Fantasy managers worldwide upped their game for Matchweek 8, with the average score of 68 points being 20 more than it was during Matchweek 7.
For us, it was a great week too. Our 93 points matched our highest score in a single matchweek this season and marked the fourth time we have broken 90. That takes us to 652 points for the season and moves us up to 152nd in the world.
This week’s team lines up in a 4-4-2 and, although it only costs £94.5m, there are plenty of points on offer. Chelsea and Man City both have favourable fixtures and both play in the opening Saturday slot. That gives us plenty of flexibility to make mid-matchweek changes.
Starting XI
Hannah Hampton (Chelsea) £5.5m
With games on both Saturday and Sunday, we’re picking a GK from each day. My pick for Saturday is Hannah Hampton. Her five clean sheets are more than any other keeper in the game, and at home to Everton this weekend she’s a good bet to make it six.
Ellie Carpenter (Chelsea) £7.0m
Sometimes you can overcomplicate your fantasy picks, but with Carpenter, it’s best to go with the obvious. At 79 points, she is the top-scoring player in the game. As well as scoring points for all five of Chelsea’s clean sheets, the Aussie has four goals this season, putting her joint-seventh in the Golden Boot race and ahead of players including Alexia Putellas and Alessia Russo. It’s no wonder 43% of managers have selected her.
Alex Greenwood (Manchester City) £6.0m
Man City have West Ham at home on Saturday lunchtime, which on paper should be a City win. A clean sheet looks possible, while Greenwood’s set-piece role also gives her routes to points at the other end. If she doesn’t score well, we can substitute her to the bench on Sunday morning.
Molly Bartrip (Crystal Palace) £4.0m
Bartrip is one of the best-value picks in the squad this week. The Eagles may be struggling in 13th, but not as much as Charlton in 14th. The Addicks have only scored three goals in eight games this season, so a Palace clean sheet is certainly on the cards. Bartrip is her team’s top-scoring defender and at just £4.0m, she could be a bargain this week.
Kaitlyn Torpey (Newcastle United) £4.0m
WSL2 is back in MW9, and if you played the game in Leg 1, it’ll come as no surprise that we’re tripling up on Newcastle and that Kaitlyn Torpey is one of the selected players. Although only £4.0m, the Australian isn’t just in our squad to be a budget enabler. She is the highest-scoring defender in WSL2 and, at home to the most goal-shy team in the league, I’m expecting her to score some decent points.
Lauren Hemp (Manchester City) £8.0m
Hemp is the top-scoring midfielder in the game on 75 points. You may think her 11-point haul last weekend against LCL is good form, but that is just the elite standard she sets: her average points per match is 10.7. At home to West Ham on Saturday, Hemp deserves the armband to start the weekend.
Victoria Pelova (Tottenham Hotspur) £6.5m
At the time of writing, Pelova is the most transferred-in player this matchweek. She has 70 points so far this season and is the only one of the top 10 scorers to already have more points than she managed across all of last season (47). With Brighton (H) and Everton (H) as her next two fixtures, and the Dutch midfielder performing at such a high level, it’s no wonder fantasy managers are flocking to get her into their teams.
Katie Kitching (Sunderland) £7.0m
For the first time this season, we’re including a Sunderland player in our squad, and this week it’s well deserved. Elise Hughes is the Black Cat who has hit the headlines most this season, but Kitching is also performing very well in fantasy. She is averaging 6.0 points per match, including 15 points from her last two. Sunderland visit a Durham side conceding over three goals per game this season, so Kitching will be looking to add to the 36 points she has already scored.
Annabel Blanchard (Crystal Palace) £7.5m
With just 1% selection, people are sleeping on Blanchard. She scored 12 points against Brighton last week and this weekend will face a Charlton side conceding over three goals per game, including six against Chelsea last weekend. Palace have already beaten Charlton 3-0 in the Subway Players Cup, and a repeat of that scoreline is not inconceivable.
Melvine Malard (Chelsea) £8.0m
The French forward is enjoying a purple patch in fantasy, with 29 points in her last two matches. In just six WSL appearances for Chelsea, she’s already equalled her six-goal tally from last season’s league campaign. At home to Everton on Saturday, there’s every chance she continues scoring both Chelsea goals and fantasy points for us.
Bunny Shaw (Manchester City) £12.5m
At £12.5m, Shaw is still the most expensive player in the game, yet she continues to perform at such a high level that she is, if anything, a bit underpriced. She has 23 points more than any other forward and scored twice on her last visit to West Ham in May.
The Bench
Anna Tamminen (Newcastle United) £5.5m
Our Sunday GK has been excellent this season. Tamminen’s four clean sheets are double that of any other GK in WSL2. I’m expecting another on Sunday, so if Hampton doesn’t score at least six points, Tamminen will be subbed in.
Martha Thomas (Newcastle United) £5.0m
The Scot is averaging 8.0 points per match this season and faces a Burnley side that conceded four goals in their most recent league game. She’s the second-most transferred-in forward behind Melvine Malard, so she’s now selected in roughly one in seven teams. At just £5.0m, she’s one of the best-value picks in the game.
Freya Jupp (Southampton) £4.0m
The cheapest player in the game, but one of the most in-form. Jupp has 35 points in her last three games, scoring all four of her team’s goals in the process. Lumsden (52) and Boye-Hlorkah (45) are the only players to score more points than Jupp (44) so far this season.
Teyah Goldie (Crystal Palace) £4.5m
The reasoning behind Teyah Goldie’s selection is pretty much a copy-and-paste of Molly Bartrip’s. Goldie has scored fewer points this season and costs £0.5m more, which makes her the less attractive pick. Depending on how our five outfielders perform on Saturday, she could still make her way into the team on Sunday morning.
Captaincy choices
Saturday has a wealth of options for us. Any of Carpenter, Malard, Hemp or Shaw would be easily justifiable captains. Assuming she starts, Hemp is my pick for the armband. If not, the priority order is Carpenter, Shaw, Malard.
If Saturday’s captain scores at least six points, we’ll leave the armband where it is. If not, Pelova gets it on Sunday.
Set-and-forget
If you haven’t got the time to make changes to your team on Sunday morning, I’d still recommend Hemp as your captain. In terms of your bench, set it in this order: Hampton, Thomas, Jupp, Goldie.
Differentials
These are the players that can give you the edge; the ones that most people have not noticed. Here are my top picks per position, with a maximum of 5% ownership:
GK: 2% - Pauline Peyraud-Magnin (Crystal Palace)
Defender: 5% - Molly Bartrip (Crystal Palace)
Midfielder: 1% - Annabel Blanchard (Crystal Palace)
Forward: 3% - Elise Hughes (Sunderland)
Crystal Palace are a hotspot for differentials this week. They’re not a dominant team, but the fixture against Charlton gives them an unusually attractive opportunity on Sunday. Teyah Goldie (2%) is another player who made our squad this week.
Elise Hughes is my differential pick at forward. The recent gap in WSL2 fixtures has kept her out of contention for selection, which helps explain why only 3% of managers own her.
Don’t forget to sub (to us)
The Cutback will be bringing you regular fantasy pieces this season. Subscribe so you never miss an article.
For more fantasy tips, check out Decoding Fantasy WSL, the fantasy-focused show from The Cutback Podcast Network, with new episodes every Thursday. Search for ‘Decoding Fantasy WSL’ wherever you get your podcasts.
