Come one, come all, for our Fantasy Premier League tips Gameweek 1 forwards round-up is here to help get your 2014-15 season started like some kind of fiery house!
While our tips are based on FPL player prices, the principles should apply more or less across the board – so if you happen to be playing fantasy football at Sky Sports, the Telegraph, the Mirror or indeed anywhere else, you may still find joy here.
As educated guesses go, rest assured that our Fantasy Premier League tips remain every bit as educated as they are guessed. If you’d like some outright score predictions, consult Mystic Megson.
MORE FANTASY FOOTBALL TIPS:
- Fantasy Premier League tips Gameweek 1: Defenders and goalkeepers
- Fantasy Premier League tips Gameweek 1: Midfielders
Right, let’s do this thing…
Wayne Rooney, Manchester United – £10.5m
The England man has shown up well in pre-season and looks set to lead United’s line at home to Swansea City in the absence through injury of Robin van Persie.
Popular opinion may have it that Rooney didn’t have the best of seasons last year but he still ended up the third highest points-scoring forward in the FPL realm, so if he can maintain fitness then he could be set for one of his prolific campaigns.
His £7m teammate Danny Welbeck is worthy of your consideration too, at least until the return of van Persie.
Daniel Sturridge, Liverpool – £11.5m
Hardly a bargain at that price, but you’d expect him to score at least once at home to a sales-decimated Southampton side – and, with Luis Suárez now out of the picture, his likely status as main man might bring more assists out of him too.
Sturridge was last season’s second highest points-scoring forward just ahead of England teammate Rooney, leading us to wonder just how Roy Hodgson’s side contrived to be so poor at the summer’s World Cup.
Steven Naismith, Everton – £5m
At the cheaper end of the spectrum, Naismith ended last season on fire and could well start at Leicester City this weekend given Romelu Lukaku’s lack of pre-season minutes.
Even if the Belgian makes the Toffees’ starting line-up, Naismith can a) cover other positions, and b) has been known to make goal-scoring substitute appearances. At that modest price, he also frees up valuable funds for elsewhere.
Charlie Austin, Queens Park Rangers – £6m
QPR kick off the season at home to Hull City, and we fancy last season’s top goal-scorer to weigh in with a goal or two.
Goodness knows if the nearly-departed Loïc Rémy will feature, but if he does then we dare say he looks even more punt-worthy at £7.5m given his proven goal-scoring record at Premier League level.
Wait and see…
Diego Costa (£10.5m) – A debut away to newly promoted Burnley is a decent chance for the Brazil-defector to get off to a flyer, but Chelsea’s recent history with expensive strikers is hardly stellar.
Edin Džeko (£8.5m) – The Bosnian’s form at the tail-end of last season was a huge factor in Manchester City’s title win, but a trip to Newcastle United isn’t the easiest of starts, especially given his side’s lacklustre showing in Sunday’s Community Shield.
Connor Wickham (£6m) – Another to have ended last season in fine form, the Sunderland man could tear West Bromwich Albion to shreds if he picks up where he left off. However, there seem to be some doubts about his motivation so he could either take a while to get going or won’t at all.
Good luck and happy selecting!
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