The Watchlist Updated – Gameweek 3 – The Forwards

Having analysed the best options at the back and in midfield over the last couple of days, this afternoon we turn our attention to the latest movements among the forwards on our Watchlist, which offers player recommendations for the next four-to-six rounds of fixtures. Sergio Aguero zooms straight to the top of our rankings after a lively performance against Chelsea, but across Manchester, Wayne Rooney’s struggles see him plummet to the bottom of our ladder.

Following a substitute appearance in Gameweek 1 against West Brom, Sergio Aguero was handed his first start of the season against Chelsea, and duly opened the scoring in the 3-0 win. The Argentine has registered nine goal attempts in his 113 minutes played so far, the joint highest in the league, and while his finishing may have been slightly wasteful, the sheer number of chances he was afforded suggests he’ll back to his goal scoring best over the next few weeks, with the fixtures (eve, WAT, cpl, WHM, tot, NEW) firmly in his favour. Over 264,000 Fantasy Premier League (FPL) bosses have drafted him in so far this week, with his price already up to 13.1, while he currently leads the Captain Poll ahead of Sunday’s trip to Goodison Park with 37% of the vote.

With two goals in two appearances this season, and having netted seven goals in his last eight league outings, Swansea’s Bafetimbi Gomis is definitely a man in form. Garry Monk’s side have registered the third highest number of goal attempts (36) this season, behind Arsenal and Manchester City, and face a fairly favourable upcoming schedule (sun, MUN, wat, EVE, sot, TOT). The France international, now valued at 7.1 in FPL, looks a great mid-price option for the coming weeks, then, although it is worth noting he has yet to pick up a bonus point despite his goal scoring exploits.

Southampton’s Graziano Pelle slips to third place in our latest update, but the 8.0-priced forward still looks a great option for Fantasy managers, particularly for the next two Gameweeks (wat, NOR). The Italy international leads all forwards for touches in the penalty area (24) and shots from inside the box (nine), so should be able to turn those impressive statistics into attacking points over the next two weeks, although the schedule thereafter (wba, MUN, SWA, che) does look tougher.

Although he has yet to open his account this season, we’re continuing to back West Ham’s Diafra Sakho. The Senegal international, available for 6.5 in FPL, has managed a reasonable five shots from inside the box, and has four favourable fixtures (BOU, NEW, NOR, sun) in the next six in which to prove himself as a valuable Fantasy asset. Another blank in the plum home match-up against Bournemouth on Saturday, however, could see some FPL owners begin to reconsider.

Another forward who’s endured a disappointing start to the new campaign is Harry Kane. The Tottenham front man has only registered eight touches inside the penalty area, and at this early stage, looks to be struggling to repeat his form of last season. The upcoming fixtures (lei, EVE, sun, CPL) are still in the 9.5-rated forwards favour though, so for his 32.2% ownership in FPL, it’s probably worth keeping the faith for a while longer yet, though his early withdrawal due to cramp last weekend is worth keeping an eye on as he builds up his match sharpness.

After opening his account for Liverpool against Bournemouth on Monday night, Christian Benteke moves up a couple of places on our ladder. The 8.5-valued forward still looks to be coming to terms with the Reds style of play, and while Brendan Rodgers’ men have three difficult away matches (ars, mun, eve) in the next six, they also have favourable home match-ups against West Ham, Norwich and Aston Villa, which should prove profitable for the Belgian’s 40.7% ownership.

Another riser this week is Stoke’s Mame Biram Diouf, who also scored his first goal of the season last weekend, netting the equaliser in the Potters 2-2 draw against Tottenham. The 6.5-priced forward has five strong fixtures (nor, WBA, ars, LEI, BOU, avl) in the next six, and with so much competition for the advanced midfield positions at the Britannia, looks the best route into the Stoke attack. Diouf has registered six shots on target so far – more than any other striker.

Leicester’s Jamie Vardy may have been overshadowed by midfielders Riyad Mahrez and Marc Albrighton so far this season, but the 6.0-rated forward still looks a great option for the upcoming period (TOT, bou, AVL). The England international has registered five attempts on goal, and has also created four chances, joint-second among all forwards, with his assist potential, having racked up 12 last season, a crucial part of his appeal.

While the fixtures (MCI, tot, CHE, swa, wba, LIV) may not be in his favour, the performance of Romelu Lukaku against Southampton last weekend has seen him jump up our rankings. The Belgian international, whose price rose to 8.1 in FPL this week, gave the Saints defence a torrid time, and brought in a 13-point haul thanks to two goals and full bonus. As already mentioned, he will be up against some of the better defences in the next six Gameweeks, with City and Liverpool having both yet to concede.

Although neither Callum Wilson or Troy Deeney have managed to find the back of the net in the top flight so far, there have been enough encouraging signs to continue to back the pair over the coming weeks. Wilson has dropped to 5.4 in FPL this week, but having totalled 22 touches in the penalty area, second only to Pelle, he should be able to register some attacking returns in the upcoming period, particularly looking at the Cherries favourable schedule (whm, LEI, nor, SUN, sto, WAT).

Deeney did register an assist against Everton on the opening day, and has managed seven goal attempts so far, four more than Wilson. Watford’s fixtures (SOT, mci, SWA, new, CPL, bou) aren’t as favourable as Bournemouth’s, though, so the 5.5-priced Hornets skipper may struggle to outscore the former Coventry striker, particularly in the next three Gameweeks.

There is no way to dress up the statistics regarding Wayne Rooney so far this season. The United captain has only registered three penalty area touches, and only mustered two attempts on goal. While he looked slightly sharper in the 3-1 win against Club Brugge on Tuesday night, he still appears to be struggling in Louis van Gaal’s 4-2-3-1 system, with the patient possession based game plan not appearing to suit the England skipper. The 10.5-priced forward does have a plum home fixture against Newcastle this weekend, although United’s schedule (swa, LIV, sot, SUN, ars) then looks pretty tricky. He does lead the transfers out this week, with 220,000+ FPL bosses selling the United striker, and that number will only rise if he fails to produce when Steve McClaren’s men visit Old Trafford on Saturday.