The opening Fantasy Premier League gameweek lived up to all the expectations and was filled with goals and points for the Fantasy managers. As with every year, there were a number of potential high scoring options that many players wish they’d have picked up for their team.
Price manipulation is a tough task for Fantasy managers and picking up certain high scoring budget options is key to accommodating the other high hitters who come at a premium. The opening set of matches have positively thrown up many of these options, particularly in the defensive and midfield department.
Here are the top picks with a price of less or equal to £4.5 for goalkeepers and defenders and £6 for midfielders and forwards.
Alex McCarthy (£4.5) – Southampton Gk
The highest scoring goalkeeper in the opening set of fixtures shrugged off competition from similarly priced Forster and Angus Gunn to keep his starting place in goal for the Saints. He was then instrumental in keeping Burnley from scoring making a string of great saves (6 in total), earning maximum bonus points.
His performance has perhaps cemented his place further in goal and a set of favourable fixtures means that McCarthy will be a popular choice for Fantasy managers wanting a budget goalkeeper in their side. Even if he may not give a clean sheet weak in week out, MacCarthy promises a lot of saves and bonus points along with them.
Jose Holebas (£4.5) – Watford Df
Only Mendy (£6) from Man city could better the points total of the Holebas when it came to defenders. The Watford defender got a couple of assists beside a clean sheet and also grabbed two bonus points to take his total to 13. His ownership of only 2% must not have hoped for a better return from the budget defender.
Watford were terrible in defence the last season before their new manager Garcia took over. They clearly seem to have worked in this department and are expected to get more clean sheet points this season. With Holebas offering an attacking threat from the back, points might just come regularly for players opting for the Greek fullback.
Ruben Neves (£5) – Wolves Mf
There were high expectations from the Portuguese going into the new season. He was already Wolves’ highest selected player at 17% and delivered just the goods to pay back a hefty sum of points (12).
Curling in a fantastic free kick and then putting in a perfect cross for the equalizer, the Wolves man looks set to give back a lot more points than his price suggests. He looks to be their primary set-piece taker which always assures a few assists in addition to being a creative force in midfield.
What still needs to be seen is whether he would continue playing in advance positions against tougher oppositions and also the fact that Everton were down to 10 men. Still at this price, Neves comes as an absolute bargain
Callum Wilson (£6) – Bournemouth Fw
Wilson was a goal machine in the Cherries’ promotion season 4 years back and was highly talked about for his Premier League prospects. He never did reach his goalscoring prowess after being hampered by injuries but has progressively gotten better every season. Who knows if this might be the season when Wilson shows the EPL what he is all about.
Scoring a goal and assisting another in the first game, Wilson’s total might have been higher if it wasn’t for the missed penalty. Still, if his performance is anything to go by, he looks to be in pole position to continue his goal scoring exploits. Wilson currently rides at the top of the FPL threat index ahead of the likes of Mane and Salah.
That might not be the case for too long but at such a cheap price for a forward and with a favourable run of fixtures, Wilson might just be the man to turn to.