Watchlist

The Watchlist Updated – Young Guns

Our Watchlist rankings have had their regular weekly refresh and can be found in their usual location – in the lower right sidebar. Once again, we’re seeing City’s assets slip with form, fixtures and injuries working against them. Budget defenders continue to offer exceptional value, and while there looks to be just a single slot up for grabs in our attacks, the midfields are seeing plenty of movement, with strong mid-price and budget options pushing for selection.

Goalkeepers

Adam Bogdan remains at the top of the goalkeeper rankings – partly due to the wealth of defensive alternatives available to cover returns from other teams. The likes of Steven Caulker, Stephen Kelly, Andy Wilkinson, Gareth McAuley and Benoit Assou-Ekotto all offer cheaper or more favourable routes to their respective defences.

Bogdan’s clean sheet potential may be limited but, at 4.0 in the FPL and with exceptionally strong fixtures, the Hungarian offers the cheapest option in Bolton’s defence, allowing us to cover other teams with the aforementioned defenders – all of whom look more favorable than their respective goalkeepers. It should also be noted that Bogdan has returned nine points from saves in his last nine games, including four points in the last three matches – for a miserly 4.0, that’s not a bad solution. He also works well in tandem with both of the top owned keepers – Michel Vorm and Tim Krul, over their run of tough fixtures in the next month.

David De Gea is your heavyweight option with exceptional form and fixtures in his favour. Anders Lindegaard’s imminent return to fitness is a mild concern but, right now, you can be confident in De Gea’s starts for another three to four Gameweeks, with strong clean sheet potential available.

In the mid-price bracket, Fulham’s Mark Schwarzer and Tottenham’s Brad Friedel both offer assured quality acquisitions with decent fixtures ahead. Again though, Kelly for Fulham and Assou-Ekotto for Spurs look stronger routes to the defensive returns on offer. Likewise, while West Brom’s Ben Foster looks to have potential, his appeal is reduced by the availability of Gareth McAuley as an outstanding budget prospect.

In terms of goalkeeping rotation, we like Bogdan with Schwarzer until Gameweek 34, with Sunderland’s Simon Mignolet then replacing Bogdan and rotating nicely with the Fulham stopper until the penultimate Gameweek. The final day lottery is the issue there, with Schwarzer facing Spurs away and Mignolet up against United. Friedel and Mignolet is another pairing worth investigating – they swap home and away up until Gameweek 35 but have favourable fixtures between them right until the season end.

Defenders

Jonny Evans continues to look an essential bargain purchase who just can’t be ignored for United’s run-in. He’s being chased by Liverpool’s Martin Skrtel, who for us just has the edge on Jose Enrique with greater goal threat. The Glen Johnson/Martin Kelly situation is worth monitoring here though – should Johnson’s injury see him sidelined for a number of weeks, Kelly’s potential, at 5.2 in the FPL, could rival Skrtel on our Watchlists.

Benoit Assou-Ekotto is back on the radar ahead of a run of favourable opponents which should see him supplement assist potential with a clean sheet or two. Steven Caulker, Stephen Kelly and Gareth McAuley then rank next – all offering outstanding value coverage for the Swansea, Fulham and West Brom defences.

City’s defence has seen a decline over the past week or so, hindered by injuries to both Vincent Kompany and Joleon Lescott. That leaves Micah Richards as the most likely name right now – even he could be under threat once again once Pablo Zabaleta returns to fitness. Suddenly, from being prime stock, the City defence is now in flux with a rough run of fixtures and insecurity playing their part. There looks to be better value elsewhere.

Midfielders

Gareth Bale holds the top spot – but only on the promise of delivering returns over a favourable run of opponents. He’s now under severe threat from both United’s Ashley Young and Arsenal’s Theo Walcott.

Both have very strong form going forward, with the fixtues to translate that into returns. The pair also play second fiddle to heavy-hitting strikers and are therefore “double-up” options respectively. Few Fantasy managers will be concerned by that – both Arsenal and United look good for goals and we could see many squads adopt the duo in the coming weeks. While Young has the edge with a better short-term fixture, Walcott offers greater security and is also cheaper at 8.9. Long-term, then, the Arsenal man could be set for a jump above Young, particularly once the tricky trip to Everton is out of the way.

Clint Dempsey is clinging to a top five ranking – based mainly on favourable home fixtures. He’ll likely need to deliver against Swansea to stave off FPL sales, although with Norwich and Bolton also in the frame in the next four Gameweeks, patience appears to be the best policy.

West Brom’s James Morrison and Bolton’s Ryo Miyaichi – both with fixtures and form in their favour, are your budget option differentials available to shake things up. Newcastle’s Hatem Ben Arfa is also an intriguing option. He could be set for a run of starts following his goal at the Emirates – particularly if Ryan Taylor’s calf injury keeps him out for a number of weeks.

Forwards

Both Robin Van Persie and Wayne Rooney look rock solid at the top of the rankings – positions that they could well hold from now until the end of the season. Their form and fixtures could potentially mean that most Fantasy managers are looking to fill just one slot in their forward line – with budget likely to be the deciding factor.

