It’s time to shine a light on fantasy forwards as FPL managers prepare their squads for the final gameweek before the first international break of the season.
Darwin Nunez (£7.3m) was almost becoming a forgotten man at Liverpool with the striker seemingly fifth choice for one of the attacking slots in Jurgen Klopp’s team. However, the Uruguayan made a big statement with a telling contribution against Newcastle, scoring both goals as Liverpool came from behind to defeat Newcastle. Despite only playing 13 minutes in that fixture, Nunez managed to return 11 FPL points – more than any other striker.
As one of the most transferred in forwards last week, there was a lot of expectation in the fantasy football community when it came to Nicholas Jackson (£7.1m). The Chelsea striker wasn’t wholly convincing against Luton, especially in the first half where he struggled to make an impact, but he finally delivered 15 minutes from time by converting Raheem Sterling’s fine cross. With Nottingham Forest up next for Chelsea, Jackson owners will be hoping for more returns.
Like Jackson, West Ham’s Antonio (£6.0m) earned seven points thanks to his strike against Brighton. That is the second consecutive game that Antonio has found the net, and with Luton up next in Gameweek 4, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see him get on the scoresheet again, particularly as he is typically a ‘streaky’ player.
When you are talking about goal streaks though, then Taiwo Awoniyi (£6.5m) is the man that springs to mind. The Nottingham Forest striker – who remains a huge differential despite his form – has now scored in seven successive Premier League games after his goal against Man Utd last week. Gameweek 4 sees Nottingham Forest take on Chelsea, who conceded three in their last away game.
Flying somewhat under the radar is Eddie Nketiah (£5.6m), who has returned in all three of Arsenal’s games to date. However, the recent return to fitness of teammate Gabriel Jesus (£7.9m) is likely to put a dent in Nketiah’s minutes as the Brazilian is generally favoured by Mikel Arteta when fit.
Ollie Watkins (£8.0m) is the picture of consistency at the moment, with an assist in each of Aston Villa’s games so far handing him three five-point scores in succession. However, given his price, owners will be expecting him to start finding the net himself, beginning with this weekend’s trip to Liverpool – an opponent Watkins has previous scored a hat-trick against.