The Stock Check – Gameweek 28 – Saturday

A reduced Gameweek still produces a bumper haul from Josh King, while Romelu Lukaku rewards the 17.4% of managers who captained the Everton striker with another goal and an assist return.

But an injury to one of the week’s most popular acquisitions, Swansea City striker Fernando Llorente, and a return to the bench for West Brom’s Chris Brunt are among the Gameweek 28 downsides.

Here’s Saturday’s league and FA Cup Stock Check…

ON THE RISE

Josh King
He scored a hat-trick, could conceivably have had five, and brought in 18 points for his 6.1% ownership base – the Bournemouth midfielder produced an extraordinary performance in the win over West Ham.

For the second week running, King was pushed back into a number 10 role to accommodate Benik Afobe up front, but that failed to limit his attacking threat as he scored for the third consecutive match.

It’s now eight goals from his last seven starts and those 58 points places him into the top 15 for midfielders.

What’s even more extraordinary is that he really could (and should) have had five against the Hammers.

King missed a penalty at 0-0, prompting Afobe to take over spot-kick duties when the Cherries were awarded a second. The striker saw his feeble effort saved, leaving King’s owners wondering what might have been.

And owners he certainly has – 143,891 brought him in ahead of Gameweek 28 and the bandwagon has already begun again, with a further 24,000+ already buying into him ahead of Saturday’s attractive home fixture with Swansea City.

Things stiffen after that, however, with a trip to Southampton followed by away matches at Liverpool and Spurs and a visit from Chelsea.

That’s a run that could very well temper his blistering form but, given his price point, it’s clear that King can be acquired as a fifth midfielder with an option to be benched as required.

Romelu Lukaku
The big Belgian delivered once again, with a goal, an assist and maximum bonus points providing double-digit returns for the 17.4% of managers who handed him the armband.

It’s now seven goals from his last five Gameweeks for Lukaku, taking him 12 points clear at the top of the FPL forward standings.

Everton have lost just the once since Gameweek 17, and that was 3-2 defeat at Spurs in which Lukaku scored – one of 10 goals he’s managed in that fine run.

More than 370,000 invested in Lukaku ahead of yesterday’s match – only Swansea’s Fernando Llorente attracted more new owners among forwards – and a home match with Hull next suggests more of the same from the Golden Boot contender.

Two tough away tests, at Liverpool and Man United, will follow before the Toffees’ schedule eases once again.

Ross Barkley
A goal and an assist from the first two matches of the season prompted more than 700,000 managers to invest in Barkley.

His ownership levels are now around half that, but they’ve been steadily rising in recent weeks as Barkley has brought real consistency to his game.

A goal and six assists from his last eight starts is testament to that, and he set up two of Everton’s three goals in their stroll past West Brom on Saturday.

That would have delighted the 46,010 who tapped into him ahead of Gameweek 28, but there has been little love for Barkley since. Three Everton players currently rank in the top 30 for transfers-in and Barkley is not among them.

Sergio Aguero, Leroy Sane
Sell in haste, repent at leisure…

After jumping through all manner of hoops to bring Aguero in for the double Gameweek 27, Fantasy managers promptly jumped back through them to ditch the striker for Man City’s blank this week.

More than 370,000 rolled the double Gameweek dice on Aguero, with nearly half of them selling him again as City prepare for a tough short-term run of Liverpool at home and then Arsenal and Chelsea away.

But the Argentinian keeps on scoring regardless.

He might have only found the net once in three league matches since Gabriel Jesus’ injury effectively handed him an assured starting role, but City have also played four FA Cup and Champions League ties in that time – and Aguero has scored five goals.

He hit the second in the 2-0 FA Cup quarter-final win at Middlesbrough and was unlucky not get more.

Sane has endured a Sergio-lite experience over the past week – sold by 40,413 having earned 110,869 new owners ahead of the double Gameweek 27.

But Pep Guardiola is beginning to rely heavily on the winger, starting him in six of the last seven matches in the league.

His overall form has certainly warranted it. Although he’s managed just a goal and an assist from his last five league starts, he has either scored or assisted in his last three FA Cup and Champions League performances and laid on Aguero’s goal at the Riverside.

Alfie Mawson, Gylfi Sigurdsson
Swansea’s 2-1 defeat at Hull might have dragged Paul Clement’s men back into the relegation mix, but the Fantasy credentials of two of his players remains intact.

Defender Mawson’s late consolation goal was his fourth strike in nine starts under Clement.

So while Swansea have managed just the one clean sheet in that time frame, Mawson has still delivered four returns of at least eight points (and two double-digit ones).

The Englishman is still only owned by just over 2% of managers, making him a solid differential as the Swans embark on a six-match run that, a visit by Spurs aside, offers Clement’s side a great chance to secure their top-flight status.

As for the 18.4%-owned Sigurdsson, he always seems to find a way to reward his managers.

His assist for Mawson’s goal was his fourth in four matches. And in his last seven starts, he’s scored three times and provided five assists.

Swansea’s favourable run should keep the points flowing from a man who has been so consistent that he currently sits sixth in the midfielders’ standings despite his team’s season-long struggles.

Michail Antonio
A stellar opening to the season had Antonio enjoying close to three-quarters of a million owners before West Ham’s issues, partly inspired by Dmitri Payet, knocked him off his perch.

Back after a one-match suspension, Antonio scored for the first time since Gameweek 19 in the 3-2 loss at Bournemouth and managed to complete the full 90 minutes despite suffering a second-half shoulder problem.

