The Scout Squad – Gameweek 23

Having earned just two goals from our Gameweek 22 Scout Picks XI, Mark, Paul and I will have to up our game as we consider candidates for the forthcoming midweek fixtures.

In the Scout Squad, we present those players currently being discussed behind the scenes ahead of Tuesday’s Picks selection, as the three of us nominate 18 players across the positions, listing them in rank order.

The discussions and disagreements rumbling behind the scenes are also highlighted, as each of us looks to back our players for a starting berth in the Picks, as well as a place in our Spot the Differential article.

Finally, we will also reveal the Gameweek 23 Community Champion who has been selected by our lottery to represent the community and be in with a chance of winning a £100 Amazon voucher.

Goalkeepers

Budget keepers with favourable home ties dominate our selection once again, with Burnley’s Tom Heaton (5.0) looking assured of a Scout Picks call-up after claiming a unanimous top billing ahead of his meeting with Leicester City.

The Clarets’ custodian’s home form remains enticing, with a clean sheet and maximum bonus point returns in two of his last three encounters at Turf Moor.

Meanwhile, visitors Leicester has been woeful of late, scoring just once in their last four league ties. Away from home, Claudio Ranieri’s side have registered a paltry eight goals in 11 road trips.

Middlesbrough’s Victor Valdes 4.6) is another to earn universal backing and could be called upon should we need to free up cash in our £84 million budget.

Two clean sheets in his last four home games make him a more than able deputy to Heaton, particularly as he faces a West Brom side with only nine goals away from The Hawthorns.

With Baggies stopper Ben Foster also in Paul’s picks, it’s clear he believes that a 0-0 bore draw could be on the cards at the Riverside Stadium.

Elsewhere, Mark and I are both eyeing up Bournemouth’s Artur Boruc’s (4.6) prospects ahead of a visit from Crystal Palace.

The Cherries may boast only a single clean sheet in their last four home ties but the Polish stopper could fare better against a struggling Eagles. They have scored just two Premier League goals since Sam Allardyce siezed the reins back in Gameweek 18.

Defenders

With a single FPL point return off the bench against Burnley, it seems I was a little premature with the selection of Arsenal’s Hector Bellerin (6.5) last time out. This week, though, Mark and Paul have joined me in naming the 14.9% owned Spaniard, who looks in line to start against Watford at the Emirates, having earned a full 90 minutes at Southampton in the FA Cup.

With three assists this season, we feel he has the attacking edge over his Arsenal defensive team-mates ahead of a meeting with Walter Mazzarri’s side who have conceded 21 goals on the road. Paul has even gone as far as placing the raiding right-back at top of his selection.

Danny Rose (6.1) gets a third place spot from Paul but sits at the summit in the selections from Mark and myself, ahead of Spurs’ visit to basement dwellers Sunderland.

The Black Cats have shipped 11 goals in their last four matches, more than any other Premier League side over that period, while the England international is the top chance creating defender over the last six Gameweeks. We’re confident that Rose will shake off the injury that saw him miss the FA Cup win over Wycombe.

“Providing he’s fit, I’m willing to stand by Rose over Kyle Walker. He may be trailing his team-mate for assists but, having shown superior creativity over the last six Gameweeks, it seems only a matter of time before he delivers. In terms of goal threat, there’s no contest for me – Rose’s numbers are even more encouraging in this area and, with such a huge difference in ownership, he remains the better option in my view.” – Mark

Bournemouth defender Charlie Daniels (5.3) is another to earn three nominations.

Handed the freedom to scurry down the left flank at the Vitality Stadium, the enterprising full-back has already claimed four double-digit returns. Daniels hosts a Palace side with just a solitary clean sheet this campaign while, as previously mentioned, Allardyce’s side are also struggling to discover a cutting edge.

Manchester United could provide a rare area of disagreement among our defensive picks, with Mark and Paul backing Antonio Valencia (5.5), while I favour the cheaper price tag offered by Phil Jones (5.0). For me, the Ecuadorian’s solitary assist fails to merit the extra outlay.

The final slot creates another potential source of conflict, with Mark backing a clean sheet and possible attacking returns for Chris Brunt (5.0) at the Riverside.

“Like Paul, I just don’t see goals at the Riverside. While I’m a Gareth McAuley owner and certainly back him to cause problems for Middlesbrough at set-pieces, I can’t ignore Brunt’s twin threat. He can be such a creative force and has demonstrated the the goal threat that his left-foot can offer.” – Mark

However, Paul joins me in supporting Everton’s Seamus Coleman (5.6) at Stoke City.

After my failed last minute attempt to draft him into the Picks for Gameweek 22, following concerns over Leighton Baines’ fitness, I’ve decided to promote him far earlier in the process. A goal against Crystal Palace last weekend was his fourth of the campaign, offering hope that the Irishman can deliver again when he drops in at the bet365 Stadium.

Midfielders

With at least a goal or assist in nine of his last ten league Gameweeks, it’s no real surprise to find Arsenal’s Alexis Sanchez (11.9) at the top of our midfield selections across the board.

Watford’s frail defensive form strengthens the case for the Chilean, as does his impressive tally of 25 goal attempts over his last three Emirates outings.

