It’s time we said goodnight to Gameweek 4. Tucking it up in bed with a review of born-again Belgian, a nest of buzzing Hornets and a theory that might just see the top scoring Fantasy Premier League player make it off our bench.
The Player
There really is no contest.
Romelu Lukaku’s revival as a Fantasy asset has been sudden and extreme.
It’s taken three goals and nine shots and now we’re happy to forgive him for three season’s of Fantasy frustration.
It’s all premature, of course. With Fantasy Premier League armbands in place, Lukaku could easily revert to type and draw a Gameweek 5 blank against Middlesbrough.
But let’s just indulge ourselves for a while. Let’s entertain the idea that Lukaku’s stunning performance against Sunderland will be typical of a season that finally sees the Belgian establish himself amongst the heavy-hitting elite.
We know he has the tools – the finishing ability, the pace, the power and strength in the air.
With Yannick Bolasie installed on the flank, he may also have a new supply of service and a formidable runner who can drag and stretch a defence, leaving gaps for Lukaku to expose.
Certainly we already know that there’s an improvement under Ronald Koeman and we’ve seen enough to assure us that getting the best from Lukaku will be top of the Dutchman’s list of priorities.
It all makes sense – it all points to a 20-25 goal season for the striker.
If we feel that there’s a chance of that materialising, then we have to question whether the double act of Sergio Aguero and Zlatan Ibrahimovic is really “essential”.
Avoiding Aguero will be, for many, a risk too far, but we may now look at Ibrahimovic in a new light.
Should Lukaku snatch penalty duties from Leighton Baines and go on to deliver against ‘Boro, the Fantasy Football jury will be meeting with one key point on their agenda.
The ScoutCast jury have already assembled on this very subject.
The Team
Quique Sanchez Flores appeared to do very little wrong last season.
Watford stalled badly in order to grind out safety but we saw Bournemouth do the same – it was an understandable shift of gears, designed to preserve precious top-flight status.
But now, under the stewardship of Walter Mazzarri, the Hornets warrant a re-assessment from Fantasy managers.
The spirit and attacking intent shown in their 4-2 recovery against West Ham demonstrated that they could be revived.
Etienne Capoue’s story is remarkable and gets further attention below.
Instead, let us ponder a revival in fortunes for Odion Ighalo and, in particular, Troy Deeney.
Mazzarri’s men march on Burnley, Bournemouth, Middlesbrough, Swansea and Hull City following Sunday’s meeting with Manchester United.
That tantalising run promotes investment, with Saturday’s performance and returns revealing Ighalo and Deeney as viable targets.
At 6.9 and with penalties all the rage, Deeney looks the preferred option – he’s hovering in our Watchlist and about to surge once this weekend has passed.
Then there’s wing-back Jose Holebas – not a name we’d expect to creep into consideration.
However, the 4.5 priced Greek has impressive underlying numbers and his goal at the London Stadium is an example of his potential.
Given that fixture list, the Watford defence could offer one or two shut-outs and, if that’s the case, Holebas looks set to be a factor when the bonus points are shared out.
The Talking Point
Etienne Capoue can’t do much more to play his way into our plans.
The guy is delivering the impossible – three goals from four attempts – wildly exceeding our expectations when we tentatively dipped our toe into the limited pool of 4.5 midfield talent.
For the majority of us, he’s proving a frustrating asset to own. His best efforts have been wasted because, with pricier, more illustrious options available, we’ve kept Capoue parked on the timber.
Each week we can forlornly look at his points haul and imagine our tallies had we shown faith in the Frenchman but, as discussed in last night’s ScoutCast, will a time ever arise when we’ll look to Capoue and willingly throw him a starting role?
As it happens, the stars may just be aligning to make that more likely.
Sergio Aguero’s return in Gameweek 6, coupled with the form or replacements Diego Costa and Romelu Lukaku, suddenly have us reviewing options.
Dare we cut the in-form Chelsea and Everton strikers adrift purely out of fear of the damage Aguero may inflict on Swansea?
There is another way.
We can put faith in Capoue and dip into the 4.5 midfield market again. It’s more than just a late night FPL pipe dream.
As mentioned above, Watford’s fixtures come into bloom from Gameweek 6 onwards, presenting a scenario where it would perhaps be folly to consider benching an on-fire Capoue.
Play Capoue as our fourth midfielder and suddenly the fifth slot can be tossed away in any random direction and our 3-4-3 can bristle with a forward line of Aguero, Ibrahimovic and Lukaku/Costa. Tempting.
We’d all suffer weak benches but Capoue has proved that perhaps that’s no bad thing. At least we’d no longer be left gazing wistfully at double figures amongst our subs.
