronaldo, etc., they are very likely to be with you for months. As a rule of thumb, the Big 4 players take care of themselves all year, fitness permitting, it's the others who we buy for runs of 4 - 8 games or so. But FPL is a very fluid game so no one's place should be set in stone, even Ronaldo.

Hope that's of some help.

URkiddingMe's Mini-Tutorial for Increasing Real Team Value.......................................POST 6
(as posted on the 'GW4 Wildcard Thread'.)

Generating cash during a long gameweek is quite simple.

Your squad has got 15 places (3 forwards, 5 midfielders, 5 defenders, and 2 goalkeepers). From these 15 places you determine those where the players are at the original prices or less. That will give you a set of available places.

For each available place, find a player whose price you expect to rise 0.2 before the original player's price rises. So the objective is to make your 0.1 (i.e. 0.2 less the 0.1 commission) before the original player rises 0.1. if the original player's price rises you would have lost the 0.1 advantage.

Ok, here's an example:
I have Bentley in my team at a price of 7.9. this is not more than his original price of 8.0 so I will not lose any money if I should transfer him out.
My aim is is to transfer Bentley out and Deco (say) in, have Deco's price rise 0.2, and then transfer Bentley back in. So we've done that ....
But, supposing Deco's price rose 0.1, but before it rose by 0.2, Bentley's price was due to rise? I'd have to transfer Bentley back in so as not to lose real value. I'd not made any profit from all my activity, however, I would not have lost anything either.

The above illustrates the difficulty in determining how much money one will make. It all depends on how many individual 0.2 rises you can make without price rises on your original squad members.

Btw, there no point waiting for a 0.3 or 0.4 price rise imo. 0.3 price rises are rare, and would only give you 0.1 in real value anyway. 0.4 price rises are in my experience unheard of. You're better off with two 0.2 rises if you can manage them.

Hope the above is useful. all comments welcome.

Useful FISO Information Threads................................................................................................................POST 7
Editor's Notes: There are many useful threads on FISO which are not specific to Fantasy Premier League. At the top and bottom of every page a link can be found to the Board Index where members can find forums and threads on a vast range of sports and non-sports subjects. Have a good look around sometime.
Also, for FPL, there is the Useful Links, Stats, Threads (New to FPL? Read here 1st) thread near the top of the FPL Forum Index.
Meanwhile, here are some links to threads useful to all fantasy football managers, not just us FPLers:


08/09 Free Kicks/Corner Kicks/Penalty takers

...can be found here.


URKiddingme added:
Suspended Players

This is the link to the Suspended Players' list.

Players Awaiting Suspension

And this is the link to the Upcoming Suspensions list.

I've found both pages to be useful.


DixieDean added:
Team News and Injuries

Is it not worth mentioning the FISOwide Team News and Injuries Forum too?

FISO Competitions & 'FISO FPL' Side Games..................................................................................POST 8

Official Games
FISO.co.uk offers members a growing number of games - Just hover your mouse over the 'FISO Games' window at the top of every FISO page. There's Fantasy Betting; FISO Coachbet;FISO Goals and, coming soon, FISO Manager, FISO's own fantasy football game!

Members' Games
For many years now there has been a tradition at FISO for members to create competitions and side games, played here on the site. A few have prizes but many are invented solely for the crack.
FISO has a forum dedicated to these competitions: FISO Forum Community Games & Competitions.
While some begin at the start of the football season not all do - and not all are footy-related, either. Feel free to take a look and join in.

FISO FPL Members' Games
Quite why, nobody knows, but the FISO FPL Forum has long been the source of numerous games based - in some way or other - on the Fantasy Premier League.com game. So many, in fact, that they now have their very own sub-forum: FPL Mini-Leagues & Side Games and a thread on the FPL Forum itself for any announcements about our in-house games - FPL Mini Leagues & Side Games 09/10 - News & Announcements.
Some games have deep roots in the traditions of FISO FPL, a couple now have their imitators in the actual game itself!
Below is a brief explanation of most of the games currently available. While many run through the entire football season others start throughout the year and some may be joined at any stage.

The Main FISO FPL Members' League
FPL Fiso League 09/10 Join Here & *READ THE 1ST POST*

09/10 Edit: These links are for the 08/09 season. Please see the Side Games forum or the Side Games announcements thread (both linked above) for info on the current season's games.

FISO FPL Cups and League Competitions .....
THE FISO LEAGUE FPL KNOCKOUT CUP 08 - Exactly what it says on the tin. Traditionally starts in August.
The FISO Champions League (07/08) - The classic CL format elimination game. Traditionally starts in January.
Divisional Championships 2008/09 - A season-long, league-based game for FISO FPLers. Traditionally starts in September.
FISO 5-A-SIDE LEAGUE 2008/09 - A season-long competition between FISO FPL 5-a-Side teams. Traditionally starts in August.
FISO 5AS Head2Head 2008/09 - A Head-To-Head competition between the FISO FPL 5-a-Side team members. Traditionally starts in August.

Sports-based Side Games - Games where your FPL team's score is converted, with a little imagination, into another sport:
FPL Wimbledon Singles 08/09
FISO FPL Rugby
FPL Grand Slam Of Golf
FISO Olympics 2008 - Entry closes 27/10/08
FPL GLOBAL CHALLENGE 08/09 - A FISO FPL 'Round the World 'sailing game ingeniously employing Google Earth.

Miscellaneous Games
'Pick Quick!' - A weekly game where the object is to pick a hopefully high-scoring player on a first-come, first-served basis.
Scores are kept for a league, but newcomers are always welcome - just look out for the new thread towards the end of every gameweek and join in. Straight forward, simple and fun!
FISO FPL Regions - Compete with other FISOers from your region.
FISO FPL Posters league - Sticking around and settled in with a few posts? Why not apply to join?
FPL FISO Virgins league 2008/09 - If you're new to FPL, or you had a go last year and finished outside the top 100,000, then this league is for you.
THE FISO X LEAGUE 2008/09 - The FISO FPL 'cash prize' league - second season. Entry now closed.

Games appear throughout the season so it's worth checking the forum out from time to time for anything new.

Fantasy.PremierLeague.com Fantasy Football - A Guide For Beginners...............POST 9
Part 1 - Picking Your Squad

Introduction

Fantasy Premier League (FPL) is probably the most popular free internet fantasy football game in the world with over a million and a half members currently playing.
While it is fundamentally a simple game, blending some skill and knowledge with a big bag of luck, it can become rather addictive - as this forum proves!
Here, then, are a few ( ) words on how to construct your team in the pre-season, directed at those new to the game - and those wondering why it all went wrong so swiftly, so soon, last season.

First and foremost .....

READ THE RULES
Once you've registered to play the game READ THE RULES! You wouldn't believe the number of numpties who don't. This guide is written presuming you've done so, so if you haven't yet, see you later when you have ....

Multi-Teaming - FPL.com is a one man - one team game. Managing more than one team is against the game's Terms and Conditions, section 5:

The vast majority of FISO FPL members take this rule very seriously. Managing more than one team is cheating. Multi-teaming lessens the skill in FPL and can result in non-cheating managers being knocked out of the FPL Cup competitions by cheats.
FPL.com search for multi-teamers throughout the season and will remove all but the first created team from the game when they find them, so, best stick to just one team and put your fantasy money where your mouth is!


How To Pick Your FPL Team:

There are no laws about this, by the way - this is simply my opinion, nothing more. It's just one way of doing it and there are many others, some no doubt better!

Start by buying two attacking star players.
By 'stars' I mean players with a proven history of good form in FPL and good health, too. Their proven history in the game inevitably means that their price will be high - but class don't come cheap!
When choosing your stars bear in mind that, hopefully, these guys will be in your team for the long term. In that respect you needn't worry too much about their forthcoming fixtures, but if they miss a game, are injured or suspended, or face especially tough opposition in the first few games it may be best to choose a less compromised player and buy your preferred target later on.
Examples of '08/'09 'stars' include: Ronaldo, Lampard, Gerrard, Fabregas, Adebayor, Drogba, Torres ..... you get the idea.
A final consideration when buying your powerhouse players is the advantage of picking them from different teams. Each week in FPL managers can captain a player (c) who will then have his score doubled. This is of immense importance in the game - regularly getting the (c) choice right can win you your mini-league and is essential to success in the game. By having two stars from different clubs you can choose to (c) the man playing the weaker opposition each week.

