Fantasy football has returned for another season, and though it is challenging to get the perfect balance of a team right with a transfer market budget in mind, having an affordable yet dependable team can be achieved.
However tempting it is to name a squad of superstars, having an all-star XI is hard to do when you have a capped transfer kitty.
Goal brings you the best options for fantasy football if you're strapped for cash.
Best Fantasy Football Bargain Forwards
Getty Images
Wilfried Zaha | Crystal Palace | £7m
Nine goals and seven assists last season saw Zaha finish as the Eagles' top-scorer, and earned him various links with a move to Chelsea. The forward scored in Crystal Palace's 2-0 win against Fulham on the opening day and was unlucky not to get a goal against Liverpool, though posed as an offensive threat at all times.
Danny Ings | Southampton | £5.5m
Ings' injury-blighted seasons at Liverpool as well as falling down the pecking order to Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane saw him move to boyhood side Southampton on a loan deal earlier this summer, with a view to make the move permanent at the end of the season. Despite only a flurry of first-team appearances for Liverpool last year, Ings scored on his full debut for the Saints in their loss to Everton and may be a surprise success at St Mary's this season.
Daniel Sturridge | Liverpool | £6.0m
The Liverpool striker has experienced somewhat of a resurgence for the Reds in pre-season following a disappointing loan spell at West Brom, emerging as top-scorer and putting pressure on the club's front-three. The main issues regarding Sturridge are his fitness and ability to usurp the likes of Salah, Roberto Firmino and Mane to the starting XI, but would be a great option as an impact player or star sub.
Callum Wilson | Bournemouth | £6.1
Wilson has had an impressive start to the new Premier League season, scoring and assisting during their season-opener against Cardiff and hitting the back of the net against West Ham.
Best Fantasy Football Bargain Midfielders
James Milner | Liverpool | £5.5m
The Liverpool stalwart is a player who seems to age like a fine wine, a reliable penalty-taker and ever-dominating presence in the midfield. Liverpool have never lost a game in which the former England international has scored in, and his ability to effortlessly convert penalties and whip in crosses has made him a dependable fantasy team player.
Richarlison | Everton | £6.5m
The wonderkid followed Marco Silva from Watford to Goodison Park this summer and made his mark immediately, scoring twice against Wolves and notching another goal against Southampton. At 21, he has already been deemed a formidable youth prospect and it isn't hard to see why.
Ryan Fraser | Bournemouth | £5.5m
Fraser has already opened his goalscoring account this season and netted six times for the Cherries last season. At £5.5m, he is a bargain buy – as much a creative threat from the middle of the park as he is an offensive one.
Ruben Neves | Wolves | £5.1m
The Portugual international was crowned the club's player of the year after Wolves were promoted to the Premier League last season after finishing first in the Championship, scoring six goals from midfield and already adding a goal and an assist against the Toffees.
Best Fantasy Football Bargain Defenders
Getty Images
Steve Cook | Bournemouth | £4.6m
Cook is an integral part of the Cherries' defense – both at maintaining clean sheets as well as having a tendency to score. The defender has already added to his goal tally this season and, at £4.6m, is a budget steal.
Ricardo Peirera | Leicester | £5.0m
The Portuguese full-back is a reliable option in the Foxes' defensive back-four, and at £5m is an affordable coup. His debut season in the Premier League following a move from Porto has seen him provide two assists for his teammates.
Andrew Robertson | Liverpool | £6m
The Scottish left-back has blossomed for Jurgen Klopp's side in recent months, emerging as a talent both offensively and defensively. A skilled man-marker, Robertson also has the ability to pin-point accurate crosses into the box and already has an assist
Jose Holebas | Watford | £4.6m
At £4.6m, Watford's Holebas is a bargain buy for a defender who has a penchant for registering assists, having notched two against Brighton on opening day. Albeit not one to really find the back of the net, he is reliable defensively and also kept a clean sheet against the Seagulls.
Best Fantasy Football Bargain Goalkeepers
Neil Etheridge | Cardiff City | £4.5m
The Cardiff goalkeeper has made an impressive start to life back in the Premier League after saving two penalties in the two opening games, and is currently the highest-rated goalkeeper ahead of Alisson – who is the only shot-stopper to have kept two clean sheets in the opening two games.
Lukasz Fabianski | West Ham | £4.5m
Fabianski signed for West Ham this summer following Swansea's relegation to the Championship last summer, and the shot-stopper was one of the top three goalkeepers in last term's fantasy football. Joe Hart's replacement at London Stadium, the Poland international previously spent seven years at Arsenal and has a considerable amount of experience playing at the top level.
Ben Foster | Watford | £4.5m
The former England international signed for Watford following West Brom's demotion from the Premier League but has remained a reliable force between the sticks, and will provide Heurelho Gomes with competition to be the club's number one.
