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Old 09-10-2015, 07:54 AM   #21
Nilpaurion Felagund
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Location: The brink, where hope and despair are akin. [The Philippines]
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Pipe The Matchday: A MenelSport football talk show

Elenrod: Today: The Matchday goes meta. We’re playing a fictional game within a fictional game; it’s our special phantasy edition. With us today is someone perfectly suited to answer all you phantasy questions, it’s our tactics guru, Maikalomion.

Maika: Mae govannen.

Elenrod: And with him is someone who may or may not be similarly suited, but he has plenty of opinion. It’s the non-economist, Adam Smith.

Adam: Are you saying in a roundabout way that I’m rubbish at phantasy sport?

Elenrod: All I’m saying is that whether right or wrong, you have plenty to say about tactics and teams and players.

Felagundion: And it needs to be said that you’ve been in the bottom half of phantasy standings ever since I was imprisoned here.

Elenrod: And that’s our captive blogger, Felagundion, who will add a nuanced feel to the discussion.

Felagundion: All I’m saying is, Finrod should be a lock in any phantasy team. And I’m not letting go of Tar-Míriel until Armenelos are eliminated.

Elenrod: And that’s exactly the nuance you add. Now, let’s get the discussion rolling. What do you consider first when building a team?

Adam: First thing to remember is that group stage phantasy is a different animal to knockout round phantasy. In the group stage, you have unlimited substitutions so you can exploit certain match-ups.

Maika: That’s correct. Whereas in the knockout rounds, you have to be careful about teams being eliminated, and given the dearth of substitutions, you have to choose from more teams so that a sudden elimination won’t ruin your squad.

Elenrod: All right, so that’s something to keep in mind. How about building the actual team?

Maika: Adam said something about exploiting certain matchups, and that’s what you do. You find teams weak on one side of the ball, be it attack or defence, and see if they’re matched up against a team that’s great on the opposite side of the ball.

Felagundion: Ha, so something like FC Val’s attack against Nargothrond's defence?

Maika: That’s right. So Curufin, Celegorm, Yavanna, or Argon would be excellent additions to your squad.

Adam: Curufin, definitely. It’ll be helpful to check who’s up against proven talent like him, Túrin, Fëanor, Elrond, and Huan. Will that team stop those attackers or score against those goalkeepers?

Felagundion: So Shire-Bree, who has no established goalscorer, facing Eriador, is another fixture to exploit?

Maika: That’s right. Elrond’s definitely in my team, and probably one or two defenders from Eriador as well.

Adam: Speaking of defenders, it’s better to pick full-backs or tall centre-backs who are target of set pieces—basically defenders listed lower down the roster.

Elenrod: Okay, but Celebrimbor has a star. You already have two stars used up in Curufin and Elrond, only have two more to spare. Would you really use up that star for an attacking full-back?

Adam: In the early stages, it’s safest to put your stars into the forward and goalkeeper slot.

Maika: A really consistent scoring midfielder can also be considered for star usage.

Felagundion: And since Shire-Bree’s defence is no good either, Glorfindel’s an easy choice.

Elenrod: But that leaves you with three more defensive slots to fill. From what I’m seeing, it feels easier to pick attackers than defenders.

Felagundion: Well, Imladris have no established goalscorer as well, and Anduin’s defence could be great.

Adam: The Havens as well, although I feel uneasy about Erebor’s defence. And Círdan has those days when he can make defenders look silly.

Elenrod: So, do I pick a few from one team and a few from another, or do I pick all three defenders from one team?

Adam: Of course, if you’re using a 3-6-1, you only need one more defender. But I don’t think I can pick six attacking midfielders matched up against bad defences for this round. Having a star limit hampers your selection further.

Maika: Generally, 4-3-3 is the best formation to use. It’s a dirty little secret within the phantasy community that midfielders aren’t really a good source of points. Forwards score, defenders get points for just being in a team that concede one or less goal, but midfielders get less benefit from a clean sheet and they’re not generally at the end of attacking chances.

Felagundion: Picking three midfielders that won’t hurt you is a key here, I guess. There’s already Glorfindel and Argon from above, so at least this selection’s on the way there.

