Fantrax and Football

Gary's finally back on the show, and with Karl off on holiday, three win Ricky B steps in to review Game Week Three, just as his beloved Man United throw one away at Everton.The lads run the weekend's headlines. The rat finally shows up at Liverpool to haunt Ipswich, Tyrique George may have had his breakout game, and there's honest debate over whether a couple of hot starts are real or a mirage worth selling high on. Then the centrepiece: a not-so-mini mailbag aimed squarely at Gary, the one man on the show who'll happily disagree. When exactly do you hit the panic button on a good draft gone cold? What's a fair return in a two-player package deal? And with the City's Maresca Merry-go-round, is any of their attack outside Haaland worth holding? The Discord's questions get proper, occasionally combative answers.It closes with a twist on the usual waiver segment, a quickfire "drop or not" on the highly owned names driving everyone mad, before the pickups worth chasing for GW4 and each host's start of the week. Full waiver breakdown and data at draftacademical.com.Join the community through the Discord and r/DraftPL: 👉 https://discord.gg/FAuaGADgEA

A first for the podcast: our debut cross-pod collaboration, with Keefe from Draft Offsides joining Tim and Karl.The lads open with the transfers that have landed since last week, including Barcola to Liverpool, and how much you should spend on him in FAAB leagues. From there it's a full review of GW2, before the three of them get into their over- and under-reactions from the opening fortnight, with an outside voice in the mix to keep everyone honest.It wraps with the GW3 waiver wire across every position and the start of the week picks. Full waiver breakdown and all the data at draftacademical.com.Join the community through the Discord and r/DraftPL: 👉 https://discord.gg/FAuaGADgEA⚠️ Quick heads-up: some faint background audio (what sounds like a radio broadcast) bleeds into parts of this episode. It's audio interference from the virtual studio we use to record, not your device — not a rogue tab, and nothing you can fix by skipping ahead. We're chasing down the cause. Apologies, and thanks for bearing with us.

Football's back and Game Week One is in the books, so the lads sit down for the first proper in-season review, with Duncan back on the mic for the weekend wrap. The season format takes shape here: performance reactions, waiver targets, and a start of the week pick to round things off.They run the GW1 talking points. Brighton dismantling a dismal Villa, whether Everton are a right-back away from a top-ten side, Brentford making Spurs look ordinary and the Rolls-Royce debut of the summer's most slept-on signing, plus a sober look at Man United after an opening-weekend shock. Then the first Believe It or Not of the year, where they over- and under-react to week-one showings: a certain nineteen-point winger's debut (and a well-earned victory lap), the two Brighton names everyone's chasing, whether you buy into the promoted-team defenders, and which reactions to keep and which to bin. There's a genuinely useful waiver-wire deep dive across every position, complete with the Luke Shaw Index for deciding who's rosterable and who's wire fodder, and honest debate over the set-piece merchants worth a claim.It closes with each host's start of the week for GW2 and a reminder that it's about how you finish, not how you start. As always, the data comes from draftacademical.com, where the waiver-wire article now lands before the waiver deadline.Join the community through the Discord and the new r/DraftPL subreddit: 👉 https://discord.gg/FAuaGADgEA

A big first for the podcast: this one's recorded live, on video, with the community watching and chatting along. Tim and Karl (faces finally attached to the voices) run a season-opening Gazette while the last of the seven listener leagues drafts in real time in the background.They go league by league through the six drafts already done, armed with ruthless verdicts sent in by each commissioner. The best and worst picks, the surprise steals, the stacks, the manager who tanked his whole season in round five, and the running joke of certain players following certain hosts around every single year. Sean's in the live draft too, so he gets no mercy. Between rounds, the lads take a stack of mailbag questions from the Discord: whether blowing your entire FAAB budget on one post-draft signing ever works, how to think about the no-defenders-early principle, where Doku's injury drops him now, which players' stock has risen and fallen most since the club-by-club series, and how to set a multipositional player's slot. Plus the horse-sized-duck question a Newcastle-heavy chat had no business answering.It wraps with score predictions for opening weekend and the small matter of how you seed placement leagues when a seventh one throws off your perfectly balanced maths. Recorded live on August 20th, the night before kickoff.Everything runs through draftacademical.com and the Discord: 👉 https://discord.gg/FAuaGADgEA

