Corey Baker is the first of our Elite XI: Team Reveals managers to share his initial draft with us. With 1 x Top 1k finish, and 4 x Top 5k finishes to his name, Corey has a proven track record of reaching the upper echelons of Fantasy Premier League’s (FPL) global rankings.
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A self-confessed numbers man, Corey uses a statistical approach when it comes to managing his squad, focusing on a combination of expected data metrics merged with a deep tactical understanding of Premier League managers and their squads.
The first surprise of the squad is seeing Manchester City’s Ederson (£5.5m) between the sticks. Not only is he comparatively expensive, but he tormented owners at the end of last season, losing far too many clean sheets, despite the team producing good underlying defensive statistics. The Man City goalkeeper is currently in 14.6% of teams, with managers looking to capitalise on the Citizens favourable opening fixtures.
There are not too many surprises when it comes to Corey’s back line. Pervis Estupiñán (£5.0m) is the most popular defensive option, currently owned by 51.6% of FPL managers.
Trent Alexander-Arnold (£8.0m) solidifies his place in Corey’s team despite his price hike, but does pose an issue when it comes to allocation of premiums within the squad.
Double premium plus Trent is difficult and I doubt I will go that way. Haaland at 14.0 and Trent at 8.0 means fitting Salah/Kane at 12.5 is challenging. This is made harder by the lack of solid 4.5 MIDs and FWDs. Last season, Pereira was an amazing enabler, performing like a solid middle price MID. Further, Greenwood was a solid 4.5 option at FWD, allowing you to have a solid bench while saving substantially. From what I can tell, we don’t have that this year which makes the double premium a much bigger challenge.
Finally, Gabriel (£5.0m) completes the back three. Arsenal’s fixtures – in particular, an opener against Nottingham Forest – are hard to ignore and Gabriel’s aerial threat from set pieces, combined with the opportunity for clean sheets is a combination which is hard to resist.
Like many FPL managers, Corey has opted for a 3-5-2, stacking the midfield by sacrificing one forward, and two defensive, spots. With a plethora of midfield options in the mid-to-premium price point, this is a tempting way to go.
Which formation is your current draft set up for?
— Fantasy Football Fix (@FantasyFootyFix) July 11, 2023
Of the midfielders selected, it is Bruno Fernandes (£8.5m) whose place in Corey’s team is most assured. The Portuguese playmaker’s price has dropped £1.5m from last season – and a staggering £3.5m from the 2021/22 campaign.
Being a lover of statistics, Corey has crunched last season’s underlying numbers, using the Opta Stats Sandbox, and believes that Bruno’s underperformance against his expected attacking statistics provides an excellent opportunity.
Bruno Fernandes isn’t leaving my team most likely. Bruno was the 3rd best midfielder by underlying numbers if you include penalties, behind only Salah and KDB. He’s still in his prime and Man United should be better this season. I think he’s a huge bargain and will be locked in barring [injury] news.
An Arsenal double-up in midfield completes Corey’s complement of Arsenal assets with Bukayo Saka (£8.5m) and Gabriel Martinelli (£8.0m) selected. The former already features in just over half of the registered squads in the game so far. The latter is less popular at 14.1% ownership.
Will Mbeumo step up to cover Ivan Toney's absence? pic.twitter.com/FZjhHoDuJW
— Fantasy Football Fix (@FantasyFootyFix) July 11, 2023
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