This year FPL has surprised us with allotting so many budget-forwards to take into our teams. The managers are facing ‘’the dilemma of too many’’ which is making their life and drafts hard 😛 . Here is a small attempt from me to analyse the moderately priced forward options starting from 7m and ending at 8m.

Che Adams (7m): Che Adams is priced at 7m in this year’s fantasy tournament. He had enjoyed a lot of hype in the previous year because of his low price but produced a moderate outcome only. He always seemed to be a second-fiddle to his teammate Danny ings even playing nearly 500 minutes more than him. He scored 9 goals and assisted to 7.  Che seemed to take incisive attacking runs but his team-mates could not provide him those through passes. He also missed 17 big chances which shows his weakness in front of the goal. Saints is still shaky in midfield as well as the inclusion of Adam Armstrong and Broja this year may also lessen his attacking threat as a forward listed as 7m.

Chris Wood (7m): Wood is also priced at 7m which may seem too much for a Burnley forward who tend to play a bit defensively habitually. However, Wood is the focal point of their attack as Barnes is injured and he can rack up some goals throughout the season. Last year he scored 12 goals for them with a ratio of 220+ minutes per each goal. Let me tell you that, Wood takes only 1.2 on-target shots per match in average and missed 19 big chances last season. The choice is yours if u want to take him as a bargain option or not!

Raul Jimenez (7.5m): Jimenez faced a life-threating injury last year and missed nearly the whole season. He played only 10 games and scored 4 goals. Though he had a shot ratio of 2+ per 90 mins inside the box which is a quite good number. Jimenez accumulated a massive 171 points (17 goals & 6 assists) in the 19/20 season and was on the road to quite a good tally which stopped too early unfortunately. Jimenez is again the focal point of Wolves attack who under the new coach can play in a 3-man back   formation where a lot of crosses are expected to come to Jimenez to score. However, it would be wise to take time and keep him in watch list for the start of the season as he may need some game time to burn out his rusts of one lonely year.

Michael Antonio (7.5m): Antonio is a hot-cake in the recent fpl market because of his juicy fixtures and moderate price value of 7.5m. Antonio, a massively, injury-prone player may not be a season-taker forward but whenever he plays, he gives a hefty number of outcomes. Antonio is fast, agile and strong which helps him to win difficult goals, win aerial duels and hustles and score. He takes 2.2 shots on the box per 90 mins and attempts 1.1 assists per 90 mins. Last year he played only 1983 minutes and still managed to score 10 goals and 5 assists as well as missed only 9 big chances. He has a xG of 0.52 which means he scores a goal in every two games which nearly matches the stats of some premium forwards. Antonio will surely be a man to watch out for whenever he is fit.

Callum Wilson (7.5m): Another man who is a lethal scorer up front but stays mostly in the sidelines due to injury. Though Newcastle only scored 44 goals last season, Wilson is the focal point of Newcastle and with him Newcastle tends to play more attacking in the field. Wilson played only 2085 mins last season and amassed a tally of 12 goals and 6 assists. He takes 1.90 shots inside the box every 90 mins and has a xG of 0.50 per 90 mins like Antonio. He is also the penalty taker of the team. If Newcastle successfully buys Joe Willock then Willock-Wilson duo can be a mighty one. However, the question always arises that if Wilson would be able to play the whole season or not?

Patson Daka (7.5m): The new face in the foxes squad and what a promising one! Patson Daka outclassed the Austrian league last season and scored 27 goals on 28 matches and assisted 9. He is a rocket in the field and can deliver hefty outcomes against the teams having slow defenders. However, he is in his young age and obviously not a finished material. This season will be his learning curve and he will be a rotational player mostly or a super-sub.

