NO forward came close to Donyell Malen (£2.3m) in Gameweek 7.
The Netherlands international bagged a brace to inspire Aston Villa to a 2-1 win over Burnley on Sunday.
Opportunity seized[/caption]
Having been given the nod to start up top alongside Ollie Watkins (£4.7m), Malen justified Unai Emery’s team selection with two expert finishes past an in-form Martin Dubravka (£1.7m).
The 26-year-old banked 16 points at Villa Park, the best haul among assets in his position all weekend.
Closest rivals Noah Okafor (£2.8m), Benjamin Sesko (£3.8m), Nick Woltemade (£4.2m) and Cody Gakpo (£4.5m) earned 10 points each, well short of Villa’s No17.
In fact, only Antoine Semenyo (£4.9m), Dream Team’s leading midfielder, added more points to his total in this past Gameweek.
Clinical[/caption]
Chances to impress have been few and far between for Malen since his transfer from Borussia Dortmund last January.
He arrived in the midlands at the same time as loan signings Marcus Rashford and Marco Asensio, who limited his involvement.
In April, he scored three goals in three consecutive Premier League games from just 88 minutes playing time.
Since then, a certain subset of Villa fans have been calling for Malen to get more opportunities.
Sunday’s victory over the Clarets was just the second league game he has started this season and he firmly capitalised on the rare occurrence.
Surely such a clutch performance will earn him more starts going forward?
Emery’s decision to pair Watkins and Malen paid off against Burnley[/caption]
The Villains started the campaign in miserable fashion but four wins in a row (all comps) have changed the outlook.
After the international break, Emery’s men will face Tottenham (a) and Go Ahead Eagles (a) as one of nine sides set to pull double duty in Gameweek 8.
Dream Team managers who like to think outside the box might consider Malen a tempting differential punt.
He currently features in just 0.7% of teams and gaffers who recruit him for Gameweek 8 will definitely benefit from a price increase once the deadline passes.
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Emery would have appreciated how Malen and Watkins dovetailed at the weekend and it would be a huge surprise if the former didn’t get substantial minutes against both Spurs and Go Ahead Eagles.
It may be the case that he’s merely a one-week punt as Villa’s only fixture in Gameweek 9 comes against Manchester City before Gameweek 10 brings a trip to Liverpool (and a Europa League meeting with Maccabi Tel Aviv).
But at the bargain price of £2.3m Malen is an asset to monitor closely.
If the Dutchman’s strike partnership with Watkins is to become a key feature of Emery’s approach this season then his ownership could skyrocket before long.
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