Fantasy Premier League Tips: 5 bargain forwards this season

The Premier League is almost here. With less than a week for it to start, I am sure most of us have made our Fantasy Premier League team.

We have a tendency of spending heavily on the forwards and then end up having a very average squad overall.

Let's look at some bargain forwards who can help free up some cash that can be spent in the other departments.

#5 Roberto Firmino - £8.5m

With Roberto Firmino set to play as a forward this season, he would no longer be in competition with Philippe Coutinho. This could be a welcome sign for the FPL managers.

The Liverpool player scored 11 goals and provided 11 assists last season. Priced at just £8.5m, the player had 45 shots on target, more than other Liverpool player. Only Harry Kane (58), Romelu Lukaku (53) and Sergio Aguero (51) managed more.

Also, no other striker attempted more assists (79) than the Brazilian last season.

#4 Jermain Defoe - £8m

Defoe is an interesting prospect to consider

Jermian Defoe may be 34-year old but that didn't stop him from tallying 166 points last season - an average of 4.5 points a game!

While he was with Sunderland, he managed to score 15 goals last season. Only Harry Kane (29), Romelu Lukaku (25) and Sergio Aguero (20) managed to score more.

With his move to Bournemouth this summer, Defoe looks like a steal at just £8m. On an average, Bournemouth created 9 changes per game, whereas Sunderland managed 7.

Defoe will be looking to capitalise at the Cherries where he likely to receive better service than Sunderland.

If Defoe is able to replace Josh King, the club's penalty taker, he would be looking to improve his tally from last season.

#3 Christian Benteke - £8m

Benteke made a strong impact in his debut season

In his debut season for Crystal Palace, Christian Benteke score 15 goals and provided 2 assists last season.

The Belgian managed (95) goal attempts from inside the area. Only Sergio Aguero (100) managed more.

Benteke had 41 shots on target last season. Only Harry Kane (58), Romelu Lukaku (55), Sergio Aguero (53) and Roberto Firmino (45) managed more.

Only Wilfried Zaha contributed to more goals, amongst teammates, with the winger scoring 7 goals and providing 11 assists.

Crystal palace have a slightly favourable fixtures in the first three gameweeks. They face Huddersfield, Liverpool and Swansea.

The Belgian also loves to scores against his former club, Liverpool. He has scored 6 goals in 8 appearances.

#2 Javier Hernandez - £7m

Javier Hernandez could be a surprise package this season

After making a move back to the Premier League this summer, Javier Hernandez be a good option to consider at £7m.

The Mexican scored 17 and 11 goals in two seasons respectively with Bayer Leverkusen since moving in 2015. He also became Mexico's all-time scorer recently (48 goals in 96 appearances).

The player is not new to the Premier League. The fans loved him while he was at Manchester United. He also scored some amazing goals while he was in England.

West Ham have struggled for years to find a reliable striker and Hernandez could be their solution.

If Marko Arnautovic, Manuel Lanzini, Michail Antonio and Hernandez hit the ground running, there is no doubt that Chicharito could thrive and deliver.

#1 Dwight Gayle - £6.5m

Gayle played an important role for Newcastle last season

Dwight Gayle made 32 league appearances for Newcastle last season. In the process, he scored 23 goals for the club. Only Chris Wood (27) managed to score more goals in the Championship.

The player was an important figure for Newcastle last season. He was also named the PFA Fans' Championship Player of the Season - another reason to keep an eye out for him.

With him in your team, you can end up saving a lot of funds to invest elsewhere as he is priced at just £6.5m.

Gayle has had Premier League experience in the past. While playing for Crystal Palace, the striker managed to score 15 goals in 64 league appearances.