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
With the second gameweek now in the books, we can start to see some trends crystalizing and some ghosters beginning to burnish their credentials. The transfer window - thank goodness - is also closing at the end of the week, and there are always some scary score specialists that arrive on Blighty's shores during this time. So let's assess where things stand. Up in bright lights, we have Adama Traore (yes, he's back), Mark Flekken (GKs are people too), & Nikola Milenkovic (Balkan Boly). Meanwhile, Jorgen Strand Larsen features in the Not So Fast section & Riccardo Calafiori is the One To Watch this week. Finally, Kai Havertz receives the Dr. Peter Venkman Award. We're nothing if not fair.
Adama Traore
Position: Forward
Team: Fulham
Rostered: 36%
Ghost Points Per Start: 9
Ghost Points Last GW: 12.5
Prospects: We've been praying for a valid reason to pay homage to the man, the myth, the vaseline, the legend, Adama Traore. He is truly ghost point royalty and an inspiration for the creation of this series. Rostering him at his peak at Wolves from 2019-2021 (see picture above) was one of the highlights of our fantasy career. He finished the 19/20 campaign with over 490 fantasy points (7th best overall). And he kept it going in 20/21 with 11.7 Ghost Points Per 90 from 28 starts. In those heady days, he was a top player. Unfortunately, he experienced a steady decline from there on out, with injuries and poor form keeping him from consistently breaking into the starting XI and wreaking havoc. Adama only mustered 10 starts (despite keeping his ghosting quality with 11.8 GPPS) the following season,12 starts and just 7.5 GPPS in 22/23, and a single solitary start in his debut season at Fulham in 23/24.
Back fit and ready to go, Marco Silva has trusted Adama early doors this season, giving him two starts on the trot. And he repaid that trust this past GW v Leicester. He showed flashes of his former glorious self, tacking on an assist to a bag of ghosties, stemming from 4 Key Passes, 1 Shot on Target, 1 Interception, 2 Successful Dribbles, & 4 Aerials. It's actually comforting that the majority of his scary scores are not flowing from his bread and butter (successful dribbles). He's showing a bit more diversity, which bodes well for his ghosting sustainability. Having said that, as viewers, we want to see Adama body every defender he meets. The only things that can derail him are injuries, a big new signing in his position, or him somehow falling out of favor with the manager. We know what he can do. For now at least, he seems primed to crack on from here. If he can keep this going - and the upcoming schedule will help - he's as dangerous a FWD3 as it gets. We're all rooting for you, legend. A por ellos!
Verdict: Trade in if you believe! Try opening with a FWD3+DEF3 (something like Wissa+Saliba).
Mark Flekken
Position: Goalkeeper
Team: Brentford
Rostered: 52%
Ghost Points Per Start: 13.6
Ghost Points Last GW: 12.5
Prospects: It's very rare that a goalkeeper makes the cut in these sacred pages. But ole Flekks has earned it - at least so far. While he historically hasn't been the best scoring GK, he showed the ability to post some monster scores last season, including six 15+ point performances in the last 17 games.
And he's had a great start to this new campaign, posting back to back double digit scores. This past GW v Liverpool, he delivered 6 saves (his second consecutive 6 save performance) and 2 clearances. The schedule softens a tiny bit now and hopefully Flekken can pair these saves with some cleansheets. If he does, we may have found a new version of 22/23 Leno.
Verdict: Pick him up!
Nikola Milenkovic
Position: Defender
Team: Nottingham Forest
Rostered: 6%
Ghost Points Per Start: 8.5
Ghost Points Last GW: 8.5
Prospects: For the second week in a row, we're highlighting a Nottingham Forest defender. This time, the big Serbian fills the void, as he stepped into the enormous shoes of ghost point legend, Willy Boly. Nikola Milenkovic was signed this summer from Fiorentina, where he was highly rated, to form a CB pairing with Danilo. But a suspension from his old days prevented him from starting the opener.
It's become pretty apparent that the alpha dog defender of the Forest backline will do some ghosting. Boly dropped 10 ghosties in GW1 and his GW2 replacement, Milenkovic, replied with 8.5 along with a cleansheet. He accumulated 1 Key Pass, 2 Interceptions, 6 Clearances, & 3 Aerials in the process. He should keep his spot, barring injury, and should only get better. He has DEF3 written all over him if he can crack on from here.
Verdict: Pick him up!
Not So Fast:
Jorgen Strand Larsen (Wolves FWD; 7 ghosts): We've mentioned ad nauseum how Wolves' strikers post-Raul Jimenez have been cursed. The big Norwegian is next in line to try to break the spell. And we must admit Strand Larsen looked good over the weekend v Chelsea, nicking a goal and bagging a decent amount of ghost points. He posted 1 Key Pass, 1 Shot on Target, 1 Tackle Won, 2 Clearances, 2 Successful Dribbles, 1 Blocked Shot, & 2 Aerials. These are pretty good numbers for a big striker. But we doubt they last. If you're desperate for a FWD3 punt, you should pick him up. But we don't think he can deliver 7+ ghosts in most matchups (unless he starts hoovering up the aerials that his frame dictates he should be getting). So he'll likely end up being the goal dependent FWD that we expected. And, hey, that's just fine. Don't try to be someone you're not, Jorgen.
One To Watch:
Riccardo Calafiori (Arsenal DEF; 1 ghost): The Italian sensation from the 2024 Euros - just about the only positive from the campaign for Italy - joined Arsenal this summer from Bologna. While Calafiori has yet to start an EPL game, he has us excited. He is highly touted and passed the eye test in his first cameo in Blighty this past GW at Villa Park. He came on for Timber and looked very lively although he only ended up nicking 1 Interception in his ten minute appearance. While there is a plethora of Left Backs currently at Arsenal, we expect he will win the most starts there this season and he will be the best ghoster of the bunch (Timber dropping just 3 ghosties in his debut start didn't impress us much). In Italy last season, Calafiori was the league leader for defenders in Aerials, Interceptions, and Assists. He can also dribble very well. So he has a myriad of ghost point sources from which to pull. Given the competition and the fact that he hasn't won a starting place yet, he may have been dropped in your league. Pick him up, he should be worth the wait.
Category Killer Winners:
Key Passes: Andreas Pereira (7)
Successful Dribbles: Mohammed Kudus (6)
Aerials: Dominic Calvert Lewin (5)
Accurate Crosses Not Corners (ACNCs): Anthony Gordon (3)
Tackles Won: Cristian Romero (6)
Interceptions: Michael Keane (5)
Dr. Peter Venkman Award(s):
Kai Havertz (Arsenal FWD; 1 ghost): Good ole Kai, never one to let us rest on our laurels. That's why he went from a 25+ point performance in GW1 to a 1 pointer the following GW. Against Villa, he recorded no attacking stats; just 1 Tackle Won & 1 Interception, which were dented by 2 Dispossessions. This looks really bad but the fact is that nobody on Arsenal really ghosted in this game - it was very cagey and staid for the most part. Kai will be just fine. In 23/24, he posted 7.5 GPPS, which was diluted by some poor performances at LCM. Those numbers were much better when he shifted to the tip of the spear in the latter stages of the campaign. And he delivered 11 ghosts last week. If this little blip has put some Kai managers off, try to get him in.
***Click here to view the full Ghost Point Tracker table!***
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