Differentials will be vital in that quest as Fantasy Managers look to capitalise on double gameweeks for Arsenal and Chelsea’s with swoops for expensive assets. The time to start planning for those moves is now – fortunately gameweek 31 offers a trio of potential knocked-down differentials who could help our cause…

Bobby Zamora

Bobby Zamora’s horrific leg break against Wolves has seen him sidelined since September, but he returned to action earlier this month and has already picked up a goal and an assist despite being on the pitch for less than an hour. Two weeks of extra training should see him fit enough to start their home game against Blackpool, an ideal platform for a striker needing a confidence boost to ease him back into his stride.

After playing much of the season without a traditional striker, Fulham are now spoilt for choice with Moussa Dembele, Andy Johnson and Bobby Zamora all back to fitness, and Gael Kakuta, Clint Dempsey and Zoltan Gera also able to fill in up front. When fit, Zamora is undoubtedly the first choice, and assuming he starts then he will be expected to play as the target man, alongside Dembele in what will likely be a fairly standard 4-4-2 formation.

Fulham’s upcoming fixtures are a bit of a mixed bag; they face Blackpool at home this weekend but follow this up with a trip to Old Trafford and a missing fixture in week 33. Their double gameweek in week 34 against Wolves and Bolton more than makes up for this however, and if you are sticking to the 3-5-2 formation that is so popular this season, then benching him for those two weeks shouldn’t be a problem, especially considering his price has crashed to just 6.0 in the Fantasy Premier League (FPL) game. Zamora is currently owned by 2.2% of FPL managers of which the vast majority of those will be inactive players, and could be a big differential until the end of the season.

Adam Johnson

A frustratingly inconsistent season saw Adam Johnson start just 10 league games before he suffered the ankle ligament injury that has ruled him out for the last two months. Just before his injury however, he had started to get more regular pitch time, and picked up 2 goals and 4 assists in that seven game period. The potential to score big is definitely there then, it’s just a question of whether he can keep a starting role in the side.

After returning to training two weeks ago and then coming off the bench against Chelsea, he is expected to start against Sunderland but City’s lineup has been very difficult to predict this season. With reports suggesting Carlos Tevez will be fit, the most probable formation is Tevez as the lone striker, Silva and Johnson on the flanks. Balotelli and Dzeko are also in contention of course, but they are expected to start on the bench and come on when Tevez and Johnson tire.

Johnson is currently available for just 5.6 in the FPL, a significant drop from his pre-season price of 6.5 and a potential bargain for those willing to take a risk on the City winger.

Jermaine Beckford

Everton are the league’s form side with four wins in their last six, and with their next three fixtures coming against Villa, Wolves and Blackburn they have a great chance of edging closer to a European place. A catalogue of injuries to key players threatens to derail their run of form however, and with Marouane Fellaini and Mikel Arteta missing from the centre they will be relying on Leighton Baines and Seamus Coleman to create the chances from the flanks. No prizes for guessing who the target of those crosses will be; the possible return of Tim Cahill should see Beckford getting plenty of knock downs to run on to.

Beckford has been very impressive of late and his stuttering form early in the season seems to be behind him. A quick look at the OPTA stats available to members, show he has had 7 attempts in the last three games, with 5 of those on target. A major reason for his strong form has been playing in a 4-4-2 alongside Louis Saha, so with the Frenchman potentially out for the season Cahill, if fit, is expected to step into a similar role alongside Beckford.

Beckford has dropped to 4.9 in the FPL, making him an excellent third striker considering he is almost guaranteed a place in the team with Saha out injured. With Lampard coming into form and Fabregas back to fitness, many managers will be looking to free up some spare funds; a combination of Andy Carroll and Beckford whose home fixtures rotate perfectly to the end of the season, could be a good strategy to boost the bank balance.