Delving into the FPL Bargain Bin for cheap player options
This season in the Fantasy Premier League is the toughest yet in regards to inflated player prices, with so many premium options it is now normal for anyone who has had a mediocre season to be massively overvalued in the FPL. Prices aren't falling to match the price increases, which meant players, more now than ever, are being forced to look at genuine alternatives from lower down the price bracket to fill the positions in the FPL squads. In this article we intend to review some of the value options to buffer your fantasy team with for the forthcoming 2017/18 Premier League season. All aboard.
What we're going to do is provide analysis surrounding five of our top bargain bin buys, then end with a longer list of general considerations for your FPL team, should you be struggling to fill in the blanks with low budget options. We start off proceeding with a player whose consideration is being taken seriously by many within the FPL community.
Ben Foster
Club: West Brom (WBA)
Position: Goalkeeper
Price: £4.5m
Current Ownership: 18.2%
Among the goalkeeping considerations for this year we were surprised that the veteran Foster was priced at a measly £4.5mil, most startling because the West Brom defenders were all priced at £5.0mil. West Brom are looking at beefing up their defence for the upcoming campaign, they have already added the Egyptian central defender Hegazi, and if West Brom can continue their track record of keeping clean sheets through dogged games then Ben Foster is a real option.
Steve Mounie
Club: Huddersfield (HUD)
Position: Forward
Price: £6.0m
Current Ownership: 0.5%
Currently Huddersfield's record signing, we are keeping a keen eye on Steve Mounie ahead of the new season. After a long think we believe that of all the promoted teams they have the best starting fixtures, in context that they don't face any top six teams until gameweek seven when they host Spurs. The first three games are Crystal Palace (a), Newcastle (h), and Southampton (h); three fixtures that on paper aren't that bad and they have the advantage of being at home for two of them. Mounie scored nearly a goal every other game at his previous club Montpellier with fourteen goals in thirty-two starts which is a decent turnaround. Given his status as the Terrie's record signing it is hard seeing Wagner not fielding Mounie at the start of the season unless he is injured. Mounie even picked up his first pre-season goal against Bury in a comfortable win for the Terriers on the 16th July 2017, and since then has scored in his first three consecutive appearances for Wagner's team.
The only question mark over the whole Huddersfield team is rotation, the Terriers have brought in eight additions on-top of their existing squad which means that Mounie will be competing with Elias Kachunga, Nahki Wells, Collin Quaner, and fellow new addition Laurent Depoitre for a starting birth. Usually Huddersfield deploy a 4-2-3-1 formation so a starting striker spot is a premium position heading into their maiden campaign.
Maya Yoshida
Club: Southampton (SOU)
Position: Defender
Price: £5.0m
Current Ownership: 1.1%
Compared to all of the premium defenders, all priced at £6.0mil plus, there is a beacon of the light of Southampton's defence as their initial run of fixtures has the potential to be very promising for the Saints. New boss Pellegrino is regarded as a defensive master so you can imagine that it will be deep defending followed by a fast paced counter-attack. If that is the case then having a Southampton defender is an essential part of your FPL defence, and there is value in Maya Yoshida who has been at the heart of the Saint's defence since the beginning of last season, even stepping up to the mantle of captain after Virgil van Dijk was injured by Jamie Vardy. Speaking of the Dutch defender it is hard to see him returning to the red and white strip as he looks to leave the club for Southampton's feeder club, Liverpool. Yoshida was a magnet for bonus points last season and compared to other premium options from 'top six' clubs there is real value for the opening stretch of Premier League fixtures, meaning you wouldn't need to rotate the Japanese defender from your team.
Ruben Loftus-Cheek
Club: Crystal Palace (CRY)
Position: Midfielder
Price: £4.5m
Current Ownership: 15.8%
Brought in as new manager Frank De Boer's first summer signing, the younger who is on loan from Chelsea is a tantalizing option in this years fantasy football season priced at a basement price of £4.5mil. Capable of playing behind the main striker, as the main striker, or with another striker, or in central midfield the Englishman will be looking for minutes following on from a disappointing campaign where he was barely utilised by Antonio Conte in their title winning campaign. His move to the Eagles should mean he gets a healthy amount of game time, and if he is playing a more forward position then he is an essential pick in your FPL teams at the price he is. Opening the season against Huddersfield also helps with choosing him, it could be a match laced with goals from both teams.
Ramadan Sobhi
Club: Stoke City (STK)
Position: Midfielder
Price: £5.0m
Current Ownership: 1.3%
After the Potters sold Marko Arnautovic to West Ham it was clear the Mark Hughes was done with trying to better the Austrian who had lots of up-and-downs at Stoke. Moving on from this they may already have a player who could step in and fill the void left by Arnautovic, this player is already in their ranks and goes by Ramadan Sobhi. The skillful winger is a natural attacking threat, and towards the tail end of last season he was being trusted more and more in the Potters attacking line-up, and with such few options available out wide it could be down to the Egyptian to step up and make his mark in the Premier League with a breakout season. The only off-putting factor is that Stoke have a horrid run of games to begin the season, and for the past two seasons Stoke have struggled to start strong. Sobhi is a great value option at £5.0mil, but you may have to patient as Stoke find their feet in the upcoming season.
Our List of FPL Bargain Bin Considerations (So far...):
Ben Foster (WBA): GK, £4.5mil
Ruben Loftus-Cheek (CRY): MID, £4.5mil
Dwight Gayle (NEW): FWD, £6.5mil
Asmir Begovic (BOU): GK, £4.5mil
Nathan Ake (BOU): DEF, £5.0mil
Joshua King (BOU): FWD, £7.5mil
Anthony Knockaert (BRI): MID, £6.0mil
Lewis Dunk (BRI): DEF, £4.5mil
Ben Mee (BUR): DEF, £4.5mil
Mason Holgate (EVE): DEF, £4.5mil
Steve Mounie (HUD): FWD, £6.0mil
Florian Lejeune (NEW): DEF, £4.5mil
Jamaal Lascelles (NEW): DEF, £4.5mil
Matt Ritchie (NEW): MID, £6.0mil
Nathan Redmond (SOU): £6.5mil
Maya Yoshia (SOU): DEF, £5.0mil
Jack Stephens (SOU): DEF, £5.0mil
Kieran Tripper (TOT): DEF, £5.5mil
Ramadan Sobhi (STK): MID, £5.0mil
Geoff Cameron (STK): DEF, £4.5mil
Tammy Abraham (SWA): FWD, £5.5mil
Kyle Naughton (SWA): DEF, £4.5mil
Troy Deeney (WAT): FWD, £6.5mil
Stefano Okaka (WAT): FWD, £5.5mil
Jay Rodriguez (WBA): FWD, £6.0mil
Joe Hart (WHU): GK, £4.5mil
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