FPL Gameweek 4 Review & Gameweek 5 Team Reveal: I Finally Had a Good Week…

Gameweek 5 has arrived, and I've somehow gone from feeling very pleased with myself to having to rethink my entire plan.

After scoring 93 points in Gameweek 4, my FPL Gameweek 5 plans were looking pretty simple. I was going to roll my transfer, leave the squad alone and try not to overthink things.

Then João Pedro got injured.

So much for that.

93 points. I'll take that.

Gameweek 4 was the first time this season where I finished a Gameweek and actually felt like most of the decisions had worked.

I finished on 93 points, compared with an average of 69, giving me a Gameweek rank of 595,996.

After the frustration of the previous week, it was a very welcome reminder that I don't actually need to make five transfers every time something doesn't go my way.

Although, obviously, I now have an injured forward to replace.

Pedro finally pays me back.

The star of the Gameweek was never really in doubt.

João Pedro scored 24 points. And yes, thankfully, I had the captaincy on him.

After captaining him in Gameweek 3 and getting absolutely nothing back for it, watching him explode for 24 points in Gameweek 4 was exactly the response I was hoping for.

Raya also had a brilliant week with 14 points, while Calvert-Lewin contributed 10. Gabriel, Tarkowski and Virgil all added useful returns too.

It wasn't one of those Gameweeks where I got a huge score from every position. It was more a case of enough players doing their jobs, with Pedro's captaincy haul pushing the total into a very respectable score.

FPL Gameweek 5 starts with a problem.

Even after a good Gameweek, Le Fée was still sitting in the back of my mind.

He's only scored 13 points so far, which looks pretty poor next to some of the cheaper midfielders who have started the season quickly. The interesting thing is that the underlying numbers don't actually make him look like a bad pick.

Le Fée has produced 2.06 xG and 0.82 xA, giving him 2.88 xGI. That's a surprisingly strong number for a £5.8m midfielder, and he's played 348 minutes across the first four Gameweeks. So the problem isn't that he's not playing or getting involved. He's just not turning that involvement into FPL points yet.

With Manchester City away next, I was tempted to move him on, but I wasn't convinced enough by the alternatives to spend a transfer just for the sake of it.

And then Pedro got injured.

Suddenly, Le Fée wasn't the problem I needed to solve anymore.

Pedro out. Isak in.

This wasn't the transfer I was planning to make.

I had £11m available, though, so at least I wasn't forced into shopping at the bargain end of the forward market.

Once I started looking through the options, Alexander Isak became very difficult to ignore.

He's already scored 25 points, including three goals, and his underlying numbers back up the returns

He's also played 333 minutes and started all four matches.

Most importantly, Liverpool have Bournemouth away in Gameweek 5.

So after all that talk about rolling the transfer, I'm actually making one.

But at least this time it's because I have to.

Raya stays.

There isn't much to discuss in goal.

Raya keeps his place after his 14-point Gameweek 4, with Arsenal travelling to Brighton.

Kelleher has Chelsea at home, so Raya is the fairly straightforward choice for me.

Brighton have scored 13 goals already this season, so I'm not expecting another 14 points. But after last week's performance, I'm happy to leave Raya where he is.

Three at the back.

I'm going with a 3-4-3 formation this week.

Tarkowski gets the nod against Ipswich at home, while Virgil starts away at Bournemouth. Gabriel completes the defence with Brighton away.

That means Guéhi drops to the bench - this was probably the closest defensive decision. City have Sunderland at home, which is an attractive fixture, and Guéhi has already shown that he can contribute even when the clean sheet doesn't arrive.

But something has to give when I switch to three at the back, and this week it's Guéhi.

Anderson gets his chance.

Anderson is moving from the bench into the starting XI after scoring five points as a substitute last week.

He's got Sunderland at home, which makes this an easy enough opportunity to give him a proper start.

Semenyo also stays in. He's played every minute so far and already has two assists, while City face Sunderland at home.

Rice keeps his place despite Brighton away, and Szoboszlai gets another chance against Bournemouth.

Le Fée therefore stays on the bench. I'm still not ready to give up on him completely. I just don't want to start him against City when I've got other options available.

And we've got a new striker.

The forward line is where the big change happens.

Isak comes straight into the starting XI.

Calvert-Lewin keeps his place after scoring 10 points in Gameweek 4, while Barry gets another start against Ipswich.

Barry only managed two points last week, but I'm not going to throw him out after one quiet Gameweek. Everton have Ipswich at home, and he's still shown enough over the opening weeks to deserve another opportunity.

Isak is the obvious new addition, though.

He's already returned three goals this season and has an xG of 2.79. I'm hoping that Bournemouth away gives him another chance to turn those numbers into points.

Isak gets the armband.

Pedro's injury also means a new captain.

I'm giving it to Isak.

Three goals from four starts, 25 points already and 2.85 xGI is enough to make me comfortable handing him the armband on his first week in my squad.

Semenyo gets the vice-captaincy.

My Gameweek 5 team.

So, after an unexpected injury completely changing my plans, this is the team I'm taking into Gameweek 5.

The bench.

The bench has changed a little this week, with Guéhi dropping out of the starting XI but still sitting in first place among the outfield substitutes.

He's got Sunderland at home, so there's definitely a part of me wondering whether I've been a bit too clever by leaving him out.

Le Fée stays second. I'm still interested in those underlying numbers, but Manchester City away is enough to keep him out of the starting XI for now.

Ajayi completes the outfield bench, with Newcastle away making him the third-choice option this week.

Kelleher is the goalkeeper, with Chelsea visiting Brentford.

Right. Let's see what happens.

So, Pedro's injury has forced the one transfer I wasn't planning to make, but I'm happy with where I've ended up.

Isak comes in, gets the armband and Semenyo takes the vice-captaincy. The chips stay untouched.

After 93 points last week, I'm feeling suspiciously confident.

Which obviously means FPL is about to humble me.

See you after Gameweek 5.