We turn to the weekend’s nine fixtures this afternoon to assess the lessons learned so far. Alexis Sanchez’ return to form, Kevin de Bruyne’s momentum for City, Jamie Vardy and Diafra Sakho’s fixture-proof appeal and the Southampton and United attacks are all on our dinnertime menu.
Patience pays off with Sanchez …
Finally, the Arsenal wide man translated his outstanding underlying statistics into Fantasy returns with a hat-trick as the Gunners ended Leicester’s unbeaten record. For many, last weekend was Sanchez’ final chance to impress and in light of his 20-point haul, few will be willing to sell now. After the Chilean’s sluggish start, Arsene Wenger now reckons he’s finally up to speed as the Gunners look to navigate some tricky upcoming fixtures.
… and Kane could be turning the corner, too…
Elsewhere in north London, the Tottenham forward opened his account with a strike in Saturday’s home hammering of former leaders Man City. Like Sanchez, Kane seems to have suffered from his summer international exertions and has spurned chance after chance – only Graziano Pelle has fired more attempts amongst frontmen. If he can kick on from the weekend showing and emulate last season’s fixture-proof performances, Kane could soon be barging his way back into our three-man frontlines.
Walcott is turning heads again…
We’ve been burned once before already this season by the Arsenal man. Benched for the first three league matches, Walcott’s stock plummeted before he finally ousted Olivier Giroud from the starting XI in Gameweek 4. Handed a fourth straight start at the King Power, Walcott notched for the second time in the last three, whilst Giroud – despite being suspended for Champions League duties in midweek – was afforded no more than a late cameo. At 8.5, the temptation to revisit Walcott as a viable Fantasy asset is certainly building by the Gameweek.
We can rely on Vardy…
Whilst Riyad Mahrez failed to get amongst the points, the Leicester forward leapt onto our radars with a double in the 5-2 defeat at home to Arsenal. As Callum Wilson owners scour the market for a replacement, Vardy has emerged as the go-to forward, with over 150,000 FPL managers drafting him in already this week. Sitting atop the forward standings on the back of five goals in four, the consistent frontman has blanked just once in seven now and has the schedule to more than justify the Leicester double-up along with Mahrez.
De Bruyne has hit the ground running…
With Sergio Aguero toiling and David Silva still injured, the Belgian has wasted no time in announcing himself as a big-hitting contender for our five-man midfields. De Bruyne has now scored in each of his first three starts in all competitions for the Etihad outfit and with Newcastle, Bournemouth and Norwich all paying visit in the next four, it’s somewhat surprising he still sits in just 5% of FPL teams. Notably, he’s yet to start a match alongside Silva, with the jury still out on how the Spaniard’s presence will affect the summer signing’s Fantasy prospects.
Liverpool are a different animal with Sturridge on board…
The Merseysiders have huffed and puffed their way through the first few Gameweeks but Saturday’s win over Villa highlighted just how badly they have missed Daniel Sturridge. In just his second match since succumbing to a hip injury back in March, the Reds striker ran riot, scoring twice, as Brendan Rodgers’ side netted more than once in a league match for the first time this term. It’ll need more than a two-match run of starts to persuade Fantasy managers Sturridge is worth the risk but if Rodgers can somehow keep his star striker free of injury, we could have Fantasy royalty on our hands once again.
Sherwood needs Gestede…
An Anfield double wasn’t quite enough to earn his side any points but Rudy Gestede has surely convinced his manager he’s worthy of a run of starts for Villa. Saturday’s outing against Liverpool was only the third time the Benin international has been named in Tim Sherwood’s XI in the league but, having netted the cup winner over midlands rivals Birmingham in midweek, Gestede has now scored each of his side’s last three strikes in all competitions. Given that Villa have one point from six, Sherwood can’t afford to reduce the target man to bench-warming duties again.
Two up top may suit the Magpies…
Prior to Saturday’s encounter with Chelsea, Newcastle had scored just one goal in five and struggled for any attacking edge in Steve McClaren’s default 4-2-3-1. The Magpies manager’s decision to switch to a 4-4-2 may prove the catalyst for turning his side’s fortunes around after they bagged two goals against the defending champions. With the schedule turning in their favour from Gameweek 9, the Tyneside team may even appear on our radars if they can build on last weekend’s momentum.
The Saints attack deserves our attention…
Whilst this weekend’s trip to Chelsea will temporarily put many off investing, the schedule from Gameweek 9 onwards looks highly promising for Ronald Koeman’s main men in the final third. Dusan Tadic moved to joint-fourth in the FPL midfield standings, whilst fellow weekend scorer Sadio Mane sits just six points behind the Serbian on the back of four assists and a goal in his last three starts. With Graziano Pelle moving into second spot in the forward rankings after serving up a pair of assists in the win over Swansea, the St Mary’s outfit are playing their way into our plans.
Gomis’ minutes are a concern…
With his team 1-0 down at the break against the Saints, Garry Monk’s decision to haul off top scorer Bafetimbi Gomis raised a few eyebrows. Swansea have now scored just one goal in four matches across all competitions – frustratingly for Gomis owners, this came courtesy of a converted spot-kick at St Mary’s, slotted home by Gylfi Sigurdsson in his second-half absence. With numerous options for our three-man frontlines, another similar scenario at home to Spurs next weekend may force the hand of Gomis’ 24% ownership.
Sakho is remaining under the radar…
It’s three goals in the last four now for West Ham’s lone striker who has netted against City, Liverpool and Norwich over that period. With Dimitri Payet bringing in the points thanks to an assist and maximum bonus against the Canaries, Sakho continues to be ignored by most Fantasy managers, with only 21,000 drafting him in this week so far. Next up is a trip to Sunderland for the Hammers’ in-form frontman – score again and he may belatedly earn himself a bandwagon ahead of following clashes with Palace and Watford.
Rotation is paying off for Redmond and Hoolahan…
After seven Gameweeks, the Norwich midfield duo sit on 36 points apiece – just one less than Alexis Sanchez – after both were amongst the weekend points. Dropped for the first time since Gameweek 1, Redmond emerged from the bench to strike his third of the season, whilst Hoolahan earned an assist in just his second start in four league outings. Hoolahan now has more assists (five) than any player in the top-flight this term and with the 2-2 draw against West Ham taking the Canaries total to 11 goals (on a par with Chelsea and just one less than United), Neil’s decision to manage the duo’s minutes is proving a very canny one.
United are finding their feet up front…
The league leaders have now scored three times in each of the last three Gameweeks after brushing aside Sunderland at Old Trafford on Saturday. Anthony Martial’s pace up front seems to also be beneficial to United’s attacking midfield trio, with Memphis Depay, Wayne Rooney and Juan Mata all getting on the scoresheet in the Black Cats’ stroll. The next three (ars, eve, MCI) may somewhat diminish their appeal but, given their current form, a Martial-Mata double-up may well be on the cards when the schedule turns for the better in Gameweek 11.
