In this article, I’d like to highlight some of the players who performed well and bagged points in the last Gameweek but who fell under the radar – call them the “Fantasy Forgotten”. 

A “Fantasy Forgotten” is different to a differential in that the particular player may be heavily owned but was not covered or forgotten by the “experts” in the FPL community “bubble”.

I am not denigrating any person or any FPL site in this article as I have been guilty of forgetting or dismissing many of the players below myself. Please do leave your comments and tell me what you think. Alternatively you can reach me on Twitter @FPL_Fetish.

Without further ado, here is the list: 

Rayan Ait Nouri (£5.0m)

Much of the pre-Gameweek 7 talk involved the left side of Wolves’ defence. Is Max Kilman (£4.3m) nailed? Or would Romain Saiss (£5.3m) be restored to his position on the left of a back three? Perhaps Fernando Marcal (£4.8), returning from injury, would claim a starting berth?

Ultimately, neither Marcal nor Saiss started. Step up Rayan Ait Nouri (£5.0). The 19-year-old was handed left wingback duties and passed the test with flying colours – grabbing a goal, a clean sheet, maximum bonus points and glowing praise from his manager. The questions remain though: Will Kilman and Ait Nouri keep their places? Or will the more experienced duo or Saiss and Marcal come back into the team?

Kyle Walker (£6.1m)

Many FPL managers restrict their ownership of Man City assets to midfield and attack. Their defenders are pricey and Pep Guardiola chops and changes his starting XI so regularly it makes consistency of starts difficult to predict.

An exception can be made for Kyle Walker (£6.1m) who is ever present on the right side of the City defence. His goal, clean sheet and maximum bonus points were a great source of joy for his healthy 7.6% of owners. Much was spoken about City’s defensive solidity this season and their sub-par attack, though it has been Joao Cancelo (£5.4m) and Ruben Dias (£5.5m) who got the lion’s share of attention. What Walker does provide is security of starts and a well-known pedigree for bombing forwards, albeit at a premium price.

Kurt Zouma (£5.3m) & Hakim Ziyech (£8.0)

Ask any FPL pundit or look at any FPL manager’s team sheet and you’re likely to hear or see the name of  23%-owned Ben Chilwell (£5.9m), with many making the switch from Liverpool’s Trent Alexander Arnold (£7.4m) to the cheaper and more in-form Chelsea man.

The same trend goes with the FPL managers who’ve plumped for Chelsea attacking coverage, with Timo Werner (£9.4m) and Christian Pulisic (£8.3m) especially well represented.

But on Saturday night it was forgotten duo Kurt Zouma (£5.3m) and Hakim Ziyech (£8.0m) who stepped up to the fore. Zouma got the managers dream of a goal and a clean sheet, although he only bagged two bonus points, with the maximum bonus Halloween treats going to Mr. Ziyech himself after his man-of-the-match performance that included a goal and an assist.

Pablo Fornals (£6.4m)

We all know that, after a difficult set of fixtures to open the season, West Ham’s fixtures ease considerably. The question now becomes who to target.

The conventional thinking points to at least one midfielder and one attacker. The names most bandied about include Jarrod Bowen (£6.3m), Thomas Soucek (£4.9m) and Michail Antonio (£6.2m). However, against Liverpool it was the much-less mentioned Pablo Fornals (£6.4m) who hauled a nice ten-pointer (his second-highest haul of the season after picking up 12 points vs Leicester in Gameweek 4 and nine points against Wolves in Gameweek 3).

James Ward-Prowse (£5.9m)

After Southampton conceded five against Spurs in Gameweek 2, the narrative spun by the FPL aristocracy (and the heat maps) told us that the Saints and their manager Ralph Hasenhuttl were taking a more defensively cautious approach. James Ward-Prowse (£5.9m) was dropping deeper and this was mostly true as he blanked from Gameweeks 3 to 5.

Danny Ings (£8.4m) was nailed on penalties and in the 3-3 match against Chelsea in Gameweek 5 it was Theo Walcott (£5.8m) who had free-kick duties. Ward-Prowse’s days as a viable FPL asset seemed numbered.

Cometh Gameweeks 6 and 7 though and the Southampton man scored three goals and grabbed himself an assist. Now that he’s definitely back on free-kicks and on corners – where aerial targets include Che Adams (£5.8m), Jan Bednarek (£4.5m) and Jannik Vestergaard (£4.6m) – Ward-Prowse could become the budget midfielder we all must have.

Callum Wilson (£6.6m)

The debate for the ideal budget FPL forward took another twist with Callum Wilson’s (£6.6m) brace against top-of-the-table Everton at St. James’ Park.

Wilson’s name was drowned out by some of the other options including the aforementioned Antonio and Adams as well as Ollie Watkins (£6.0m) of Aston Villa, and Patrick Bamford (£6.0m) of Leeds United, etc. (although Wilson did make the FFS Scout Picks for Gameweek 7, as did Zouma of Chelsea).

Wilson appeals because he is not just Newcastle’s star striker but also the team’s talisman and will start every game assuming he stays fit. The Toon’s upcoming fixtures are also decent, thus pitting Wilson as an enticing alternative to the injury prone Antonio and the untested (at this level) likes of Bamford and Watkins.

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (£11.7m)

Yes Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta is defensive-minded. Yes Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (£11.7m) is playing to the left and more withdrawn. Yes, he is expensive. But he is the Arsenal captain and the team’s talisman. He is also nailed on penalties (as we saw vs Man Utd) and Arsenal’s fixtures are beginning to ease. The ultimate Fantasy Forgotten.   

Gareth Bale (£9.5m)

With Harry Kane (£11.0m) and Son Heung-Min (£9.6m) leading the Spurs chatter in the FPL universe, Gareth Bale (£9.5m) finally re-introduced himself to the Premier League with his goal against Brighton. Bale is owned by just 1.2% of managers and could be the sort of differential for the FPL manager who wants Spurs cover without copy/pasting the pervasive Kane/Son template.

Harvey Barnes (£6.9m)

Oh Harvey, Harvey! After your Gameweek 2 mega haul against Burnley you’ve gone quiet. It is true that you play better with Jamie Vardy (£10.0m) around and healthy, as he holds up the ball for you and you can run ahead of him at pace, but for any FPL manager who does own you, every week must be a mini stroke! I must say you’re quite wasteful in front of goal. But you are young and still learning. In fairness you did bag a cheeky goal and an even cheekier bonus point against Leeds. Well done! You are now officially the poor man’s Jack Grealish (£7.4m).

Aleksandar Mitrovic (£5.8m)

A nod of the head and tip of the hat to the patient FPL managers who stuck with Fulham’s Aleksandar Mitrovic (£5.8m) for the plum fixture against West Bromwich Albion. The FPL “experts” worried about West Brom’s recently improved defensive displays, as well as Mitrovic’s four consecutive blanks (including a missed penalty in Gameweek 5 vs Sheffield United).

Those brave managers who went with their gut got a decent eight-point return (two assists though no goal). As a Mitrovic owner who sold him after the Gameweek 5 penalty miss, I plead guilty to forgetting the Serbian striker and am willing to take abuse in the comments below or on Twitter where you can find me @ FPL_Fetish.