Fantasy Premier League

FPL experts’ transfer strategies: Avoid Man City rotation

By The Scout 27 Mar 2021

The Scout’s panel pinpoint key options for managers looking to transfer out Pep Guardiola’s players

Manchester City's quest for multiple trophies looks set to influence how managers approach the final nine Gameweeks of 2020/21 Fantasy Premier League.

As Pep Guardiola's side battle for silverware on four fronts, rotation will become a huge factor in his team selections.

This was evidenced in Man City's last Premier League match, when their manager made seven changes to his starting XI.

Furthermore, the league leaders have only eight fixtures left, while they are among the four sides with a Blank Gameweek 33.

The Scout’s panel of experts discuss the players they will turn to as replacements for City's star players.

Ben McNair (@drbenmcnair)

I'll need to limit my Man City players to Ruben Dias (£6.1m) and Kevin De Bruyne (£11.9m), with heavy rotation and a Blank Gameweek 33 on the way. The motivation factor is a bit overestimated. I find a lot of gains can be made by sticking to the usual principles while others are taking end-of-season risks.

Ben Crabtree (@FC_CrabDogg)

From a defensive point of view, Romain Saiss (£4.9m), Jonny (£5.4m) and Kieran Tierney (£5.3m) look good options alongside a Chelsea defender or two.

Attacking-wise, Jamie Vardy (£10.1m), Kelechi Iheanacho (£5.7m), Pedro Neto (£5.7m), Alexandre Lacazette (£8.2m) and Jack Grealish (£7.5m) will be under consideration as players with good fixtures who don't have any blank Gameweeks.

Lee Bonfield (@FPLFamily)

The Wolverhampton Wanderers defence have some excellent fixtures after Gameweek 30. I'm looking at avoiding the Man City rotation with Conor Coady (£4.8m). Clean sheets are looking like they might be on the cards, and he could also be a great option as a new-found attacking threat.

Replacing the midfielders is slightly more challenging as City players have a great points ceiling in Fantasy. Having not travelled for international duty, Son Heung-min (£9.4m) looks to be an essential pick as Tottenham Hotspur are now out of the UEFA Europa League and can now fully focus on the Premier League.

I also think Ademola Lookman (£5.1m) will be key to Fulham's fight to stay in the league and could therefore be a brilliant option to avoid rotation.

Utkarsh Dalmia (@zophar666)

In defence, the likes of Luke Shaw (£5.2m), Cesar Azpilicueta (£5.8m) and Antonio Rudiger (£4.6m) offer excellent alternatives to the Man City lads.

In attack, Jesse Lingard (£6.2m) is an excellent replacement for Ilkay Gundogan (£6.3m). Son and Harry Kane (£11.6m) are also great nailed-on options.

Neal Thurman (@nealjthurman)

Even in the era of big squads and rotation, there are line-up locks when healthy. Kane, Vardy, Grealish, Mohamed Salah (£12.4m), Bukayo Saka (£5.3m), Bruno Fernandes (£11.5m), Marcus Rashford (£9.5m), Stuart Dallas (£5.1m), Azpilicueta and Aaron Cresswell (£5.9m) to name a 3-5-2 formation of options.