Our positional coverage ahead of Fantasy Allsvenskan concludes with forwards. There are plenty of options to consider so let’s just jump in!
Premium Forwards
Paulinho Guerreiro
Paulinho Guerreiro (10.5m) left Häcken at the end of last season to play for Hapoel Be’er Sheva. After picking up an injury in training he failed to feature for his new club, and they agreed to break the contract in January. Instead of heading back to Häcken however, Hammarby snatched him up to replace Nikola Djudjic who moved to Chinese side Chengdu Better City FC. There is no doubting the quality of Paulinho with his 31 goals and 12 assists over the last two seasons, but there are some question marks about his fitness. He’s had multiple knee injuries in the last couple of seasons but when he plays, he’s usually been one of the best strikers in the league. Now playing for an incredibly attacking Hammarby side, the interest he’s gathering is very understandable. In pre-season he looked quite off pace though but a lot might have changed since then. One thing that did stand out, however, is that he seemed to play more as a support striker or in the midfield, rather than as a classic “number nine”. That said, if things click for Paulinho, he’s likely going to be a big fantasy factor this season – regardless of position.
Aron Jóhannsson
The Hammarby striker that did impress in pre-season was Aron Jóhannsson (9.0m). Another player who’s struggled with injuries in his career previously, Jóhannsson now looks back to his best and was on the end of most things Hammarby created (along with midfielder Alexander Kačaniklić, 10.0m). Jóhannsson didn’t feature that frequently for Hammarby last season, mostly due to fitness but also because Nikola Djudjic was a very clear first choice. With Paulinho potentially taking up a more withdrawn role (remains to be seen), Jóhannsson could very well be in for a superb season in an attacking Hammarby side. Keep in mind rotation early doors though (this applies to most players in most teams) with the first three GWs in the space of just over a week.
Emir Kujovic
Golden boot winner when Norrköping won the league 2015, Emir Kujovic (10.0m) took the opportunity to move abroad. After a few unsuccessful years, he came back to Sweden half-way through 2019 to sign for Djurgården and build up fitness again. He spent most of the autumn playing second fiddle to Mohamed Buya Turay who has since left, but Kujovic is now ready to be the main striker for last season’s title winners. In nine appearances (where seven was off the bench) he scored four goals and three assists. In his career he’s played 143 Allsvenskan games, scoring 56 goals and contributing with 16 assists. He’s a different kind of striker than Buya Turay though (a lot less mobile) which means Djurgården are going to be even more dependent on crosses, set-pieces and other players creating spaces if they are to get the best out of him. Fullbacks Elliot Käck (6.0m)/Jonathan Augustinsson (5.5m) and Alsak Fonn Witry (7.0m) could find themselves teeing up Kujovic on more than one occasion!
Robin Söder
Göteborg striker Robin Söder (9.5m) had a great season last time around with 14 goals and 4 assists in 27 games. In a Göteborg side that changed a lot during the season, Söder was a constant force and in particular during the latter part of the campaign he really started to come into form. The first three games are very favourable with Elfsborg (H), Varberg (a) and Mjällby (H) but with gameweeks coming fast with little chance of rest in between, odds are Söder will get rotated a bit initially – especially given the fact he’s struggled to become fit ahead of the new season. When he plays, goals are highly likely and once the schedule eases, Söder could become template again real fast.
Giorgi Khariashvili
Currently a fitness doubt as well, Robin Söder’s strike partner Giorgi Kharaishvili (10.0m) also had a good season with seven goals and nine assists in 28 games. Kharaishvili plays a lot on the left-wing but he’s an incredibly hard worker in both defence and attack which led to him mopping up a lot of bonus points. In fact, he was the top gatherer of bonus points last season with a massive total of 43 (17 defensive, 26 offensive)! For more statistics on bonus point magnets of last season, be sure to check out Fantasyguiden who do a great job of keeping track of the fantasy statistics of Allsvenskan players. Kharaishvili’s positional flexibility could potentially mean he gets more game time than others, even with a tight schedule.
Isaac Kiese Thelin
While Malmö lost a huge profile and player when Markus Rosenberg decided to put the boots on the shelf after last season, Isaac Kiese Thelin (10.0m) has been brought in on a season-long loan from RSC Anderlecht. While the clubs he has featured for since moving abroad is quite impressive (Anderlecht, Bayer Leverkusen, Waasland-Beveren and Bordeaux) the stats aren’t quite as prolific. In the past five years he’s featured in 78 league games, scoring 19 goals and 9 assists (where 16 goals and 3 assists all came in the 2017/2018 season in 25 games for Waasland-Beveren). Allsvenskan is a different level though and as one of the stars of a Malmö side who’s going for the title, he’ll get plenty of chances to be a force to be reckoned with in fantasy this season. The squad depth of Malmö is crazy by Swedish standards so it would be very surprising to see him start and play 90 minutes each week – he might not have to though. Remains to be seen as well how he will he be impacted by the signing of Ola Toivonen.
Christoffer Nyman
Norrköping’s other golden boy (alongside the previously mentioned Emir Kujovic) was Christoffer Nyman (9.5m), who last year had a somewhat quiet season by his standards with 10 goals and 3 assists in 29 games. In 203 games played for Norrköping he has 57 goals and 24 assists and he’s a very popular player amongst most Norrköping fans, though there’s an increased feeling he has to provide a bit more points-wise this season to make up for a somewhat thin squad. Will he be able to do so when midfield maestro Sead Haksabanovic (10.0m) looks likely to return to West Ham from his loan in June? Perhaps, but there is no doubt that his prospects would be strengthened if Haksabanovic stays.
