Last season, FK Haugesund G16 coach and player developer, Øyvind Hompland, beat 9.1 million teams in the popular internet game Fantasy Premier League, where he eventually finished 119th globally. The game involves selecting a squad of players in the English top division, and then getting points for how the players do in matches in real life. Hompland says that he did not spend a lot of time on the game, but that he often spent some time in the early morning to acquire information. Still, no more than half an hour a day, or three and a half hours per week. – It takes some time, but not terribly much in that sense, he says to news. The FKH coach believes that both luck and skill must take credit for him doing so well last season. – This time I think I had more luck than I was skilled, or that it was some kind of combination. Most things went well. Then the location remained as it was. I am very happy with that. The path to success does not have to be very complicated, according to the coach. – Something that is wise is to watch a lot of the Premier League. It’s a good starting point, because then you see which teams and which players work. – A lot of luck and margins This season Hompland will not play Fantasy. Although he likes the game, it is not exclusively fun, he believes. – You are more disappointed when things go badly than you are happy when things go well. It’s something I’ve known about, and which I think many people know about. It’s a slightly scary feeling, says Hompland. In the world top of the Fantasy Premier League, the level is high. A single wrong choice can cause you to plummet down the results lists. The higher up the list you go, the less room there is for making mistakes. Most people at this level have many of the same players on their teams. This makes it even more important to choose a good captain. This player will get his score doubled. – If you miss the captain’s choice, you can quickly fall a number of places. If you hit, you can go up a few places. There is a lot of luck and margins when you are within the top thousand, maybe top ten thousand, says Hompland. TEAMS: Selecting your own Fantasy Premier League team can be a time-consuming affair. This is the journalist’s current team. Photo: Screenshot: Fantasy Premier League – Absolutely extremely good Fantasy enthusiast and host of the podcast Wildcard FC, Christian Wessel, is impressed when he hears about Øyvind Hompland’s 119th place last season. – It is absolutely extremely good. But it is clear, one season is not enough, says Wessel. And explains: – You have to perform over several seasons. Although it is a good performance, there is unfortunately a bit of luck in the picture. I’m not saying he was lucky, but you have to do it for more than one season to be taken seriously in the environment. Last year Dagbladet wrote that over 200,000 Norwegians played the Fantasy Premier League. Wessel believes that the reasons why the game engages are complex. – A match on a Monday between Burnley and Southampton, which would normally be uninteresting, suddenly becomes very interesting when you have a striker or a defender on one of those teams, says Wessel to news. He also points out that competing against friends is fun for many. At the same time, he believes that the game has become more professional. – It has developed incredibly in terms of the analytical and academic approach to how to construct the teams. It has become a hobby that includes entertainment, competition and the testing of an analytical approach. ENTHUSIAST: Christian Wessel is host of the Fantasy podcast Wildcard FC. Photo: Joakim Ingebrigtsen – The most important lesson you can learn Perhaps you are among those wondering which players you will have in your team when the Premier League starts on 5 August. Øyvind Hompland willingly shares his tips, even though he won’t be playing himself this year. It is players who are involved in goals for their teams that apply. It is therefore natural to look to Liverpool and Manchester City, he believes. – It is difficult to get past Erling Braut Haaland, if he costs 11.5 million. Liverpool’s backs also have to be included, almost regardless of what they cost, says Hompland, who also believes Chelsea player Reece James could be a good choice. GOAL: Erling Braut Haaland is expected to score goals as Manchester City’s spearhead this season. Maybe that means you should have the ice bow on your Fantasy team. Photo: Manchester City Wildcard FC presenter Christian Wessel also mentions many of the same players, in addition to Liverpool players such as Mohamed Salah and Luis Diaz, and also Manchester City defender João Cancelo among others. He himself uses the Expected Goals computer model, which shows how likely it is that each shot should have become a goal, to select players. He believes it is likely that players who underperform compared to this model will level this out over time. LIVERPOOL: Mohamed Salah has recently signed a new contract with Liverpool. The top scorer has been chosen by almost 60 percent of Fantasy players so far. Photo: PHIL NOBLE
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Øyvind Hompland made it to the top in Fantasy – it only took half an hour a day – news Rogaland – Local news, TV and radio
