Strikers have stolen the show as far as Fantasy Premier League is concerned. Some more so that others like the new Manchester City signing Erling Haaland.
Four of the top six point-getters in FPL play as a striker, while there are no defenders in the top 10.
Spurs forward Harry Kane has somewhat slipped under the radar but has been involved in the goals for five consecutive matches, scoring 5 and assisting 1.
The only reason he isn’t being talked about is because of his Man City counterpart, Haaland, who has scored 8 and assisted 1 in the same time frame.
Harry Kane’s fine form has been overshadowed by Haaland’s brilliance
But the issue with these two, FPL-wise, is their price point.
Both are 11M+ and having both in the team requires a cheaper third forward as well as compromising on other areas of the pitch.
Thankfully, the budget players this season have not failed to deliver for FPL managers around the world.
Sub-7.5M strikers are lighting up the Premier League, to a point where teams are including them not as a compromise, but as a must-have.
In this thread, we analyse three in-demand budget-forward players.
None of their teams is playing in Europe, meaning the players are relatively rotation-proof, unlike their more expensive compatriots Haaland, Kane and Jesus.
Ivan Toney (Brentford; 7.2M)
The most expensive of the trio, Ivan Toney has only played the full 90 minutes in all six games this season, scoring 5 times and assisting twice.
His best performance came in Gameweek 6, against Leeds United, wherein the player scored a hattrick and ended the week with 17 points.
Selected by 19.4% of teams, Toney is eyeing a national team place for the World Cup and will be keen to keep his impressive form going.
Add to this, the fact that he is on freekick and penalty duties for his club, FPL managers will be forgiven for expecting points week-in and week-out for this player.
Points: 45 🔢 Form: 7.5 🔥 GW6: ⚽️ ⚽️ ⚽️
Hat-trick hero Ivan Toney has a favourable run of fixtures to help him continue his #FPL form 👀 pic.twitter.com/Q7qbzjUoLq
Brentford faces Southampton, Arsenal, Bournemouth, Newcastle, BHA and Chelsea in the upcoming games.
All of these are tricky fixtures, except maybe Bournemouth.
Toney’s record against top table teams is not pretty to look at, 4 out of 12 in the previous season.
Stats like this matter little for in-form players but will surely worry managers looking to bring players in.
At the time of writing, 459K managers have transferred the player to their teams. This number is sure to rise come gameweek deadline.
Alexander Isak (Newcastle; 7M)
Club-record signing Alexander Isak opened his account against Liverpool in his first game for the club.
The Newcastle forward has played only 2 games and has shown real potential, which bodes well for his managers.
Isak is often the most advanced player on the pitch for his team and with Callum Wilson returning, Isak and Wilson can form a formidable front-two; scoring and providing goals for each other.
Alexander Isak is showing signs of becoming an exceptional FPL asset.
Another possibility is Isak shifting to the right side of the pitch as a winger with Wilson up top.
If this were to happen, his returns would almost certainly be lower than his alternatives, making him surplus to requirements.
With attractive fixtures coming for Newcastle, the only issue with Isak is his possible position and rotation once Wilson returns.
But for now, selected by only 4.3% of the teams, Isak has real differential value.
Toney or Isak?
I'd go with Isak.
Being Newcastle's main man & with 3 big chance involvements in 2 games played already, I'd expect his numbers to be similar to Toney's.
I see 4 "haul" fixtures for Isak in the next 6 – BOU ful BRE & EVE. With Toney, I see just 2 – sou & bou.
The Fulham striker is seeking redemption, given his poor showing the last time he played in the Premier League.
His previous seasons with Fulham in the PL ended with 11 goals and 2018-19 and 3 goals in 2020-2021.
In both seasons, his club was relegated back to the second tier of English football, the Championship.
Fulham and Mitrovic would be keen to not let history repeat itself and the Serbian has started the season in blistering form, scoring six goals in six games.
Having already scored twice against Liverpool and once each against Arsenal and Tottenham, Mitrovic is proving to be fixture-proof.
Only Erling Haaland (10) has more Premier League goals than Aleksandar Mitrovic (6) this season
Mitrovic currently ranks number 1 for shots in PL with 27 shots. Furthermore, he has the lowest price among the three, meaning FPL managers can allocate money elsewhere without dropping quality up top.
Next game against Chelsea aside, the next time Fulham and Mitrovic face a Big Six side is in week 15.
With positive fixtures, red hot form, no rotation and the lowest price, Mitrovic currently seems like the pick of the bunch.
A lack of assists is the only caveat that we can pinpoint right now, but a striker needs to score and he is doing that aplenty.
Owned by 25.1% of teams, that number is only going to go up if the Mitrovic keeps his current form.
Come Gameweek 8, this topic is only going to get heated. Strap in and enjoy.