Tottenham’s Emmanuel Adebayor looks to have fixtures on his side and could be the on the cusp of another spurt of profit. West Brom’s Peter Odemwingie is our favoured option further down the price brackets, with City’s Mario Balotelli, stepping over team-mate Sergio Aguero to offer a cheaper route into City’s attacking potential.

Down in the budget market, Norwich City’s Grant Holt and the Blackburn pairing of Yakubu and Junior Hoilett remain decent options. Although with a tag of 6.4, Fulham’s Pavel Pogrebnyak looks to offer the stronger value and will likely be the option of choice, with tempting Craven Cottage fixtures ahead.

Mark Mark created the beast. He's now looking to tame it.

1,693 Comments Post a Comment
  1. Elniñorules
    • Fantasy Football Scout Member
    • 13 Years
    12 years, 7 months ago

    Too early from Rami.

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  2. SPorting
    • 13 Years
    12 years, 7 months ago

    nice Torres backpass there.......oh it was a shot? sorry.

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    1. Ole Gunnar Kush
      • 14 Years
      12 years, 7 months ago

      lol

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  3. Catastrophe
    • 13 Years
    12 years, 7 months ago

    Hi guys, any more news on Valencia? Is he likely to start on sunday?

    Would you make any transfers with the below team? 0.1m in the bank.

    Vorm
    Evans, Skrtel, Williamson
    Dempsey(vc), Bale, Silva, Valencia
    Rooney(c), RVP, Ba

    Mignolet, McClean, Caulker, Richards
    cheers!

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    1. Jimmers
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 14 Years
      12 years, 7 months ago

      See if he's on bench tomorrow night - if he is will likely play on Sunday.

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  4. HuttonDressedasLahm
    • 14 Years
    12 years, 7 months ago

    Torres nearly lost it again then!!

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  5. De Gea
    • 12 Years
    12 years, 7 months ago

    Drogba is such a tit.

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    1. Abominable Snowy84
      • 12 Years
      12 years, 7 months ago

      +infinite

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  6. @ImpressiveTackl
    • 14 Years
    12 years, 7 months ago

    Oh Didier

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  7. Declan
    • 14 Years
    12 years, 7 months ago

    What a scumbag Drogba

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  8. Bad Pen
    • 12 Years
    12 years, 7 months ago

    Same old Drogs tricks, I hate to see it.

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    1. svasei - Up (?) the Rovers
      • 14 Years
      12 years, 7 months ago

      Love to see it. Only from him though.

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  9. The Rock
    • 15 Years
    12 years, 7 months ago

    Since when did Napoli sign Darren Gibson(Inler)?

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    1. the axolotl
      • 13 Years
      12 years, 7 months ago

      Was thinking just that

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  10. denial
    • Fantasy Football Scout Member
    • 15 Years
    12 years, 7 months ago

    Jesus Christ. Drogba is SUCH a c*nt.

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  11. Phaze 1
    • 13 Years
    12 years, 7 months ago

    Drogba doing a Busquets

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  12. HuttonDressedasLahm
    • 14 Years
    12 years, 7 months ago

    Told you. Drogba with the Maloda assisted dive!!

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    1. SuperDunny - Used to be goo…
      • 15 Years
      12 years, 7 months ago

      They are all at it

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      1. Beary
        • 13 Years
        12 years, 7 months ago

        should be fined for that sort of crap!

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  13. Scratch
    • 15 Years
    12 years, 7 months ago

    This ITV commentator is such a patronising gobsh!te. I almost want Napoli to score just to shut him up.

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    1. De Gea
      • 12 Years
      12 years, 7 months ago

      Yep. Even for Clive and Andy this is particularly bad.

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    2. Parm
      • 12 Years
      12 years, 7 months ago

      +1, I swear when the Pen went in I heard a small Yeah!!!!!!! before he took the mic away from his mouth to celebrate even more.

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      1. Sess!
        • Fantasy Football Scout Member
        • 13 Years
        12 years, 7 months ago

        ITV have always been the bottom of the shit barrel when it comes to commentating. I just hit the mute button to save my eyes the garbage.

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        1. Sess!
          • Fantasy Football Scout Member
          • 13 Years
          12 years, 7 months ago

          *ears even 😳

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  14. Parm
    • 12 Years
    12 years, 7 months ago

    Slightly Bias refereeing.

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  15. Abominable Snowy84
    • 12 Years
    12 years, 7 months ago

    lol malouda

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  16. SPorting
    • 13 Years
    12 years, 7 months ago

    i'm quite sure Drogba should be dead by now.....

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  17. Rowley Birkin
    • 15 Years
    12 years, 7 months ago

    This is disgusting from Drogba, what a dickhead

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    1. SuperDunny - Used to be goo…
      • 15 Years
      12 years, 7 months ago

      Seriously? You don't think EVERY one of those Napoli players are/would do the same

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      1. Rowley Birkin
        • 15 Years
        12 years, 7 months ago

        Oh and that makes it ok?

