Last season Leicester midfielder Riyad Mahrez took the Premier League by storm and plenty of Fantasy managers by surprise. Finishing as the Fantasy Premier League’s top points scorer he has proved more than worthy of a price hike from 5.5m in 2015/16 to 9.5m this term. Given his high price, and the hefty price tags of a number of other options such as Sergio Aguero (13m), finding the next bargain basement priced, high scoring midfielder for your team is likely to be crucial to success in 2016/17.
Here are four 5.5m gems that have the potential to become a regular fixture in your starting XI, just as Mahrez was last season.
Albert Adomah
Team: Middlesbrough
Next five: STO, sun, wba, CRY, eve
Albert Adomah has slipped under the radar with just 0.7% ownership. New guys to ‘Boro such as Viktor Fischer (who wasn’t even a regular starter for the club he joined from, Ajax) may need time to adapt to the rigors of English football. In contrast Adomah played a significant part in Middlesbrough’s promotion to the Premier League and has been a key member of the first team, as his statistics for the last three seasons show.
2013/2014 – 42 appearances, 12 goals, 6 assists
2014/2015 – 46 appearances, 6 goals, 4 assists
2015/2016 – 43 appearances, 6 goals, 5 assists
Granted that is not 2015/16 Mahrez form, but in my opinion that still represents a good return for a 5.5m midfielder.
Wilfried Zaha
Team: Crystal Palace
Next five: WBA, tot, BOU, mid, STO
Owned by just 2.0% of managers, Wilfried Zaha scored two goals and made five assists last season. But while that s doesn’t offer too much optimism, Fantasy managers are hoping that a revamped attacking line up at Palace will ensure he finishes the season with a far better goal and assist tally. Andros Townsend on the other wing and the possibility of Liverpool’s Christian Benteke joining to lead the line offers Zaha and Palace the chance to significantly improve their attacking display.
Marc Albrighton
Team: Leicester
Next five: hul, ARS, SWA, liv, BUR
In just 2.2% of FPL teams, Marc Albrighton scored two and made seven assists last season. Accruing 117 points in the process, this put him above the likes of Chelsea men Pedro and Eden Hazard as well as Manchester City’s David Silva in terms of FPL points. Seemingly nailed on in the first team under Claudio Ranieri, Albrighton offers a cheaper, viable alternative to Mahrez into the Foxes midfield.
Sofiane Feghouli
Team: West Ham-
Next five: che, BOU, mci, WAT, wba
The 5.3% Algerian is the most popular of our quartet thanks to some impressive displays in midseason. Another bonus is that he rotates well with a cheap Southampton midfield option, most notably Nathan Redmond (6.0m). For the first five fixtures the pair would give owners a mouthwatering run of games (WAT, BOU, SUN, WAT, SWA). This tactic could work for those managers planning to wildcard early in particularly. It’s also worth mentioning that across his 98 appearances over the last five seasons, where he has featured for more than 60 minutes, he has 20 goals and 34 assists, a somewhat decent return for a £5.5m midfielder.
