Our final instalment of this week’s Watchlist articles which offer player recommendations for the next four to six Gameweeks, sees us cast our eye over the forwards. With concerns over the availability of Sergio Aguero and Diego Costa ahead of the opening weekend, Wayne Rooney earns the top spot in our initial rankings, while the newly promoted sides are represented by Callum Wilson and Troy Deeney.
After spending much of last season playing in midfield, Wayne Rooney will once again lead the line for Man United this season. That fact, along with the favourable start (TOT, avl, NEW, swa) handed to the Red Devils, has convinced us to promote the United skipper as the leading forward on our Watchlist. Rooney scored 27 goals the last time he was the featured centre-forward at Old Trafford in the 2011/12 campaign, and with Bastian Schweinsteiger and Morgan Schneiderlin brought in to shore up the midfield, the belief is the former Everton front man can purely focus on scoring goals. Available at 10.5 in Fantasy Premier League (FPL) this season, that looks more than fair for the leading attacker from a side expected to finish in the top four.
Southampton’s Graziano Pelle enjoyed a reasonably successful first campaign in England, scoring 12 league goals, although the Italy international did go 14 matches without scoring at one point. The former Feyenoord striker did take advantage of a friendly fixture list at the start of last season though, and with a similarly favourable opening schedule (new, EVE, wat, NOR, wba, MUN) this time around, the 8.0-priced forward could hit the ground running once again. Granted, he will have some extra competition this season from the fit-again Jay Rodriguez and summer signing Juanmi but with seven goals to his name over the summer, he looks in red-hot form.
Although Harry Kane has had a short pre-season due to his commitments for the England Under-21s this summer, last season’s breakout star remains the main man at White Hart Lane and should be able to thrive with some reasonable fixtures (STO, lei, EVE, sun, CPL) after Saturday’s trip to Old Trafford. His 21 Premier League goals were inevitably going to see Kane’s price rise for this season and, although the Tottenham striker now sets us back 9.5 in FPL, he could still represent decent value if he can replicate last year’s heroics.
Having only returned to training for Manchester City on July 29 after representing Argentina in this summer’s Copa America, and with a difficult home fixture against Chelsea in Gameweek 2, Sergio Aguero only slots in at number four in our rankings. The expectation is that last season’s leading marksman will only make a brief cameo appearance in Monday’s trip to West Brom as a best case scenario – all the more so given that he’s struggling with illness – so, at a price of 13.0 in FPL, it is no real surprise to see many drafting plans to acquire Aguero ahead of Gameweek 3 or 4. The fixtures (eve, WAT, cpl, WHM) from that time onwards will certainly warrant at least one City attacking asset, with the Argentine the leading option.
After finishing last season with four goals in his final seven outings, and with some favourable fixtures (SUN, whm, TOT, bou, AVL, sto) in the opening six Gameweeks, Leicester’s Leonardo Ulloa (6.0) should offer good value as a budget forward once again. The former Brighton striker should also still have penalty duties in his locker, and while there is plenty of competition for the forward positions at the King Power stadium, with Jamie Vardy, Shinji Okazaki and Andrej Kramaric competing for two positions, Ulloa appears to be at the front of the queue.
Coming in at 0.5 cheaper than Ulloa in FPL is Bournemouth’s Callum Wilson, who should attract plenty of suitors after scoring 20 goals for the Cherries last season. The kind opening schedule (AVL, liv, whm, LEI, nor, SUN) could see Wilson settle quickly in the Premier League thanks to his pace and clever movement, and he could follow in the footsteps of the likes of Charlie Austin and Danny Ings in offering great value as a budget option.
Like Pelle, West Ham’s Diafra Sakho adjusted well to English football last term, scoring nine goals in 23 league appearances. The Senegal international will set us back 6.5 in FPL this season, but with three favourable home matches (LEI, BOU, NEW) in the opening five Gameweeks, he looks primed to start the new campaign with a bang. Although West Ham co-chairman David Gold has admitted the Hammers will be looking to add a new striker to their squad, we still expect Sakho to continue as a regular up top.
Liverpool’s tricky away fixtures (sto, ars, mun) over the first six Gameweeks mean Christian Benteke only features towards the bottom of our initial ladder. A lack of match sharpness and the expectation it will take a while for the Belgian striker to fit into the style of play at Anfield are also slight concerns, but his 8.5 price tag looks very generous. Four very kind home matches in the first seven (BOU, WHM, NOR, AVL) should certainly ease his transition.
Chelsea’s Diego Costa is another big name who enters our rankings well down the pecking order. The Spain international missed the Community Shield with concerns over his hamstring resurfacing, with the 11.0-valued forward rated as a doubt for the season opener against Swansea. In truth, the Blues’ opening schedule (SWA, mci, wba, CPL, eve, ARS) is pretty tricky, ranking as the second toughest according to our Season Ticker, so for many Fantasy managers, it may come down to a choice between either Eden Hazard or Costa for Chelsea attacking coverage. Unless Jose Mourinho provides us with some good news regarding Costa’s fitness in his pre-match press conference, that choice could be a fairly straightforward one.
While Watford have the toughest opening fixtures (eve, WBA, SOT, mci, SWA, new) according to our ticker, we’re still happy to put our faith in Troy Deeney. The 5.5-rated forward has scored 19, 24 and 21 goals over the last three seasons in the Championship, and should be able to flourish with the likes of Jurado, Almen Abdi and Steven Berghuis providing the ammunition from the attacking midfield positions. It could take some time for those combinations to settle down, though, with so many new faces arriving at Vicarage Road this summer.
Everton’s Romelu Lukaku sneaks onto our ladder, although the Toffees difficult slate of fixtures (WAT, sot, MCI, tot, CHE, swa) make it slightly surprising the Belgian international is currently in 17% of sides in FPL. Priced at 8.0 this season, Lukaku – who is hoping to recover from a hamstring niggle in time for tomorrow – looks one of the strongest mid-priced options, and should improve on the 10 goals he scored last term, particularly with penalty duties now in his locker. With the difficult opening schedule, the likes of Pelle, Wilson and Sakho could well outscore the former Chelsea striker during the opening weeks of the season.
The final spot in our rankings is handed to Sunderland’s Jermain Defoe. The England international managed four goals in 17 appearances after joining from Toronto FC in the January transfer window, and with the early fixtures (lei, NOR, SWA, avl, TOT, bou) in his favour, along with a more than fair price tag of 5.5 in FPL this season, he is certainly worthy of some consideration as we finalise our three-man frontlines.
