Spot The Differential – Gameweek Thirty Eight

Sunday morning’s deadline creeps ever closer and it’s time for a final roll of the dice. There’s only one chance left to overhaul that mini league lead and if you’re anything like me, then nothing short of a miracle will suffice. What’s needed is something truly special – a player that no one else has returning a monster score as captain, while the big names have an off day…

Very unlikely, of course, but while that chance remains there is always hope. With this in mind, we’ve picked out a trio of differential captain options, in the hope that one can help you pull off an epic last day turnaround to rival that glorious sunny day in 1994.

Leighton Baines

David Moyes is notoriously difficult to predict at times, but reports suggest that the ex-Wigan man has been back in training this week and looks set to return against Newcastle, providing an interesting option as a last day punt.

Everton’s impressive form over the last eight games has seen then turn in five clean sheets and score four or more goals on three separate occasions. What’s more, they’ve shipped just one goal at home in the last seven, a run that has seen City, Chelsea and Spurs come away from Goodison without a goal between them. Form is definitely on their side, then, and although Newcastle will be desperately pushing for the win to give them a chance of Champions League qualification, Everton will be confident they can keep the likes of Papiss Cisse and Hatem Ben Arfa at bay.

Defensive returns alone aren’t enough to pull in a monster score but, as arguably the most attacking defender in the league, Baines offers huge potential at both ends of the pitch and could easily top double figures. It’s a big risk of course; to maximise returns as captain, you’re relying on him playing 90 minutes and keeping a clean sheet, and will probably need a penalty or a couple of assists to boot. If there is anyone capable of pulling it off at Goodison though, Baines is your man and with just 5.5% ownership in the Fantasy Premier League (FPL) game, he would be a huge differential captain.

Carlos Tevez

If there is one player in the league capable of racking up a cricket score this week, it’s Carlos Tevez. With just 2.3% ownership compared to Sergio Aguero’s 29%, the Argentine maverick has the power to completely overhaul a mini league gap in one fell swoop.

After a huge 19 point haul against Norwich, he has not done much of late but we all know what Tevez capable of. Hugely influential in City’s late surge towards the title, he will be looking to further redeem himself in the only way he knows how; scoring a shed load of goals. With the extra incentive of beating his old club to the Premier League title, Tevez will be bouncing off the walls; chances are he’s either going to get sent off or score a hat-trick.

Priced at 11.6, squeezing Tevez into your team won’t be easy, and you may need to consider *gulp* dropping the imperial Robin Van Persie. We’re talking desperate measures here, though, and if you’re going to pull off a miracle, then you’ll probably need Van Persie to have a shocker at the Hawthorns anyway.

Andy Carroll

Second only to team mate Luis Suarez in terms of Fantasy frustrations this term, and with just one double figure return all season, Andy Carroll is perhaps the biggest gamble of our trio. With so much potential on offer, and so many chances handed to him on a plate, the former Newcastle man has hit the post or been edged off the ball at the vital moment time and again. It might be a slight cliché to say that Carroll is due a bumper haul, however, but he really is. One look at our members stats show he has been a real handful over the past four Gameweeks, creating umpteen goalscoring opportunities and firing several efforts at goal. Despite the fact that Carroll has returned just a single assist since Gameweek 34 onwards, only Van Persie has offered more in terms of key passes and goal attempts.

Don’t be fooled into thinking Liverpool have nothing left to play for. If they better Everton’s result against Newcastle, they will leapfrog their city rivals into seventh – this may seem like small consolation but means a huge amount to anyone associated with either Merseyside club. Coming off the back of a 4-1 thrashing of Chelsea and up against a Swansea side that are have shipped four goals in their last home game, Liverpool will be looking for a big win here and, with a bit of luck, Carroll could be just the man to take advantage.