A common debate we saw in the comments section during the October international break is whether Newcastle United should be discussed through the club Nick Woltemade (£7.2m) or Anthony Gordon (£7.4m).
Using ‘eye test’ observations, contextual knowledge and statistics from our members area, let’s try to identify the Magpies’ best attacking force for Fantasy Premier League (FPL).
Reasons to invest in Newcastle
Comfortable wins over Union Saint-Gilloise and Nottingham Forest ensure Newcastle go into the break in good form.
Not only do their defense boast the most clean sheets in the Premier League (five), but they also rank second in shot prevention (62), big chances (seven) and expected goals conceded (xGC, 4.89).
That’s a solid backline to build, running Nick Pope (£5.1 million), Then Burns (£5.1 million) and Kieran Trippier (£5.0m) in good FPL assets.
Moreover, the team that finished fifth, seventh and fourth in recent seasons has been having great matches for a while. In reality, our Ticker says they have the best during the next 12 game weeks.
Underlying statistics
However, Newcastle are struggling to create chances at the other end. Only Forest and Wolverhampton Wanderers have fewer goals (six), while Eddie Howe’s side are mid-table for the other key attacking statistics.
All three away games have ended 0-0, although early clean sheets had the mitigation of no one around to score. Finally, a sulky striker Alexander Isaac (£10.6m) refused to play until the club backed down and gave him the departure he wanted.
But by Gameweek 4, Woltemade and Yoane warned (£7.4 million). Not that the latter has been able to play so far.
Woltemade, a German international, has made an impressive start on Tyneside. Four goals in five starts, currently with the second-best minutes per goal (100.7) of anyone who has been in at least two lineups.
Meanwhile, Gordon has just scored three times in the Champions League. That’s what entices Fantasy managers, even though the wide forward hasn’t had a single FPL attack since late January (Gameweek 23).
That’s right, nothing happened in the sixteen subsequent league matches. But just before that there was a purple patch reminiscent of his brilliant 2023/24 season – eight consecutive starts, each with exactly one return.
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