The Watchlist Updated – Gameweek 12 – The Midfield

After picking up another two assists in Arsenal’s 3-0 win at Swansea, Mesut Ozil moves just behind his Gunners team-mate Alexis Sanchez in our rankings, while Riyad Mahrez’s 15-point haul in Leicester’s 3-2 victory at West Brom sees the Algerian rise up the rankings once again.

Although Man City’s fixtures (avl, LIV, SOT, sto, SWA, ars) begin to get more difficult over the next six Gameweeks, Kevin De Bruyne remains at the summit after registering three goals and four assists in just seven league appearances for the Citizens. The former Wolfsburg midfielder now sets us back 10.7 in Fantasy Premier League (FPL), but with uncertainty still surrounding Sergio Aguero’s comeback date, the club-record signing offers the best route into the City attack right now.

Despite failing to score in his last two outings, Arsenal’s Alexis Sanchez’ underlying numbers remain very strong. The Chile international leads all midfielders for shots inside the box (ten) over the last four Gameweeks and with the Gunners’ fixture list over the coming period (TOT, wba, nor, SUN, avl, MCI) still pretty favourable, we should see the 11.6-priced midfielder back amongst the goals sooner rather than later.

While Sanchez has disappointed in recent weeks, the same can’t be said of his Arsenal team-mate Mesut Ozil. The German international has averaged 10 points per appearance over the last four Gameweeks, courtesy of a goal and six assists. Ozil is creating a chance every 18.6 minutes so far this season, better than any regular midfielder, so it’s little surprise he’s leading the transfers in this week – over 91,000 FPL bosses have drafted the former Real Madrid schemer in, seeing his price rise to 8.7.

Southampton’s Sadio Mane keeps his place as one of the highest rated midfielders, with Ronald Koeman’s side facing three favourable fixtures in the next four (sun, STO, mci, AVL). The Senegal international has totalled 25 touches in the penalty area over the last four Gameweeks, more than any other midfielder, and should deliver great value given his more than reasonable 8.0 price tag in FPL over the next couple of weeks.

With Leicester’s remarkable start to the season showing few signs of coming to a halt, faith in both Jamie Vardy and Riyad Mahrez continues to be rewarded. The Algerian punished plenty of Fantasy bosses who decided to bench him last week, but with two strong fixtures (WAT, new) over the next two Gameweeks, it’s unlikely that mistake will be repeated. The Foxes do face some slightly trickier match-ups (MUN, swa, CHE, eve) thereafter, but setting us back just 6.6 in FPL, Mahrez offers us unbelievable value considering he’s racked up 85 points this season, more than any other player.

On the back of a blank against Watford, and with West Ham’s upcoming schedule (EVE, tot, WBA, mun, STO, swa) less than favourable, Dimitri Payet sees his stock fall slightly this time around. The France international’s underlying statistics are still very impressive, creating 18 chances in his last four appearances, while managing 14 goal attempts over the same period. He’s also already shown he can deliver attacking returns against strong opposition such as Arsenal and Man City, but with so many appealing options for our five-man midfields, the 8.3-valued playmaker probably doesn’t fall into the “essential” category right now.

Given that Newcastle’s upcoming fixtures (bou, LEI, cpl, LIV, tot, AVL) remain pretty favourable, Georginio Wijnaldum is maintained around halfway up our ladder. The Dutch international has managed 12 goal attempts over the last four Gameweeks, with an impressive nine of those on target. The 7.0-rated midfielder’s ownership stands at just 7.4%, and he looks a good option for those looking for an alternative to the likes of Payet and Andre Ayew.

With some favourable fixtures (liv, SUN, NEW, eve, SOT, sto) for Crystal Palace over the coming period, Yohan Cabaye stays in our thoughts. The 6.6-priced France international has mainly relied on penalties to provide attacking returns but, having accrued 10 bonus points so far this season, he can rack up double-digit scores fairly easily. Cabaye also has reasonable assist potential, with seven chances created in his last four outings.

Swansea’s Andre Ayew slides down a couple of spots in our latest refresh, with other midfielders beginning to catch our eye more than the Ghana international. The 7.1-valued attacker does have three strong fixtures (nor, BOU, liv, LEI) in the next four though, and with five goals already this season, he does have a proven track record of being able to find the back of the net.

Owners of Everton’s Ross Barkley will have been left hugely disappointed by his blank in the Toffees’ resounding 6-2 victory against Sunderland, but with more favourable fixtures to come over the next six Gameweeks (whm, AVL, bou, CPL, nor, LEI), the 6.8-rated midfielder should be able to bag some reasonable attacking points. Only two of his 12 goal attempts over the last four Gameweeks have been from inside the box, though, so his 21.8% ownership may be relying on something spectacular to garner those attacking returns.

Liverpool’s Philippe Coutinho really punished the 28,000 FPL bosses who opted to ditch him last week by bringing in a spectacular 14-point haul against Chelsea. The Brazilian can be hugely frustrating to own, though, having blanked in seven of his 10 league appearances this season. Nonetheless, with the Reds’ fixture list (CPL, mci, SWA, new, WBA, wat) beginning to ease over the next few weeks, some may be prepared to take the plunge on the 8.1-priced midfielder for the long haul.

In a similar manner, Tottenham’s Christian Eriksen can also flatter to deceive. The Spurs midfielder sets us back slightly more than Coutinho, coming in at 8.4 in FPL, but has created 15 chances over the last four Gameweeks, compared to just four for the Liverpool man. With Tottenham’s fixtures (ars, WHM, CHE, wba, NEW sot) mixed over the coming period, the Denmark international may struggle to capture the imagination of Fantasy managers with so many other options available.

We’ve finally given up on Eden Hazard as our Chelsea midfielder of choice and have instead turned to Willian after the Brazilian continued his fine recent form with the winner against Dynamo Kiev last night. Hazard was handed less than an hour against Liverpool last weekend and dropped to the bench last night, with the return of Pedro posing further questions over his pitch time. At a price of just 6.8, Willian has bagged two goals and an assist in the last five Gameweeks and looks a valid mid-price option with some very favourable fixtures (sto, NOR, tot, BOU, lei, SUN) to follow.

With two goals and an assist in his last six appearances, and with his price now down to 5.6 in FPL, we’ve once again found a place for Matt Ritchie towards the bottom of or ladder. The Bournemouth midfielder has a plum home fixture against Newcastle on Saturday, although the rest of the Cherries’ schedule over the next month or so (swa, EVE, che, MUN, wba) is mixed, so expect the Scotland international to stay on the periphery of our thoughts for the time being.

While Mane is regularly talked about as an outstanding Fantasy asset, his Southampton team-mate Dusan Tadic has actually outscored him by 55 points to 53 so far this season. The Serbia international probably has less explosive potential, but in a similar way to Ozil, can be relied upon for a steady dose of assists, and coming in at 7.0 in FPL, that valuable commodity shouldn’t be underestimated.

Falling all the way to the bottom of our rankings this week is Man United’s Juan Mata. The underlying statistics are hugely concerning for the Spaniard, with just two goal attempts in his last four outings, while he only created five chances over the same period. United’s fixtures (WBA, wat, lei, WHM, bou, NOR) are more favourable over the next few weeks, but following four consecutive blanks, and with Jesse Lingard’s involvement in the first team pouring some doubt onto his starting position, the 8.8-valued midfielder probably has too many question marks surrounding him right now to earn a place in our congested midfield line-ups.