Fantasy Premier League.

Oh to the madness!

I can't remember the first time I played FPL but I think circa 2005-2006. I played Yahoo Fantasy a couple of years before then, but I don't remember much about it. The FPL on the official Premier League website was something else. I don't recall much about that year in specific, but I remember clearly the season 2007/2008 when I suddenly became a regular football analyst on the radio and had my 15 minutes when that extended to TV. I used to analyse Premier League (and other European football) games, but the core of my show was EPL-focused and a part of my segment involved FPL analysis too. 

I was so hyped back then - being on radio and TV, sounding like an expert - i.e. offering something that no one else was talking about, it felt good. I used to play FPL with some weird rules, that I had created for myself, which were; never choosing a player from Arsenal, Liverpool, City or Chelsea - the teams I hated, or to be more accurate, those who were also competing with United at the time. I knew I could never win the Fantasy league I was in, because of depriving myself of so many assets and points, but it gave me peace of mind. I could never support a rival to win. That trend stayed for a few seasons, and then I wanted to prove to the world (in that case, my friends who rivalled me in the league) that I could win the league itself if I played without those rules. I created two accounts, my original account, under my name, which played with those rules, and then I created a mysterious account and used a girl's name as the team owner. I wanted to create some spice around it. None of my friends knew who was 'THAT' girl who joined our league. I even said I don't know her - she is a friend of a friend. I named her Hana El Alfy. I don't know why Hana, and why El Alfy. But that was the name I chose. Hana went on to win the FPL season 2010/2011 and Sherif Zaki went on to finish 2nd. I proved to everyone that I could win, and by finishing 2nd with my own team, I proved that I could also win it without having premium players from rivals. My love for FPL died a little after that season - it's like I had already accomplished the impossible. It was then that I decided to stop playing Fantasy Football and enjoy the games as a spectator. I became an 'advisor' to some friends who sought my knowledge on who to buy, but this eventually faded over time, which is usually the case with everything; 'those who are away from the eyes, far from the heart.'

After nearly a decade away, some of my friends, not the ones I used to play with/against, convinced me to come back and play. That year also coincided with COVID and it was fun to be back and fill a void of free time. I remember getting all happy like a little kid every week while preparing my team. Of course, I didn't expect to win the league, and I didn't, but it was good to be back. Our Fantasy community grew year by year with more people joining to play the game. For the past two seasons, I have also joined a private community with a subscription fee and weekly awards. The game makes me happy, and sad, it makes me go crazy at times. Sometimes I try not to look at my phone on Saturdays and check the scores, and of course, I cave in at the end - like a rollercoaster ride, you want to shut your eyes and scream your lungs out but you also want to open your eyes and raise your arms in joy at the same time! My wife keeps catching me smiling while I am staring at my phone and she asks me why I have a stupid smile on my face. Just yesterday, she asked me the same, and she didn't believe me when I told her it was all fantasy football related. I think boys (men, in our case) get amused easily and just like that hot lady told Pierce Brosnan in my favourite Bond movie, GoldenEye, 'You're like boys with toys.'

The difference now is that I don't play by my own weird rules. I do pick players from rival teams. I think what also helps is that my team (Manchester United) is not competing. 

I just received some bad news, someone who went to school with me, has passed away in Canada. I will forever remember him fondly, one of the funniest and most pleasant people I shared a classroom with. RIP Omar Bakeer. 

Stay safe, be kind, and pray for Omar.