Alavés’ decent season, which included a ninth place finish in La Liga, may have been capped off with a 3-1 loss to Barcelona in their first ever Copa Del Rey final, but the question now is: “just how much of a threat were they on the attack?”
Well, that maybe isn’t the most pressing question actually – the identity of the man who will ultimately replace recently departed manager Mauricio Pellegrino probably leaps a tad higher – but it is indeed time to take a look at how Babazorros’ strikers performed for the fantasy managers here on EuroFantasyLeague.
Fairly clearly, the best choice of forwards if you were looking at Alavés players at the start of the season would have been Ibai Gomez. Deployed mainly as a left winger, the 27-year-old proved himself capable of finding the net with five strikes this season. He provided two assists as well, so while he may not exactly have set the world alight he does top the club’s strikers chart in the fantasy game with 22 points. Those points were yielded with a valuation of only 4.00m – hence the earlier statement that he was the best choice.
That score gives him a Price / Performance (P/P) score of 6.0. Again, perhaps not the most amazing option available, but he certainly provided a good value inclusion to the 1% of players who selected him for their squad.
His P/P score far outclassed that of Deyverson, who was some way behind with a disappointing 3.1, and 16 points scored. That score came despite Deyverson’s position at the top of the club’s scoring charts, though his tally of seven proves that this season could potentially have been even better for the club. His main issue as far as his final score went was discipline – he amassed 14 yellow cards this season, and was on the field for 33 goals conceded too – more than any other Alavés striker. That can be partially explained by the fact that he made 32 appearances (29 starts, three as a sub) all season, however.
Christian Santos was next on the list for the fantasy managers out there. Having featured in 21 games, he only managed to get eight starts under his belt – so it is perhaps somewhat impressive that he found himself with 12 points, only four behind Deyverson. He only scored three goals, but just two yellow cards all season helped keep his tally up. Unfortunately, being the most expensive striker at the club with an 8.00m valuation meant his P/P score was only 1.8, which is a real disappointment for anyone with him in their side. There are worse choices out there of course, but Santos really had an opportunity to fulfil every footballer’s dream and make himself an essential selection in the EuroFantasyLeague game. Unfortunately it wasn’t meant to be.
Rubén Sobrino was next on the points chart with nine, and he managed that from only 11 appearances too. Two goals and one assist later, he finds himself finishing higher than a much more regular first team face. At a 3.00m valuation, Sobrino finished with a P/P of 4.3.
The more familiar face alluded to before was, of course, that of Gaizka Toquero. He managed 23 appearances in total – 15 of them from the first whistle – but managed only a single goal and a single assist all season. Four yellow cards really dragged his score down too – he finished up with just two points, and a P/P of 0.3. That P/P score would have been even lower had his value been any higher than the 3.50m currently next to his name.
Finally, to round off this review, we welcome Dani Iglesias into the mix. He may have wanted to be the fans’ hero, but he didn’t manage a single first team appearance which resulted in blanks being drawn across the board. His career at the club hasn’t gotten going yet though, but as 21 years of age there is still time for him to cement himself a place in the side next season.
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