We ain’t afraid of no ghosts. In fact, we seek them – ghost points, that is. Ghost points are fantasy points that do not come from attacking returns or clean sheets. These can come in the form of key passes, shots on target, successful dribbles, interceptions, and tackles, among others. Identifying these points is essential for your Fantasy EPL prospects, and our Gameweek 2 Ghost Point Hunters article is here to help!
This Ghost Point Hunters article is based on the Fantrax Scoring System. Check out our Ghost Point Tracker page for the full list of Fantasy EPL players and their respective Ghost Point capabilities!
Gameweek 2 Ghost Point Hunters
And we're back! Just like that, the wait is over, the Premier League has made its glorious return and so has GPH. We have a new section this season - "Category Killers" - which lists the players who scored the most points that GW in a particular statistical category (e.g., Key Passes). It was a fascinating opening GW, so let's get to it. On the big board, we have Wolves (too many ghost points to confine to just one player), Julian Alvarez, and Yves Bissouma. And in Honorable Mention, we're going with Bernd Leno, Eberechi Eze, Joachim Andersen, Willy Boly, & Declan Rice. Last but certainly least, this season's inaugural Dr. Peter Venkman Award is being overnight delivered to Leon Bailey - welcome back!
Wolves
Prospects: Neto, Nunes, Cunha, Sarabia, and the defenders both looked and scored well v Man United. Even better, they were on the cheap in the draft/on the wire. This type of GW is unlikely to happen again but it was a great start to Gary O'Neill's tenure at Molineux.
Verdict: We need to see more data before fully jumping on board. The fantastic showing against Man United could be an aberration but if they do it again versus a strong Brighton team this weekend, that would be the horse of a different color. Sell high or hold and roll the dice.
Well, well, well. One of the most oft-maligned teams in the league, the one who is always pegged for relegation pre-season but never actually ends up going down, Wolves is now being lauded. The West Midlands club was extremely unlucky not to win at Old Trafford in GW1. They will rue a ton of missed chances and a very controversial non-penalty call but the performance was incredible and a haul of fantasy points was had by almost all.
Coming into this game, expectations and morale were seemingly rock bottom. Julen Lopetegui, the manager Wolves had long pined for, had just called it quits after the club failed to make any signings. Up stepped former Bournemouth caretaker manager, Gary O'Neill, who parlayed his miracle act of keeping the Cherries up last campaign into turning these Wolves into world-beaters v Man United. The team kept a high-intensity press and continued to win the ball back and get into dangerous areas. Wolves got off a staggering 23 shots in the game - the second most from a visiting team to Old Trafford in almost 20 years. Only a lack of finishing kept them from embarrassing the home team.
Fantasy-wise, pre-season hopes were also low. Lopetegui's system didn't seem to lend itself to prolific scoring but O'Neill's Wolves were ghosting like crazy on Monday. No fewer than 6 Wolves players dropped double-digit ghosties - Neto (20), Nunes (16.5), Dawson (14.25), Kilman (12.5), Semedo (10.75), & Gomes (10) - and others were knocking on the door. Neto and Nunes look the most reliable - the former with some set pieces and the latter serving as an all-action midfielder picking up both defensive and attacking points - but all their assets showed potential. So what gives? There is a good case to be made that this is an aberration that should be taken with a grain of salt. Man United were extremely poor, leaving huge spaces open for Wolves, and this won't happen every week. But we're glass-half-full kind of guys so we'll just trust but verify. There are plenty of positives to take away from this opening game - let's see if they can replicate this form against a tricky Brighton team this GW and make us truly believe.
Julian Alvarez
Position: Forward
Team: Manchester City
Rostered: 99%
Ghost Points Per Start: 16
Ghost Points Last GW: 16
Prospects: A high-end rotation piece last season, Alvarez may have just lucked into a rare nailed-on role in Pep's side. With the long-term injury to KDB, the Argentine is primed to keep his place in the side and score bucketloads of points. And with the addition of some set pieces, he is primed to become a top 5/10 FWD.
Verdict: This might be a case of buying high before his stock goes even higher. Man City's schedule is a peach and he should take full advantage. Try something like Heung Min Son for Alvarez +1 (this may not be doable) or package a Harvey Barnes + FWD3.
World Cup winner Julian Alvarez came over to Manchester City from River Plate in January 2022 and then made his debut in the 22/23 season. Typically for first-year Pep Guardiola signings, he learned the system and started only sparingly. He did show flashes of brilliance in his 13 starts, however, bagging 9 goals in those cameo appearances. Fantasy-wise, like many Manchester City assets, he was a very frustrating player to roster given the sporadic and infrequent starts but if you timed it right, Alvarez's13.5 PPS helped win you some gameweeks.