Next, sort out your bench.
My advice is:
a) Buy as cheaply as you can. Put your money on the pitch, not the pine!
b) Buy one player who's a bit better than the others - your 'first sub'.
c) Be sure that all your subs will play. Better an unproven regular, newly promoted from the Championship, than a old hand struggling to hold his spot each week. Check the threads on the FISO FPL forum for current advice on suitable players.

Regardless of what formation you are going to play you'll need a spare keeper. For now, buy a substitute keeper who costs the minimum, or 'base' price for his position - 4.0m - but plays every week!

Next, decide which formation you'd like to play. While formations can be changed from week to week in FPL it is just not possible to afford a team which looks strong in every position - well, looks strong on paper, pre-season, anyway!
Have a read of Wyld's post at the top of page 1 to help you choose where you want to put your money.

In FPL only certain formations are permitted - you must play one goalkeeper, of course, and at least three defenders and one forward. So, legal formations are:

3-4-3
3-5-2

4-3-3
4-4-2
4-5-1

5-2-3
5-3-2
5-4-1

It would take too long to cover all the substitute permutations and it isn't really necessary. I'll just look at '3 Defender' formations, as they have a particular danger associated with them ....
Let's say you've chosen an attacking 3-4-3 formation.

So; You'll have your base priced goalie on the bench. You'll also have two cheap defenders and a cheap midfielder sitting there.
Following my suggestion that you buy one player who is slightly better (and in pre-season that = pricier!) than the others you could have either:
a) 4.0m; 4.0m; 5.0m (mid)
b) 4.5m; 4.0m; 4.5m (mid)

In a) the extra 0.5m has been spent on a more expensive midfielder. In b) the extra money has gone on a defender. When you come to organising your bench on FPL.com, put your better player in the 1st Sub's slot (decent fixtures permitting).

Some will argue that it is worth spending 1.0m above players' base prices, buying two slightly better subs, or one really good one. If you can find the money to do this, great, but any more spent on the bench can start to limit your choices on the field.

I've a little bit of advice concerning ..... 'The Minimum 3 Defenders Rule'.
In FPL.com you must play a minimum of 3 defenders in any formation. If you intend to, read on:

Let's say you've gone for option b) on the bench and have your main man in the number one sub spot .... Goalie (4.0m): Mid (5.0m): Def 1 (4.0m): Def 2 (4.0m).

If you are playing 3 at the back and one guy doesn't show one of your subs will step in when the game updates at the end of the gameweek.
But, as you must play 3 defenders, your first substitute, the midfield sub, can not step up for your missing defender as this would result in an illegal '2-5-3' formation. So your second sub, the cheap defender, will be promoted onto the pitch and score for you.

Because of this rule, if you are going to play 3 at the back it is best to ensure that you have a decent defender as your first substitute.

Of course, if you play any other formation this tactic need not concern you.

Then fill in the gaps
Having bought yourself a strong spine of star players and sorted out the bench you'll now have a certain sum of money left in the bank and 9 more players to buy. As said before, having an idea of what formation you want to play really helps here. Good cheap players are few and far between in pre-season FPL and finding them is part of the skill and enjoyment of the game. There will be dozens of threads on the forum discussing the merits of most players and there is no substitute for reading through a few before picking the rest of your squad.

General Advice on Squad Building

Check the Fixtures - Look at the fixtures list and pick players with 5 or so decent games out of the next 8 or 9. By 'decent' I mean that they stand a chance of keeping a clean sheet.

Bonus Magnets (or Press Association Darlings - PADs) - Look for players who regularly attracted bonus points for their sterling performances last season. They may well do this again. See the FPL.com's own Fantasy Stats for last season's details.