Rested from the starting line-up for the FA Cup rout of Southampton, Sanchez nonetheless demonstrated his confidence levels by providing two assists in Saturday’s 5-0 mauling.

This consensus continues across our midfield picks with Spurs’ Dele Alli (8.8) earning second place billing from Paul and I, and a third spot from Mark, ahead of a trip to Sunderland.

The dire Black Cats defensive numbers offer us plenty of room for optimism for another Alli haul, with the midfielder already claiming nine goals from his last eight appearances in all competitions.

Junior Stanislas (5.3) also gets three votes and, as our only budget midfield pick, looks almost certain to earn a place in Tuesday’s Picks. Despite a blank against Watford last time out, a goal and a pair of assists in the winger’s last four outings underlines his potential ahead of the clash with Palace.

Gylfi Sigurdsson (7.2)’s importance to Swansea’ City’s survival bid could spark a rare bout of fisticuffs among our selection of middlemen.

While both Mark and I believe that the Icelander’s decisive goal in the shock defeat of Liverpool in Gameweek 22 heralds a change in fortunes, Paul appears less convinced. Sigurdsson gets two votes ahead of his Liberty Stadium meeting with Southampton, then.

Given the Saint’s clean sheet in the EFL Cup win at Liverpool, Paul is clearly backing the south coast side’s rearguard to stifle the Swans’ set-piece specialist. However, with Virgil van Dijk expected to be absent from Claude Puel’s backline once again, Mark and I appear to have a strong argument.

“There’s a chance that Swansea City will be massively buoyed by the victory on Merseyside and that this will show on their return to the Liberty Stadium. Sigurdsson had faltered with the Swans’ dire form but, if Paul Clement can truely inspire a revival, then the playmaker’s returns will spike – he’s just too influential to miss out once the Welshman start scoring goals.” – Mark

Paul Pogba is another pick that could prove controversial.

Mark remains sceptical that the Manchester United midfielder is worthy of his 8.5 price tag, while Paul and I believe the 11% owned Frenchman has been unfortunate not to have offered stronger returns over his last four Gameweeks.

Pogba has fired off 15 shots over that spell and, while his opponents Hull City have shown encouraging progress under Marco Silva, they still shipped two at Chelsea last time out, adding to the 19 already conceded on the road.

Mark and Paul are so confident of a strong Spurs showing on Wearside that they are have offered up the option of adding Christian Eriksen (8.7) to Alli’s almost certain selection in Tuesday’s cut.

With six double-figure hauls for the Dane over his last ten Gameweeks, I’m certainly open to persuasion.

“My decision to double up on Liverpool pair Philippe Coutinho and Roberto Firmino in last week’s Scout Squad was vindicated by the latter, at least, in the clash with Swansea City. I’m retaining the same tactic of selecting two midfielders from the same side by opting for Christian Eriksen and Dele Alli for the trip to Sunderland. As mentioned already, both are in serious form as they head to a defence that’s hammered by injury, suspension and a want-away left-back on the verge of moving to Palace.” – Paul

Forwards

Support for Spurs spills over into our forward choices, with all three of us giving the nod to Harry Kane (11.2).

Six goals in as many league matches, as well as two assists, makes him arguably a shoo-in to claim a coveted Scout Picks call-up in attack. Already more than 47,000 FPL managers have drafted him in ahead of his trip to the Stadium of Light.

While Mark ranks him as Gameweek 23’s optimum choice of striker, Paul and I still favour the consistency of Manchester United’s Zlatan Ibrahimovic (11.7), who has delivered attacking returns in six out of his last seven league matches.

The most popular FPL asset, Ibrahimovic gets top billing from us and second spot from Mark, making him odds-on to survive Tuesday’s Scout Picks shakedown and claim another selection.

Our expensive defensive and midfield options could well see Mark’s nomination of Everton’s Romelu Lukaku (9.6) ignored, while a similar fate could fall upon Arsenal’s Olivier Giroud (8.7), despite the striker gaining universal support.

This could open the door for Burnley’s Andre Gray (6.2) to earn the third Scout Picks striker berth.

The 5.3% owned Burnley hitman has three votes and with five goals in as many Gameweek starts, he looks well placed to benefit from a visiting Leicester defence that has shipped 24 goals on their travels.

West Ham United’s Andy Carroll (6.2)’s four goals in the last five ensures he remains in the mix but with Paul as his solitary sponsor and with a groin injury causing a concern, Burnley’s Gray currently looks the favoured option.

“I wouldn’t place Andy Carroll in the top three slots here, but his form cannot be overlooked against City’s far from convincing defence. West Ham are second only to Spurs in terms of big chances created over the last four and seem to have upped their output since leaving Dimitri Payet on the sidelines. If the big Geordie is passed fit, he’s likely to be the key weapon for Slaven Bilic’s side as they look for a third successive win.” – Paul

Community Champion

Representing the Community against the Scout Picks in Gameweek will be moderator Athletico Timbo. This is his ninth campaign, with 2010/11’s finish of 1,006 his best to date.

The community champion who has the best lead over the Scouts during 2016/17 will win a £100 Amazon voucher (currently we can only offer Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com vouchers).

Last Gameweek’s champion Sidharth beat the Scouts 57 to 43.

The current champion to beat is Boris Bodega, who achieved a 33 point margin of victory over us in Gameweek 15.