Sergio Aguero’s return to fitness has had an immediate impact on this week’s Watchlist refresh. A pair of north-London based protagonists lead the way in midfield and up front, though, whilst at the back, Southampton are on the rise as their form and fixtures offer up an ideal mix for Fantasy managers.

The Defence

Costel Pantilimon’s average of 4.9 points per appearance keeps him atop the keepers standings as Sunderland prepare for three home matches (BUR, QPR, SWA) and trips to Spurs and Swansea in the next five. Fit-again Patrick van Aanholt, at 4.2, offers a cheaper route into the Black Cats’ backline than the 4.6-priced Romanian for those intent on freshening up their defences and his raids down the left could bring in the points.

Burnley duo Tom Heaton and Kieran Trippier have a trio of home clashes (CPL, WBA, SWA) in addition to a trip to the Stadium of Light in the upcoming six and also offer strong options in the budget bracket.

Southampton’s recent return to form elevates Fraser Forster and Ryan Bertrand in our refresh. Back-to-back clean sheets against Arsenal and United highlight the strength of Ronald Koeman’s defence and, having emerged from a tough run of matches, they look poised to take advantage of upcoming clashes with Newcastle, Swansea, QPR, West Ham and West Brom in the next six.

With Tim Krul (4.4) back from injury, Newcastle’s chances of defensive returns take a turn for the better ahead of showdowns with Hull, Stoke, Palace and Villa between now and Gameweek 27. If you’re not short on cash, though, the 5.3-priced Daryl Janmaat’s goal and five assists so far look promising.

Elsewhere at the back, Branislav Ivanovic holds steady at the top of the defender standings. The Chelsea right-back vindicated our decision to prefer him over John Terry by serving up an 11-point haul last weekend and has notched assists in each of his last two.

Leighton Baines is also on the rise after producing two assists in the last three Gameweeks. Climbing to fifth in the Fantasy Premier League (FPL) defender standings, the Everton man has West Brom, Palace and Leicester in the next five to maintain his return to form. Laurent Koscielny and Phil Jones get the nod as Arsenal and United prepare for some kind upcoming fixtures – the former’s stock is looking up after a goal against Stoke last week and he’ll continue to climb in our estimations once this week’s trip to City is out of the way.

In the budget bracket, Andre Wisdom keeps his spot as our preferred West Brom defender under Tony Pulis, whilst the likes of Geoff Cameron and Alan Hutton offer sub-4.5 routes into the Stoke and Villa backlines.

The Midfield

Alexis Sanchez takes his place at the top of the midfield rankings after his one-man show against Stoke on Sunday. The Chilean also sits at the summit of the FPL standings on the back of an average of seven points per appearance and has seven excellent fixtures (AVL, LEI, cpl, EVE, qpr, WHM, new) in the next nine to torment defences further.

Elsewhere in the premium bracket, Eden Hazard holds steady in second, whilst a role up front last weekend earns Angel Di Maria a climb as United travel to QPR before hosting Leicester, Burnley and Sunderland in the next six. The return to fitness of Sergio Aguero lessens our faith in David Silva somewhat, now that the false nine system has been dismantled – nonetheless, the little Spaniard will be on the rise again once the champions get past encounters with Arsenal and Chelsea.

Nacer Chadli is the pick of the mid-price options. The 6.5-priced Belgian’s return to the Spurs XI has harvested a goal and five assists in five appearances and make a dent in Christian Eriksen’s points potential – the Dane, at a far heftier 8.2, has produced just one goal over the same period. Kevin Mirallas’s goal and assist in yesterday’s FA Cup clash with West Ham serves a reminder of his attacking sensibilities and he looks poised to reclaim a starting berth after seeing his minutes managed over the festive period.

Stewart Downing and Gylfi Sigurdsson have offered excellent value to date but both are now bracing themselves for some testing times ahead. Certainly, the latter’s prospects could be set to take a turn for the worse in light of Wilfried Bony’s departure, with Bafetimbi Gomis struggling to offer Swansea the same sort of cutting edge as the prolific Ivorian.

Southampton’s Dusan Tadic arrives on our radar after scoring in back-to-back matches. Given that he netted once in the opening 19 Gameweeks, we’re not getting carried away, though the Serbian surely looks in line for a start at Newcastle this weekend after being utilised as a sub at Old Trafford. Palace’s Jason Puncheon kickstarted his career under Alan Pardew with a goal and maximum bonus and, at 5.5, has the fixtures (bur, EVE, lei, NEW) to push on.

The Forwards

Tottenham’s Harry Kane takes pride of place at the top of the forward standings. Still priced at a mere 5.8, the youngster’s 18-point haul against Chelsea highlighted his fixture-proof potential – it’s now six goals and three assists in the last six Gameweeks for the budget phenomenon.

Climbing fast into second is fit-again Sergio Aguero. With a week’s training behind him, the City frontman could well be set to start this Sunday as the champions look to replicate last season’s six-goal display against visitors Arsenal. Having climbed in price already, the bandwagon is approaching full speed for a player who has averaged 7.9 points per start this season and has an outstanding schedule from Gameweek 24 onwards.

Diego Costa’s consistency keeps the Chelsea striker high in our estimations. His inability to collect bonus means the 11.2-priced striker has registered a single 10+ points haul since Gameweek 3, though, despite taking his tally to 15 for the season at home to Newcastle on Saturday. With Swansea, Villa, Everton, Burnley and Leicester in the next six, though, the goals seem likely to continue.

A host of budget options remain in contention, with Danny Ings, Charlie Austin and Saido Berahino all getting amongst the goals last time out. Coming in at 5.7, Ings – who has scored or assisted in seven of his last ten – hosts Palace, West Brom and Swansea in the next six and also travels to Sunderland, whilst Berahino has been quick to benefit from the Tony Pulis effect by bagging the weekend winner at home to Hull. The fixtures are somewhat against Austin but, having scored against the likes of Chelsea, Southampton and City already this season, the QPR frontman is more than capable of prevailing.

Olivier Giroud is on the radar in light of Arsenal’s imminent run of strong fixtures. At 8.2, the Frenchman offers a valid double-up option along with Sanchez as Arsene Wenger’s side look for their customary strong finish to the season, whilst we opt for Wayne Rooney as our United forward of choice. In spite of his deep-lying role, the Red Devils’ skipper has averaged more points per appearance (4.8) than any other forward at Old Trafford this term, and with Robin van Persie likely to miss out this weekend, he could even be handed a role up top away to QPR.