Marco Silva has confirmed that Aleksandar Mitrovic is “a doubt” for Fulham‘s game against West Ham on Sunday after exacerbating a foot injury during their 4-1 defeat to Newcastle.
The Serbian striker suffered a knock while playing for his country against Sweden and Norway during the most recent international break and suffered a recurrence of the problem at Craven Cottage last Saturday.
Speaking at his pre-match press conference on Friday, Silva said: “He’s still a doubt [for Sunday]. He was outside this morning, doing some work. He’s getting better but still a doubt.”
After the Newcastle game, Silva confirmed that the issue surfaced while he was representing Serbia: “The situation with Mitro, [we didn’t know if he] will be or not in his best physical condition. Yesterday we assessed him and he was OK to play.
“He got a knock in the first game with the national team. It’s in the foot.”
Mitrovic has enjoyed a fine start to the campaign, scoring six goals in his first eight appearances which equates to 46 per cent of Fulham’s overall total.
Only Erling Haaland (with 14) and Harry Kane (seven) have outscored the 28-year-old in the Premier League this season, while Haaland is also the only player in the division to have attempted more shots than Mitrovic (33 to 31) – a statistic that demonstrates how pivotal he is to Fulham’s style of play.
After falling out of favour under Scott Parker during Fulham’s previous season in the top flight, Mitrovic has been crucial to Silva’s plans. He obliterated the Championship’s goalscoring record with 43 goals in 44 games to fire his side to promotion last term and has so far made a mockery of accusations that he would be unable to replicate that form in the Premier League.
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The Brazilian joined Fulham on a three-year deal from Benfica in September after spending the past two seasons on loan at Tottenham and PSV Eindhoven. Vinicius has come off the bench three times and played a total of 59 minutes in the league so far.
Silva could also turn to Bobby De Cordova-Reid, who has occasionally played as a centre forward for Fulham in the past, while Daniel James was used as a false nine on a handful of occasions for former club Leeds United.
Should FPL managers hold or sell? And who are the best replacements?
Mitrovic is currently the 10th most popular player in Fantasy Premier League based upon his overall ownership of 27 per cent. The game’s leading scorer Haaland and Arsenal’s Gabriel Jesus are the only forwards to populate more squads.
The main factor when deciding whether to hold onto Mitrovic in the hope that he does play against West Ham or sell him for someone else is how much he cost when you bought him.
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At the start of the season, Mitrovic’s price tag was set at £6.5m, but after a blistering start that has risen to £6.8m. He was worth £6.9m last weekend but has since dipped given he has been sold more times than any other player ahead of Saturday’s Gameweek 10 deadline.
If you are inclined to dispose of Mitrovic, there are no shortage of alternatives to snap up. Ivan Toney (£7.3m) is proving a popular replacement – Haaland and Harry Kane (£11.4m) are the only forwards to have been bought by more managers since last weekend, despite Toney failing to score in his last two games.
Toney’s popularity is partly explained by Brentford’s upcoming schedule. Their next six opponents are: Newcastle (a), Brighton (h), Chelsea (h), Aston Villa (a), Wolves (h) and Nottingham Forest (h), before facing Manchester City in their final game before the World Cup.
Fit-again Callum Wilson (£7.2m) is another option to consider. Newcastle’s No 9 has scored three goals, ranks sixth among forwards for big chances (six) and seventh for expected goals (xG) despite only playing in four matches. Wilson’s injury record and increased competition for his place from Alexander Isak (£6.9m) when he returns from injury could put managers off, though.
Both Toney and Wilson are a bit pricier than Mitrovic which could prove prohibitive for some bosses, but there are others at the same price point or even below it. Anthony Martial (£6.9m) may become an option if he continues his renaissance under Erik ten Hag. The Frenchman scored twice (including once from the penalty spot) during last weekend’s defeat to Man City and was on target in the Europa League win over Omonia on Thursday.
Bournemouth’s Dominic Solanke (£5.7m) might also be worth a punt, based more on his upcoming fixtures than his own form. Tottenham are the only team from last season’s top six to face the Cherries before the World Cup begins.
An alternative strategy could be to go for a cheap £4.3m forward instead and redistribute the funds into midfield given the mass of mid-priced options in that position. James Maddison (£8.1m), Phil Foden (£8.1m), Jarrod Bowen (£8.1m) and Wilfried Zaha (£7.3m) are all solid picks for the foreseeable future, while Harvey Barnes (£6.9m), Leandro Trossard (£6.7m) and Marcus Rashford (£6.5m) are budget-friendly alternatives.
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