The season is days away and the drafts are done, so the lads sit down to review how their own boards played out and plant their flags for the year ahead. Gary's back in the UK and can't join live, but he's sent voice notes with his draft, his plant-a-flag pick and his fade, which the crew react to in real time.First, a quick word on last-minute moves, including the deadline-day injury that sparked the great Doku bail (and the community's ruthless verdict on it). Then the draft reviews: three leagues, three very different boards, and a running theme that ADP was close to useless this year once the middle rounds hit. The lads work through their own hauls, the picks they'd defend to the death, the ones they already regret, and the wildest decisions their league mates made, up to and including a manager who drafted four goalkeepers.It closes with the return of the Plant Your Flag segment: each host names a player going outside the top fifty they're backing to smash their ADP, and, new for this year, waves a white flag on a top-fifty name they think is badly overpriced. Whoever's fade finishes highest come May has to answer for it. Draft still to come, or want the in-season tools? Everything runs through draftacademical.com and the Discord: 👉 https://discord.gg/FAuaGADgEA

The first mailbag of the season lands fresh off the back of twenty club episodes and the best part of twenty hours in the recording chair. Fifteen listener questions, answered raw with no prep, as the lads and the community count down to draft weekend.They dig into the questions that matter before you draft. How to play the turn and whether you sweat positional balance early, the Nico O'Reilly versus Ait-Nouri debate and a genuinely useful tangent on how multipositional eligibility can swing a player's value by ninety points. Then the fun ones: each host's biggest reaches versus ADP and their absolute avoids, the "is Palmer over Saka at three actually insane" question, and everyone's single most underrated, under-drafted name. There's the zero-defenders-early philosophy put under proper scrutiny, the case for taking a forward early to avoid the positional run, and a closing question on how your whole strategy shifts in smaller leagues.Plenty of names get a round attached and a few get a warning, all filtered through the hard-won lesson that draft day is still, in the end, a bit of a vibe. Recorded the week before the season, so good luck to everyone drafting this weekend.Join the community and the listener leagues through the Discord: 👉 https://discord.gg/FAuaGADgEA

The Club x Club series takes on the summer's second-biggest spenders, Tottenham, and it's a minefield: a raft of new signings, a pile of injuries and returning players, and a stack of transfer rumours the lads have no answers to yet. Lots of question marks, and a De Zerbi side that could go either way.They work the board. The one defender all three would break their rules for and take in the second round, the returning winger the group is buying on vibes and one-game-a-week appeal despite the ghost-point worries, and the most polarizing name of the episode, a former star with no recent data whose entire value rides on getting fit and staying fit. There's a proper breakdown of the crowded, unsettled centre-back picture and who actually starts, the run on Spurs players the hosts predict and pinpoint to a specific round, and the striker question, a rental-priced option versus an injured higher pick. Plus the left-wing sleeper the lads love if no winger arrives, and a couple of late fliers.It closes honestly: more questions than answers, one elite asset, one high-upside gamble, and one potential steal if the stars align. Recorded on August 12th, so expect the rumours to resolve fast.Join the community and the listener leagues through the Discord: 👉 https://discord.gg/FAuaGADgEA

The Club x Club series turns to Nottingham Forest, and Karl, who volunteered for this one, thinks their assets are about to be badly undervalued. Glasner ball at Forest, with better players than he had at Palace, sets up a wing-back-and-defender goldmine that the lads reckon most drafters will sleep on.They map it out. Where the first-round midfielder lands and the live debate over whether a deeper role dents his value, the wing-back the group would happily reach for and rates as the best of the rest at the back, and a run of centre-backs going almost undrafted that could all return value under a sit-deep, whip-it-in system. There's the Palace blueprint applied throughout, you want the defenders and the number tens, not the strikers, plus the eternal "who starts up front" question that all three would rather just avoid. Deep sleepers get their moment too: the World Cup breakout with numbers that don't back the hype, the returning loanees, and a couple of last-round fliers worth a watch-list slot.The takeaway: any Forest defender is value this year, and the smart money is buried late in the draft. Timestamped to August 12th.Join the community and the listener leagues through the Discord: 👉 https://discord.gg/FAuaGADgEA

