Fantasy football tips: 5 players to avoid at all costs this season
Fantasy football is very much back with a bang with the Premier League gracing our lives again this week.
Arsenal and Leicester get the 2017/18 campaign underway on Friday night ahead of what many expect to be one of the most exciting seasons yet.
Dream Team 2017/18
How does the game work?
- This year's fantasy football game will be absolutely FREE for all players to play
- The total prize pot is an approximated £750,000
- Game Weeks will run from Friday to Thursday
- £50m budget on 11 eligible players
We've gone through the facts and stats from the last couple of Dream Team seasons to find you five players you'll want to avoid like the bubonic plague when creating your fantasy team...
Fantasy football tips: 5 players to avoid
1 Olivier Giroud - (Arsenal) £4.0m
2 Diego Costa - (Chelsea) £6.0m
3 Daniel Sturridge - (Liverpool) £3.0m
gave Martial a 6.94 rating last season as he had an average campaign for the Red Devils.
5 Vincent Janssen - (Tottenham Hotspur) £2.5m
How does fantasy football work?
The setup for Dream Team is quite simple – as a manger you get a budget of £50m to spend on your team of 11 players.
Each manager gets a maximum of three transfers a month – so it’s important to pay attention to upcoming fixtures.
And if the incentive of beating your mates in our Mini-League system isn’t enough, there’s a whopping £750,000 prizepot at stake too.
Which fantasy football team names are the most popular?
Team names have become almost as important as picking winning sides in recent years, with the punnier the better the general consensus.
So whether it’s Giroud Sandstorm, Neville Wears Prada or Teenage Mutant Ninja Skrtel, check out our foolproof list to help you decide.
Who are the best bargains?
While we'd all like to be able to pick a team of superstars, that £50m budget means you also need to have an eye for a cheeky bargain.
This season there are quite a few intriguing options available, with Vincent Kompany (£3.5m) and Ander Herrera (£3.0m) both at eye-catching prices.
In attack, West Ham new boy and Manchester United favourite Javier Hernandez is £3.5m which seems like pennies for guaranteed goals.
Our most eye-catching bargain though? Joe Allen at just £2.0m.
After playing a big role in Wales’ run to the semi-final of Euro 2016, we were pretty surprised when Allen swapped Liverpool for Stoke last season.
But the Welsh wizard flourished with the Potters, scoring six goals last season as he continued his conversion from a sideways-passing anchorman to a dynamic box-to-box midfielder.
One of Stoke’s most consistent points scorers, Allen could be a decent yet affordable addition to your Dream Team.
Why is Alexis Sanchez such a fantasy football favourite?
The uncertainty surrounding Alexis Sanchez’s future at Arsenal this summer has been driving Gunners fans up the proverbial wall.
And it’s easy to see why too after their talisman racked up 348 points to be the best performing player on Dream Team last season.
Sanchez bagged a massive 31 goals and 10 assists for Arsenal in all competitions last and at times looked like he could single-handedly carry Arsene Wenger’s side into the top four.
Whether Sanchez appears in the red of Arsenal or (whisper it quietly) the sky blue of Manchester City this season, he’s still likely to be a huge Dream Team favourite.
You can stay up to date with all the latest fantasy football news with our fantasy football live blog and