After a disappointing Gameweek for many, we move onwards and hopefully upwards in the Sky Sports Fantasy Football game. As always, we assess the recent run of Man of the Match (MoTM) awards, bonus point beneficiaries, the transfer trends, the watchlist and also take a look at the Scout team and our future plans.
Gameweek 1 Man of the Match Awards
Listed below are the players that caught the eye of the Sky Sports reporters from last weekend’s fixtures achieving the Man of the Match award (worth an additional five points).
| Fixture | MoTM |
| Man United vs Tottenham | Chris Smalling |
| Bournemouth vs Aston Villa | Rudy Gestede |
| Everton vs Watford | Arouna Kone |
| Leicester vs Sunderland | Riyad Mahrez |
| Norwich vs Crystal Palace | Yohan Cabaye |
| Chelsea vs Swansea | Andre Ayew |
| Arsenal vs West Ham | Winston Reid |
| Newcastle vs Southampton | Georginio Wijnaldum |
| Stoke vs Liverpool | Philippe Coutinho |
| West Brom vs Man City | David Silva |
Two defenders, six midfielders and two forwards claimed the awards on the opening weekend. As highlighted in our MoTM article in pre-season, attacking midfielders reigned supreme and the trend will surely continue. Four debutants were amongst them and are well worth keeping an eye on in the coming weeks.
Gameweek 1 Bonus Points
The only goalkeeper to pick up bonus this week was West Ham’s Adrian, who racked up six saves to go with his clean sheet and earn a tidy nine points to kick off the campaign.
In defence, 11 players grabbed bonus, eight for tackles and three for passes completed. Chris Smalling looks primed to reel in bonus over the season if he can stay fit and continue at centre-back for Man United – the former Fulham man usually picks up passing but after earning tackles last week in a combative display, he could lead the bonus stats for weeks to come.
In midfield there were 14 beneficiaries in total: seven for tackling and seven for passes. The usual centre-midfielders dominated here with bonus king Morgan Schneiderlin picking up tackle points. Fitness allowing, he would be my tip to top the bonus charts overall.
Fantasy Football Scout members can access all information regarding bonus points using player stats and clicking the Sky Sports tab.
The Transfer Trends
Top Transfers Out
| Name | Team | Value | % of Managers |
| Courtois | Chelsea | 6.0 | 3.1% |
| Forster | Southampton | 5.1 | 2.2% |
| Baines | Everton | 7.3 | 2.1% |
| Bertrand | Southampton | 6.5 | 1.9% |
| Aguero | Man City | 10.0 | 1.7% |
Injuries and suspension account for the first four on this list, though the decision to transfer Sergio Aguero out is a big surprise and can only be down to the fact that he started as a sub in City’s trip to West Brom.
Top Transfers In
| Name | Team | Value | % of Managers |
| Hart | Man City | 5.8 | 2.5% |
| Gomez | Liverpool | 4.7 | 2.2% |
| Mahrez | Leicester | 6.0 | 2.1% |
| Oxford | West Ham | 4.1 | 2.1% |
| Reid | West Ham | 5.6 | 2% |
With Thibaut Courtois and Fraser Forster subject to an early exodus, Joe Hart is picking up plenty of new owners. Joe Gomez and Reece Oxford have been snapped up as budget enablers, whilst Riyad Mahrez’ two-goal haul against Sunderland has earned him a bandwagon. Faith in the West Ham defence is clearly on the rise – with the fixtures in their favour, skipper Winston Reid also makes it into our top five.
Top Five Captains Picked
| Name | Team | Value | % of Managers |
| Aguero | Man City | 10.0 | 16.67% |
| Hazard | Chelsea | 9.0 | 12.62% |
| Rooney | Man United | 9.6 | 12.62% |
| Sanchez | Arsenal | 9.7 | 6.48% |
| Benteke | Liverpool | 9.0 | 4.66% |
Watchlist
Here I aim to highlight a few differential players with low ownership that I think could be good options in the coming weeks to help you climb the rankings. These will be looked at in three specific price brackets to cater for our available budget. These names evolve with fixtures and form and offer Fantasy managers a nudge in hopefully the right direction.
| Budget | Mid-Price | Premium | |
| Defender | Simon Francis, 4.8m, 1.1% | Cedric Soares, 5.9m, 2.5% | Chris Smalling, 6.9m, 4.7% |
| Midfielder | Marc Albrighton, 5.1m, 1.5% | Andre Ayew, 6.5m, 4.0% | Mesut Ozil, 8.4m, 3.1% |
| Forward | Jamie Vardy, 7.3m, 5.2% | Diafra Sakho, 7.7m, 2.3% | Graziano Pelle, 8.1m, 9.2% |
Last week, Cedric Soares, Marc Albrighton, Jeremain Lens, Jamie Vardy and Graziano Pelle all came good for us. This time out, we shuffle our targets slightly to accommodate new fixtures.
My Team
Adrian
Martin Morgan van Aanholt
Hazard Walcott Mane Payet Gradel
Benteke Kane©
ITB: 1.5m
Transfers remaining: 39/40
Last week’s points: 27
Overall points: 27
Rank: 208,764
Notes
All that planning and then possibly the worst start in my history but I’m sure it was the same for many. Some last-minute tweaks meant I decided against going with Almen Abdi, which saw me remove nine-point Jordan Amavi for Russell Martin and then opted for Max Gradel in midfield – although he only started from the bench, I have faith he can be a good option in the coming weeks after an impressive goal scoring record in the French League.
Concerns are already cropping up about Patrick van Aanholt after shipping four goals but I’ll stick by him for Sunderland’s good fixtures, with Amavi, Joe Gomez, Simon Francis and various Watford options catching my eye. It might be best to wait until the transfer window has shut to re-assess our options. Theo Walcott’s sub role was part expected and I did say I would go for Santi Cazorla for security but the Spaniard ended up playing on the wing and only just about scraped passing bonus. I’ll be monitoring the Gunners midfield situation in the coming weeks but for now, Walcott will stay in place. Dimitri Payet looks to be my best decision so far. I had suggested in previous articles he looked great value at just 6.2m and hopefully he can continue to provide the points across West Ham’s kind schedule.
Captain Plan
I’ll be moving my armband to Harry Kane before Thursday’s midnight deadline in order to back him for Spurs’ home clash with Stoke. I’ll ignore Sunday’s matches and then use my captain switch to skipper Christian Benteke for Monday night football as he squares up against Bournemouth. After this, he will be transferred out but I’ll leave the details for next week.
The Fantasy Football Scout League
Once again, we’re running our own Fantasy Football Scout League this season. With a £1000 prize to the winner, you’d be mad not to get involved. To join, visit Sky Sports Fantasy Football and key in League Name: FFScout, League Code: 8009000.
The Fantasy Football Club
This Friday The Fantasy Football Club show, where you can catch new host Max Rushden and Paul Merson at 17:00 SkySports One HD where they will be discussing the upcoming week’s Fantasy Football, quizzing former West Ham manager Sam Allardyce and asking former Man United defender Jaap Stam for his #One2Eleven.
