Andy Carroll has been in outstanding form this season but with nearly 40% ownership in the FPL game, he can hardly be classed as a differential. These articles are all about those players capable of providing big returns in the forthcoming weeks, without attracting too much media attention; something Andy Carroll seems incapable of at the moment. Thankfully we don’t need to look very far to find the perfect alternative in the form of his Newcastle strike partner, Shola Ameobi.

Since racking up 18 points against Sunderland, he has been transferred in by just 12,000 managers, which seems completely unjustified seeing as Ameobi appears to have nailed down a regular starting spot. In stark contrast, Andy Carroll scored 18 points against Aston Villa and was brought in by 450,000 players. Ameobi is owned by just 2.8% of FPL managers but is playing regularly and scoring goals, and at 4.2m, he is also the second cheapest forward available in the FPL game.

The Sunderland game also threw up a nice surprise when Ameobi laid down a cast iron claim to Newcastle’s spot kick duties; he took the penalty despite captain Kevin Nolan being on for a hat-trick. If he is able to maintain his fitness then, he represents a serious bargain to anyone looking for a cheap third striker.

Despite only playing 449 minutes in the league this year, Ameobi has racked up an impressive 38 points so far, equivalent to 7.6 points per 90 minutes of play which is considerably more than his strike partner Andy Carroll. Obviously comparing these statistics needs to be taken in context, Ameobi has only started 4 games this season, but it is still impressive for such a cheap forward. On top of the 3 goals and 3 assists in the league, Ameobi has also scored three goals in two games in the Carling cup so his fantasy potential is there for all to see.

Such a cheap striker is always going to be defined by how safe his starting role is in the team, but with Wayne Routledge falling out of favour and the long term injury to Hatem Ben Arfa, Hughton appears to have settled on a 4-4-2 formation with Ameobi and Carroll playing together. After the Sunderland game, Ameobi commented on their new partnership:

“People didn’t think it would work but I know Andy’s game. Just because we’re both big lads doesn’t mean we can’t play together – we’ve shown that in the last couple of games. I know Andy didn’t score on Sunday but he was absolutely terrific. His determination was incredible – he created so much. It’s a partnership in it’s early stages but I’m really, really confident it will work.”

The general assumption before the Arsenal game was that against the bigger sides, Chris Hughton would revert to a more defensive 4-5-1 formation with Ameobi dropping to the bench. Hughton’s tactics in that game were interesting however, rather than play an extra midfielder, Ameobi took up a role between the midfield four and Andy Carroll up front, in a loose 4-5-1/4-4-2 formation. This helped to restrict the Arsenal midfield, yet still provide enough firepower up front to win the game.

After such an emphatic victory at the Emirates, it is hard to see Ameobi losing his place in the side regardless of opposition, and assuming he can stay injury free, he now represents a very credible option.

Two home games in a row against Blackburn and Fulham, make him an ideal short term investment, and a great differential. With his spot in the side looking almost certain then, if he gets anything out of those games, we could see a bandwagon on an almost Carroll-esque scale.