In a new series of Members articles entitled “Talent”, we turn our attentions to players whose Fantasy fortunes have taking an upturn over their previous four Gameweeks. Digging deep into the Opta stats and our very own ICT Index, we analyse the data to ascertain just why this has come about. First up, then, is none other than Sunderland’s on-loan forward, Nicklas Bendtner.
A mere bench-warmer at Arsenal, the big Dane’s last-minute move to Wearside has kick-started his chances as a viable Fantasy prospect this term. With Asamoah Gyan moving to the United Arab Emirates to star for Al-Ain on a season-long loan, Bendtner has grabbed the role as Steve Bruce’s number-one forward and, so far, has justified his manager’s faith.
Although he missed last weekend’s game at Arsenal due to the loan arrangement with his parent club, Bendtner’s four games for Sunderland have seen him return one goal, three assists and three Fantasy Premier League (FPL) bonus points; that’s twenty-four Fantasy points from the 6.4 forward, an average of 6 points per game. He also took that form into last week’s international matches, scoring in Denmark’s crucial 2-1 Euro 2012 qualifier over Portugal- with a run of games under his belt, he’s starting to show a consistency that none, other than Bendtner himself, had expected. Here’s how he’s been faring up on Wearside:
