The season flew by, and as always, the Draft Fantasy writers and staff hope you got the outcome you wanted. Only a few short weeks until the World Cup kicks off, and then our beloved FPL will start up again in the blink of an eye.

But before we look forward to the games in Russia and then the 2018/2019 EPL season, let’s take a few minutes to celebrate the good, the bad, and the weird from whence we came.

Most Valuable Player: Mo Salah, MID, Liverpool

What more can we say that hasn’t already been said? Salah may yet help Liverpool win the Champions League, but no matter that outcome, he was far and away the Draft Fantasy MVP. As a second round pick in most drafts, he was the highest scoring player in every format, and by some distance – at least 50 no matter what league you played in. Consistent returns, led the league in goals, all while classified as a midfielder. There may not be a better Draft Fantasy MVP for years to come. Now the de facto top pick in next year’s draft, it’s an incredibly tall order to live up to anywhere near this level ever again.

Least Valuable Player: Toby Alderweireld, DEF, Spurs

Alderweireld was drafted, on average, with the 36th pick of the draft, yet only just managed to score more points over the entire course of the season than his draft position number. Yes, he was injured, but even after he came back, his playing time has been minimal down the stretch for Spurs. Around the same draft position, you could have had defensive stalwarts Cesar Azpilicueta or Kyle Walker. Or, much later, you could have picked Nicolas Otamendi, who seemingly took over Toby’s role from previous years as a value pick for a top club who has a knack for scoring goals me getting bonus points. Though that was the expectation, Alderweireld simply didn’t bring value this year. And Alderweireld’s fantasy value is a huge question going in to next year, until if and when he finds a new EPL club. Next season’s managers should also remind themselves that defenders are still the most volatile of all positions.

TIR Kings

Tackles: Wilfred Ndidi, MID, Leicester, 95
Interceptions: N’Golo Kanté, MID, Chelsea, 87
Recoveries: Abdoulaye Doucouré, MID, Watford, 342

All hail, the Kings of Kanté! This trio, with an honorable mention to Everton’s Idrissa Gueye, are absolutely deserving of all the TIR accolades. They weren’t always the flashiest players, and maybe not the fanciest picks in your league, but if you played with Kanté points, these gentlemen were all-energy across every corner of the pitch. In those leagues, Doucouré will finish as a top 10 overall points player, Kanté as a top 15 (tied with Harry Kane without Bonus points), and Ndidi just outside the top 25 despite two red cards and lost playing time. Draft Fantasy’s bid to give value to defensive mids will enter its sophomore year next season, and anyone looking for a scoring twist will enjoy trying to decide between the all out attackers, the defensive terriers, and the rare few who can do a bit of everything.

Breakout Star: Luka Milivojevic, MID, Crystal Palace

Speaking of the rare players that can do it all, the Serbian Milivojevic captained Crystal Palace to safety, even comfort and confidence in the latter half of the season, with well-rounded goals, assists, and bonus point performances. And for the lucky managers who picked him up off the waiver wire (he was all but completely undrafted), they were rewarded with a top ten overall scorer in TIR leagues. Many of the early season predictions (Sofiane Boufal, Davy Klaassen, Robbie Brady) did not pan out, but Milivojevic, at least, completely warranted his early bold predictions. Not only did he outscore Dele Alli, Eden Hazard, and Paul Pogba, but unbelievably, every forward in the game (thus underscoring the deep value in mids and the overvaluing of forwards). Salah is still obviously the MVP, and Raheem Sterling deserves a shout here, but so much more was expected of them than Milivojevic, so he gets his own plaudits now at the year-end awards. Next year, here’s hoping Robbie Brady can come good, too.

Honorable Mentions and Oddities:

Own Goal Slam Dunk Champion: Lewis Dunk, DEF, Brighton
Dunk was easily the best Brighton defender on a resilient team that will be thrilled to have stayed up. But we put that all aside for the moment to acknowledge that Dunk had four own goals this season, four times as many as any other single player. He was a slam dunk this season… just sometimes for the wrong side.

Keepin’ Up with the Joneses: Phil Jones, DEF, Manchester United
The much maligned and caricatured Phil Jones will always be a fantasy lightning rod, but know this: Jones earned 15 clean sheets in 23 appearances this year. To put that in perspective, David De Gea paced the league with 18… in 37. Or put another way, Jones was second among all defenders despite playing only 2/3 as many minutes. Laugh at his face if you must, but take the stats seriously.

Colossal Goalkeeping: Jonas Lössl, GK, Huddersfield
Huddersfield are another team who are feeling great about staying up, that is, if they’re not still hungover from celebrating. Lössl was a big part of their surprise success, and deserves recognition for both his conventionally solid performances (135 points, 103 saves) and for having the most unconventional stat line among all the ‘keepers. The World Cup bound Dane Lössl led all goalies with four interceptions, and was one of only two with an assist. Both solid and fun at the same time. Only Ederson has anything close to as interesting – and that was a yellow card without playing in the 38th gameweek.