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        1. Sess!
          • Fantasy Football Scout Member
          • 13 Years
          12 years, 7 months ago

          +1

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        2. SuperDunny - Used to be goo…
          • 15 Years
          12 years, 7 months ago

          Why should Chelsea be disadvantaged by playing 'honest'? F uck 'em

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          1. Rowley Birkin
            • 15 Years
            12 years, 7 months ago

            Anyone who think that carry on should be part of the game is a mug!

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            1. SuperDunny - Used to be goo…
              • 15 Years
              12 years, 7 months ago

              So you mean every player at every club then?

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            2. Epic Fail
              • Fantasy Football Scout Member
              • 14 Years
              12 years, 7 months ago

              I'm a mug then.

              Persoanlly I'd probably do the same too if I thought it meant helping my team to not get knocked out.

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              1. SuperDunny - Used to be goo…
                • 15 Years
                12 years, 7 months ago

                Of course, the guy is just a bit naive

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  18. Paul Psychic Octopus
    • Fantasy Football Scout Member
    • 13 Years
    12 years, 7 months ago

    Embarrassing for the Drog if he's recorded it on his DVD to watch when he gets home.

    Some of his face make-up nearly came off then

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  19. Daniyal
    • 12 Years
    12 years, 7 months ago

    is there injury/added time to these extra minutes?

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    1. The Rock
      • 15 Years
      12 years, 7 months ago

      1 at tops

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  20. Declan
    • 14 Years
    12 years, 7 months ago

    Sit down Terry

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  21. Abominable Snowy84
    • 12 Years
    12 years, 7 months ago

    terry the manager?

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    1. Chris_Fàbregas #DOOS…
      • 14 Years
      12 years, 7 months ago

      Give him the England job.

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      1. denial
        • Fantasy Football Scout Member
        • 15 Years
        12 years, 7 months ago

        Oh God, please no.

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    2. 1966 was a great year for E…
      • 14 Years
      12 years, 7 months ago

      Exactly what Keane or Vieira would do, and rightly so. I don't like him, but he's a great captain.

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      1. SuperDunny - Used to be goo…
        • 15 Years
        12 years, 7 months ago

        +1

        GREAT captain

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  22. Parm
    • 12 Years
    12 years, 7 months ago

    This refereeing is getting out of hand now.

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  23. moment
    • Fantasy Football Scout Member
    • 13 Years
    12 years, 7 months ago

    Oh Drogs... Should've scored....

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    1. Chris_Fàbregas #DOOS…
      • 14 Years
      12 years, 7 months ago

      Probably would have done if he wasn't so fatigued.

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  24. Sess!
    • Fantasy Football Scout Member
    • 13 Years
    12 years, 7 months ago

    F*ck off itv, f*ck chelsea, f*ck off napoli. The best result would be if the satellite signal went down.

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    1. 1966 was a great year for E…
      • 14 Years
      12 years, 7 months ago

      😀

      You could just turn it off...

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      1. Sess!
        • Fantasy Football Scout Member
        • 13 Years
        12 years, 7 months ago

        Just have 🙂

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  25. The Rock
    • 15 Years
    12 years, 7 months ago

    Going to miss Napoli. Certainly preferred watching them play over Chelsea.

    Although happy at the saem time at least 1 English side made it through.

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    1. The Rock
      • 15 Years
      12 years, 7 months ago

      same*

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    2. @ImpressiveTackl
      • 14 Years
      12 years, 7 months ago

      Not really. Best team they've had since Maradona but let's be honest, they fluffed it tonight. They won't have this chance again for a long time.

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  26. Abominable Snowy84
    • 12 Years
    12 years, 7 months ago

    di matteo to be giving a 3 year contract and be out of the job by september

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    1. Doosra - ☭DeclanMyGenius…
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 14 Years
      12 years, 7 months ago

      Cynic!!! 😆

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  27. Ole Gunnar Kush
    • 14 Years
    12 years, 7 months ago

    who scored for Chelsea??

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    1. Ole Gunnar Kush
      • 14 Years
      12 years, 7 months ago

      oh there it is

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  28. @ImpressiveTackl
    • 14 Years
    12 years, 7 months ago

    Chelsea saving the Premier League's blushes.

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  29. Tommytour
    • 13 Years
    12 years, 7 months ago

    Great result Chelski, now for the United turn around tomorrow!

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  30. HuttonDressedasLahm
    • 14 Years
    12 years, 7 months ago

    I love the way Drogba had the nerve to call UEFA cheats, when he is the biggest one!

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    1. svasei - Up (?) the Rovers
      • 14 Years
      12 years, 7 months ago

      I want him in my team. Badly!

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      1. JK - Cønt ⭐
        • Fantasy Football Scout Member
        • 12 Years
        12 years, 7 months ago

        +1, ready for GW32, think Young will survive 2 weeks before becoming Valencia to make it happen.

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