The top strikers in the Premier League are constantly in the fantasy spotlight. While the goalkeepers, defenders and midfielders can be just as important in terms of overall fantasy success, it’s the forwards that are the most fun to watch since they are among the top goal scorers. There were plenty of familiar names at the top of the list when it came to fantasy forward production again in 2017. Here is a look at the top five EPL fantasy forwards from the Premier League this past season.
Harry Kane, Tottenham
Kane finished only slightly ahead of Everton’s Romelu Lukaku for top fantasy honors at his position in large part because of his incredible finish. Kane was two goals off the pace heading in to the final two games when he scored four goals against Leicester City and then followed that effort up with a hat trick versus Hull. Kane wound up winning the scoring title with 29 goals on the season, which was four more than his counterpart Lukaku. Kane also registered seven assists and benefited from Tottenham’s defensive play when it came to clean sheets in order to finish with the best fantasy score among all Premier League forwards this past season.
Tottenham finished the year in second place with 86 points.
Romelu Lukaku, Everton
Lukaku was leading the Premier League scoring race for most of the year before falling just short at the end of the season. Lukaku still finished the year with 25 goals in 37 appearances for Everton. The veteran striker now has 85 goals and 28 assists in 186 Premier League appearances in his career.
In terms of EPL fantasy purposes, Everton finished the year with 62 goals in 38 games. In terms of the standings, they finished the year in seventh place with 61 points. That was 15 better than eighth-place Southampton but they were eight behind Manchester United in sixth place.
Diego Costa, Chelsea
Costa returned as an absolute force up front for Chelsea this season. The veteran striker tied for fourth among all Premier League scorers with 20 goals and he also registered seven assists. Chelsea’s 85 goals were one fewer than Hotspurs for the most in the Premier League this season. With Costa back in form it was no surprise that the Blues were back in their championship form with the Brazilian leading the way up front.
Sergio Aguero, Manchester City
Aguero remained among the most consistent strikers in the Premier League this season as he registered 20 goals. Manchester City was one of three teams to hit the 80-goal mark this season and Aguero was a big reason why they were so dangerous up front. There has been a lot of talk about Aguero’s future and whether or not he will remain in Manchester for much longer. After another successful season, it wouldn’t be a surprise if City brings him back for at least one more year.
In terms of EPL fantasy purposes, City was one of the best teams in terms of offense. They registered 80 goals this season in 38 games, which is the third-best number. Only three teams in the entire Premier League hit the 80-goal mark and Manchester City was one of them. Aguero was obviously a big reason why.
Jermain Defoe, Sunderland
Manchester United’s Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Leicester City’s Jamie Vardy both deserve honorable mention in this spot but it was Defoe that finished with the fifth-best fantasy score among Premier League forwards. Defoe registered 15 goals and two assists with 99 total shots in 37 games played. Defoe was also fortunate to finish fifth on this list as he only narrowly edged out Ibrahimovic in part because United’s star striker missed time due to injury.
Sunderland ended up having a terrible season but Defoe was definitely a highlight for EPL fantasy purposes. Sunderland will be relegated as they finished dead-last in the Premier League standings table. They registered just 24 points in 38 games. As a team, they scored 26 goals but Defoe ended up with 15 of them. The bigger challenge was stopping opponents from scoring as they gave up 69 on the year.
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