Maika: Going back to the original question, I prefer to stack my defenders around two great defensive teams matched up against goal-starved opposition. So I’m completing my back line with Fram, Felarof, and Grimbeorn.

Elenrod: Why Grimbeorn over Lenwë?

Maika: Ah, I guess because he seems more likely to attack than the Elf, despite being the deepest defender.

Felagundion: Denethor’s fuming that you still haven’t picked on his team yet.

Adam: Hahaha, that defence against a generally excellent Inter attack. That’s Maedhros, Fingon, Lúthien, or Hador to choose from.

Elenrod: I think that’s our Matchday 1 phantasy squad complete, I think?

Matchday’s Munchers
GK *Elrond (Eriador)
DF Erestor (Eriador)
DF Grimbeorn (Anduin)
DF Felarof (Anduin)
DF Fram (Anduin)
MF Lúthien (Inter Beleriand)
MF Argon (FC Valinor)
MF *Glorfindel (Eriador)
FW Fingon (Inter Beleriand)
FW *Maedhros (Inter Beleriand)
FW *Curufin (FC Valinor)

Felagundion: And then you just to do the same for the next matchday?

Maika: That’s correct. Which is why the fixture list is so important for your phantasy squad-building.

Elenrod: Now, how about the predictions?

Felagundion: Leading goalscorer and phantasy forward leader seems easy. You just check if Fëanor, Túrin, or Curufin’s team have a chance of making the semi-final.

Adam: Phantasy midfielder becomes a bit tricky, but you just pick a top-tier attacking midfielder from a team that would play seven games. Yavanna or Argon from FC Val, Tuor from AC Bel, Fingolfin from Hithlum, PhantomWolf from TiG, or Hador from Inter.

Maika: Of course, you should also take group opposition into account; if a team owns a group, then those players from other teams have to catch up. Hithlum, for example, are up against two minnows in Isengard and Rohan, so Túrin and Fingolfin seem like safe picks.

Elenrod: And how about lead provider? Is there a science to that one?

Adam: Ah, that one you just hope for the best. Picking a player from a team with a Golden Boot contender seems safest. That means Yavanna, Beleg, Fingolfin, or flipping a coin with Angrod or Aegnor.

Maika: There’s also Nerdanel or Nessa, who’s providing for an excellent goalscorer in Míriel.

Elenrod: Let’s now move on to the other side of the game, keeping the ball out of the goal. How would you pick phantasy goalkeeper or defender?

Felagundion: Defender is even more of a coin-flip than midfielder. I’ve never got that one right.

Maika: Haha, well, for that one the early rounds seem to matter more, because the further you go into the tournament, the better the opposition are, and the scarcer clean sheets become. So those great defensive teams put into groups with few goalscorers are at an advantage.

Adam: Alternatively, you can also go for defenders who score or assist, but there’s no way to predict that.

Maika: There’s Valimar against Mordor and the Barrow-Downs (and Armenelos, I must say.) There’s also Hithlum and the Wolves against Isengard and Rohan (and each other, sadly.)

Felagundion: So the best choice really is Inter against a decent Anduin squad as well as craptastic Imladris and the Stewards. Huan!

Adam: I guess him and Beren, then.

Elenrod: So putting them all together.
  • Goals leader: Túrin (Hithlum)
  • Assists leader: Beleg (Hithlum)
  • Phantasy GK: Huan (Inter Beleriand)
  • Phantasy DF: Beren (Inter Beleriand)
  • Phantasy MF: Fingolfin (Hithlum)
  • Phantasy FW: Curufin (FC Valinor)

Elenrod: We’ll leave predicting the tournament winner to you, dear viewers. Now, finally, the 100-million-dollar team.

Adam: First of all, the most important positions here are goalkeepers and forwards. You save up money on other areas for these positions.

Maika: That’s correct. Also, having players who’d be in seven games helps a lot, so choosing your four semi-finalists is crucial.

Elenrod: But that leaves you with only eight players to choose from.

Felagundion: I guess best quarterfinalists with a chance of upsetting one of the four would fill in the rest. That means FC Val, AC Bel, Hithlum or Inter, and Real or the Wolves.

