Fantasy Football has become an integral part of many fans’ weekly routine, and you can keep up the habit this summer by playing Telegraph Sport’s Euro 2024 Fantasy Football game. Unlike a 38-game Premier League season, there is not much chance to recover from a slow start to your campaign, so it is important to nail your selections from the off. Here are some tips to help you do just that.
How to select players
You have a budget of £50 million to spend on your starting XI. To put that figure in some context, the game’s most expensive player is France’s Kylian Mbappe at £7 million, closely followed by England captain Harry Kane at £6.9 million.
There are seven formations to choose: 4-4-2, 4-3-3, 3-5-2, 4-5-1, 3-4-3, 5-4-1 or 5-3-2. Given your XI will not actually take to the pitch, choosing a formation might come down to spreading your budget appropriately. A team featuring three forwards could hit you in the virtual wallet.
You can change your team as much as you like during the transfer amnesty, which runs right up until the first scheduled kick-off of the tournament on June 14. After that, you will get 50 transfers to last you for the tournament with a limit on the number of transfers you can make in each round. During the group stage, you make eight transfers per round of matches and in the knockout stages you may make 10 transfers per round.
If you fancy leaving things the luck of the draw, there is also the option to let the game auto pick your XI.
How to score points
Players score two points for a starting XI appearance, and one point for getting off the bench. A goal is worth five points and an assist three. For defenders and goalkeepers, a clean sheet is worth five points if they play 60 minutes or more, and two points if fewer minutes. Conceding the first goal of a game will not see goalkeepers and defenders deducted a point, but they will lose one point for every goal conceded thereafter.
Goalkeepers will win one point for every two saves made, and can scoop up five points for saving a penalty (not including penalty shootouts). For midfielders only, there is a point to be won for every two successful tackles.
You want to avoid deductions. Players can lose three points for a red card or an own goal, two points for missing a penalty (not including shootouts) and one point for every yellow card.
Tips
The case for the defence
In Premier League Fantasy Football, it often pays to front-load your team with as much attacking talent as possible. However, the different dynamics of international tournament football mean it might pay to prioritise defence. Summer tournaments are typically low-scoring affairs, and it is fair to expect fewer goals than a record-breaking Premier League season. Portugal conceded just two goals and 17 shots on target across 10 games in qualification, surprisingly stingy for a team managed by Roberto Martinez. Ruben Dias at £4.3 million is likely to be a mainstay, while Diogo Dalot could be a value selection at £3.9 million after a strong season with Manchester United.
Consider penalty takers
Uefa’s interpretation of the handball law is far less liberal (or far more ludicrous) than we see in the Premier League. With VAR also in use, recent tournaments have produced a high number of penalties. The likes of Kane and Cristiano Ronaldo are the obvious names when it comes to scoring penalties but other countries have some more unorthodox takers. Rodri, available at £5.3 million, takes penalties for Spain, and likewise £5.7 million-rated Ilkay Gundogan for Germany. Just another reason to find a place for two midfield masters.
Look out for players in different roles
A potential edge to gain on the competition is identifying players who will be deployed in a different tactical role than we see at club level. One example of this is Oleksandr Zinchenko, who is listed as a £3.2 million defender because he plays as a left-back for Arsenal. However, his country Ukraine tend to use him in a more advanced midfield role, so he could be a candidate to win attacking points from your defence. Germany’s Joshua Kimmich, at £4.6 million, is another player listed as a defender who is a more natural central midfield player.
Shop for emerging striking talent
A shortage of centre-forwards has been a theme of recent international tournaments, but there are some promising players emerging. Denmark have 21-year-old Rasmus Hojlund, available at £4.4 million. Benjamin Sesko is the same age and a transfer target for Europe’s biggest clubs, and the Slovenian will set you back just £3.3 million. Another option is Adam Hlozek at just £3.1 million. The Bayer Leverkusen striker could partner club team-mate Patrik Schick up top for Czech Republic. Niclas Füllkrug is a late developer, but the German led the line for a Borussia Dortmund team who reached the Champions League final. At £5.2 million, cheaper than Alvaro Morata, he could prove value playing for the host nation.
Defenders who take corners
Set-piece takers will feature prominently in the assist rankings, and there are a couple of teams who ask defenders to take their corners. If Italy want a left-footer to take a corner, they sometimes use Inter left wing-back Federico Dimarco, who is available at £4.3 million. The same is true of Scotland’s Andy Robertson, available at £3.4 million. Trent Alexander-Arnold would be a candidate to do likewise for England, if he gets on the pitch.
Pay attention to the draw
This might sound obvious, but is worth remembering. A team can play a maximum of seven matches in Euro 2024, and three of them come in the group stage. Italy, Spain and Croatia are in a devilish-looking group, and will play tough matches against each other. France are in a group with Holland, Austria and Poland. If you wanted to go the flat-track bully route, then Belgium’s Romelu Lukaku at £5.9 million looks a strong candidate. He was top goalscorer in qualifying and Belgium are in a soft group with Slovakia, Romania and Ukraine. Even if you do not fancy Belgium to win the thing, four or five Lukaku goals in the group stage could propel your Fantasy team up the leaderboard.