Carlos Kickaballs - A term coined by Alan Sugar years back, referring to foreign players who excel abroad but fail to adjust to the rigors of the Premiership. Regard every new, unproven player with suspicion. It's a brave man who buys an untested player! It can pay off, though, as those who do settle in well soon throw off the mantle. Follow the pre-season friendlies reports on them; look for collations of their past goals on YouTube; watch these guys closely once the season starts - you might just spot next season's Zaki at his lowest ever price.

Sicknotes and Savages - Avoid players with a history of frequent injuries and Card Magnets with discipline problems. They'll only upset you later. Leave 'em. They're not worth it!

Misclassified Players - These are players who, while listed by FPL.com as playing in one position are currently and regularly being played in another. Due to the points structure in the game this can work either for us or against us. If a player has been pushed up the field we may benefit, but if he's reduced to a more defensive role in real life we'll probably suffer for it.
A defender in FPL who is playing as a midfielder will be more likely to assist or score than if he were still in the back 4 - so he might get his 4 point c.s. points, plus he might get 6 or 3 for any successful attacking play! Well worth looking for!
On the other hand, a midfielder who is now playing in defence is less likely to get any extra 'goal' points and won't get extra points for any clean sheets (beyond the 1 point he'd get anyway). Not good.
Again, check the FISO FPL forum for threads on this subject highlighting positively misclassified players.

Set Piece Specialists - The chaps who take the free kicks, corners and penalties will invariably pick up extra points over the season. Check the Useful Links thread (above) for this season's FISO list of specialist players.

A Guide For Beginners Part 2 - The Player Classes...............................................................POST 10

Goalkeepers
There are at least three schools of thought on choosing keepers:

1) Buy a Big 4 keeper and play him all the time. It'll cost you, but it means you can leave a 4.0m man on the bench and never have to worry about fixtures - well, hardly ever. Over the past few seasons most Big 4 keepers have proved reliable point-scorers. As for which to pick .... you pays your money, you takes your choice.
The disadvantage can be that just because they're expensive doesn't mean they'll not concede - usually in the last minute of injury time.
Also, tight defences mean fewer saves for the keeper, and in FPL every 3 saves makes you 1 point. Over the season these all add to your total and every point counts!
Total Cost = 10.0m - 10.5m.

2) Buy two decent, mid-priced keepers from decent, mid-league sides and rotate them. Try and get one at home when the other plays away and consider home advantage when picking you keeper each week. Should provide a fair few Save points over the season.
The disadvantage can be playing the numpty who concedes 3 at home while t'other keeps out AR for the entire game, gaining bonus points and save points! But you've only yourself to blame. Oh, the joys of FPL!
Total Cost = 10.0m - 10.5m

3) Buy two dirt-cheap keepers, cross your fingers, and hope that the 2.0m you've saved will pay off up front!
Clean sheets are hard to come by, so why spend money chasing that 4 point bonus when the money could be better spent on a midfielder, a striker or two?
After all, an attacking player might get a goal and two assists in any game and score over 10 points, while a keeper will have to save a penalty and keep a clean sheet to gain the same. Also, conversely to the Big 4 keepers, cheap keepers with cheap defenders protecting them may concede more often than not, but they'll rack up a fair few save points in the meantime and, maybe, a bonus point or two, too (though FPL.com bonuses rarely go to keepers). Finally, if your cheapo keeper rakes in a nice 8 points one week while Cech gets 6 @ 6.0m you get a nice smug feeling all over.
But that probably won't happen that often! The thing is, though, that getting 2 points for your failed 4.0m keeper hurts much less than when your Big 4 boy concedes!

As with 2), you need to rota your keepers if you buy cheap, so make sure that the fixtures of the two you choose are complimentary - (h) & (a), again, and also, if one plays MU in Gameweek 3 (GW3) then pick another who faces easier opposition that week.
Total Cost = 8.0m - 8.5m

Defenders:
Every team will have a CRD or two - a 'Cheapest Regular Defender', and, in general, they are the guys to look for. They might be pants themselves, but if their team mates can do all the work and maintain a clean sheet (cs) for 90 minutes your cheap donkey will still get his 6 points, just like the pricier stallions!
The exceptions to CRDs are:
attacking defenders - who score extra points through goals and assists. They are great when they work, but if those points aren't backed up be the occasional clean sheet they can be expensive liabilities!

