How many Bayern Munich forwards should you pick in Fantasy Manager?
Jamal Musiala, Sadio Mane, Thomas Müller, Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting... Bundesliga Fantasy Managers face a conundrum when picking three forwards in the game at the best of times, but it's even trickier this year thanks to Bayern Munich's bulging frontline.
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The record reigning champions have already hit 49 league goals in 15 games at an average of 3.3 goals per game - the second highest total at this stage of a season in Bundesliga history. Their combined goal difference of +36 is an entire 27 goals better off than next best RB Leipzig (+9).
Hence the question over whether Fantasy managers should go all in on members of Julian Nagelsmann's attack or spread their bets across the division - in case of a rare Bayern mishap in front of goal, or to ensure differentials that may give you the edge over other competitors.
At the beginning of the campaign, Bayern newboy Mane would have been the obvious choice to take up one of the three forward slots in most teams and the Senegal hitman soon rewarded Fantasy players with three goals in his first two appearances.
Watch: All of Mane's goals and assists in the Bundesliga
Mane quickly raced past the 100-point mark until injury halted his campaign and denied him a spot at the World Cup. With the 30-year-old now set for a spell on the sidelines over the first matchdays of 2023, the spotlight has shifted onto Musiala as the main point-scoring magnet.
His move in the game from a midfielder to a forward raised some eyebrows at the beginning of the season, but only Christopher Nkunku (182) has racked up more points than the Germany international (164) after 15 matchdays.
Game-wide, it is also just Nkunku that is owned by more players (72 percent) than Musiala (66 percent). Considering Musiala's popularity and that Nkunku, like Mane, missed the World Cup and is due to miss the domestic restart, there are decisions to be made.
Watch: Jamal Musiala - Bayern Munich’s glittering gem
And, if you take Musiala as a given in your team, there may be further solutions to be found at the Allianz Arena.
Musiala and Mane (122) are two of four Bayern forward on 100 or more points, with Serge Gnabry (130) the second-highest scoring attacker at the club and Leroy Sane (119) not too far behind.
It makes for a strong case to feature Musiala, Gnabry and Sane in a three-pronged Bayern attack, but the champions' options don't end there.
Choupo-Moting is the most popular non-Musiala Bayern pick up top after the Cameroon man hit the best form of his life prior to the Bundesliga being put on pause.
The 33-year-old is owned by a whopping 27 percent of managers after scoring six goals and providing two assists across the final six games of 2022.
Watch: A tactical analysis of Bayern's season so far
Combined, that makes up for 73 of his 77 points this term and, given his attractive price tag of just 5.8M, it's little wonder the veteran striker has become a Fantasy favourite as Choupo-Moting gives affordable - and rewardable - access to the Bayern strike force, which means you can spend big elsewhere.
The Bayern options don't end there, with Kingsley Coman (15.4M) owned by just a handful of players, Mathys Tel (8.2M) a fairly thrifty alternative, and Müller (15.2M) in only two percent of squads.
The top-flight Assist King, Müller, would have been in the bulk of sides going into the early rounds of the season, but his 62 points are uncharacteristically low by his immense standards at this stage of the campaign.
That's in large part to Müller missing the final seven games before the break but, now fully fit, the 33-year-old will seamlessly return to the Bayern fold - perhaps in a more advanced false nine role - with the express aim of firing them to an 11th straight title.
There remains huge talent elsewhere in the division, but only Marcus Thuram (163, second place), Niclas Füllkrug (154, third), Randal Kolo Muani (135, fourth) and Michael Gregoritsch (122, sixth) break up the Bayern hegemony in the game's top eight when it comes to highest scoring forwards.
By coming in at under 10M, both Füllkrug (7.8M) and Gregoritsch (9.6M) represent bargains, but can their consistency - and potency - match that of Bayern's?
Form, injuries and the fixture list will all inform your decisions in the transfer market, as will your personal preference for choosing a star player. So, should you put all your Fantasy forward eggs into the Bayern basket? There's only one way to find out: give it a try!
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