The pinnacle of fantasy management is that first place finish in the overall rankings, scooping incredible prizes as well as ultimate bragging rights!

So how do Fantasy EFL managers try and turn that dream into reality?

Think about Fantasy EFL differently 

Every game is different and Fantasy EFL has a number of unique features that make it stand out from the other fantasy games. 

The way that points are scored in Fantasy EFL is very different to other forms of fantasy football. This means that the best players to choose might not necessarily be the obvious ones that you’d select elsewhere. In Fantasy EFL, for example, defenders can score points for more than just keeping a clean sheet or registering a goal or an assist.

Defenders

In Fantasy EFL, defenders can score points for making clearances, blocking shots and pulling off successful tackles. This means that managers should look at the underlying data for the best picks rather than just the goal, assist and clean sheet potential, and may well need to consider more central defenders than the wing-backs that are usually favoured.

This is also true of the midfielders and forwards who get additional points for shots on target and passes completed. Midfielders also get additional points for interceptions, hence CDMs potentially have as many chances to scoop points as wingers or attacking midfielders.

Midfielders

Midfielders & Forwards

Properly considering the different underlying metrics will give managers a significant advantage.

Think about ownership 

Player ownership is important for managers strategies in two different areas. 

Firstly, the most popular picks. The most heavily owned players for each gameweek have the biggest potential to hurt Fantasy EFL managers' overall rank and positions in their mini-leagues if they do not own them. 

When making choices, managers should carefully consider the ownership of players. Managers who pick only the most popular players each week and play it safe are less likely to gain an advantage over their rivals. 

On the other hand, with 72 Clubs to pick players from, there will be a large number of differentials. Differentials are players with low level ownership. The points scored by differential players are likely to give managers an advantage in their mini-leagues. 

Owning the right mix of highly owned and differential players is the best strategy for helping managers to successfully win Fantasy EFL. 

Peruse pre-season form and keep in-touch with transfers

Whilst previous seasons’ performances can offer a great indicator of future form, generally more recent data trumps older information if you’re looking to win Fantasy EFL. With that in mind it’s important in the early weeks to at least glance at who’s playing and putting on a show in pre-season. Fantasy Football Scout has created a list of all the pre-season scores and scorers here.

The other key thing to keep tabs on, at least until the end of August, is the frantic transfer activity. With almost 500 moves having been made involving EFL teams already and more to come, being aware of key moves relating to players and teams you are picking is pretty important. It doesn’t need to be a direct move either. For instance if your goalkeeper stays put but the centre-backs in front of him move on, then it’s possible that defence will be a little less secure (or at least a little more unpredictable) in the games ahead.

Yet again we have your back, with key transfers being highlighted in our Transfer Watch. Suffice to say Fantasy EFL will automatically add, remove and move players in the game as transfers occur!

Focus on the fixtures – especially the doubles!

Whilst form is a key factor when making selections, fixture difficulty should never be ignored. Picking players and teams with more favourable matchups is obviously a key route to points

Again, we’ve done a lot of the legwork for you here, creating a Fixture Difficulty Rating tool (FDR) to help steer you to the most winnable games. We’ll be updating this tool regularly as we learn more about comparative team strengths and form when the season kicks off.

Obviously nothing is guaranteed in the competitive world of EFL football, but this tool can at least help make those guesses a little more educated!

Track the team sheets 

Fantasy EFL managers will be able to transfer players in and out of their teams right up until their matches kick off. This means that the Club team sheets will be so important. Managers will want to ensure that their players are starting if they are going to win at Fantasy EFL.

We will offer a quick guide to key players who are unlikely to start each gameweek on these pages, but we obviously can’t cover all 72 Clubs, so you’ll need to do your own research too!

When team sheets are released, if players aren’t in the starting XI, managers should consider swapping them for a player who is starting. Whilst players could still return good points off the bench, having the opportunity to for 90 minutes is usually key, and at the very least you’ll have the chance of two appearance points (and clean sheets if a defender or keeper).

Whilst in the first few gameweeks there may only be matches on Friday to Sunday/Monday, as we progress through the season there could be multiple effective kick-off deadlines everyday from Thursday to Wednesday, so make sure you know when your picks and playing!

Pick your ‘winning teams’ strategy wisely 

The ‘winning team’ is a unique part of Fantasy EFL. Managers will choose two teams each week who they believe will win. Those picks will score managers points for the following:

To win at Fantasy EFL, managers will need to have a strategy for when to use each team. You can only pick each Club five times during the course of the season. Carefully planning when each team will be used should enable managers to maximise their points returns for away wins with two or more goals scored.

Nailing this strategy will give managers the advantage over their rivals, and we’ve put together more detailed tips on strategy here.

Have your say!

Think we’ve missed an obvious option for the armband? Send us your thoughts at fantasyefl@fantasyfootballscout.co.uk or message direct at #FantasyEFL!

Insights provided by the team at Fantasy Football Scout, the leading voice in fantasy football who’ll be providing coverage on teams, player picks and strategy for the EFL Fantasy game throughout the season here and on their own dedicated EFL channel. We’ll be adding key data to these profiles through the pre-season, but now you’ve got some insight, it’s time to put it to work in the game!