The Club x Club series gets to Fulham, and Tim doesn't hide the sarcasm: this is a squad he fancies for the drop, now run by a rookie manager fresh off a rough Real Madrid stint, having lost their set-piece taker, their striker and more. Not a lot to work with, but the lads go hunting for value anyway.They run the handful of names actually being drafted. The unproven Real Madrid striker who could be a Michu-level bargain or a total bust, and exactly when you'd gamble on him. The former Mr Reliable creator whose position under the new boss is a genuine mystery, the two "first-name" wingers going late that split the room, and the returning full-back the group rates highly on his best form but can't trust to hold down a starting spot. Plus the late-round dart throws worth a punt only if the price is basically free, and a running theme of Tim's about why the real value at these rounds sits with defenders, not Fulham's forwards.It closes on a blunt hot take: the new manager is gone by Christmas and Fulham join two of the promoted sides on the way down. Everything's timestamped to August 10th.Join the community and the listener leagues through the Discord: 👉 https://discord.gg/FAuaGADgEA

The Club x Club series reaches Sunderland, and with three Newcastle fans on the mic, Sean draws the short straw of researching the enemy. Last season's surprise package are back in the top flight and into Europe, and the big question hanging over the whole episode is whether a squad that punched miles above its weight can do it again with two games a week.The lads work through the assets that matter. The number ten the group would happily take if he keeps that role, weighed against the Europe risk and the same cluster of names that comes up every episode. Then the defenders that won people cup ties last season: Tim's beloved ghost-point machine, the more consistent alternative going a round or two later, and the deep-cut third option that carries the least risk of all. There's a genuine disagreement over the goal-dependent striker everyone will want to draft, a would-you-rather run on an aging set-piece midfielder, and the returning full-back the hosts can't quite decide on.It closes, as these Newcastle-heavy episodes tend to, with a full-blown rant about why you should never draft a big-club goalkeeper, plus the first proper plug for the newly launched Draft Academical portal and the save-percentage data behind the argument. Everything's timestamped to August 10th.Join the community and the listener leagues through the Discord: 👉 https://discord.gg/FAuaGADgEA

With Gary safely absent, the podcast becomes a fully biased Newcastle fans' cast, and resident Geordie Karl leads the way through a summer of upheaval and, somehow, renewed optimism. Eddie Howe gone, a young high-press manager in, Tonali, Gordon, Trippier and Bruno all out the door, and a raft of young signings in. Fast, direct, heavy-metal football that the lads think could reshape a lot of Fantrax values.They dig into the assets that matter. The back four the group rates as the strongest part of the squad, headlined by a centre-back the hosts are convinced is one of the outright steals of the draft given where he finished last year versus where you can get him now, and a full three-way comparison of the players around him. There's the returning striker Tim stakes a bold twenty-goal prediction on, the pacey wide men who could feast in a get-in-behind system, and the rental-for-five-weeks winger who might lose his spot after the first international break. Plus a genuinely under-the-radar multipositional sleeper Karl didn't even want to name on air, and the usual reminder about not drafting a goalkeeper.It closes where every Newcastle episode should: wildly optimistic, faintly deluded, and already counting down to game week one. As always, everything's timestamped to August 3rd.Join the community and the listener leagues through the Discord: 👉 https://discord.gg/FAuaGADgEA

The Club x Club series takes on Manchester United, with Sean leading a squad he calls the most confusing to line up of any team he's researched. A first full season under Carrick, a settled roster on paper, and yet almost no certainty about who plays where once you get past the top three names.The lads work through it. Where the world's-best-when-he's-on midfielder goes at the very top of the board, the two ghost-heavy wingers whose entire value hinges on whether they actually start, and a proper "would you rather" that lands one of them as one of the most undervalued players in the draft. There's a clever handcuff idea borrowed from the City episode, pairing a risky starter with his positional understudy so you're covered every week, and a real disagreement over an old-favourite centre-back the group can't decide is a bargain or a hard pass. Plus the late-round defender Sean thinks might be the single best value on the whole team, and a run of do-not-drafts built around a hard rule: proceed with extreme caution on strikers carrying an injury into the season.The honest through-line: the upside here is enormous, but take one risky pick, not all of them. As always, everything's timestamped to August 3rd.Join the community and the listener leagues through the Discord: 👉 https://discord.gg/FAuaGADgEA

