After early flurries to get rid of Jarell Quansah (£4.4m) and Dominic Solanke (£7.5m), the latest name on the Fantasy Premier League (FPL) community chopping board seems to be Christopher Nkunku (£6.4m).

16.8% of all Gameweek 1 managers began with the attacking midfielder, as he scored three pre-season goals and played more summer minutes than any other Chelsea asset.

However, his opening league appearance lasted just under an hour, before a Gameweek 2 benching restricted the Frenchman to a very late cameo. That’s why 420,000 managers – and counting – have decided to ditch Nkunku, causing a price drop.

To those waiting until nearer the deadline to sell him, let’s assess some of the better replacements.

MOST-BOUGHT

Above: Popular midfield purchases for Gameweek 3, as of Wednesday morning

Once the five premium names are ruled out, a valid route out of Nkunku looks clearer.

Those that have the funds to go £1.2m higher could purchase Diogo Jota (£7.6m), who is having a great time playing up front. Three big chances, with an expected goals (xG, 1.54) tally that only forward Erling Haaland (£15.1m) has bettered.

Yet it could be too late to jump onto the Liverpool man, as rotation for their front spots will surely intensify after the upcoming international break.

NONI MADUEKE (£6.5m)

Is it too reactionary to buy Madueke straight after his hat-trick?

An unused substitute in Gameweek 1, his 14-minute goal spurt at Wolverhampton Wanderers brought an xG of just 0.58. Although Sunday’s heroics might secure him the next couple of league starts, Chelsea’s worsening transfer addiction is adding huge competition for spots.

Nkunku owners learnt this the hard way and replacing him with Madueke is almost begging to get burnt again. Right now, Cole Palmer (£10.5m) is the only nailed-on Blues attacker.

BRYAN MBEUMO (£7.0m)

Alternatively, for a slightly higher fee, there’s the proactive option of securing Mbeumo before Brentford’s fixture run gets good from Gameweek 6. This weekend sees a clash with Southampton, too.

He netted on the opening day and could replicate his fast start to last season. Then, it was four goals in the first four outings and, by Gameweek 10, he’d already achieved scores of 16, 14 and 13. Only Haaland and Mohamed Salah (£12.5m) had a higher expected goal involvement (xGI, 9.39) at that stage but a three-month ankle injury soon disrupted proceedings.

Should Ivan Toney (£7.3m) depart, as looks likely, we’d expect Mbeumo to take over penalty duties.

EBERECHI EZE (£7.0m)

Throughout the league, nobody has taken more attempts (12) than popular Crystal Palace midfielder Eze. And this doesn’t count his wrongly disallowed free-kick goal that the referee later apologised for.

Admittedly, the dozen have accumulated a low xG of just 0.86 but that goal would’ve put a different perspective on things. Instead of beginning with two blanks and heading towards a probable price decrease, it’d be a talismanic Eze becoming near-essential.

If underlying numbers are used when deciding this transfer, he could be the one. As a bonus, falling to £6.9m would undo the harm of holding Nkunku through his own drop.

LEON BAILEY (£6.5m) / MORGAN ROGERS (£5.1m)

Meanwhile, Aston Villa sit on top of our Season Ticker between now and Gameweek 9. Jamaican winger Bailey had his best-ever FPL season in 2023/24, totalling 10 goals and 11 assists from a low 2,126 minutes. In fact, the only player with 18+ attacking returns in fewer minutes was Darwin Nunez (£7.4m).

Bailey has been a regular starter since last year’s Gameweek 14 but, between him and team-mate Rogers, the big question asks who is more in danger of a domestic benching once the Champions League gets underway?

For £1.4m cheaper, Rogers is continuing his springtime form and also enables funds to move elsewhere, then increasing squad depth. At that point, such a cheap player being rotated isn’t as problematic.

The 22-year-old ended last season with three goals in five matches and, despite blanking in both so far, he looks electric. Responsible for five shots and the creation of a huge Ollie Watkins (£9.0m) miss, Rogers is passing the eye test.

EMILE SMITH ROWE (£5.6m)

Entering the season as FPL’s leading £5.5m choice, new Fulham arrival Smith Rowe has quickly risen because of his Gameweek 2 goal versus Leicester City.

A couple of frustrating campaigns brought injuries and very little on-pitch time at Arsenal but it wasn’t too long ago that a purple patch saw 10 goals from the equivalent of 22.64 full matches.

“He’s getting the minutes in the tank that he needs, really, in terms of training sessions and games as well. Last season he almost didn’t play. He didn’t have a normal pre-season, I have to say. It’s going to take him a little more time for him to be in the best shape he can be but he’s going to arrive there.” – Marco Silva on Emile Smith Rowe

As a result, Smith Rowe is building up fitness and has been replaced after 63 and 68 minutes. Fixtures are appealing for the Cottagers but potential buyers may have just missed out on the nicest-looking one.

KAORU MITOMA (£6.6m) / YANKUBA MINTEH (£5.5m)

Brighton and Hove Albion have a great set of back-to-back home matches versus Ipswich Town and Nottingham Forest in Gameweeks 4 and 5 but nasty ones surround them. Then again, confidence is high after winning 3-0 away at Everton before a stoppage-time winner against Manchester United.

It’s a new era under head coach Fabian Hurzeler and Mitoma has been particularly impressive. His afternoon at Goodison Park featured four shots inside the box and two big chances, tapping home a Minteh cross.

The latter shone brightly in pre-season, bagging three goals and two assists. What could hold him back is the increased competition now that Brajan Gruda (£5.5m) and Georginio Rutter (£5.5m) have recently arrived.

Part of an intriguing £5.5m price point, he sits joint-fourth overall for penalty area touches (16) alongside the same-valued Antoine Semenyo. This Bournemouth midfielder joins Eze on 12 shots, looking especially lively when facing Newcastle United. He deserves a shout-out, even if the Cherries’ immediate fixtures don’t bring excitement.

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