Following articles on goalkeepers and midfielders, plus an in-depth analyses on defenders by Niall, this will be the final watchlist article. There are a lot to choose from in the striker department, but I have narrowed my watchlist down to just 5.
Jesus – is he the best Man City option?
Some were surprised that I did not include De Bruyne in my midfield watchlist and the Brazilian was the reason why. When compared to De Bruyne, its important to first look at Sky’s point allocation. Midfielders can fair better due to picking up more bonus points for tackles and passes, while also collecting more points for goals (+1). The problem for De Bruyne is that the points he gained from these last season is negligible.
Being classed as a midfielder, rather than a forward, made him only 6 extra points over the whole season (from his 6 goals scoring goals). Worse than this, the midfield maestro is very poor at picking up bonus, harvesting a bonus point only every 206 minutes, almost double that of Jesus on 108. Likely to be operating in the double pivot, for me, he is too far away from the action compared to the Man City frontman.
Taking a closer look at points per start from last season backs up this theory, with the Belgium averaging 5.97 and the Brazilian averaging 9.87 (albeit from fewer starts). The other option here is Aguero. With a points per start of 8.1, are we all overlooking the argentine? My view is that when Pep looks to sub or rest a forward, Aguero is more likely to be the fall guy. I haven’t done the math, but his points and gametime also seemed to drop off since the arrival of his new strike partner.
I think all three are good options, but I can only fit one into my team and I’ll likely be placing my faith in Jesus. I could turn out to be very wrong (it wouldn’t be the first time), and may even change my mind if De Bruyne pre-season form continues.
Points per start last season: 9.87
Verdict: 8/10
Harry Kane
This one is an easier decision. Pricy at 12.9, but worth every penny and will form part of my captaincy strategy early on. I don’t really need to say much more, Kane was the first name on the team sheet.
Points per start last season: 9.72
Verdict: 9.5/10 – no one is a 10 (apart from maybe Margot Robbie)
Lukaku
Favourable early fixtures for United and a very high ownership of 40% means that it will be very risky to go without the big Belgian. He’s currently in all my drafts, and likely to stay there.
Points per start last season: 6.89
Verdict: 8.5/10 – likely to make the final cut
Lacazette
Current performances pre-season have not filled me with confidence. That said, the new gunners frontman would make a handy captain on the first day so if he shows signs of sharpening up he could well find a way into my starting 11. Sanchez is the dark horse here (if he stays put) and is one to keep half an eye on for those looking to get off to a flier. The good thing about Arsenal is that we will know their starting line up before we need to make a decision.
Verdict: 7/10 – needs to improve but on the watchlist
Morata
A final possible captaincy punt could be Chelsea new boy Morata, who squares up to Burley at home on the first Saturday. Although, like Lacazette, he has a lot of work to do before convincing me he is worth a place in my team. Nevertheless, he squeezes onto my watchlist for now.
Verdict: 6/10 – a big punt at this stage
Site developments
This is going slower than I’d hoped. However, I have set up a new league page for those wanting to share or join leagues (cash and free). Theres also a new Sky fantasy football manager toolkit page. The latter only has one useful excel sheet on it at the moment (not created by me), but I hope to populate this with more worksheets and tools as the season progresses. Lastly, for those looking for feedback on their team, I have set up a new rate my team page.
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