The Club x Club series answers a flood of Discord requests and gets to Bournemouth, a side with another Iraola-style presser in Marco Rose picking up where the old boss left off. A quiet squad rebuild, a key injury in midfield, and European football all factor into how the lads value a team that keeps producing Fantrax bargains.The central debate is price versus value on the shiny new attacker everyone fell for last season, and whether his ghost numbers justify a second-round pick or whether the uncertainty makes him a stay-away. From there it's Tim's all-time favourite Fantrax player and set-piece merchant the group calls a steal a round or two below his ADP, the goal-dependent number ten whose starts and ceiling both worry them, and the serviceable-but-uninspiring late-round striker options. The real gold, as ever, is at the back: two near-identical budget defenders going almost back-to-back, one of whom the hosts think belongs in the elite tier and would break their punt-defenders-late rule to grab. Plus the deep sleepers and last-round fliers worth a punt before your league mates spot them.Everything's timestamped to August 10th.Join the community and the listener leagues through the Discord: 👉 https://discord.gg/FAuaGADgEA

The Club x Club series turns to Leeds, and the framing question is simple: is Harry Wilson a must-draft or not? Tim says yes, Sean says no, and that split runs through the whole episode. A quiet window, a settled Farke setup, and a set-piece picture that could make or break a couple of valuations give the lads plenty to chew on.They dig into the disagreements. Whether the free-transfer creator is worth his rising ADP or riding a run that won't repeat, the set-piece merchant the group thinks is badly overpriced at his current cost, and the managed-minutes striker who might be a real discount in single-position leagues. Then the part Tim gets most animated about: a cluster of late-round Leeds defenders with ghost numbers that mirror players going a hundred picks earlier, the kind of waiver-wire gold that won people cup ties last season. Plus the in-and-out winger who's a nightmare to hold but worth having when he starts, and the annual reminder about not drafting a goalkeeper.The takeaway: be cautious up top, because the real Leeds value is buried deep in the draft. Everything's timestamped to August 6th.Join the community and the listener leagues through the Discord: 👉 https://discord.gg/FAuaGADgEA

The Club x Club series heads to Anfield, with Karl on research duty for a Liverpool side he genuinely thinks could be special under Iraola. A first season without Salah, Robertson and a raft of old leaders, a busy-but-unfinished window, and the intensity of Iraola-ball across two games a week set up a squad the lads are excited about but wary of.They map the board. The three back-end-first-round names and the debate over which carries the least risk, a set-piece-enabled midfielder with a hidden multipositional edge, and a striker the group would take over some very big names purely on guaranteed minutes. There's a proper "would you rather" on two of the most consistent defenders in Fantrax history in different shirts, and a real disagreement over a returning-manager reclamation project the hosts can't agree is back to his best or a trap. Plus the pacey full-back sleeper coming at a steep discount, the perennially-owned midfielder Karl thinks should go undrafted, and the injured striker worth stashing on your IR if you fancy playing the long game.It closes on the eternal question every Liverpool episode must ask: is this finally the year for a certain winger's breakout? As always, everything's timestamped to August 3rd.Join the community and the listener leagues through the Discord: 👉 https://discord.gg/FAuaGADgEA

The Club x Club series takes on the puzzle of Manchester City under Maresca, with resident Doku expert Sean leading the way. A new manager who may rotate less than Pep, a huge set-piece vacancy left by Bernardo Silva's exit, and a formation nobody can quite pin down make this a squad full of upside and question marks in equal measure.The lads work through it. Where the first-round names land and why one high-ceiling winger's minutes risk is the whole story, the Cherki-versus-Foden battle for the ten and the handcuff stack that solves it, and a genuinely useful thread on chasing available minutes over raw talent after a season that went sideways. There's a full airing of the Elliot Anderson question, is he a third-round buy or someone else's problem, and Tim's belief-based case for taking him anyway. Plus the defenders they'd happily pass on at their price, the loanee-shaped Grealish and Savinho uncertainty hanging over the whole thing, and the striker nobody wants to hold on their bench all season.It closes where City always does this year: lots of risk, lots of reward, and almost nothing you can be sure of until the first few game weeks. As always, everything's timestamped to August 3rd.Join the community and the listener leagues through the Discord: 👉 https://discord.gg/FAuaGADgEA

The Club x Club series reaches Hull City, and the hosts don't sugarcoat it: this is a promoted side most people have tipped for the drop, and researching them, in Karl's words, was a genuinely depressing exercise. Lots of Premier League names on paper, a defence-first setup under a manager who'll sit deep and try to make every game a boring one, but very little that translates to Fantrax points.The lads land on the honest short list. There's a right winger the group rates as the one genuinely draftable attacking asset, backed by some eye-catching underlying percentiles, and a returning striker whose ADP looks wildly inflated by single-position leagues. That striker sparks a proper "would you rather" run through the names going around him, and a debate over whether he's a reach, a panic pick, or simply undraftable in a multipositional format. Plus the veteran full-backs and centre-backs with Premier League history who don't need a draft pick at all, just a spot on your watch list.The takeaway is blunt and the hosts have fun with it: outside of two names, spend no draft capital here, keep an eye on the waiver wire, and enjoy a nostalgic wander down Hull's memory lane of legends past. As always, everything's timestamped to August 3rd.Join the community and the listener leagues through the Discord: 👉 https://discord.gg/FAuaGADgEA