Antonio is still owned by 9.1% and the Hammers have an extremely favourable schedule all the way up to Gameweek 36, with an early April trip to Arsenal the toughest test they’ll face.

Oumar Niasse
The striker transformed a match that could have been heading for an inglorious stalemate by coming off the bench to score twice in 28 superb minutes of action.

His goals re-ignited Hull’s battle against relegation, and the Tigers’ run-in could make the 0.4%-owned man a third striker differential of serious potential – of their last ten matches, only trips to Everton and Man City and a last-day home match with Spurs look beyond the capabilities of Marco Silva’s battling side.

Niasse, however, is starting to look like a super-sub. He’s failed to score in three starts but now has three goals from his five appearances from the bench. Nonetheless, his 5.6 price could prove attractive for those preferring a five-man midfield strategy.

The Senegal striker is, however, unavailable against his parent club for the Gameweek 29 trip to Everton.

Alexis Sanchez
Whatever his future at the Emirates, Sanchez remains Arsenal’s key Fantasy asset, and he notched another goal in the Gunners’ 5-0 win over a plucky Lincoln City on Saturday.

In a season of increasing lows for Arsene Wenger’s men, the Chilean’s impact has been extraordinary – he’s either scored or assisted in 19 of Arsenal’s 27 league matches – and even a recent return to left flank duties doesn’t seem to have slowed his prodigious output.

The Gunners now have a great schedule through to Gameweek 35, with only the visit of Man City at the start of April providing a true test. Throw in a pair of double Gameweeks, and the lure of Sanchez remains as strong as ever.

But if the 25.1%-owned 11.5 man is too rich for your blood, the form of Theo Walcott (4.0% and 7.3) perhaps requires monitoring.

Walcott has looked the sharpest of all the Gunners over the past two matches, with goals against both Bayern and Lincoln to back that up.

However Wenger decides to juggle his forward resources, the England man looks good for further starts on the right flank for the foreseeable future.

IN DECLINE

Fernando Llorente
Liverpool’s Sadio Mane was the only asset to attract more new investors than Llorente ahead of Gameweek 28, only for the Spaniard to reward them with a 44-minute performance most notable for the dead leg that forced him off the pitch.

More than 378,000 bought Llorente. Nearly 80,000 captained him on the back of three goals from his previous two starts.

A one point debacle ensued, and he is now a doubt for next week’s trip to Bournemouth. The Swans’ schedule remains kind, however, so patience could still be rewarded.

Martin Olsson
Llorente’s team-mate was the second most popular acquisition among defenders for Gameweek 28 – only Everton’s Seamus Coleman attracted more investors than Olsson’s 52,851.

His goal against Burnley last week hinted at Olsson being Swansea’s new defensive weapon of choice ahead of Alfie Mawson, but he fell short in the 2-1 loss at Hull and picked up an ankle problem to ratchet up the pain for his new owners.

By then, Paul Clement had made all three of his substitutions, so Olsson had to play on. That could further dampen his chances of being fit for next week’s Bournemouth trip.

Robert Snodgrass
The most popular West Ham midfielder, his 12.1% ownership base is bolstered by a fine first half of the season for former club Hull, but a further 46,209 managers brought Snodgrass in for Gameweek 28.

They were rewarded with the news that their man was dropped to the bench to accommodate the return of Michail Antonio, with Sofiane Feghouli retaining his starting role.

The former promptly scored and the latter provided an assist, suggesting that Snodgrass’ second-half introduction from the bench could be the best he can hope for as competition among Slaven Bilic’s more progressive midfield assets hots up. Snodgrass also picked up a foot problem on his introduction, although he played on and completed the match.

Ramiro Funes Mori, Leighton Baines
The Argentinian defender had started ten of Everton’s last 11 matches and helped the Toffees to five clean sheets. His reward for the visit of West Brom was to be benched in favour of Phil Jagielka.

That was a bitter pill to swallow for his 3.9% ownership base, although he did make it onto the pitch for the second-half when Leighton Baines succumbed to a back problem.

That, in turn, was a major disappointment for the left-back’s 12.6% ownership, with neither defender earning sufficient minutes to secure points from Everton’s clean sheet.

More than 18,000 new managers had tapped into Funes Mori and well over double bought Baines.

Neither are now guaranteed starters for Gameweek 29’s visit of Hull, although reports suggest that manager Ronald Koeman has stressed that Baines is expected to be in contention.

Chris Brunt, Gareth McAuley
McAuley is second only to Spurs’ Kyle Walker for ownership among defenders, and he has provided two clean sheets and a couple of goals for his flock over the past seven Gameweeks.

But the Baggies’ previously peachy schedule is now shifting to tougher times, starting with yesterday’s 3-0 loss at Goodison Park.

West Brom will endure a tough run-in.

Arsenal (h) and Man United (a) start things off, but they also have Liverpool, Man City and Chelsea to come before the season’s end.

At least McAuley’s managers saw him start at Everton. The 4.3% who own Chris Brunt were greeted with the news that their man was being rested, although he was given 16 minutes at the end of what was a convincing defeat.

The Baggies remain a dire defensive prospect on the road – the one and only away clean sheet they’ve managed came in Gameweek 1 – and they still have five more away trips to come as well as visits from Arsenal, Liverpool and Chelsea.

McAuley’s goal threat – he has six this season – might save him for now, but the case for Brunt is looking increasingly feeble.