The Watchlist Updated – Gameweek 35 – The Forwards

With double Gameweek 34 finally put to bed following Chelsea’s 3-1 win at Leicester last night, it’s full steam ahead to Gameweek 35 as we switch our attention to the forwards in the final look at our updated Watchlist rankings, which offer player recommendations for the remainder of the season. Olivier Giroud and Christian Benteke overtake Sergio Aguero and Harry Kane as the most sought-after frontmen thanks to some favourable fixtures, while Connor Wickham is back in the reckoning ahead of Sunderland’s double in Gameweek 37.

Olivier Giroud sees his stock rise thanks to the Gunners’ very favourable run-in (hul, SWA, mun/SUN, WBA), including the double in Gameweek 37. The French international has failed to register attacking returns in his last two outings, but with 14 goals and three assists to his name this season, the 8.6-priced forward looks an obvious target for one of our three Arsenal spots come Gameweek 37.

Having averaged 8.5 points per appearance over Aston Villa’s last seven matches, Christian Benteke moves up to second in our latest update. The Belgian international, who is valued at just 7.6 in Fantasy Premier League (FPL), has registered an impressive ten shots from inside the box in the last four Gameweeks, and is also second among forwards for chances created (nine) over the same period. With some inviting looking fixtures (EVE, WHM, sot, BUR), it’s no surprise to see Benteke second in the transfers in this week behind Giroud with over 26,000 new owners.

Despite returning to form with four goals in the last three Gameweeks, Sergio Aguero loses his spot at the summit with Manchester City facing a fairly tricky run-in (tot, QPR, swa, SOT). The 12.6-rated Argentine international is joint second among forwards for shots inside the box (11) over the last four Gameweeks and with the added motivation of securing a first Premier League Golden Boot award since signing from Atletico Madrid in 2011, he could be worth sticking with.

Although he has scored and bagged an assist in his last two outings, there is no doubt Harry Kane has cooled off somewhat, having failed to register a double-figure haul since Gameweek 30. FPL managers are largely keeping the faith despite some pretty average upcoming fixtures (MCI, sto, HUL, eve), with the 6.5-priced forward transferred out by less than 5,000 owners so far this week. With so much competition for our three-man frontlines, though, the England international could be dispensable from this point onwards.

Leicester’s Jamie Vardy rewarded the 48,000+ FPL owners that drafted him in before double Gameweek 34 with 12 points over the two matches, and with Nigel Pearson’s side still in the midst of a kind run-in (NEW, SOT, sun, QPR), a compelling argument could be made to keep hold of the 4.7-valued forward. The former non-league star leads all forwards for shots inside the box (13) over the last four Gameweeks, albeit playing an extra match than many others, and has also created eight chances, behind only Bobby Zamora and Benteke. He is playing through the pain barrier, though, having required injections in his foot to play against Burnley and Chelsea. With Vardy so crucial to the Foxes upturn in form of late as they battle for survival, it looks as if he will continue to feature despite the injury.

With goals in his last two appearances, Sunderland’s Connor Wickham is back on the radar due to the Black Cats’ double (LEI/ars) in Gameweek 37. The 5.6-rated forward faces two fairly tough match-ups before then, with a home clash against Southampton followed by a trip to in-form Everton. After his late-season heroics last year, where he scored five goals in three appearances against City, Chelsea and Cardiff, he could prove to be a handy differential once again.

Southampton’s Graziano Pelle climbs up a few places on our ladder after registering his first double-digit haul since Gameweek 8 in the 2-2 draw against Tottenham. That made it three goals in as many matches for the Italian international, although with three of the Saints next four on the road (sun, lei, AVL, mci), the 7.5-priced forward may struggle to continue that form, given he has only netted once away from St Mary’s in the league this season.

While we await definitive news on the knee injury he picked up in the closing stages of Man United’s 3-0 defeat at Goodison Park, Wayne Rooney keeps his place on the Watchlist. The 10.8-valued forward has only bagged a solitary assist in his last three outings, but with Louis van Gaal’s men facing a decent run-in (WBA, cpl, ARS, hul), the England captain could flourish should the injury report from the Dutchman be positive tomorrow.

Following his return to the starting XI in Everton’s 3-0 triumph against United, Romelu Lukaku remains an option for those seeking a differential, with the Belgian’s current ownership standing at 6.5%. The Toffees are in great form, having won five of their last six, and face a pretty favourable schedule (avl, SUN, whm, TOT) from now until the end of the season.

After registering just three points from plum home clashes against West Brom and Hull, Crystal Palace’s Glenn Murray falls towards the bottom of our Watchlist. The 5.3-rated frontman did lead all forwards for shots inside the box (seven) over the last two Gameweeks but with the Eagles facing the second most difficult run-in according to our Season Ticker (che, MUN, liv, SWA), it’s no surprise to see that over 14,000 FPL managers have shipped the striker already this week.

Dame N’Doye keeps his place on the Watchlist after notching two goals against Crystal Palace last weekend. Hull do face a pretty treacherous run of fixtures (ARS, BUR, tot, MUN), but with confidence high at the KC Stadium after back-to-back wins, the 5.5-priced forward could continue to surprise, bearing in mind he is joint second among forwards over the last four Gameweeks for shots inside the box, with 11.