Bundesliga Fantasy is back after almost three months, and we have created our own player rankings for the opening weekend to help you navigate your transfers for MD1.
Forwards
| Rank | Name | Team | Opponent | Value | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Anthony Modeste | KOE | vs S04 | 12M | This Schalke team is much better than the one which got relegated last year but after seeing them struggle to sign defenders in the summer and their young inexperienced midfield does not fill me with much confidence. I am expecting Köln to dominate this game so there should be plenty of bonus points and possibly even a goal for Modeste here. |
| 2 | Patrick Schick | B04 | @BVB | 15M | Leverkusen has one of the strongest teams on paper, especially when it comes to the attack with players such as Diaby, Wirtz, Azmoun, Hložek, etc. And after Lewandowski and Haaland's departure, Schick is one of my favorites to win the golden boot. Talking about MD1, the BVB-B04 fixture has always been high-scoring with an average of 5.1 goals the last 11 times these two teams met (per game!) so I am expecting plenty of goals in this game again. |
| 3 | Sadio Mané | FCB | @SGE | 16M | Bayern's flashy Lewandowski replacement has the credentials to light the league up after 18 G/A in the Premier League last season and he will be in most teams as Bayern play first but with a match against Frankfurt who tend to do well against Bayern especially at home, I might look elsewhere for points with so many good forwards in the opening weekend and look to get Mané next week against Wolfsburg. |
| 4 | Theoson Siebatcheu | FCU | vs BSC | 7M | Pefok's hype train is in full steam ahead of the massive Berlin derby, but deservedly so. He was the Swiss league top scorer last season with 22 goals and Union have always dominated this fixture being unbeaten at home against Hertha and I expect that gap to widen after two contrasting transfer windows for both sides. |
| 5 | Donyell Malen | BVB | vs B04 | 12M | Malen has looked like a completely different player under Terzić and reminded me of Sancho during his peak at Dortmund with goal and an assist to go with two shots and seven key passes. He is full of confidence and could be a great differential from the BVB frontline now that Reus is a midfielder. |
| 6 | Jonas Wind | WOB | vs SVW | 11M | While Kovač still has work to do to improve Wolfsburg's defence, the improvement in the attack is already visible with the team scoring an average of 4.3 goals in pre-season against some decent teams such as Brentford and Mechelen. On the other hand, opponents Werder Bremen have conceded the most goals per game in pre-season at 1.7 p/g and Wind could be a good differential. |
| 7 | Alassane Pléa | BMG | vs TSG | 11M | He has been on a free-scoring run in pre-season and just signed a new contract extension after one of his best seasons. Do you need any further analysis? |
| 8 | Sardar Azmoun | B04 | @BVB | 11M | Leverkusen have plenty of goal-scoring options to choose from but Azmoun has been the most impressive attacker after Schick and could thrive in Wirtz's #10 role. |
| 9 | Serge Gnabry | FCB | @SGE | 14M | Will play OOP up front and loves taking shots. Sounds like a safe bet for bonus points. |
| 10 | Marvin Ducksch | SVW | @WOB | 6M | He isn't Pefok but at 6M with all free-kicks and corners plus games against Wolfsburg and Stuttgart in the first two matchdays make him worth a shout. |
Midfielders
| Rank | Name | Team | Opponent | Value | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Christopher Nkunku | RBL | @VFB | 15M | Stuttgart conceded 1.6 goals per game in pre-season and without any big transfers to speak of, I expect them to be the same side as last season that conceded a lot of shots. Leipzig should be able to break them down easily. |
| 2 | Marco Reus | BVB | vs B04 | 14M | Even though Malen looked like the more involved player in the Pokal game, I expect Reus to still pull most of the strings given his record against Leverkusen (11G, 5A in 21 games). |
| 3 | Jonas Hofmann | BMG | vs TSG | 14M | Even though Hoffenheim went unbeaten in pre-season, almost all of their games were against lower division teams and after their shocking nine-game winless streak to end last season I am not sure if they will be able to mount much of a challenge especially after losing Raum. |
| 4 | Dominik Szoboszlai | RBL | @VFB | 12M | 50/50 between him and Olmo. |
| 5 | Ritsu Doan | SCF | @FCA | 8M | Less set-piece reliant than Grifo for points and saves you an extra 5M. The team won't be as reliant on him as Arminia was for goals but I still expect similar high-floor performances as his last stint in the Bundesliga. |
| 6 | Florian Kainz | KOE | vs S04 | 8M | Kainz is wildly inconsistent but he loves a game against one of the weaker sides. Out of his 11 goal involvements last season, nine came against teams in the bottom half of the table. Not a bad punt when you have five transfers to burn. Plus, he plays last this week so you get another star option. |
| 7 | Joshua Kimmich | FCB | @SGE | 15M | There was once a time when Musiala as a 12M midfielder looked bad. Now we don't even have that option so it is either Kimmich or ditching the Bayern midfield. |
