Ladies and gentlemen, we have template.
It has taken four weeks, but the inevitable has happened. Everyone who has been actively playing the game for the last month all now have extremely similar teams.
The forward line is the clearest example of this, where there appears to be a concrete template in place: Sergio Aguero, Bafetimbi Gomis and Callum Wilson. There's little explaining to be done here as Gomis and Wilson are both in lethal goalscoring form while Aguero, well, he is Sergio Aguero.
The main reason why this is such an appealing template is that each player fits perfectly into each price range. There is one premium forward, one mid-price forward and one cheap option. It'll take excellent form from a premium priced forward to disrupt this particular line of the template.
In midfield, there's a little more room for imagination but things still look pretty rigid. Alexis Sanchez, Pedro and Riyad Mahrez are featuring in pretty much every wildcard team, accompanied by a Man City midfielder (due to their continued run of excellent form and fixtures) who usually comes in the guise of either Raheem Sterling or David Silva.
The fifth midfielder is a little less clear, with Ashley Westwood seemingly the cheap player of choice here.
The defence is usually where you can go absolutely bonkers and steer away from the common thinking, but it appears this year that imagination is inhibited for a number of slots.
First of all, Aleksandar Kolarov or Vincent Kompany take one slot. They've got the most points, and don't look like falling from their perch anytime soon. City defensive coverage is borderline essential at this point.
Russell Martin and Simon Francis also appear to be making the cut in countless squads. You would expect this is largely down to their value, and the fact that they both possess a proven record of attacking returns.
Unfortunately, there is too much variation in the remaining two defensive slots to categorise as 'template.' Micah Richards, Joe Gomez and Matt Targett are all high in the ownership stakes, though, and at least one from that trio seems to have snuck their way into every team that has wildcarded by now.
But is the template something you should be following? Considering it's still very early doors in the season, my answer would be a resounding yes. Particularly in attack, avoiding several of the above mentioned players is a big risk.
Of course, having players in your team with low ownership is the way to win your mini-leagues, but now is the time to be keeping pace.
The home stretch is a long, long way from here.
Manchester City's Aleksandar Kolarov is the Fantasy Premier League top scorer so far. Picture by: Richard Sellers / PA Wire/Press Association Images
Gameweek 5
It's now or never for Alexis Sanchez. All owners of the 11.0 priced midfielder are surely in last chance saloon by now. He's had more shots inside the box than any other midfielder so far this season but has failed to muster more than one single assist.
With Stoke rolling up to the Emirates this week, you feel now is the time it will finally happen; when he justifies both his price tag and his ownership. If you ain't got Aguero, captain him.
It's an extremely appealing fixture for Arsenal, so it also brings Hector Bellerin into our thinking. While Laurent Koscielny and Per Mertesacker are now looking likely to play, Bellerin's fitness all week makes him that little bit of a safer 5.5 spend. Mame Biram Diouf is a doubt for Stoke, which increases the stock of the Arsenal defence.
Elsewhere in the defence, West Brom have a great set of fixtures coming up and it's very hard to look past Johnny Evans and his 4.8 price tag. He's a bit of a risk considering he's yet to make an appearance, so Craig Dawson is the safer defensive pick, but will set you back a further 0.2. It's Southampton at home this week for the Baggies. Don't be surprised if they grab the clean sheet points.
If you're looking to break away from the fabled template, then a couple of midfield options on the rise might pique your interest.
Firstly, Jermaine Lens has been seriously impressive so far this season, even if his team haven't been. With attacking returns in all four games so far and an ownership of just 0.8%, he's a prospect at least worth monitoring for when fixtures pick up for Sunderland in GW8. However, Spurs at home this week also looks like it could be fertile ground for the set piece taker.
Nathan Redmond is also appropriately poised to continue in his rich vein of early season form. Norwich host Bournemouth this weekend, with Redmond having already bagged a brace of goals and an assist this season. He's hotter property than Lens and he's risen in price once this season. You get the feeling it's his breakout year and Eddie Howe's side could feel the brunt of that in GW5.
Up top, look out for Jamie Vardy and Diafra Sakho if you're aiming to steer clear of the Aguero - Gomis - Wilson axis. They both scored last time out and both have really appealing fixtures this week, playing Villa and Newcastle at home respectively.
A little tip here, if you've got Mahrez, Sakho might be the better option, whereas if Payet (or another West Ham midfielder) is in your side, Vardy is the one to buy. Spread the risk and nobody gets hurt.
