FPL best forward picks: Budget, differential and premium tips for Gameweek 9

Who should lead your line in FPL this week? We’ve looked at the numbers ahead of Gameweek 9. 

Using our new FPL rating system — Squawka Score — we are providing you with our top recommendations for selection heading into Gameweek 9.

What is Squawka Score? You can learn more about how we devised our fantasy football ranking system here.

Best FPL forwards
Top forward pick for Gameweek 9
Best cheap forwards for Gameweek 9
Best forwards with easy fixtures

Plenty of striking options available

Here are the top 10 Premier League forwards based on their FPL Squawka Score from the 2023 calendar year.

Who is the perfect Haaland replacement?

In our Differential Duel feature, we look for a player who scores well on our system but is not being selected by most FPL managers.

We will then pit that player against a comparable asset who is being widely selected and it’s on you to make the all-important final decision.

Ahead of Gameweek 9, we’ll take a look at if you could benefit from moving away from Alexander Isak (21.5%).

Isak has performed well but his status is up in the air, with a groin injury potentially sidelining him this weekend.

We think we may have identified a different striking option that could give you a big saving without compromising too much in quality, and we didn’t have to look far.

Isak’s teammate, Callum Wilson is owned by just 4.2% of FPL players, and represents come good value.

Wilson costs 0.3m more but his stats hold up compared to his strike partner, meaning he could be the man to step in and grab the goals for Newcastle in Isak’s absence.

Here’s how their per 90 stats from 2023/24 compare on our Comparison Matrix. 

Joao Pedro the man to turn to

We have run the numbers from 2023 through our Squawka Score super computer to find some budget forwards ahead of Gameweek 6.

Here are our recommendations.

The best 5.5 picks for 23/24 FPL

1. Joao Pedro, Brighton (73%)
2. Eddie Nketiah, Arsenal (68%)
3. Odsonne Edouard, Crystal Palace (61%)

The best 6.0 picks for 23/24 FPL

1. Evan Ferguson, Brighton (60%)
2. Carlton Morris, Luton (59%)
3. Yoane Wissa, Brentford (42%)

Watkins the key man this week

You more than likely have a pretty good idea of who you want leading your line this weekend, but we have one more factor for you to take into consideration.

Combining the numbers on the FPL’s official Fixture Difficulty Rating (FDR) with our Squawka Score system, we have determined below the best forwards to pick from each club with what is considered an ‘easy’ match this Gameweek.

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