The Club x Club series takes on Everton, with Sean, a self-described reformed James Garner hater, leading the research. A quiet window dominated by outgoings, one huge unresolved question over a marquee loanee's future, and a midfield picture that shifts with every rumour make this a trickier squad to read than it looks.The lads start with the one name they all agree on: the model of consistency the group thinks is still underrated even at his rising ADP, and the season-long stack Tim expects to become the most popular in the draft. From there it's the harder calls. A third-round talent with very real exit links that push him onto no-draft lists, the set-piece merchant Sean finally admits he got wrong, and a head-to-head between two near-identical midfielders, one settled, one at a new club, that the whole panel lands the same way. Plus a Championship arrival with tasty ghost numbers if he wins a starting berth, the take-your-pick striker question nobody's excited about, and the injury-prone young defender the hosts would happily pair with their consistency pick as trade bait.It's a full airing of Tim's punt-defenders-late gospel, and it closes on a heartfelt public service announcement about a certain goalkeeper. As always, everything's timestamped to August 3rd.Join the community and the listener leagues through the Discord: 👉 https://discord.gg/FAuaGADgEA

The Club x Club series reaches Ipswich, the third promoted side, with Sean on research duty. A summer of heavy business at Portman Road, but only a handful of names matter for Fantrax, and the honest verdict is that nothing here screams "draft me, I'll win you a title."The lads land on two clear draftables and where they actually sit. There's a returning left-back the group thinks is badly undervalued at his current ADP, stuck in what Tim calls "Keeperland" on the board, plus a full breakdown of who you'd take him over on a defender run and how early you can afford to reach. Then a relegated-team winger whose ghost-point numbers might just travel, weighed against the risky-pick tier around him: injured ghosts, minutes gambles, and the striker Tim is convinced no longer exists.From there it's the deeper sleepers worth a watch-list slot: a centre-back with big Championship ghost numbers if he wins a starting berth, a left-sided attacker in a real fight for minutes, and the once-hyped winger whose write-up was built for a manager who's no longer at the club. As always, everything's timestamped to August 3rd.Join the community and the listener leagues through the Discord: 👉 https://discord.gg/FAuaGADgEA

The Club x Club series turns to Crystal Palace, a recent Fantrax favourite now going through real upheaval. Glasner's gone, replaced by Pierre Sage off the back of one overachieving season at Lens, and Karl (who did the research) walks a squad that has the whole group nervous. New manager, new pressing style, Europa League football, and key names linked with the exit door.The lads dig into what the uncertainty does to draft value. Whether the number-one defender off the board is badly overvalued given his age, the transfer rumours, and where he actually finished last season. There's Tim's punt-defenders-late thesis in full flow, with a late-round sleeper the group thinks gets you nearly the same production as names going ten rounds earlier. Plus the crowded, unsettled forward line and how pressing might reshape who starts up top, a Discord-favourite midfielder who keeps promising a breakout that never comes, and a wide man whose Watford ghost-point glory days may be behind him.The honest through-line: outside of two or three names, there's very little Palace value this year, and even the hosts aren't sure how the new man sets them up. As always, everything's timestamped to August 3rd.Join the community and the listener leagues through the Discord: 👉 https://discord.gg/FAuaGADgEA

The Club x Club series heads to Coventry City, a promoted side with Frankie Lampard back in the Premier League and a brutal opening run. Tim leads the deep dive, and the honest verdict up front sets the tone: there's no must-draft on this team. Everything here is a late-round flier or a waiver-wire watch, judged through one lens: Coventry will do a lot of defending this year.The lads work the angles that a struggling promoted side actually offers. Which of their defenders is the best value once you accept they'll be camped in their own half, and the classic centre-back-who-ghosts-well versus flashy-attacking-full-back debate that follows. There's the annual "hot promoted goalkeeper" conversation and Tim's full philosophy on why you never predict clean sheets or draft a keeper at all. And a genuinely useful segment on set-piece merchants as trade bait: spotting the next surprise waiver breakout before your league mates, and flipping him at peak hype.Plus the risky striker going higher than his record justifies, a couple of creative midfielders worth a watch-list slot, and the case for punting defenders late while everyone else spends big. As always, everything's timestamped to August 3rd.Join the community and the listener leagues through the Discord: 👉 https://discord.gg/FAuaGADgEA