Of course, these groups aren't mutually exclusive - if you can find a crd who can score goals he'll probably be a bit of a PAD, too.

Clean Sheets - Defenders need to be able to get clean sheet points if you are to do well. Once the season starts you can look for in-form defences and buy into them when the going is good. Historically, though, the Big 4 (AR; CH; LI; MU) have tended to provide the most secure defences - but at a cost!
Depending on fixtures, fitness and price, you could do worse than to slip a couple of Big 4 crds into your squad while waiting to see which clubs are proving value for money as the season gets under way.

Defensive Blocks - 'Blocks' are a fantasy football strategy where a manager puts some or all of his eggs in one basket by buying two or more defenders from the same team. In this context, goalkeepers are included as defenders as, in FPL, they, too, get 4 points for a cs. So, for instance, bearing in mind the 'Max 3 Players from One Team' rule, a Chelsea mini-block would have just 2 CH players, a full CH block defence would employ 3.
When playing defensive blocks you live or die by one team's results - they can work wonderfully, they can fail miserably. The choice is yours .....

Midfielders
Mids get their extra points from goals or assists and should be bought depending on their attacking capabilities. The one point they receive for a clean sheet is just a bonus, really, and in FPL.com defensive midfielders get no guaranteed reward for the efforts and so are best avoided.
Look for the mids who are crossing the ball into the box or in there already, and the set piece specialists, of course!

Forwards
There are no cs rewards for forwards - they must score or assist to gain extra points, simple as.
Most managers have to buy at least one cheap striker, what with FPL.com's tight budget. Personally, I just want my cheap striker (6.5m or under) to play 90 minutes every week and get some extra points every three or four weeks - any more than that and I'm well chuffed.
Most seasons seem to throw up a surprise bargain, though, even if their runs don't last all season, and these are the guys you should be searching for while watching MOTD, etc.
At the other end of the scale are the goal machines, men capable of 4 goals in five games or sporadic hatricks and doubles. They cost big bucks but when they're doing their thing you've really got to have one of them at least. In between are the mid-priced, earnest workhorses who get a goal every two or three games on average.

As a rough rule, beware of teams with new managers and re-jigged defences who haven't settled yet in - buy elsewhere and let them prove themselves first.
The pre-season friendlies are well worth reading, but don't be suckered by good results against poor teams.

Once the season starts keep your eye on the 'Form' and 'Value (Form)' category in FPL.com's Stats lists, forthcoming fixtures and watch as much footy as you can, searching for which big defenders come up for corners, which Kickaballs seem to have something about them and which full backs are pushing forward and putting in crosses. All of a sudden West Brom at home to Wigan becomes far more interesting!

A Guide for Beginners Part 3 - Transfers & Money..................................................................POST 11

Transfers
Above all, remember that FPL.com is a very fluid game. - That one free transfer per week, plus others at a cost of -4 points - and the wildcard - means that we can chop and change our squad as the weeks role by, jumping on and off bandwagons and even buying players for runs of just three or four games. Always keep an eye on the longer term, but try and maintain a flexible approach with regard to your players' form and fixtures.

Transfers Carry-over Rule
New for 09/10, this is causing a lot of confusion over the exact rules concering the carrying over of transfers. The easy answer is you only get 2 transfers following a week in which you made zero transfers (the wildcard counts as a transfer).

Multiple Transfers
Unless you play your one and only wildcard, multiple transfers cost hard earned points.
The question is, is it ever worth it? Well ..... do you feel lucky?

There's no perfect way to judge whether multiple transfers have paid off or not - you can look at it from the perspective of one week and think you've done great, but several weeks later things might not look so hot!
The best advice I can offer is to try and avoid throwing points whenever you can, but don't be afraid to do them if your team is falling to pieces.
It's often better to play a lowly sub and get 1,2 even 6, than to 'do a double' and throw 4 points away. However, if you've no playing subs (why not!? ) and can field only 10 or fewer players, then, sure, sort yourself out and pay up the points.

