Another season of Fantasy Premier League has come to an end; overall winner Ali Jahangirov (FPL Gunz) finished in first place and speaks to Sky Sports about his secrets and what tips he has for next season
Monday 29 May 2023 21:52, UK
Another season of Fantasy Premier League has come to an end, and it's time to crown the champion.
Out of 11m players, Ali Jahangirov (FPL Gunz) has finished in first place, edging out second place by just five points in a hotly-contested season.
And the overall winner has spoken exclusively to Sky Sports to reveal his secrets - and his tips for next season.
It feels surreal to be honest. It's an amazing feeling to be best in the world - especially in a football-related game I love. It has not sunk in yet but the messages of support have been overwhelming.
I have surprised myself by being patient and calm enough when things got really stressful. Some of the decisions have gone my way but most of them were calculated and well thought through. I am usually more compulsive in stressful moments.
No one knows exactly which players could do well beforehand and even if your team looks weak on paper it may well surprise you and do amazing. Surprisingly I have kept faith in players who were out of form at that particular moment but managed to recover and perform well again, when other managers opted to get rid.
It was really tempting to go with the flow but somehow my gut feeling told me to stick with Gabriel Martinelli, Mohamed Salah, Trent Alexander-Arnold and Tyrone Mings who delivered crucial points for me as a result.
I would say having Callum Wilson and Mings as differentials in my team when needed was by far the best decision. I have owned Wilson for his monster hauls throughout the season when he was really low-owned. I also went for him instead of the more popular Alexander Isak and captained him which resulted in 48 points in Double Gameweek 36.
Wilson played a massive role in my win, as he was subbed on for a short cameo in GW38 and blocked Ethan Pinnock's 15 points for No 2 in the world.
I have had Mings as my first bench player and stepped up with points every time I had a missing starter in my team. He has done absolute wonders for me this season.
The worst decision was getting Kevin De Bruyne in my WC, which almost cost me a win. I wildcarded in GW34 and squeezed in De Bruyne by getting cheap players in other positions. As a result, he missed three out of the four games I owned him for and got me only three points in one game. The rest of my team looked very weak but somehow I managed to get it over the line.
I will definitely follow the same patterns as in the previous two seasons. It served me well for sure as I finished 215th last season.
Looking at chip strategy, I will try to use my wildcard as late as possible as it is the strongest chip which allows you to change your entire team when things go wrong.
Try to take as few hits as possible as they don't necessarily pay off. Play your own game no matter what as it is the only way to have fun in FPL.
