I won FPL last season - here are my five best tips

ByJoe Rindl

BBC Sport journalist

Want to win your Fantasy Premier League (FPL) mini-league but need some expert advice?

Introducing Erik Ibsen, the 23-year-old Danish medical student who, out of the 11 million players who took part last season, finished first overall despite never playing the game before.

In between his summer exams Everton fan Ibsen has already planned out his entire chip and transfer strategy for the upcoming season, but stresses inexperience and a more laid-back approach can end up being a huge advantage.

"1,000% being new to the game helped me win," he told BBC Sport.

"I didn't pay for a service or listened to influencers, I used all my own reasearch and choices."

But what exactly were those magic "choices" that led Ibsen to glory?

Buckle up - the reigning FPL champion has agreed to share his secrets with the BBC.

1. Consistency is key

"The biggest thing is being consistent," says Ibsen.

"A lot of people have one bad week and then give up on the game.

"I didn't start well and was eight millionth in the world after week one, whereas the person who came second was in the top 100.

"It's easy to forget there are 38 gameweeks and that things can change so much.

"Many people have a bad week and then burn everything trying to fix things immediately.

"Instead, be patient. If you could plan three or five weeks ahead by looking at upcoming fixtures that's a great start."

2. Find budget 'enablers' to fit in more superstars

Which option is better?

Concentrating your funds on a few superstars or spreading out your budget to get 16 dependable players? Ibsen believes it's the latter.

"Every single draft I've made so far has been about value across the whole team," he said.

"One of my biggest tips is to find those cheaper enablers - those budget players who provide value while also enabling you to include more big-money players.

"Pascal Gross of Brighton is an amazing choice if you want to save money, but also have a great player at the same time.

"He takes penalties, free-kicks, corners and only costs £5.5m. You need these kind of picks.

"Also, think about players likely to get plenty of defcon (defensive contribution) points, external.

"This is something I targeted from the start last season and it paid off. There was never a terrible week. Every week was pretty much OK because I had defcon points coming in."

3. Be ruthless and don't just pick your favourite players

"I think it's really fun to add your own touch to the game," added Ibsen.

"But if you really want to be competitive and still have players from your own team, you need to do an extra step of research.

"As an Evertonian I really like Thierno Barry, but he shares minutes with Beto so as an FPL asset it's not a great idea.

"Mixing these two worlds is possible although it it will be harder for some teams.

"If you're a Manchester City fan, of course you can pick Erling Haaland. If you support Hull, well, good luck."

4. Haaland is a must

Speaking of Haaland, Ibsen says last season's highest-scoring player was "pretty much constantly" in his team last year.

The City forward is currently the most expensive FPL player of all time at £15.5m, but Ibsen is still planning on including him.

"There's no-one else like Haaland," said Ibsen.

"Yes there's no-one as expensive as him, but you can still make a great team around him because everyone else is so cheap.

"I don't have to sacrifice a lot. A team with Haaland, Florian Wirtz, Dominik Szoboszlai, Joao Pedro, a good keeper and a good defence is possible.

"Plus, he makes the game really straightforward. If you're in doubt about who to captain, you always have him. He's a really nice player to have."

5. Save your transfers to act as mini-wildcards

Ibsen also believes players are undervaluing holding on to transfers, with players able to roll over up to five transfers to then use all at once.

"You can sit on five transfers one week which is incredible because it becomes like a mini-wildcard," he said.

"Last season my strategy was to mostly transfer two or three players at a time.

"I'd be very patient, saving up to make big rotations.

"If Chelsea are playing against Hull and then Ipswich and you want to triple up on Chelsea players for those two games, you need to be able to have two or three moves to make that happen."

Bonus tip - don't sleep on Spurs

Nine clubs are set to begin the upcoming Premier League campaign with a new permanent manager - the highest number ever for the top flight's opening weekend.

Ibsen believes the new Premier League season is "the most difficult to predict ever".

But, when pushed, which players does the reigning champion expect to excel?

"I'm a very big fan of the Tottenham defence," said Ibsen.

"If Spurs play the same way they did at the end of last season, at around £5m per player their defence picks will be of huge value.

"Manchester City and Chelsea's attacks look incredible. With Liverpool, it hurts to say this an an Everton fan, but I'd go heavy on their attack.

"Andoni Iraola had such a good attacking system under Bournemouth which I think he will replicate at Liverpool.

"Go with their attack, but I wouldn't trust their defence.

"Of course you have to be lucky with your predictions. I mean, I wouldn't have won if I wasn't lucky. Everything I touched was gold."