As for the Wildcard - there is lots of advice on when to play it on this (above) and other FISO threads, so I shaln't go into any depth here.
Personally, I rather do 4 transfers in one gameweek and loose 12 points than play my card.
I'd probably not play the card if I wanted to do just 5 transfers - I'd do 4 now and the 5th next week!
But if I could do 5 and see 1 or 2 or more improvements and tweaks, then I'd play the wildcard and get them all done for free.

Every time you make a transfer on FPL you'll go to a 'Confirm Transfers' page, and it is here that you can choose whether or not to play the wildcard by pressing the 'Play Wildcard' button. Once played, any transfer penalties incurred that gameweek are erased and the manager may transfer players freely until the next gameweek deadline arrives.
Be careful not to transfer out players who have made you a profit - as you only ever pocket 50%, rounded down, of any price increase you may not be able to buy them back later!

The Bank
Any cash you haven't spent will be kept in your Bank and can be used in future transfers. Sadly, there's not interest paid, so most of the time it's best to invest it in your squad. Before the game begins, though, many managers like to have 0.5m - 1.5m in their Bank, sitting ready for their first transfer of the season and the chance to upgrade some point-less, no-showing duffer they picked to the day's biggest bandwagon. And it's not a bad idea, really.

Making a Profit from Players' Price Rises
For every 0.2m your player's price rises you'll get 0.1m back when you sell him. If he's risen by an odd number, 0.1m, 0.3m, 0.5m, etc., his 'agent' pockets the extra 0.1m and you get half of the rest, so a rise of 0.1m = 0 profit; 0.3m = 0.1m profit; 0.5m = 0.2m profit when you sell.

So, if your man has risen from 8.0m to 8.7m you can sell him for 8.3m .... but beware .... if you ever want him back you'll have to pay his going rate!

However, in FPL.com players' prices rise and fall throughout the season, so if you can jump on and off bandwagons at the right time you can make a fair bit of extra cash throughout the season. This, of course, will eventually allow you to buy more expensive players, should you wish to. I'd consider a final Team Value of around 108.0 -110.0m not unrealistic if the market is played wisely throughout the year.

Player's prices can drop, as mentioned, when he fails to perform as expected, is injured or banned and he gets sold in sufficient numbers by disillusioned managers. The opening posts of The FISO Guide to FPL Price Changes (The Code Thread) 08/09 cover the subject of the mathematical rules governing FPL.com price changes so, thankfully, I needn't go into it again here. It's not for the faint-hearted.

Even more thankfully, the majority of the hard work involved has now been eliminated for us by FISO's 'Crack The Code' site (guide given below). Just keep an eye on your targets and your rejects and if they come into about 90% of a rise or a drop, respectively, consider acting that night.

My advice is to play the market in the early season, but mainly with players you really want in your squad and not at the expense of leaving deadwood on the bench for weeks on end.
Money isn't the aim of the game - points are, and if you take care of the points the pounds will usually follow!

Well, that's about it. If you haven't yet read The Ten Commandments of FISO I recommend them unto you now. Good Luck!
You'll need it.

1. Thou shalt always read the rules thoroughly.
2. Thou shalt covet thy transfers, and shalt not Tinker.
3. Thou shalt pick a balanced team, and maintain flexibility in all positions.
4. Thou shalt, however, pick Thierry Henry*.
5. Thou shalt not worship 'Carlos Kickaball' until he has proven himself in the EPL.
6. Thou shalt remember that Form is Temporary, Class is permanent.
7. Thou shalt not let thy heart rule thy head, nor make any judgements after drinking!
8. Thou shalt have no other forums but FISO.
9. Thou shalt remember that Fantasy Football is more akin to a Marathon, than a Sprint.
10. Thou shalt remember that all commandments are there to be broken.

* Or his legitimate heirs.

The FISO FPL 'Crack The Code' or 'Price Change' Site..........................................................POST 12

Forum member diamondplus's 'Crack the Code' site can now be found here.
The purpose of this site is to monitor transfer activity in the FPL.com game and so assist managers in deciding when to buy or sell players.

