Spot the Differential – Gameweek 10

Our regular quest for the unfashionable and underused finds us turning to Stoke’s own Lionel Messi impersonator, Palace’s wide-man turned striker and an Arsenal asset set to benefit from Aaron Ramsey’s injury.

Bojan Krkic

A three-match winning streak has augmented the appeal of Stoke’s attacking recruits, with the return of Bojan Krkic proving the catalyst to a turnaround in form. The former Barcelona graduate steered the Potters to victory over Swansea last Monday with a spot-kick, marking his second goal in four outings that have harvested ten points for the Staffordshire outfit.

Notwithstanding his classification as a forward by the Fantasy Premier League, the 5.3-priced Bojan – who operates from the number-ten berth – could still offer great value by virtue of his budget price tag and penalty duty.

Since ending their six-match winless spell, Stoke have improved on the attacking front – as evidenced by the fact that only five teams amassed more big chances (seven) over the last three Gameweeks. Next on the agenda for Mark Hughes’ men is a home tie against Watford, who rank third for big chances conceded (11) in the last four, before trips to Sunderland and Newcastle in the following four afford Bojan further opportunities to strengthen his case as a cut-price frontman.

Yannick Bolasie

Yannick Bolasie (6.2) hasn’t set the world alight this season – notching one goal in eight appearances – but he’s posted some impressive underlying statistics that hint towards imminent attacking returns. During the last four Gameweeks, only seven midfielders tallied more shots on target (five) than the DR Congo international, who ranked joint-top among his Crystal Palace counterparts for total attempts (10).

Bolasie will be licking his lips ahead of the Eagles’ trip to Leicester City for two reasons: Palace have been dominant away from home (only losing to Manchester City) and the Foxes’ defence has been generous over the last five Gameweeks (12 goals conceded). Palace rank fourth for big chances (11) in road matches, with the top three for that metric having played one more away fixture. Meanwhile, Claudio Ranieri’s charges place top for goals conceded (10) and second for shots inside the box conceded (47) at home.

What’s more, with Alan Pardew deprived of first choice striker options, Bolasie could again be tasked with leading the line as he did at Spurs earlier in the season.

The Eagles square up to Manchester United (home) and Liverpool (away) in their subsequent two fixtures, before embarking on back-to-back home ties against Sunderland and Newcastle United. Aside from the favourable meetings with the North-East clubs, Bolasie could come up trumps against the Red Devils, given that they’ve conceded seven goals in their last four away ties.

Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain

Now that Aaron Ramsey has been ruled out for at least a month with a hamstring complaint, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain will be hoping to cement a run of starts on the Arsenal right wing.

Given that the rest of Arsene Wenger’s attacking midfielders are priced in the premium bracket, Oxlade-Chamberlain – at a cost of just 5.6 in FPL – serves as a more affordable way to double up on the red-hot Gunners. Granted, his acquisition could be a gamble if Wenger opts for Theo Walcott on the right to accommodate Olivier Giroud, but we feel the Arsenal boss will be reluctant to tinker too much with a winning formula and thus allow Walcott to continue as the lone striker.

Certainly, the stats back up Arsenal’s swashbuckling form. Over the last three Gameweeks, only Manchester City (12) tallied more goals (11) than Wenger’s side, while no team matched the North London outfit’s haul of shots inside the box (45). As such, one would expect Oxlade-Chamberlain to be afforded his fair share of goal scoring opportunities.

Assuming Ramsey is sidelined for the four weeks, Oxlade-Chamberlain could earn starts against Everton, Swansea, Tottenham and West Brom. Although that quartet of fixtures is far from plain sailing, Arsene Wenger’s troops will feel confident in their ability to punish any side, bearing in mind they’ve beaten the likes of Manchester United and Bayern Munich in recent matches.