Another gameweek fast approaches and we’ve been feverishly beavering away to update our Watchlist rankings. Fantasy managers can see the fruits of our labours in the right hand toolbar with a short round-up after the break…
Goalkeepers
With the top three keepers holding steady, we focus instead on a quartet of main risers. Ali Al-Habsi moves closer to the top on the back of Wigan’s kind run of fixtures, though with a single clean sheet since gameweek 3, he’ll perhaps need plenty of save points to justify his lofty position. Michel Vorm is a little further back, as Swansea’s schedule begins to ease up.
Two Premier League veterans make a significant leap up the rankings. Mark Schwarzer shows no signs of fading and, now back from a spinal injury, makes a welcome return to our thoughts ahead of some tempting fixtures. Blackburn’s upcoming schedule is promising enough to see Paul Robinson pop his head around the corner.
Defenders
Manchester City keep a grasp of the top defensive spot with Micah Richards this time filling the void, as slight injury doubts hover over Vincent Kompany. Of the two, we tend to favour the Belgian due to his guaranteed game time, but Richards, for now, holds the fitness card and top spot as a result.
Budget defenders pretty much dominate the upward tick, though Ashley Cole is the exception to the rule. Having served his one-match ban against United on Sunday, the left-back has four favourable fixtures on the horizon and is, arguably, the only fit defender for Chelsea with a secure spot in the back-four right now.
A matter of millions down the Fantasy Premier League (FPL) spectrum and you’ll find a host of defenders on the up. Jonny Evans continues to offer a cut-price Manchester United option, Philippe Senderos (if fit) allows budget Fulham backing, while Angel Rangel and Taye Taiwo both offer promise from full-back for the promoted sides.
Midfielders
Our biggest mover in the centre of the pack is also one of the cheapest possibly imaginable. Coming in at just 4.6, James McClean is one of the best bargains around right now. Averaging 7.3 points per start under Martin O’Neill, the young winger has picked up bonus in five of his six appearances in the Black Cats first XI, with his game seeming tailor-made for the EA SPORTS PPI system.
An extra pocket full of change may see the Nordic charm of Gylfi Sigurdsson tempt you into backing his undoubted skills. I was persuaded and personally backed this horse (eighth person in the world to buy him, I find myself repeating to anyone who’ll listen). The on-loan midfielder has returned attacking points in three of his four games for the Welsh club and with set-pieces also in his locker, is averaging 6.25 points per game so far.
Again, still very much in the budget ballpark, are Victor Moses and Adel Taarabt. Each have ridden waves akin to a bandwagon but the talent and the fixtures coincide just sweetly enough that considering them once again might not be so crazy. Might not.
Jon Walters is one of the biggest losers this week. The Irishman has lost his ‘Out of Position’ spot of late, dropping back into midfield for Stoke, and with attacking returns in just one of his last nine gameweeks, his form has been poor, to say the least.
Hatem Ben Arfa also plummets in our estimations. While his skill is unquestionable, the Frenchman’s work-rate has seen him fall out of favour with Alan Pardew and a starting role looks far from secure. With James Perch getting the nod ahead of Ben Arfa in the recent win over Villa, he is likely to struggle to regain a starting place, with the role of impact sub perhaps his best bet.
Forwards
Demba Ba is officially back. It didn’t take him long- just half an hour was needed against Villa before he returned to goalscoring ways on Sunday afternoon. With great fixtures and a half season of strong form behind him, there wasn’t any doubt he’d reclaim third place. Papiss Cisse has also joined our reckoning for similar reasons – a brilliant debut winner saw him carry over his Bundesliga exploits with Freiburg.
With his side reeling from a 7-1 defeat at the Emirates, it’s evident that Blackburn don’t have the most resilient of defences. They’ll be welcoming Yakubu back to the fray with open arms this weekend, with the Nigerian’s goals crucial to their bid for survival.
Finally, continuing our backing of the budget crop, it’s hard to ignore Danny Graham, who starts a favourable run of games with a home clash against Norwich. Paul Lambert’s side may have increased their Carrow Road resilience, with a couple of recent home clean sheets, but the Canaries have still conceded in every away game so far this season.