The Club x Club series rolls on to Aston Villa, with Karl leading the deep dive. Last year's famous slow starters who ended up top five again, Villa head into the season handcuffed by PSR: Rogers and Tielemans sold, Emiliano Buendía's future uncertain, and one of their best defenders being circled by half the big six.Karl runs his top five Villa assets. Where Watkins really lands in single-position versus multipositional, and whether you take him or pivot to a set defender at that point in the draft. Then the new arrivals: a World Cup breakout everyone's excited about who might not be the player his tournament suggested, a Wolves signing tipped as a solid late-round starter, and a wide man the group can't agree on. There's a proper back-and-forth over whether that winger is a steal at his rock-bottom ADP or a bench risk in Emery's system, and it produces a bold-prediction clip Sean immediately calls for the cold open.Plus the case for punting defenders late and walking out with a nailed-on attacking full-back, the least sexy but most dependable ninth-round midfielder in the league, and a tenth-round flier worth a first-few-weeks punt. As always, everything's timestamped to August 3rd.Join the community and the listener leagues through the Discord: 👉 https://discord.gg/FAuaGADgEA

The Club x Club series lands on Brentford, with Sean leading the deep dive. A settled second year under Keith Andrews, no European football to worry about, and one big question hanging over the whole squad: how far do you trust Igor Thiago after last season?Sean walks the board. Which of Brentford's attacking assets he'd actually reach for versus the ones he'd let come to him, why one former breakout darling now splits the room, and the set-piece situation that could send a midfielder soaring if a rumoured sale goes through. On defence, there's a genuinely useful thread on picking the safe, nailed-on starter over the higher-ceiling name whose minutes aren't guaranteed, plus a wider "who would you rather" on the run of defenders all going in the same round.Then the deeper cuts: a new midfielder arriving on big money with strong numbers from the French league that may not translate, a former sleeper pick who might not start, and a couple of clear do-not-drafts. Thiago's valuation caused real disagreement between the three, and rather than rehash it here, they point you to the rounds 1-5 episode where it played out. As always, everything's timestamped to August 3rd.Join the community and the listener leagues through the Discord: 👉 https://discord.gg/FAuaGADgEA

The Club x Club series takes on the biggest puzzle of the preseason: Chelsea. Karl leads the deep dive into a squad that seems to sign a new player every four days, with Sean along to help untangle who actually starts, what formation Xabi Alonso lands on, and which of the endless options are worth your draft capital.The lads work through the whole thing. Where the big three go now that one of them has officially cracked the first round, why one high-profile midfielder is a hard fade at his likely price regardless of his talent, and how a back three reshapes the value of Chelsea's defenders. There's a genuinely useful thread on a centre-back who lost his sleeper discount overnight after a transfer, and where he fits if he's your first defender off the board. Then the sleepers and the traps: a high, wide full-back tipped as a popular pick, the loanees returning into the squad, a locked-in-but-limited late-round starter, and two attackers the group agrees are undraftable at their current cost but a steal a few rounds later.It closes on the question everyone's circling: at pick four, with the big three gone, are you taking Cole Palmer? As always, everything's timestamped to August 3rd.Join the community and the listener leagues through the Discord: 👉 https://discord.gg/FAuaGADgEA

The Club x Club series heads to Brighton, with Sean leading the deep dive. Brighton have long been one of the most underrated Fantrax squads, but with a Conference League campaign, and a quiet-but-busy window make this a team to tread carefully with.Sean plants a flag on the veteran the group rates as Brighton's top asset, still going far too cheap given his ghost-point floor, and the lads use him to unpack the game every good drafter plays: how long you can wait on a player you rank far higher than his ADP. From there it's the tricky ones. How to value a former third-round fixture after a real drop-off, where a much-hyped centre-back arriving from Spurs actually lands once the "big brain" managers in your league get involved, and why one of Brighton's most-owned names might not be the safe pick people assume.Plus late-round defender punts, a right-back sleeper with absurd numbers in a smaller league, returning loanees, and the usual disagreement over who's a must-draft versus a do-not-draft. As always, everything's timestamped to August 3rd.Join the community and the listener leagues through the Discord: 👉 https://discord.gg/FAuaGADgEA

The club-by-club series kicks off with Arsenal (sorry, Bournemouth). Tim, Karl and Sean set the format that'll run all series: the players they love at their ADP, the ones they think are risky at the price, and the sleepers worth a late pick or an early-season waiver watch.They work through the whole squad. There's a defender the group thinks carries a clear injury discount, a live debate over how far a certain striker should fall in a multipositional league once ghost points come into it, and a former second-round pick taken apart over where he actually finished last season. Set-piece duties, the crowded midfield and the summer's looming transfers all factor in.Then the sleepers, including the one name Tim calls his single favourite value pick across every club he's looked at so far. Get to it before your league mates do.Everything's timestamped to August 3rd, so expect boards to move as the window and injuries develop.Join the community and the listener leagues through the Discord: 👉 https://discord.gg/FAuaGADgEA

The first proper draft prep episode of the season is here. Tim is joined by Karl and Sean the Oracle to break down the first five rounds pick by pick.They open with the latest injury news that could move draft boards before deadline day, then get into the rounds themselves: who's being wildly overvalued in the current ADP, which second and third-round names carry genuine first-round value, and where the real risk hides in each tier. Set-piece losses, rotation traps, regression candidates, age curves and looming transfers all factor in, and there's plenty of healthy disagreement over the players dividing the room.The fifth round gets the bargain-bin treatment, with a couple of high-ceiling names the lads think are being slept on. Then they close with the return of the Power Draft: a quickfire snake draft where each host picks one player per round at ADP value, no reaching up allowed. Results go in the Discord, so you can judge for yourself.Club-by-club deep dives start next week. Community leagues are filling up. Get involved through the Discord: 👉 https://discord.gg/FAuaGADgEA

The full trio is back, with Gary returning for his first episode of the season and Discord favourite Fuego joining as a newly announced community league commissioner and reigning champion of his league. After a few more transfers to catch up on, including the wildest rumour of the window, the lads dig into the real business: what last season actually taught us.They break down the year of the defender, why the numbers behind it don't mean what most drafters think, and what a wins-above-replacement look at the whole season reveals about scarcity at every position. That leads into a hard look at the forward pool, the case for and against loading up early, and where the genuine draft-round value sits. Set-piece takers get their own segment, backed by some stats on how much of last season's scoring ran through dead balls.From there it's the lessons that sting: when to trade a struggling star before the value evaporates, the sunk-cost trap of holding an injured pick, and a draft-day edge hiding in who your league mates support. Plenty of names get a round attached, and a few get a warning.Community leagues are filling up. If you want in, everything runs through the Discord: 👉 https://discord.gg/FAuaGADgEA

Tim and Karl finally sit down to break down exactly how the Fantrax & Football leagues are built, from the ground up.They trace the history first: OFPL head-to-head, the ill-fated Togga season that ran out of server money mid-year, and the move back to Fantrax that's now stretched into a fourteen-year run. Then it's into the mechanics. Why they play multipositional over single position, and the four big ways their scoring differs from default.The house rules get their moment too, including autosub, ranked subs, and the Baldock rule that exists to stop bench-point gaming. Waiver wire runs on a tradable FAAB budget rather than priority, there's a trade deadline, and the whole thing is governed by an annual league vote.They close on the parts that actually keep it alive: the League Cup, manager of the month, the prize structure, and above all the WhatsApp community that Tim argues is the single biggest reason the group has lasted this long.If you want to get involved in the community leagues this season, everything runs through the Discord: 👉 https://discord.gg/FAuaGADgEA

The World Cup is in the books and the podcast is back to open the 2026/27 Fantrax season. Gary is away, so Matthew "Alty Jose" TW steps in alongside Tim and Karl with a licence to freewheel. First, a quick post-mortem on a controversial summer: Spain conceding once in eight games, Cape Verde's tournament, and Bellingham finally becoming England's talisman.Then the transfer catch-up. Spurs are declared winners of the window on the back of Mateus Fernandes and Tonali. Elliot Anderson's £120m move to City splits the panel on whether his output goes up or down. Morgan Rogers lands at Chelsea for the same fee and all three agree his ADP has not caught up. Liverpool, Man United, Brighton, Villa, Newcastle and the rest get worked through, with a draft round attached to almost every name.The current ADP top 24 is then pulled apart. An underwhelming first round, five picks Karl would not touch, Cole Palmer glaringly missing, and Declan Rice going seventh despite sitting out the first month of the season. Tim also drops his first hot take of the year on who goes down.Listener leagues are officially announced, including the new placement format and how to get involved.Join the conversation in the official Fantrax & Football Discord: 👉 https://discord.gg/FAuaGADgEA