Please Note: The site can not be 100% accurate due to the limited information made available by FPL.com, but it is very useful, nevertheless. As a general rule, though, if your transfer targets come within 90% of a rise or fall it is time to act.

Full details on how FPL.com price changes are triggered can be found on the opening posts of The FISO Guide to FPL Price Changes (The Code Thread) 08/09, along with links to the thread's history.

Any questions regarding FPL.com player price changes should be posted on that thread.

An Add-On which compliments the CTC site has been created by nickchild is available on Page 1 Post 16.

Understanding the Price Change Site (again)...........................................................................................POST 13

Link to the The Crack The Code Site.

A Crack The Code Query and Response................................................................................................POST 14




That's quite a good answer imo.

'Short', 'Long' and 'Double Gameweeks'................................................................................................POST 15

The game season is split into 38 gameweeks.
However, as throughout the year games are postponed, unplayed games get moved from, say, GW4 to GW18.
Thus, instead of GW4 having ten games, it becomes a 'short week', having lost a few matches.
GW18, though, becomes a 'double gameweek' (or '2xgw) as the matches postponed in GW4 are played as well as the original GW18 match.

Consequently, one must be wary not to get caught short in (my hypothetical) GW4, and still be able to field 11 men (hence the importance of a subs bench with playing players) despite the fact that 2 or 4 or more clubs don't play.

One must also capitalise on gameweeks when clubs play twice by buying in players with two games and captaining one of them.

Don't discount the importance of the short weeks! I think that it is possibly easier to rise higher through the Overall Rankings over a short week than during a double.

'Long Gameweeks', such as GW5* are usually caused by International fixtures disrupting the EPL. A 'Long Gameweek' may take 14 days to pass. During this time the transfer market remains active providing, perhaps, the best opportunity for making a profit with your Wildcard, especially early in the season when most managers are still actively participating in the game and the market is at its most fluid, although the advantages do appear limited.

* Applied to 2007/2008 season only.

This Year's GameWeek Deadlines.................................................................................................................POST 16



... you should be able to work out from there which are long and which are short - for example when GW3 starts there are 2 weeks until the GW4 deadline.
(Don't mean to insult by spelling it out like that - but I never know whether to refer to that as GW3 or GW4 - if you know what I mean )

Also available on the FPL site at
http://fantasy.premierleague.com/M/help ... =deadlines
should they change

Transfer stats for 07/08 (with weekly team count and Trfs/team figure) ........................................................POST 17
(figures taken close to deadlines - but are not exact. Worked out a way of getting it more accurate but the query is more complex and it's late now)



Long GWs were 5, 9 & 13

What Constitutes a Good Weekly Score in FPL?.........................................................................POST 18

these posts were made in the Rounded Keeper in response to a question of what constitutes a good weekly score.

FPL Slang Glossary.....................................................................................................................................................POST 19

Over the years the FPL.com Forum has developed its own shorthand and slang that can be confusing to the newcomer. Below are a selection of terms commonly used that might bewilder the uninitiated!

Bandwagon = A player or players currently in excellent points-scoring form. Due to FPL.com's economic model, such players will experience a quick rise in price.

Boni = The FISO FPL.com plural for 'Bonus Points'.

CR7 = Cristiano Ronaldo (wears 7).

CS = Clean sheet.

Card magnet = Player with a fondness for collecting yellow and/or red cards for fun.

Carlos Kickaball or C.K = A term coined by Sir Alan Sugar, used here to denote foreign imports as yet unproven in the EPL (English Premier League).

CRD = Cheapest Regular Defender = The lowest-priced defender in a team that will play most if not every match. This player will earn all the CS points for that team, which makes him potentially better VFM than other, more expensive members of that team's defence.

Double gameweek (also '2xGW') = A week where certain teams play twice. Correspondingly triple gameweeks.

Doubler = Players from teams with double gameweeks.

Fake = An archaic name for the young Cristiano Ronaldo. Whilst still seen occassionally its usage has declined in direct relation to C.R's FF successes.

Fat Frank = Frank Lampard.

FISO FPL.com Side Games = Games based on the FPL game, invented by the forum members for the enjoyment of other members.

