Bandwagons Analysed – Gameweek 8

Gameweek 7 saw 41 goals fly in across all games which as no doubt set in motion a few bandwagons. With only Manchester United and Crystal Palace, of all people, keeping a clean sheet last week, many options have emerged across all teams.

Players who had previously been overlooked, were at the back of managers minds or who had been out with injury have now cemented themselves as strong options over the coming weeks. Whilst some will be turning their heads towards the more obscure players, hoping their low ownership coupled with potential points rewards will boost them up the rankings, others have opted to follow the crowd.

Jamie Vardy (6.5)

A seemingly obvious pick this week. After featuring in my recent under the radar, Vardy grabbed a brace at the weekend. I pointed out that the Englishman was yet to return a big haul to set the wheels in motion for his bandwagon, despite his impressive consistency. He has since returned that haul which I spoke of and with Callum Wilson seemingly out for six months, he is the most popular replacement.

Vardy’s stats back up his impressive consistency. With 49 touches in the box so far this season placing him fourth amongst the forward rankings, behind only Southampton’s Graziano Pelle, West Ham’s Diafra Sakho and the injured Callum Wilson, he is certainly getting involved in scoring areas he needs to be to score, as all of his six goals have come from inside the box. Furthermore, he has registered 23 attempts on goal, bettered only by Pelle, Sergio Aguero and misfiring Spurs man Harry Kane. His shots in the box also place him fourth amongst the other strikers with a tally of 18 and with 10 shots on target he can only be bettered by Bafetimbi Gomis and Mame Biram Diouf who have each managed one more.

What impresses me even more about Vardy is his creativity. He has created a total of 11 chances so far which betters that of any other striker, although this hasn’t been reflected in his assists as he has only one to his name so far. He managed 12 last season, along with his five goals. Currently sitting with his name on the score sheet on six occasions, he has already bettered that scoring feat. Furthermore, his creativity stats suggest that assists are imminent too. It is also worth noting that he has registered a total of 15 crosses, the most of all the forwards, although only two of these were successful.

Verdict: Vardy looks an outstanding option right now, especially given Leicester have a kind run of fixtures and are in fine form. His stats back him up and his consistency is comforting for many managers given the seemingly lack of reliable options so far this season. He looks the ideal replacement for Callum Wilson for those who can make up the difference in price.

Alexis Sanchez (11.1)

Despite being owned by much of the FFScout community, Arsenal’s  Sanchez had a fairly low ownership within the whole of FPL. With the second most net transfers in this week behind Vardy, he has sprung onto the radars of all FPL managers following the trio of goals he put past Leicester. His ownership, however, still remains fairly low at 16.1% suggesting at 11.1 many are struggling to squeeze him into their midfields.

In terms of points, he has been a ticking time bomb, with successive blanks masking impressive underlying attacking stats.  This was largely the reason this community was patient for so long. His goal attempts (38) far and away beat that of any other midfielder. As do his shots in the box (28) and touches in the box (67). The latter of those stats is by far the most impressive, with Navas coming closest to that tally but only mustering up 45. His shots on target (10) are bettered only by Mahrez and teammate Walcott. It certainly looks like he will continue to get service, with Ozil and Cazorla leading the way for chances created, managing 29 and 27 respectively.

In all honestly, Sanchez looks too good to ignore right now. He has well and truly got the ball rolling and after 16 goals last season, we shall all hope that more continue to follow. He has a couple of encounters coming up which may prove tough, namely Manchester United, Everton and Spurs, however he has a very nice run in a month’s time and is the sort of player who can score against anybody.

Verdict: Dare I say it but Sanchez looks ‘essential’. It was only a matter of time before one of the heavy hitters started hitting the target. With reliable points scorers few and far between, it is a relief to have someone of Sanchez’s calibre off the mark. I expect him to continue to bring in some nice points totals over the comings weeks and urge people to not be put off by the inevitable odd blank which may come in the process.

Juan Mata (8.8)

Mata has somewhat crept up on us fantasy managers after bringing in consistent points all season but failing to register a score that brought him into our plans. After a goal and assist at the weekend returned him 14 points, he is being drafted in by many. His ownership remains modest at 17.7% and his price, 8.8 is on the shy end of being premium.

Although more renowned for being an assister, Mata has also proved he can score goals. His stats across the board are pretty consistent, with seven shots on target, 25 touches in the penalty area and 18 attempts on goal. You would expect his creativity stats to be excellent too, however they are lacklustre to say the least. He has created 14 chances so far this season, placing him joint 14th in the midfielder rankings. His involvement stats too are below par. Nevertheless, it seems that he and his teammates have taken the chances they have had. With the likes of Martial currently with an unsustainable conversion rate, it is likely that his assists may not come as often unless he stats improve.

United have some tough fixtures in the next few weeks too, with Arsenal (A),Everton (A) and Man City (H) in the next month. Mata may not keep up the points he has boasted so far, but will probably still provide the odd goal or assist which will be enough to keep the interest of many.

Verdict: There is no doubt that he has good form, but his stats and fixtures cast a shadow over it for me. I cannot see him continuing to score so well over the coming weeks. I would however keep him on the radar, and consider him from gameweek 11 onwards where he looks a real option. With it looking like he has penalties in his locker too he could be a great option for Man United’s nicer fixtures.