It’s not Christmas, but the return of Premier League football, which for looming football coaches means the return of something so vital: football.
To lose our inner Pep Guardiola, José Mourinho or Jurgen Klopp and earn us the right to show off our friends.
But how do you maximize the chance of winning a game with more than seven million players?
This weekend’s season, Radio 1 Newsbeat spoke to Josh Bull, a math genius and the guy who won the official festival last season, to go out.
Josh started playing Fantasy Premier League to enroll in his family’s team.
“I never expected to be smart in fantasy football. I’ve never been brilliant at anything sporty, so it’s a very strange feeling,” said the 29-year-old.
The loose festival is the world’s largest Fantasy football contest and means the competition gets issues based on player functionality in real-life matches.
“It wasn’t until last year that I made the decision to take her seriously, see how much I can do and if I can, in spite of everything, beat my sister. “
And that’s what he did.
It’s easy to see why Josh did so well.
In addition to being the number one strata in fantasy football, he is a researcher at oxford University’s Institute of Mathematics, dedicated to cancer research.
You probably wouldn’t think math and fantasy football have a lot of crosses, but Josh says it can help.
Analyze yours to see if they are “mathematically optimal approaches to fantasy football. “
“Mathematics is a brilliant tool for complex systems. We can reuse the equipment we use to perceive cancer research, to perceive fantasy football in more detail. “
He uses mathematical models, similar to those of his paintings on cancer, to create other scenarios and the one that could have the most productive result.
He says that such control leads to a “much deeper understanding” of what can have an effect on the results.
For fantasy football, this can help determine which player is the most productive to choose as captain each week, a very important role that scores double the points.
“There are many other things that can have an effect on this decision. But in a simulation, I can generate tens of thousands of groups and see what the effects of my captain’s selection might be,” Josh adds.
But it’s not just about math.
To get the most out of his team, Josh uses a technique similar to that of many of the world’s top football managers.
“What works is to be very patient with my players and be tolerant of players with a bad week or two. “
It’s easy to get frustrated and update players, but “you have to settle for variants built into the game. “
“Even players can have a bad day at the office. “
Another similarity between Josh and elite managers is that players plan weeks in advance.
“I think the skills needed to be a smart football coach come with strategic thinking and a willingness to plan long-term. “
So, unsurprisingly, Josh has a list of players he’ll buy in-game.
Its five most sensitive players if it “had unlimited money” in the game are some of the biggest stars in the Premier League.
“I’d have Mo Salah and Kevin De Bruyne because they were smart for me last year. “
Bruno Fernandes, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Jamie Vardy are on their must-see list.
Josh’s victory last season not without the premier league’s typical overdue drama.
He came second, but the Premier League said his original winner, Aleksandar Antonov, had been stripped of his crown for “violating our terms. “
Aleksandar said he thought about this because of comments he made “in a moment of frustration” about a Premier League player in a personal message he sent to friends who “took it out of context.
This took Josh to the top position and made him number one in a game of 7. 6 million people.
“Even if you don’t have Josh’s math skills, you can still do well in fantasy football,” he says.
“Be patient with your players. Don’t be afraid to run dangers and have fun. “
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