The Scout: how my Bundesliga Fantasy team is shaping up
It's moments like these that make me happy I'm a scout and not a manager. I don't know how I'd have dealt with telling three players they weren't in my starting XI, like had to do, or that number 7 isn't my favourite number anymore, like Matt 'The Expert' Howarth did when he dropped his No.7 to the bench!
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About Flo: From shoe sizes to the number of goals scored in training, Official Fantasy Bundesliga Scout Florian knows everything there is to know about every single member of the Bundesliga's all-star cast. He claims to have discovered Fritz Walter and Franz Beckenbauer, and now he wants to share his talent-spotting prowess with you.
Müller out, Lewy in
However, if you want to win, you can't shy away from tough decisions when it comes to picking your team. So here goes….
"Thomas, you know how much I value you, but in the Cup game, Robert showed me exactly the reaction I wanted from him." This was how I broke the news to FC Bayern München's Thomas Müller that I'd gone for his teammate Robert Lewandowski up front.
Thomas took it well – he looked motivated to get back into the side – and while the decision paid off with 'Lewy' scoring a hat-trick in the season opener against SV Werder Bremen, Thomas got three assists – so perhaps I should have picked them both! I guess you win some and you lose some…
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Double change at the back
In contrast to my team last week, I've replaced Nico Elvedi (7m, Borussia Mönchengladbach) and Pascal Stenzel (2m, SC Freiburg) with Peter Pekarik (6m, Hertha Berlin) and Hauke Wahl (3m, FC Ingolstadt 04). Elvedi and Stenzel aren't guaranteed starters, while Pekarik and Wahl are pretty much assured of a start.
Before I present my team in full, some honourable mentions of players who could be very interesting deals in the weeks to come. Firstly, Philipp Ochs of TSG 1899 Hoffenheim. He shone at left-back in pre-season, but is actually an attacking player full of potential, and at 3m, he could be well worth a punt. The same goes for Benjamin Heinrichs of Bayer 04 Leverkusen, a midfielder who only costs 5m. And finally there is 1. FSV Mainz 05's powerhouse of a forward Jhon Cordoba. He costs a little more at 12m, but in my opinion that's a steal, as he could be one of the standout forwards in the league this season.
Goalkeepers
And here's my team:
Peter Gulacsi (RB Leipzig, 5M)
Heinz Lindner (Eintracht Frankfurt, 2M)
Defenders
Naldo (FC Schalke 04, 14M)
Peter Pekarik (Hertha BSC, 6M)
Mats Hummels (FC Bayern München, 15M)
Jeffrey Gouweleeuw (FC Augsburg, 7M)
Hauke Wahl (FC Ingolstadt, 3M)
Midfielders
Gonzalo Castro (Borussia Dortmund, 11M)
Christoph Kramer (Borussia Mönchengladbach, 13M)
Leonardo Bittencourt (1. FC Köln, 11M)
Arturo Vidal(FC Bayern München, 14M)
Felix Passlack (Borussia Dortmund, 5M)
Strikers
Kevin Volland (Bayer Leverkusen, 14M)
Robert Lewandowski (FC Bayern München, 15M)
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (Borussia Dortmund, 15M)