The Scout looks at the lessons learned over the opening 21 Gameweeks of 2022/23 Fantasy Premier League.
Forwards
Pairing Erling Haaland (£12.2m) with Harry Kane (£11.7m) looks key to having a successful second half to the season. But just how can FPL managers afford them both?
Haaland has taken Fantasy by storm in his debut campaign, amassing 169 points. His tally of 25 goals is already more than anyone managed in the entirety of last season.
Although Kane has been overshadowed by Haaland, the Tottenham Hotspur star is on course for his best-ever Fantasy campaign.
If he continues his current average of 6.7 points per match, Kane will surpass the 250-point mark, beating his career-high 242 points from 2020/21.
Three forwards hold the key
So, owning both Haaland and Kane seems an essential tactic, and three other forwards can help managers to afford them.
Eddie Nketiah (£6.7m) and Wout Weghorst (£6.0m) are both set for a Double Gameweek in the next two rounds of fixtures.
Evan Ferguson (£4.6m) is the cheapest starting forward in the game and can help managers move to a 3-5-2 formation in the second half of the season, providing he is fit after picking up a suspected injury in the 2-1 win over Liverpool in the FA Cup fourth round.
Brighton & Hove Albion's 18-year-old has 27 points in the last four Gameweeks and has not blanked once in that period.
Indeed, he is the most in-form forward in the game, averaging 6.8 points per match over the last 30 days.
Most in-form forwards last 30 days
| Player | Goals | Assists | Pts/match |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ferguson | 3 | 2 | 6.8 |
| Haaland | 5 | 0 | 6.6 |
| Kane | 3 | 2 | 6.2 |
At this point last season, Liverpool’s Diogo Jota (£8.8m) was the top-scoring forward in FPL, on 101 points.
With Haaland and Kane having 169 and 140 points respectively at the same stage it shows the importance of owning them both for the rest of the campaign.
Also in this series
Part 1: Bargain Kepa outperforming Pope
Part 2: Trippier on course for record-breaking campaign
Part 3: James and Chilwell can shake up defences
Part 4: Why Trippier earns so many bonus points
Part 5: Time for a five-man midfield?
Part 7: Mitoma the go-to Almiron replacement