Fast forward to this season's draft and Alvarez was a consensus 4th-round draft pick - explosive when he plays but concerns abounded that he would not get enough consistent starts to warrant a high draft pick. The early returns have paid off for those gambling on him as a FWD1/2. Given the nod straight away on opening day v Burnley, Alvarez impressed, dropping 20+ points with an assist and a bag of ghosts. His 16 scary scores came from 6 Key Passes, 1 Shot on Target, 1 Tackle Won, 1 ACNC, and 1 Aerial. A pleasant surprise was the Argentine taking roughly half the set pieces. Will this continue? With Kevin De Bruyne suffering a serious injury that will keep him out for months, his place should be as nailed as it can be in a Pep Guardiola-managed side. Alvarez will be a GW winner this season - get him in if you can.
Yves Bissouma
Position: Midfielder
Team: Tottenham
Rostered: 16%
Ghost Points Per Start: 12
Ghost Points Last GW: 12
Prospects: After a very poor debut season with Spurs, Bissouma looks ready to crack on under new manager Postecoglu. He should be nailed on and constantly part of the action in this system. But we have to see if he can string together some consistent scores without morphing back into a standard CDM scorer.
Verdict: Pick him up!
Yves Bissouma, like many others before and after him, left Brighton as a mouthwatering prospect only to lose his way in his debut season with a new club. Sold to Spurs last summer, he struggled for game time and form under Antonio Conte, only mustering 10 starts in 22/23. In those 10 starts, he averaged roughly 4 points per start - not nearly enough to warrant even a stream.
Seemingly revived by new manager Ange Postecoglu, Bissouma showed signs of his former domineering self in the preseason. He was given a start in Spurs' opener v Brentford, bossing the midfield and serving as a catalyst for wave after wave of attack. He picked up 1 Key Pass, 1 Tackle Won, 4 Interceptions, 2 Clearances, & 5 Successful Dribbles en route to a dozen ghosties. Brighton Bissouma used to put in these types of fantasy performances every now and again. But is this truly a new dawn for the central midfielder? History says no. He delivered a mediocre 6.5 PPS in the 20/21 & 21/22 seasons. This time might be different given his new role in Postecoglu's attacking system, but we want to see another double-digit performance this weekend v Man United. If Wolves' fantasy prospects against the Red Devils in GW1 were any indication, he very well could. Either way, Bissouma is worth a free punt off the wire to find out if he is the real deal.
Honorable Mention:
Bernd Leno (Fulham GK; 20.5 ghosts): The German ghost point God has hit the ground running. With an even worse backline, he is sure to see a continued flurry of shots, many of which he will save. This guy was a steal in the 12th round for those of us faithful servants who became wise to his exploits in 22/23.
Eberechi Eze (Crystal Palace MID; 19 ghosts): Just like with Wolves, almost all of Crystal Palace had a field day against Sheffield this GW. Of course, Eze was the stand-out in terms of ghosties. With Olise out of the picture, everything goes through him. Let's see what he can do this GW in a tough matchup v Arsenal.
Joachim Andersen (Crystal Palace MID; 17.5 ghosts): Andersen will Andersen. The guy has streaks like this and Sheffield Utd was the perfect matchup for him to ghost. If the past is prologue, this will not last - and Arsenal is coming to town next. Sell high.
Willy Boly (Nottingham Forest DEF; 11.5 ghosts): A GPH favorite of yesteryear, Boly showed flashes of his old Wolves form over the opening weekend in a tough fixture at the Emirates. This bodes well for GW2 in a much more favorable matchup against the same Sheffield Utd team that yielded all those points to Andersen. Willy is a good short-term play here.
Declan Rice (Arsenal MID; 11.5 ghosts): The epitome of CDM+, there was much discussion this summer on how Rice's points would be affected by his move to Arsenal. Well, early returns are pretty good. He got his usual defensive stats but also got forward and had a few pops at goal. Will he revert to the 7-8 point mean in GW2? Stay tuned.
Category Killers:
Key Passes: Eberechi Eze (7)
Successful Dribbles: Matheus Nunes (6)
Aerials: Jefferson Lerma (12)
Accurate Crosses Not Corners (ACNCs): Pedro Neto (4)
Tackles Won: Lucas Paqueta (7)
Interceptions: Matheus Nunes (5)
Dr. Peter Venkman Award:
Leon Bailey (Aston Villa MID; -0.5 ghosts): As you may know, we flagged in the Draft Kit's Aston Villa team preview that Leon Bailey was one to avoid. He has proven to be injury-prone, inconsistent, and just not very fantasy relevant in Emery's system. With the arrival of Moussa Diaby, his starting role was even threatened. But some folks didn't listen. With the injuries to Buendia and Ramsey, Bailey was given the nod in GW1 against Newcastle and he didn't disappoint - unless you were actually expecting fantasy points from him. He registered 1 Interception, 1 Aerial, and 4 dispossessions, and was rightfully hooked after 45 minutes. Hopefully this is enough to seal the deal for those who think Bundesliga Bailey is going to make a glorious return. Sadly, it ain't gonna happen. But he does get some early silverware!
***Click here to view the full Ghost Point Tracker table!***
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