West Brom may seem an unlikely source of end of season Fantasy talent but, form and a batch of favourable fixtures for the Baggies over the final four gameweeks undoubtedly make them well worthy of consideration. Roy Hodgson’s side have hit the 40 point-mark and, while they are mathematically still not clear of relegation from the Premier League, the club’s outstanding recent run of form suggests otherwise.
One defeat in nine matches since Hodgson’s appointment has seen them average two goals per game, a big difference from the previous 31 goals in 25 games under Roberto Di Matteo. Considering they have one clean sheet all season, it’s fair to say West Brom have been reliant on the men up front to fire them to top-flight safety and luckily for Hodgson, he has the services of Peter Odemwingie to rely upon.
Odemwingie has had a dream debut season in the Premier League and with (AVL, wol, EVE, new) still to come, there’s surely some more goals in the Nigerian’s boots between now and the end of the season. The “Hodgson Effect” has had a big impact on his Fantasy Premier League (FPL) points output, too; he averaged a respectable 4.6 points per game (ppg) under Di Matteo, but has soared to 6.4ppg since Roy’s arrival.
While Charlie Adam has been hailed as the Fantasy bargain of the season, a look at Value (Season) in FPL shows Odemwingie has matched the Blackpool man, with both top on 28. Adam is owned by 35.4% of FPL teams but Odemwingie stars in just 12.1%, despite a ridiculously low price of 5.4.
As many Fantasy Managers look to get rid of double gameweek 34 players and with the likes of Chelsea, Man United and Arsenal all facing some tricky upcoming fixtures, a transfer-in for Odemwingie almost seems like a no-brainer; 4 goals, 4 assists and 8 Bonus Points in his last 5 games (a run including clashes with Spurs, Arsenal and Chelsea) marks him as the in-form forward in the Premier League right now and a budget-friendly bargain at that.
