Watchlist Update – Mitrovic set for return to form

We have now completed our updating of the Watchlist ahead of Fantasy Premier League’s return in Gameweek 9.

Earlier this week we looked at Goalkeepers, Defenders and Midfielders and we finish with the Forwards section.

Sergio Aguero (£11.3m) enjoys another week at the top of his section of the Watchlist with his position stronger than it was at the start of the month. As we promised, we have now removed his Rotation Risk factor now that it has become very clear that he is the number one striker at Manchester City again. He has started every single league match this season and has had a rest over the international break while Gabriel Jesus (£10.2m) was in action for Brazil.

Alexandre Lacazette (£9.7m) is another non-mover after his brace against Fulham in Gameweek 8. He’s a man in form with an appealing match-up with Leicester at the Emirates Stadium this weekend and we see no reason to move him down until Arsenal’s schedule stiffens up in a few weeks.

Aleksandar Mitrovic (£6.9m) creeps back up to third place on the list as Fulham enter a spell of more appealing fixtures. The Cottagers face Cardiff (away), Bournemouth (home) and Huddersfield (away) in the next three Gamwweeks. Mitrovic may only have one goal in his last four matches but we believe that many of them were difficult for him to excel in. Fulham have always struggled away at Everton while Arsenal are clearly a team in form right now. As has been the case for much of this season, the only player to have registered more goal attempts than Mitrovic in the last four Gameweeks is Aguero.

Raúl Jiménez (£5.6m) slips down as Wolves edge a little closer to a tough set of matches. After Watford (home) and Brighton (away), the newly-promoted side must face Spurs (home) and Arsenal (away) in Gameweeks 11 and 12. For that reason, we’ve removed Jiménez’s Favourable Fixtures factor. However, it’s not bad enough to receive an Unfavourable Factor as it’s Huddersfield (home) and Cardiff (away) in Gameweeks 13 and 14.

Marko Arnautovic (£7.0m) rises up the ranks as West Ham’s fixtures improve a little. He has shaken off the Unfavourable Fixtures factor but we are reticent to put the Favourable Fixtures on him just yet. It’s Spurs up next for the Hammers, then a trip to Leicester (who rank fifth-best for big chances allowed at home so far) and there’s Manchester City in Gameweek 13. Once Spurs and Leicester are out of the way it looks much better with Burnley, Huddersfield, Newcastle and Cardiff between Gameweek 11 and 15.

Leicester striker Jamie Vardy (£9.0m) is up next as he comes into Gameweek 9 with both form and fixtures on his side. Leicester rank third for offensive potential on our Season Ticker over the next seven Gameweeks while Vardy has three goal involvements in his last four league appearances. The striker has been comparing favourably for underlying statistics with only Paul Pogba and Harry Kane registering more shots on target than him since Gameweek 5.

Callum Wilson‘s (£6.4m) double-figure haul in Gameweek 8 has pulled his form back up to A and helped him climb a little higher up the rankings. Gameweek 9 serves up a great opportunity for him to delivering FPL returns again as a poor Southampton side comes to the Vitality Stadium.

Glenn Murray (£6.6m) also climbs as a result of Brighton’s continued fixture swing. They are top of the Season Ticker for attacking potential over the next seven Gameweeks starting with a trip to Newcastle. Murray’s underlying numbers aren’t as impressive as some of the other entries, which holds him back a little as well as the fact that, while he has four goals at home this season, he has scored just once away.

Harry Kane (£12.5m) drops like a stone from fifth to ninth on the Watchlist after blanking against Cardiff in Gameweek 8. The fact that he had three goals in two matches before that means he keeps A for form, as well as the fact that he is top for shots on target since Gameweek 5. However, he does lose his Favourable Fixtures factor with Man City, Chelsea and Arsenal three of Spurs’ next six opponents. Meanwhile, Wolves and Crystal Palace, their opponents in Gameweek 11 and 12 respectively, have ranked fairly high for their defence this season too.

Propping up the Forwards section of the Watchlist is Manchester United’s Romelu Lukaku (£10.9m). He falls down now that Manchester United’s fixtures are set to stiffen up and that his form has dropped to C. He is now without a goal in three matches and over the last four Gameweeks, he has just one shot on target.

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