The season is over and the Gazette returns for a full wrap with Duncan, Michael, and Matt, recording live with the World Cup underway in the background. Michael is crowned Premier League champion after leading all season long. The hosts discuss who had the best draft, the best trades, and who helped themselves most across the year.All three leagues get their moment: the Championship promotion came down to the final day, League One saw two new fathers earn promotion, and relegation across the ecosystem is reviewed. Luckiest and unluckiest managers debated across all three leagues, plus the lineup-setting controversy that stirred up drama on the final day.Rule change proposals are put to the vote. Should three-up three-down replace the current promotion and relegation format? Points for blocked shots, fantasy assists, and assists for own goals are all on the ballot. The hosts make their cases and cast their verdicts.Join the conversation in the official Fantrax & Football Discord: 👉 https://discord.gg/FAuaGADgEA

The gang wraps up the season with Sean returning for the end of year awards show, recording live with the World Cup kicking off in the background. After a quick World Cup preview and predictions, the hosts dive into the awards ceremony.The awards cover player of the season, biggest overperformer, and biggest underachiever across the league. Then the debate shifts to which overperformers are built to repeat next year versus those tipped as one season wonders who you should avoid paying up for in the draft.The best and worst takes of the season round things out - who called their shots and who has to answer for their crimes? The receipts are out, plant your flag predictions are revisited, and nobody escapes without accountability.Join the conversation in the official Fantrax & Football Discord: 👉 https://discord.gg/FAuaGADgEA

With Gary off celebrating Arsenal's Premier League in England, Tim and Karl reconvene for the final in season episode.  They kick off with European competition trivia—which Aston Villa player became the second ever to win all three European trophies?Mailbag tackles crucial final week decisions: Is punting on Salah's farewell game at Anfield worth the risk? Should you avoid players from teams with nothing to play for or are relegation battles the safer bet? Will Foden start to make the World Cup squad? Plus: Tim's bold prediction that Evanilson outscores Gyokeres comes down to the final matchday.Waiver wire discussion focuses on the ultimate streaming plays for the season finale. The hosts debate defensive matchups with everything on the line, whether to trust Taty Castellanos in a must-win game, which defenders are still available and can help you get across the line, and do you gamble on Max Dowman if he starts? Start of the week predictions close out the season with championship implications.Join the conversation in the official Fantrax & Football Discord: 👉 https://discord.gg/FAuaGADgEA

Tim and Karl break down Game Week 36 without Gary, who's taking time off while Arsenal sit two wins from the title. The episode kicks off with the most impactful VAR decision of the season - West Ham's disallowed goal against Arsenal. The hosts debate whether corner kick rules need changing.The mailbag returns with key questions for title chasers: Who's been the most frustrating player to own all season? Will Rio Ngumoha start Liverpool's final two matches or will Slot rest him? Is James Maddison worth the risk to win your league? Plus: how did Fuego fare against the hosts in the rest of season top 10 challenge?Waiver wire discussion focuses on matchup-based streaming with two weeks left. The hosts identify which defensive matchups offer the safest floors, debate whether chasing Maxime De Cuyper's 36-point explosion is worth chasing again, and rank their final pickup targets across all positions for managers fighting for titles and promotions.Join the conversation in the official Fantrax & Football Discord: 👉 https://discord.gg/FAuaGADgEA

The gang reunites to break down Game Week 34, starting with Arsenal's nervy 1-0 win over Newcastle. Were Arsenal scared or just feeling the pressure? The hosts debate their title chances with four games left and whether City will catch them in the run-in.Man United's resurgence continues under Michael Carrick as Casemiro rediscovers his best form. What's changed for the Brazilian midfielder? Plus: Bruno Fernandes' historic season continues with elite consistency since his injury return.The relegation battle intensifies as multiple teams fight for survival. Igor Jesus delivers another massive performance—is he the plug-and-play forward you need? And with injuries mounting across the league, the hosts identify which players to target and which to avoid as the season winds down.Waiver wire discussion focuses on one-week fillers for title chasers and navigating the injury crisis at several clubs.Join the conversation in the official Fantrax & Football Discord: 👉 https://discord.gg/FAuaGADgEA