Free transfer = The first transfer you make every GW.

Formations: Dolly Parton -> Big up Front (£ spent on Forwards): Jennifer Lopez -> Big Behind (£ Spent on Defenders): Widdicombe = Fat in the middle (£ spent on Midfielders)

GW = 'Gameweek'. A round of matches in the FPL.com game.

Lamps = Frank Lampard.

PAD = Press Association Darling. One beloved of the Press Association bods who assigned the boni in 2006/07. 'PADs' tend to pick up a lot of bonus points.

Padregas = Fabregas (due to his whopping 54 boni last season - a major Press Association Darling )

RMT = A 'Rate My Team' thread. A thread requesting the opinions of the forum on a member's team.

Sicknote = Occasional ex-Manchester United striker, otherwise known as Louis Saha, now with Everton.

The Elite - Now known as 'The FISO League', formerly 'The Elite' was the official FISO members' FPL.com league name. Discontinued in 2007/08.

Thudd = T. HUDDlestone of Spurs.

Transfer penalty = The 4-point points deduction you receive for every additional transfer beyond the first in a GW.

UEM's 'Hot Prospects' = A monthly gazetteer assessing player potential in every Premiership team, posted by esteemed FISO member, UmExcuseMe. (Production currently suspended.)

VFM = Value For Money, in of a players price in relation to his points scored or future points potential.

Reserved for FPL Add Ons to be added later..................................................................................................................................POST 22

How To Post a Screenshot of Your Team - Easier Method..................................................POST 21

I expect some computers are configured differently, but this works for me:

1) Log onto your team.
2) Take a screenshot (PrintScreenSysRq on my keyboard). On a Mac press Cmd Shift 4 and select the area you want.
3) Use 'Paint' to crop the screenshot down to just your team, then 'save' it as a jpeg file.

4) On the thread you want to post your team, click Post Reply.
5) Below where you type your post you will see this:


6) In the Upload attachment section click Browse and navigate to the screenshot jpg you have just saved then click Add the file
7) Once the file is uploaded, you will see an Attachments section. Move the insertion point to where in your post you want the picture and then click Place inline.

Your team screenshot should now display in your post when you click Preview.


Cheers

Rich

If you have any questions about, or not covered in, this guide please post them in The Rounded Keeper, FISO FPL's 'pub' thread.

Can I politely remind posters to follow the forum etiquette when starting threads about their own teams? You should do this in the FPL Team Questions sub-forum and not here in the main forum. Generic questions about the relative merits of different players are OK; however if the issue is limited only to your team, it should go in the sub-forum.

There's been a spate of people not following this etiquette and the mods have been moving the posts - that we see! - to the right place. However you should be posting in the right place, not relying on us to clean up after you.

Thank you for your consideration and good luck in the final few gameweeks!

[post removed]

Please heed the advice above. If you consistently ignore it, you will end up with warnings and eventually bans. Thank you.

toml, roneilc, tehavanka, mistong and Kezuale - please read your PMs (Messages icon, top left under the FISO banner)

There's been a lot of personal team questions in the main forum lately. If the main focus of your question is on a decision required in your team, please post in the Team Questions (and RMT) sub-forum. This keeps the main forum clear for questions that interest us all, or a good percentage of us anyway! It's a busy forum and we can't allow the main part of it to be clogged up with personal interests.

If it's obviously a team question, or if you leave it unclear, you run the risk of having the post moved to the sub-forum for you by a passing mod, who are busy enough fouling up their own fantasy teams. Or your post might be binned without warning if you are a repeat offender and don't take the hint!

Thanks for your consideration going forwards.

The amount of RMT and other Team Question threads on the main forum is getting ridiculous and the mods are getting very bored of having to move them. Once again, if your're starting a new thread and the main focus of your post is your own team, post it in the Team Questions sub-forum. This leaves the very busy main forum open for discussions of interest to all posters.

There is no excuse for not posting in the right forum so stop being so selfish. If you catch a mod in a bad mood, you can expect your post to be binned without warning or recourse. And any moaning about it to be binned also.