Henok Goitom
Turning 36 this year, AIK striker Henok Goitom (9.5m) remains a club-icon and a very talented striker. AIK has a pretty tough schedule to begin with though and his age could mean he needs to rest a bit more when the games come thick and fast. Eleven goals and ten assists in 30 games last year indicates he’s still got it, even though four goals and one assist came in a 5-1 win away to bottom-dwellers Falkenberg at the end of the season. Goitom will need to find his feet more swiftly this season if he is to be a good fantasy asset, as it took quite a lot of games before he scored anything other than assists last year.
Mid-priced Forwards
Jesper Karlsson
Elfsborg had a bit of a mediocre season last year and very little indicates that things will look different this time around. Jesper Karlsson (8.5m) impressed though and scored eight goals and five assists in 25 games. Question marks remain over the quality of Elfsborg’s creative players to provide for him and coach Jimmy Thelin has had a hard time getting his squad to gel since taking over. Nevertheless, Karlsson is a talented young player that will be looking to build upon last season – possibly with the aim of getting a move ahead of next season or in the autumn.
Alexander Söderlund
Brought in by BK Häcken to fill the void left by Alexander Jeremejeff, namesake Alexander Söderlund (8.5m) looks primed to be a good option for our squads – given time. Currently a bit of a fitness doubt, odds are most will steer clear in the first GWs. If you want to invest in a Häcken striker from the start, Jasse Tuominen (8.5m) is fit and will be tasked with taking up the role just behind the main striker most games. Once up and running though, Söderlund has the makings of a potential golden boot challenger. Fantasy Eliteserien managers will recognise him from Rosenborg BK as a player with a high ceiling, but who also struggles to keep a steady level on his performances points-wise. Last season he got eight goals and five assists in 28 games, the season before that eight goals and four assists in 27 games. Not massively impressive you’d be right to point out, yet in 2015 he scored 22 goals and four assists in 27 games so there is still a good player in there, the question is if Häcken and coach Andreas Alm can bring out the best in him. One to watch!
Patrik Karlsson-Lagemyr
An injury put a stop to a very successful start for Patrik Karlsson-Lagemyr (8.0m) where he got four goals and four assists in 13 games. Back in full training since March, he could very well be an interesting choice as the season progresses, in a Göteborg side that is riddled with potential fantasy options. Given the tight schedule at the start (I know, I know, it’s getting repetitive…) odds are he will be eased into it though.
Anthony van den Hurk
The man with the name that sticks with you, Anthony van den Hurk (7.0m) has joined Helsingborg from the second tier in the Netherlands. In the previous two seasons combined, he has scored 32 goals and four assists in 65 games, a very respectable tally. Helsingborg will need him to contribute from the start and with a favourable schedule, he could indeed be an interesting option. Helsingborg also has a thin squad so van den Hurk should get plenty of game time and could hit the ground running.
Jordan Attah Kadiri
One of pre-season’s most hyped strikers, Jordan Attah Kadiri (7.0m) scored four goals and one assist in the three Swedish cup games, coupled with a few extra goals in friendlies. Last season he got three goals in ten games but the young striker has big dreams of playing for Arsenal as well as actual Premier League connection, apparently being called up by Odion Ighalo and advised to “keep working hard in Europe” (they share the same agent). Östersund is a club with deep financial problems and if Kadiri starts firing on all cylinders, expect his tenure there to be short as both club and player will want a big move to secure the clubs continued survival. Facing Hammarby away in the first game might seem like a tough task for a 20-year old but Östersund tends to do quite well against Hammarby, and there will be space to exploit on the counter if last season is anything to go by.
Budget Forwards
Nils Fröling
A very popular choice as things stand, Kalmar striker Nils Fröling (6.5m) looks to be given a bigger role this season as he’s tasked with improving a Kalmar attack that seemed a bit lacklustre at times last year. Though five goals and two assists won’t impress many, he seems to have stepped it up a bit ahead of this season and crucially, he looks likely to get more playing time. Plenty of bigger clubs seem interested, will this be his breakthrough season?
Astrit Seljmani
Varberg striker Astrit Seljmani (6.0m) got named player of the year in Superettan last season when his 15 goals and six assists played a big part in earning Varberg a promotion to Allsvenskan. Varberg and Seljmani now face a different level of opposition and it remains to be seen how they cope with that. Seljmani is a classic case of talented player at a small club which is traditionally a good fantasy combo, yet even if he adapts quickly to life in the top division, his issue might be the level of his teammates who need to provide him with chances to convert.
Mamudo Moro
Mamudo Moro (5.5m) got four goals and one assist in three Swedish cup games. Mjällby impressed and Moro will get a lot of game time, which means he will find himself in plenty of fantasy squads this season. Mjällby starts off with a pretty difficult schedule though, so the key might be when to bench him, and when to put him on the virtual pitch.
Best of luck to you with the squad building! What strikers are you starting out with?
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3 years, 11 months ago
I hate that almost every player have been in one of my drafts. All the hauls you feel you just missed.