Player Watchlist

Think it might be a good idea to have a watchlist of 'unknown' players ahead of GW1. Some of these are likely to warm the bench for most of the season but it's important to put a bit of time into these players, as they will likely be called up on a few occasions throughout the season and you need to ensure that they at least bag you 2 points. It helps if they have the ability to bang in goals/assists, like Sterling last season.

Defenders

Ben Turner (Cardiff - £4m)
My pick of the £4m defenders. I think Cardiff have a strong defence and Turner played more games than the other £4m options (McNaughton + Nugent). Well capable of getting forward too with 8 goals/5 assists over the previous three seasons.

Matthew Connolly/Mark Hudson (Cardiff - £4.5m)
Connolly hit the ground running in his first season with Cardiff notching up 5 goals last season, a cracking return for a defender. I don't know much else about him but definitely one to watch. Same goes for his teammate Mark Hudson, who at 31 is 6 years older but still managed 4 goals/2 assists last season. This followed his 5 goals/3 assists from the previous season, definitely well able to pick up points these two.

Micky Turner/Martin Olssen (Norwich - £4.5m)
Fan favourite from last year with 3 goals, although he only played 25 games. Team-mate Olssen is also a good shout with 3 assists last year, although he too only played about 25 games and is not guaranteed a place right from the start.

Seamus Coleman (Everton - £5m)
Most people have already spotted Coleman. £5m for a player who should essentially be a winger, and if he repeats the 10/11 he should be good for some goals/assists this year. A steal at £5m (he was £7m in 10/11)

Per Mertesacker (Arsenal - £5.5m)
There's a lot of value in the Arsenal defence this year, they had 14 clean sheets last and have a good start this year. With Sebastien Squillaci released, Johan Djourou off on a season-long loan to Hamburg and club captain Thomas Vermaelen out for three months with a back injury, Per Mertesacker is the only experienced centre-half at manager Wenger’s disposal. And with Koscielny now injured and possibly out for the start of the season Mertesacker becomes the best option if you want an Arsenal defender. 3 goals last year from the big man are an added bonus.

John Terry (Chelsea - £6m)
Not exactly 'unknown' but possibly overlooked. 10 goals in the last two seasons, despite only playing 40-ish games. His return is far better than that of any defender, including Baines. The only question is whether he will tie down a spot. I'm hoping Mourinho has faith in him and gives him his spot back, if he does I think he is the best value player in the game this year.


Midfielders

Kagisho Dikgacoi (Crystal Palace - £4.5m)
My third bench spot will be taken up by the cheapest midfielder I can find, and in the £4.5m range one of the best options I can find is Dikgacoi. Seems to play every game for Palace and was good for 5 goals and 2 assists last season. While it's unlikely I'll start him all too often. he should be reliable to at least pull in 2 points and if he does bang in a goal or assist in the first few weeks expect his price to rise.

Stephen Quinn (Hull - £4.5m)
Another one that I haven't heard anyone mention is Irishman Stephen Quinn. 3 goals/6 assists last season for Hull and seems to play every game. He was a regular in the side playing every game in 12/13, and seems to do well with getting forward - the previous season at Sheff Utd he picked up 3 goals/13 assists.

Pete Whittingham/Aron Gunnarsson (Cardiff - £5m)
Whittingham has gone under a lot of people's radars when they look at Cardiff. He had a cracking season in 09/10 banging in 25 goals/13 assists. He moved into a more central role after the arrival of Bellamy, but has a keen eye for goal and can play as a second striker if needed. Even in the central role he's still managed 8 goals/7 assists last season, and 13 goals/13 assists the season before. If Bellamy doesn't play as much, he could end up moving back into a more attacking position. He also takes penalties and free kicks. Unfortunately he's fallen out of favour a bit and hasn't scored since October 2012. Aron Gunnarsson seems to be more favoured than Whittingham, but currently out of action with a dislocated shoulder. Unsure if he'll make the start of the season but with 8 goals/5 assists last year we'll have to see if he slips in ahead of Whittingham.

Robert Koren/Robbie Brady (Hull - £5m)
A lot of people are looking at Robbie Brady as their £5m option but I think his teammate Robert Koren could actually be a better shout. 9 goals/5 assists last season and 10 goals/7 assists the previous one. It's a close call between the two though. Brady scored less goals last season (4), but managed 13 assists. I'm not sure which of them will be on penalties and free kicks though, maybe a Hull fan can clear this up? Might be the deciding factor.

Victor Wanyama (Southampton - £5m)
I'm not sure what the hype is about Wanyama, over 10% ownership. 6 goals/3 assists last season for Celtic, and didn't even play every game. Whittingham or one of the Hull duo are much better choices imo.


Strikers

Wilfried Bony (Swansea £8m)
I hadn't actually heard much about him before last week, but one look at his stats says it all. 31 goals in 24 league games last season, including a spell where he banged in 15 goals in 10 games, including 2 hat-tricks. Definitely one to watch, but I'm wary of whether he will hit the ground running in the opening game for a new club, against champions United. I have a feeling he could arrive with a bang, just like Cisse in 11/12. Will keep a close eye on Swansea's pre-season friendlies, it's a toss up between Bony, Rooney and Negredo who gets my last spot.

Ricky Van Wolfswinkle (Norwich - £7m)
A lot of people are going for him due to his 'cheap' price-tag but I'm not fully convinced yet. He scores on average just under 1 goal in every 2 games which isn't an amazing return for a striker but would be about the same as Berbatov or Lambert. He's joining Norwich who aren't known for their attacking potential, but there's a lot of hype about him so definitely need to keep an eye on him over the next few weeks.

Dimitar Berbatov (Fulham - £7.5m)
Can't see how I can avoid him at this price. Not much needs to be said about him - lethal when on form and should be good for 15 goals a season.

Alvaro Negredo (Man City - £?)
Will be interesting to see what price he comes in at, I expect him to start as a lone striker ahead of Aguero. 32 goals in all comps for Seville last year, he could run riot over the first few games for City. If he's priced £10m or lower he will be snapped up.


If anyone has any players to add, post below. You can enjoy the glory when they bang in a hat-trick in GW1 (or delete your post when they don't even make the squad). Same goes if you have anything to add on my picks, I don't pretend to know about some of these players in huge detail.