Kelechi Iheanacho (7.5m): The Nigerian forward is somehow a bit under-appreciated at Leicester city as he is often overlooked by Brendon Rogers. Still, whenever he got minutes, he showed his goal scoring abilities to the PL fans. He only played 1456 mins last season and still bagged 12 goals without any penalties. He has a whooping underlying stats on his bag, like, he takes 2.34 shots inside the box per 90 and possesses an xG of 0.54 which is better than Wilson and Antonio. Leicester is also quite an attacking team which adds to his threat. After all this, Kelechi is still not a sure 90 min player or starter for Leicester and he may find competition with Vardy, Daka and sometimes even Ayoze Perez. Minus the rotational risk, he is a very good bargain at 7.5m.

Richarlison (7.5m): The hot-headed Brazilian shined at Watford and then came to Everton a few seasons ago. Till now, he had not lived upto the potentials and gave the fans a bag of hot and cold performances. He plays as a RW in Everton which also lessens his attacking threat. He played nearly 2900 mins last season and scored only 7 goals and 6 assists. Under new manager Rafa Benitez, the stats are not seeming to improve too much either. He scores a goal after every 400+ mins which is not a good stat for a forward option and so he is kinda overpriced at 7.5m. But there are no certainties in Football, right? Take him at your own risk: p

Ollie Watkins (7.5m): Watkins was one of the most popular picks till a few days back before Ings transfer saga. Watkins, with his pace and aerial ability showed glimpses of hopes to the fpl enthusiasts. Last season he scored 14 goals and assisted 9 with a goal contribution in every 140 mins. In addition, the funny fact is he had missed many chances which might have added to his tally. He has taken a total of 90 shots on target during the last season which is really a lot. Unfortunately, the inclusion of Danny Ings in the villa squad has deemed the interest on Watkins to a large extent. Watkins is no longer the focal point of villa attack and will operate on the wing now where he can also face rotation risk. At 7.5m Watkins will be a very good bargain and a man to watch-out for. Let us see how he does in his new role.

Patrick Bamford (8m): Bamford became a household name after last season’s performance. The Leeds man has given a crazy 194 points haul at just 5.5m. this year he is priced at 8m which seems to be overpriced to many of us. But what does his stats say? Bamford was still not the focal point of Leeds attack last season as Leeds play a very fluid football where every midfielder gets numerous chances to score. Still he managed to score 17 goals and 11 assists with 2.79 shots inside the box per 90 mins. He had an infamous record of missing 20+ big chances during the season which could have boosted his tally by a lot more. Bamford seems to contribute to a goal in every 11o mins which is really a very good stat. Even If we take his 8m price in account and still count his ppm (points per million) according to last season’s point will be (194/8)= 24.25 which is better than many other forwards. So, should u guys just write him off? Think again 😛

Dominic Calvert Lewin (8m): DCL enjoyed a dream run last year and achieved a euro call for himself. He outperformed the ambitions over him and scored 16 goals and 6 assists. He had a xG of 0.4 goals per 90 mins with 2.28 shots inside the box per 90 mins. After all of his heroics last year, could he be able to flourish again? The new coach Rafa likes to attack through the middle unlike Big Carlo who liked to play from the wide. Rafa is also not that much attacking minded like Carlo Anchelotti. DCL scored 7 headed goals (40 percent of his tally) which seems unlikely to happen this year as crosses are not gonna come that frequently under Rafa. So, this year DCL won’t be a must pick rather will be a good bargain pick at 8m.

Danny Ings (8m): Danny Ings needs no introduction to the veteran fpl players. He has continuously scored goals throughout his career and is one of the most direct forwards among the current forwards playing in the PL. Last season Ings played for the saints who weren’t a high-scoring side and still scored 12 goals. He played 2185 mins only and took 1.85 shots per 90 last season. The two-man forward line at saints also lessened his attacking threat there. However, his recent transfer at villa seems a lucrative option for the fpl managers. At villa, Ings will be the lone forward and behind him there will be a highly creative midfield which was not in saints. Ings might be the penalty taker too. A fit Ings will score 15+ goals this season is believed by many experts. Ings might reproduce his 2019/20 season tally of 22 goals which is a huge possibility. Danny Ings can be the Gambling of the season or be the flop. TIME WILL TELL.

By Khandker Ishtiaque Ahmed

Share