The Watchlist Updated – Gameweek 7 – The Forwards

With Gameweek 7 just around the corner, our final look at our updated Watchlist rankings, which offer player recommendations for the next four-to-six Gameweeks, sees us break down the latest movements among the forwards. Anthony Martial comes straight in towards the top of our ladder after his sensational start to life at Old Trafford, while Odion Ighalo’s form for Watford brings one of this season’s surprise packages into our thoughts.

With Manchester City’s upcoming fixtures (tot, NEW, BOU, mun, NOR, avl) still very favourable, and on the back of a goal and an assist in his last two appearances in all competitions, Sergio Aguero keeps his place on top of our rankings. The Argentine, who sets us back 13.2 in Fantasy Premier League (FPL), has failed to live up to his price tag so far this season, but it’s hard to back against last season’s top goalscorer given City’s schedule.

Bournemouth’s Callum Wilson netted his fifth goal of the campaign in the 2-0 win against Sunderland last time out, and while the Cherries forthcoming fixtures (sto, WAT, mci, TOT, sot, NEW) offer some tricky match-ups, particularly on the road, it’s hard to argue against the value offered by the 6.0-priced forward. The former Coventry striker now has an ownership of 29.9% in FPL.

Another riser this week is Leicester’s Jamie Vardy, who scored for the third consecutive match in the 2-2 draw against Stoke. The England international has now only failed to produce attacking points in one of his six appearances this season, and with the Foxes fixture list (ARS, nor, sot, CPL, wba, WAT) still pretty reasonable, the 6.2-valued frontman should continue to offer excellent value.

Few Fantasy managers could have predicted the instant impact Anthony Martial would make in English football. The former Monaco forward has scored three goals in his two league appearances, and also found the back of the net in a 20-minute cameo appearance against Ipswich last night. While he has only registered four goal attempts in his two outings, and five penalty box touches, the France international looks to have incredible poise in front of goal, and despite some mixed fixtures for Man United over the coming period, it’s no surprise that he’s been transferred in by over 454,000 FPL bosses so far this week, seeing his price rise to 8.3. The 19-year-old also leads this week’s Captain Poll ahead of the plum home fixture against Sunderland with 32% of the vote.

Having failed to produce attacking returns over the last two Gameweeks, Swansea’s Bafetimbi Gomis falls a couple of spots on our ladder. The 7.4-rated did manage six goal attempts over the same period, however, and still looks a solid option with the Welsh outfit facing a reasonable stretch in their schedule (sot, TOT, STO, avl, ARS, nor) over the next six Gameweeks. The former Lyon hitman has clearly been one of the main fall guys for the Martial bandwagon, though, with 94,000+ shedding the France international so far this week.

Following his brace against Newcastle, Watford’s Odion Ighalo is now amazingly the second highest scoring forward in FPL this season with 34 points. The Hornets striker, who carries a bargain price tag of 5.1 in FPL, lies joint-second among forwards over the last two Gameweeks for goal attempts (eight), and has a strong run of fixtures (CPL, bou, ARS, sto, WHM, lei) over the next month to continue his rich vein of form. The Nigeria international’s ownership still stands at just 4.0% in FPL.

Third on the list of the highest scoring forwards is Southampton’s Graziano Pelle, and the Italian is another riser in our latest update on the back of his 13-point haul against Man United. The 7.9-priced striker does have a slight foot injury to contend with at the moment, but provided he can shake that off, the upcoming fixtures for the Saints (SWA, che, LEI, liv, BOU, sun) are generally pretty favourable.

According to our Season Ticker, West Ham have the most favourable fixtures (NOR, sun, cpl, CHE, wat, EVE) over the next six Gameweeks, so Diafra Sakho remains a great option for Fantasy managers in the mid-price bracket. The 6.5-valued forward scored his second goal of the season in the Hammers impressive 2-1 win at the Etihad, although the fact he hasn’t scored in any of the favourable home match-ups against Leicester, Bournemouth and Newcastle is a slight concern.

By virtue of West Brom’s kind run of fixtures (EVE, cpl, SUN, nor, LEI) over the coming weeks, Salomon Rondon remains in our thoughts despite blanking over the last two Gameweeks. With an ownership of just 0.9% in FPL, the Venezuela international definitely offers a great option as a differential, but with the Baggies scoring just four goals so far this season, he looks a tad expensive at 7.0 compared to the likes of Wilson and Vardy, who star in more attack-minded sides.

Another forward who looks a great value option is Stoke’s Bojan, who only sets us back 5.3 in FPL. The former Barcelona attacker scored on his first start of the season in the 2-2 draw against Leicester, playing in the number ten role for the Potters. While he may still be building up his match fitness, the Spain international looks worthy of some consideration given the fixtures (BOU, avl, swa, WAT, new) Mark Hughes’ men face over the coming period.

Although he has blanked over his last four appearances, Everton’s Romelu Lukaku clings onto a place in our rankings, having attempted nine goal attempts over the last two Gameweeks, the most among forwards along with Pelle and Vardy. The Toffees forthcoming fixtures (wba, LIV, MUN, ars, SUN, whm) are still pretty testing though, so the 8.2-priced Belgian is probably unlikely to attract much investment until the schedule turns from Gameweek 11 onwards.

Harry Kane finds a place at the bottom of our refresh. Despite failing to find the net in the first six Gameweek, the Spurs hit man sits second for total attempts (21) amongst forwards so far, though clashes against City, Swansea, Liverpool and Arsenal in the next six are likely to deter most from considering his services.