Adam: Inter seem the weakest from that bunch, so as much as possible, I’d choose just one player from them.

Maika: But of course, the predictions for phantasy leaders will also play into this. That means if you get it right, it benefits both your team and your prediction points. I’d have to pick Huan and another defender from Inter.

Elenrod: Why not Beren? You predicted he’d be the phantasy leader for defenders.

Felagundion: He’s worth thrice as much as Imlach or NilpWight. Would he score significantly more than them?

Adam: That’s right, Fel. Those eight million will come in handy. As for the rest of the back line—again, we’re sticking to a 4-3-3—the cheapest defenders from AC Bel, Real, and TiG would do nicely.

Elenrod: Why not one from FCV as well?

Adam: Curufin and Argon.

Felagundion: That sounds about right.

Elenrod: And why a 4-3-3 and not a 3-4-3? Having more midfielders seems better.

Maika: But good attacking midfielders are expensive, and non-scoring, non-assisting midfielders provide fewer points than a defender from a team that concedes few goals.

Elenrod: Ah, that makes sense.

Felagundion: Picking the forwards is my favourite part of this. If you pick two cheap midfielders from any of the teams above, you can cram in the three Golden Boot contenders. Túrin, Fëanor, and Curufin are good for at least 60 points.

Maika: A more balanced approach would be to replace the first two with Beleg and Míriel and then selecting a better midfielder. You can only afford one more, though, mind.

Adam: If you want all your three midfielders to be solid ones, you’d have to replace Huan with Amroth (second best goalie in that creampuff group) for 7 million in savings. You can use that to pick that third good midfielder and just make up defence points by picking up an additional defender from Inter.

Elenrod: So to cap it off, here are the three teams you have chosen:

Adam’s All-Out Attack (100)
GK *Huan (Inter Beleriand) - 15
DF Arroch (AC Beleriand) - 2
DF Irimë (Real Valinor) - 3
DF KuruWight (Tol-in-Gaurhoth) - 3
DF NilpWight (Inter Beleriand) - 4
MF GwathWight (Tol-in-Gaurhoth) - 3
MF Aradan (Hithlum) - 4
MF Argon (FC Valinor) - 9
FW *Curufin (FC Valinor) - 16
FW **Túrin (Hithlum) - 20
FW **Fëanor (AC Beleriand) - 21

Stats Bomb (99)
GK *Huan (Inter Beleriand) - 15
DF Arroch (AC Beleriand) - 2
DF Irimë (Real Valinor) - 3
DF KuruWight (Tol-in-Gaurhoth) - 3
DF NilpWight (Inter Beleriand) - 4
MF Morwen (Hithlum) - 6
MF Argon (FC Valinor) - 9
MF *PhantomWolf (Tol-in-Gaurhoth) - 12
FW Beleg (Hithlum) - 15
FW *Míriel (Real Valinor) - 14
FW *Curufin (FC Valinor) - 16

I Want Freedom (100)
GK Amroth (Anduin) - 5
DF Irimë (Real Valinor) - 3
DF KuruWight (Tol-in-Gaurhoth) - 3
DF Imlach (Inter Beleriand) - 4
DF NilpWight (Inter Beleriand) - 4
MF Argon (FC Valinor) - 9
MF *PhantomWolf (Tol-in-Gaurhoth) - 12
MF *Fingolfin (Hithlum) - 15
FW Beleg (Hithlum) - 15
FW *Míriel (Real Valinor) - 14
FW *Curufin (FC Valinor) - 16

Elenrod: You’re not using up that spare million, Maika?

Maika: Nope, that’s fine.

Felagundion: I wish you got extra points every million saved. I’d still beat the both of you, mind.

Elenrod: That looks like something to look forward to. And speaking of looking forward, we’ll leave you viewers looking forward to our next show, because that’s it from us for now. Thanks to our regular pundits: Maika, Adam, and Fel. See you all after the opening round.
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The plot, cut, defeated.
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Last edited by Nilpaurion Felagund; 09-10-2015 at 08:31 AM. Reason: The centred choices look awkward; replaced Argon in Phantasy MF with Fingolfin.
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