Have you started preparing for the fantasy soccer season yet? Maybe it’s your first time participating in a fantasy soccer league. Maybe you want to finally win the championship trophy in your league this year.
Either way, there are a few mistakes you can make that could cost you the title. If you know these mistakes, you can avoid them on your team and take advantage of the teams that do make them.
See below for more fantasy soccer mistakes to avoid. Remember them when drafting and during the season.
1.) Failing to Conduct Research.
While there is certainly luck involved in fantasy soccer, you can’t bet on winning your league. Luck is not everything for fantasy soccer champions. It takes a mix of wise decisions and dumb luck to win week after week.
It all starts with your research, which should be done a few weeks before your league is drafted. This will help you choose different players.
As fantasy football season approaches, the experts will give you the best possible advice on who to keep an eye on. You can find this information online, through ESPN shows and also on social media like Twitter.
You might even consider learning how to download and save Twitter videos of experts giving you advice about the workday. That way, you can revisit everything on your way to the draft.
2.) Not Knowing the Rules of Your Competition
Competition rules are critical to your success. You need to organize and prioritize your picks on draft day based on the league you play in.
This includes knowing the date and time of the draft. If you miss it, you’ve doomed yourself from the start.
You also need to know if it’s a points-per-receive league, how many from each position you may start each week, etc.
For example, if your league starts two quarterbacks each week, you should prioritize them in your first two picks. You’ll also want to know the inner workings, such as free agents, how many bench players you’re allowed, etc.
3.) Drafting a Running Back in the First Round
This may be a somewhat controversial statement, but it is rarely a good idea to take a running back or receiver in the first round of your draft. You should focus on getting the best possible quarterback with your first pick.
The past few years have shown this to be true. Just look at David Johnson, who suffered a leg injury in the first game of the season after a breakthrough year in 2016.
The players in the fantasy football league who spent their first-round pick on him were left without the player they needed players like Drew Brees and Tom Brady to be.
But once you have your quarterback and a running back with dual hitting ability is available in the second round or later, don’t hesitate to pick them up!
4.) Stay on the Same Team All Season
Anyone who has ever played fantasy soccer knows this is not possible. There are too many bye weeks in the season to keep the same players all season. You’ll sacrifice a lot of points and win if you do.
Instead, take the time to study your players each week. Which of them played very well last week? Are there any players with serious injuries? Is there a key player on your team who has a bye week? Also, look at the bye weeks.
Some leagues require you to field a full starting lineup once the week’s Thursday games begin. Others allow you to rotate players until the week’s game has started (another important rule to know ahead of time in your league).
The general rule of thumb is to study your roster every Tuesday. That’s when the new week’s game begins. You can analyze how your players performed last week and see how they do against your opponent this week.
Some leagues may also require that additions of free agents must be verified by the creator of that league and take 24 hours to complete the transaction. You will need a few days to complete the transaction.