Popular forward options Watkins, Solanke, Álvarez, Darwin and Edouard all notched attacking returns in Fantasy Premier League (FPL) Gameweek 13. In this blog, their numbers are compared over the last five Gameweeks using the Fix Comparison Matrix.

Ollie Watkins (tot)

As the above image from our Fix Comparison Matrix feature shows, Watkins has racked up 26 FPL points over the last five Gameweeks with two goals and two assists. He is ranked third for shots (14) and second for shots on target (SoT) but is top for 'big chances' (BC) (six) which indicates he really could have had more returns. His creativity numbers are decent as well, with two BC created and five attempted assists. As the below image from our Fixture Planner shows, Villa are bottom for Attack Difficulty over the next five Gameweeks so it might be time to look for alternatives to Watkins to climb up the ranks.

Dominic Solanke (shu)

Solanke's brace against Newcastle made it three goals in the last five Gameweeks for the forward. His underlying numbers over that period have also been decent with the 26-year-old ranked second for shots (15) and third for SoT (five). Three BC is a healthy number too, but he does not have many creative attributes as shown by his zero BC created. Bournemouth play Sheff. Utd. and Luton in two of their next five but do have difficult games against Villa and Man Utd. as well over that period.

Julián Álvarez (LIV)

Alvarez' goal threat of 12 shots and four SoT over the last five Gameweeks is unimpressive but his creativity numbers have been consistently good with the Argentinian international joint-top of the comparison for attempted assists (seven). However, he has registered just one BC involvement over the aforementioned period which is worrying. Man. City's upcoming run sees them up against Liverpool, Spurs and Villa, which is difficult on paper, but the reigning Champions can be backed to score against any opposition.

Darwin Núñez Ribeiro (mci)

Darwin is joint-top of the comparison for FPL points (26) over the last five Gameweeks and the Uruguayan international's underlying numbers are very impressive. He is top for assists (four), shots (21), SoT (11), attempted assists (seven) and BC involvements (five BC, three BC created). As the below image from our Stats Sandbox feature shows, no player across the league has taken more shots than his 21 over the aforementioned period. With Gakpo and Jota back fit alongside the busy December period for Liverpool, there is likely to be some rotation which will see Darwin miss the odd game but his numbers indicate that when he does play, he is the most explosive option in the comparison.

Odsonne Edouard (lut)

Edouard is the cheapest forward in the comparison at just £5.5m and is bottom for most metrics such as FPL points (12), shots (11), SoT (four) and attempted assists (four). However, Palace's fixtures in the short-term include games against Luton, West Ham and Bournemouth, so he could be a sound budget investment for the immediate run of games if managers are looking to hop off players such as J. Pedro and attempt to make some ground with a differential.