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 7 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 7 Ghost Point Hunters
Welcome to the first DGW scramble of the season. As you've seen, your waiver wire has likely been raided for Burnley & Luton Town "assets" - we use quotation marks because these two teams are pretty bad. But never mind that, we do dip our toes into the DGW frenzy but we also try to look beyond GW7. It is midfield madness on the big board: James Garner, Alfie Doughty, & Aaron Ramsey (not the Arsenal legend). The Honorable Mention, meanwhile, gives Boly, Anderson, Coufal, & Adingra their due and proper. The Dr. Peter Venkman Award, however, does not. It names and shames former Spur and current Man United (two birds) defender, Sergio Reguilon. Well deserved.
James Garner
Position: Midfielder
Team: Everton
Rostered: 10%
Ghost Points Per Start: 7.75
Ghost Points Last GW: 13
Prospects: Came back into the side against and was arguably man of the match. He has shown he can ghost and also takes some sets. Dyche sang his praises in the post-match presser and while he has competition in the form of Danjuma & Harrison, the spot should be his if he stays in form. And the schedule is nice in the near term.
Verdict: Pick him up! If he keeps this up, he has MID3/4 potential ROS.
The life of a former Manchester United academy player is not easy - just ask Tom Cleverley (if he is still wandering the earth). James Garner is trying to break the cycle. Going from Man United starlet to the blue end of Merseyside, the youngster has shown glimpses of his obvious talent. He has broken into the Everton starting XI, getting the nod in 4 of 6 games thus far this season. Fantasy-wise, he's been just ok, averaging around 6 points per start. Nothing to write home about.
That was until this past GW. Garner was an omnipresent creative outlet, finishing with an assist and a gang of ghosties. He posted 4 Key Passes, 3 Tackles Won, 1 ACNC, 1 Blocked Shot, & 1 Aerial - a proper box to box performance. A few Toffees scored well as Brentford were particularly bad. So is this an aberration or the coming of a new dawn? There are a few reasons why it could be the latter. Garner finally has decent forwards to aim at (Beto and DCL can get on the end of a ton of crosses) that aren't named Maupay. He is also on some set pieces despite McNeil's return (this continuing will be crucial to his value). The schedule is also helpful - it doesn't get much better than hosting Luton Town and Bournemouth in the next two. Yes, Harrison & Danjuma will be looking to supplant him. But Harrison is notoriously unfit, and Danjuma has provided very little thus far. Garner is also becoming a "Dyche man" - the veteran manager was full of praise for him after their first win. It's worth a punt to ride this until the wheels fall off.
Alfie Doughty
Position: Midfielder
Team: Luton Town
Rostered: 18%
Ghost Points Per Start: 11.5
Ghost Points Last GW: 16
Prospects: Is back fit and in the starting XI. He can ghost out of his mind, given the set piece monopoly and reliance on crosses into the box. Obviously, the DGW this week helps his immediate value. Barkley and/or Giles coming back into the side is possible, but not likely. He's a must stream this week and every week he starts.
Verdict: Pick him up!
GPH is in danger of rebranding to "Luton Town Wingback Weekly". Having shined the spotlight on the RWB Issa Kabore last week, we now shift to the left and wax lyrically about Alfie Doughty. As we discussed last week, these two spots are attractive because Luton Town's sole tactic is to have these wingbacks bomb forward and pump in cross after cross. This week was Doughty's turn. He dominated set pieces and dropped an absurd 16 ghosties - 5 Key Passes, 3 ACNCs, 2 Interceptions, & 2 Aerials.
A DGW against Everton & Burnley now beckons. Doughty has the potential to post a monster score with two bites of the apple. However, there are some potential roadblocks, unfortunately. If Barkley is back fit, his grip on lucrative set pieces is weakened. Also, he has been previously rotated with Ryan Giles. Will Doughty really get 2 starts on the trot? While we think he did enough to warrant keeping his spot, these concerns are valid, and we'll just have to wait and see the lineup to find out. Either way, he has shown an incredible penchant for ghosting and can possibly stake a claim to longer term hold - hopefully after going nuts this DGW.
Aaron Ramsey
Position: Forward
Team: Nottingham Forest
Rostered: 1%
Ghost Points Per Start: 9 (from just one start)
Ghost Points Last GW: 9
Prospects: The starlet just got his debut and passed the eye test. He should keep his place - and start at least one of the upcoming DGW games. If so, he should score well.
Verdict: Pick him up! Likely a short term stream this DGW, but one to monitor.
It gives me great pleasure to be able to write again about Arsenal/Wales legend, Aaron Ramsey. Somehow he has rolled back the years and is back in the Prem with Burnley? Alright, that's enough, we can't keep this going any longer. The player in question is the 20-year-old former Aston Villa youth product, brother of Jacob Ramsey, who was plucked from the West Midlands this summer.
Early returns look good. Ramsey made his first Burnley start over the weekend against Man United and duly impressed in an attacking midfielder role. He posted a very respectable 9 scary scores in his coming out party stemming from 1 Key Pass, 1 Shot on Target, 3 Tackles Won, 1 Clearance, 1 Successful Dribble, & 2 Aerials - and was unlucky to nick an attacking return. Now Rambo has the chance to crack on with a DGW v Newcastle & Luton Town. He is definitely one for the future.
Honorable Mention:
Willy Boly (Nottingham Forest DEF; 12.5 ghosts): The big man shrugged off Man City to drop a very respectable 8.5 total points. This is part of a larger trend catapulting Boly to the 2nd best ghosting DEF (after Trippier) with over a dozen scary scores per start. If he was dropped in your league, pick him up!
Elliot Anderson (Newcastle United MID; 12 ghosts): Slotting into the Magpie midfield due to injuries, he and everyone else balled out against lowly Sheffield United. It likely won't last for long, but should continue to be a decent streamer over the next few weeks.
Vladimir Coufal (West Ham United DEF: 9.25 ghosts): The Czech defender has been known to ghost and bags the occasional attacking return. He did both over the weekend and has the aforementioned Sheffield United coming to town - a more obvious streamer this GW does not exist.
Simon Adingra (Brighton FWD; 9 ghosts): The youngster is getting appearances - largely due to Europe/injuries - earlier than expected. He is now adding some ghosting to his repertoire and is a must roster if you have any rotating Brighton attacking assets.
Category Killers:
Key Passes: Alfie Doughty (5)
Successful Dribbles: Lucas Paqueta (6)
Aerials: Virgil Van Dijk (12)
Accurate Crosses Not Corners (ACNCs): Alfie Doughty (3)
Tackles Won: Joel Veltman (5)
Interceptions: John Egan (5)
Dr. Peter Venkman Award:
Sergio Reguilon (Manchester United DEF; 1 ghost): To be fair, it's incredibly difficult to obtain less than 6 points with a clean sheet. It's a rare feat. Sergio Reguilon pulled it off this past GW, finishing with 5 total fantasy points despite his team refusing to concede a goal. He was only able to do it by doing very little positive activity - more specifically, he delivered 1 Interception, 2 Clearances, 1 Yellow Card, & 1 Dispossession. These are the types of performances that provided the impetus behind Dr. Peter Venkman - RIP - rolling out this unwanted award all those years ago. He dreamt of times like this. It is quite the fall from grace for Reguilon, who went from touted transfer and respected ghoster (he dropped close to double-digit ghosts per start in 21/22) to this. Granted, Man United is a mess, but whatever is behind it, things are just not working out for Reguilon fantasy-wise at United (his PPS is now up to a lofty 2.625). No messing about, drop the Spaniard immediately. Life is too short.
***Click here to view the full Ghost Point Tracker table!***
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