| 8 | Patrick Wimmer | WOB | vs SVW | 11M | Expensive and hasn't scored in a major competition since February. Not sure where the hype is coming from but I hope Wimmer proves me wrong against one of the weaker defences in the league. |
| 9 | Jesper Lindstrøm | SGE | vs FCB | 11M | Predicted to play OOP as a striker. |
| 10 | Kevin Stöger | BOC | vs M05 | 5M | What comes as a surprise to me is that despite Mainz's atrocious away form last season which was only better than Fürth's and after losing two of their best defenders, no one is talking about Bochum attackers. They don't have Polter or Löwen but Hofmann and Stöger are excellent replacements so they could definitely surprise. |
Defenders
| Rank | Name | Team | Opponent | Value | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Benjamin Henrichs | RBL | @VFB | 9M | The last time Stuttgart played without Sosa, they managed to score just one goal against Dresden from the third division. However, the most important fact is that Stuttgart have scored just once against Leipzig in the eight Bundesliga games they have played against each other since 2017. They are on a four-game cleansheet streak and Henrichs is a great placeholder till Raum settles into the XI. |
| 2 | Alphonso Davies | FCB | @SGE | 15M | Davies' consistent bonus point generation, early fixture and the most favorable clean sheet chances makes him a strong contender for the #1 spot. |
| 3 | Christian Günter | SCF | @FCA | 12M | In a shocking move, Augsburg traded their top goal-scorer Michael Gregoritsch and did not sign a playmaker despite struggling to score goals all season. It is worth noting that Freiburg have a higher win percentage against Augsburg (45%) than against any other Bundesliga side and all signs look positive for Freiburg assets in this game. |
| 4 | Benno Schmitz | KOE | vs S04 | 7M | FC Köln only managed one cleansheet last season and they have a good chance of equaling that record this week. Add to that the improved odds of a Schmitz cross finding Modeste's head now that Uth is out. |
| 5 | Ramy Bensebaini | BMG | vs TSG | 11M | After watching Borussia concede a goal to an Oberliga (fifth division) side, I am not sure that the defence has improved much from last season. That being said, Bensebaini is a reliable set of bonus points and could also be on penalties. |
| 6 | Christopher Trimmel | FCU | vs BSC | 9M | Very much on my radar considering he is also on set-pieces against the team that conceded the most goals from it (15) after Fürth. |
| 7 | Jeremie Frimpong | B04 | @BVB | 11M | Better attacking potential than Meunier. |
| 8 | Thomas Meunier | BVB | vs B04 | 8M | Better cleansheet potential than Frimpong. Not that I expect either side to keep one. |
| 9 | Aarón Martín | M05 | @BOC | 8M | |
| 10 | Konstantinos Stafylidis | BOC | vs M05 | 4M | In the highly unlikely event that Bochum keep a cleansheet against Mainz. |
Goalkeepers
| Rank | Name | Team | Opponent | Value | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Péter Gulácsi | RBL | @VFB | 10M | Same as Henrichs ^^ |
| 2 | Marvin Schwäbe | KOE | vs S04 | 7M | Rotates with Christensen in each of the next six weeks. |
| 3 | Yann Sommer | BMG | vs TSG | 9M | Cheaper than most keepers now with a great chance at a high score against a trigger happy Hoffenheim team. |
| 4 | Mark Flekken | SCF | @FCA | 10M | Safe and reliable but is now the second most expensive keeper after Neuer. |
| 5 | Frederik Rønnow | FCU | vs BSC | 6M | Plays Hertha, Mainz and Schalke within the first four weeks and rotates with Christensen in the next 5/6 weeks. |
Value Rankings
| Rank | Name | Position | Team | Opponent | Value | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Marcel Halstenberg | DEF | RBL | @VFB | 8M | Cheapest RBL defender you can buy. Might also get the eventual set-piece. |
| 2 | Oliver Christensen | GKP | BSC | @FCU | 4M | Cheapest starting keeper in the game. |
| 3 | Sheraldo Becker | FWD | FCU | vs BSC | 9M | One of the most underrated and overlooked players of the game despite scoring four goals and assisting eight because he is seen more as a goal scorer despite having the most assists for Union last season. |
| 4 | Phillip Hofmann | FWD | BOC | vs M05 | 4M | Had 19 goals and two assists in the 2. Bundesliga last season. A bargain at 4M. |
| 5 | Jiri Pavlenka | GKP | SVW | @WOB | 5M | |
| 6 | Michael Gregoritsch | FWD | SCF | @FCA | 7M | |
| 7 | Kiliann Sildillia | DEF | SCF | @FCA | 3M | |
| 8 | Youssoufa Moukoko | FWD | BVB | vs B04 | 9M | Might be a good differential until BVB find a Haller replacement if you believe in his potential. |
| 9 | Iago | DEF | FCA | vs SCF | 8M | |
| 10 | Mitchell Weiser | DEF | SVW | @WOB | 3M | One of the cheapest starting players in the game but has nothing going for him except that and a bit of attacking potential as a wing-back. |
| Bonus | Tobias Mohr | MID | S04 | @KOE | 3M | 8G+6A in 2. Bundesliga last season. |
You can find additional Bundesliga Fantasy resources for the 22/23 season here.
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