Luka Jovic and the 5 best January 2021 transfers to buy in Fantasy
Luka Jovic spearheads an exciting clutch of January 2021 arrivals to the Bundesliga. If Fantasy Manager is your game, read on for more on five faces - familiar and new - that could give you a serious boost...
Luka Jovic
Club: Eintracht Frankfurt
Joined from: Real Madrid (on loan)
Position: Forward
Price: 15M
Remember when five Jovic goals translated into 48 points as star man in Bundesliga Fantasy Manager? Well, the 23-year-old striker is back to - hopefully - do it all again at Eintracht Frankfurt. The Serbian's five-goal salvo in a 7-1 rout of Fortuna Düsseldorf has its place in the Bundesliga annals - will you, Fantasy Managers, find a spot for him in your squads? The answer really ought to be of the affirmative variety, considering his 17 goals and six assists during 2018/19. He hasn't had as much luck at parent club Real Madrid, but it's against the backdrop of his aforementioned stint in Frankfurt that he should be judged. He still has countryman Filip Kostic manning the supply line, and can expect to do some real damage alongside current Eintracht goalbroker Andre Silva, just as he did with Sebastien Haller and Ante Rebic for support back in the day.
Watch: The best of Luka Jovic
Sead Kolasinac
Club: Schalke
Joined from: Arsenal (on loan)
Position: Defender
Price: 9M
Speaking of second bites at the cherry, Sead Kolasinac has been parachuted in at a Schalke side fighting for their Bundesliga lives. He left Die Knappen for Arsenal as one of the best left-backs in the Bundesliga almost four years ago, and hasn't lost an ounce of his bulldozing qualities. Handed the captain's armband on his second debut on Matchday 15, the Bosnia-Herzegovina international was at his buccaneering best as the Royal Blues snapped a 30-game winless run. He didn't score or assist any of Schalke's goals in their emphatic 4-0 triumph over Hoffenheim, but still came away from the contest with 10 Fantasy points. Once that wicked left foot re-finds its range in an attacking sense - Kolasinac scored three and set up five in 2016/17 - expect his value to surpass the 10M mark in no time whatsoever.
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Dominik Szoboszlai
Club: RB Leipzig
Joined from: Red Bull Salzburg
Position: Midfielder
Price: 11.8M
The fact Dominik Szoboszlai is already priced at double digits attests to his eye-catching displays for former club Red Bull Salzburg. The Hungary international registered nine goals and 11 assists in just 22 games for the Austrian champions during the first part of 2020/21 - from midfield! Competition will be fierce in an area where Leipzig head coach Julian Nagelsmann is hardly short of options - Tyler Adams, Dani Olmo and Marcel Sabitzer to name a few - but there's a reason why Szoboszlai was being chased by myriad big-name admirers. And perhaps what will set him apart from his new teammates - and playmakers from the top down - is his dead-ball prowess. Fantasy Managers only need to look at a player such as Bayern Munich's Joshua Kimmich for a reminder of how valuable a set-piece supremo can be to the cause. Szoboszlai is over 5M cheaper.
Tim Fosu-Mensah
Club: Bayer Leverkusen
Joined from: Manchester United
Position: Defender
Price: 8.9M
Full-backs are usually the way to go when picking defenders. A full-back in a team short of options on both sides of the defence could be a real boon. That's what Peter Bosz will be hoping of right-back Tim Fosu-Mensah, who has joined Bayer Leverkusen from Manchester United on a permanent deal. Ordinarily, Lars Bender would be first choice in the position, but persistent injury set-backs have seen centre-half Aleksandar Dragovic deputise in the role. Fosu-Mensah is likely the long-term solution, with Bender to retire at the end of the 2020/21 campaign. His bedding-in teases compelling viewing, especially with dynamic winger Leon Bailey ahead of him on the Bayer right. And with Lucas Alario and Patrik Schick to aim for in the middle, the Dutchman should be good value for his share of assists.
Joe Scally
Club: Borussia Mönchengladbach
Joined from: New York City FC
Position: Defender
Price: 2.9M
Joe Scally brings a similar skill-set to the table, albeit at a bargain-basement entry price of 2.9M. The American is raw, but has earned his stars and stripes at senior level in the MLS - so much so that the Gladbach hierachy don't feel the need to give the ex-New York City FC teen a transitional period with the U19s or reserves. Incumbent right-back Stefan Lainer isn't known for his attacking play; back-up Michael Lang hasn't featured in the Bundesliga all season; Valentino Lazaro is more winger than wing-back. All three should be worried.
"I'm a very physical player," Scally told Fohlen TV. "I'm a very fast player who likes to run up and down the wings. I have good technical ability on the ball." If he can walk the walk, as well as he can talk the talk, he'll fast become a Fantasy no-brainer.
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