Our transfer spotlight continues with one of the new sides to the Premier League. AFC Bournemouth do have previous Premier League history, having been promoted in 2015 and then eventually relegated in 2020.
They now look to start adding experience to their squad, with former Irons man, Ryan Fredericks; signed by former Irons player Scott Parker on a free transfer. Parker and Fredericks featured together on the field at Fulham.
Background
Ryan Fredericks is a 29 year-old defender who has been with West Ham since 2018, registering a fair amount amount of Premier League experience. He was originally a Tottenham Hotspur graduate and was a bit of a journeyman on-loan until picked up by Championship side Fulham in 2015. Fredericks previously represented England U19s during his time at Spurs.
Fredericks is a right-back and is rarely deployed elsewhere, having made only the very occasional performance at in midfield for West Ham; usually to provide a further defensive approach. Fredericks made a total of 67 appearances in 4 seasons with the East London club and also boasts Europa League experience.
Fantasy Prospects
In FPL, Fredericks retains his £4.5 price tag for the 2022-23 campaign. He didn’t feature heavily for West Ham last season and was mostly a squad player until featuring more towards the end to cover for injuries. In all he made 7 appearances in the league but has decent appearance figures in previous seasons.
Goals and assists have been rather rare for Fredericks but in the 2019-20 season he picked up 3 assists after featuring heavily, so his productivity will be very much dependent on whether he can get a run in the side. Due to his experience he should be the main right-back for the Cherries, making him more attractive than he was during his time at West Ham.
However, like any new side, Bournemouth’s main priority for its defenders will be to keep the ball out of their own net rather than to help to put it into the other one, so attacking returns could be limited. There seems to be quite a few attractive prospects in the game around the same price tag as Fredericks so he may not get much fantasy love, especially with the incredibly difficult fixtures that Bournemouth starts off with.
What are your thoughts on Bournemouth’s new boy? How will he perform with a run in a side like Bournemouth? Would you consider him in your Fantasy team? Please let us know in the comments below!
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