Scout Notes – Gameweek 12 – Saturday

A big name returns to rejuvenate Manchester United, Liverpool’s relentless goal machine rumbles on, while Chelsea’s blossoming attacking partnership deliver on a day which saw Manchester City put in the shade.

Here are the notes from a packed Saturday schedule.

Pogba returns to fire United

What a difference the return of just one £89.3 million midfield dynamo can make to a team.

Manchester United were snapped out of a dismal run in which they’d managed just one win and two goals in four matches by a bravura display from the fit-again Paul Pogba.

Back after a seven-Gameweek absence, the French international scored one goal, set up another and took home two bonus points as Newcastle were swept aside 4-1.

His Fantasy Premier League (FPL) impact was there for all to see, although Jose Mourinho’s progressive team selection deserves some credit as well.

The game’s most-owned player, Romelu Lukaku, ended a seven-match goalless streak, much to the delight of the 26.1% of us who handed him the armband. More than 122,000 managers had sold him on, however, with Arsenal and Man City looming in Gameweeks 15 and 16.

Anthony Martial, who also scored, and Marcus Rashford, who set up Pogba’s goal, both started in an attacking line-up most notable for the absence of the 13.5%-owned Henrikh Mkhitaryan.

The Armenian had dovetailed well with Pogba prior to the Frenchman’s injury but didn’t even make the squad – for tactical reasons – yesterday, as Juan Mata was handed a first start in three league matches in the No 10 role.

But it was Pogba who stole the show – even a late cameo from the returning Zlatan Ibrahimovic couldn’t eclipse him – and the midfielder has now produced three goals and four assists from his five starts this season. United have scored 3.2 goals a match with Pogba in the starting line-up.

While the scoreline didn’t flatter United, it was harsh on a Newcastle side that opened the scoring through Dwight Gayle’s first league goal of the season.

Rafa Benitez’s side troubled their hosts’ defence on numerous occasions in the first half as the absence of Phil Jones again meant no clean sheet for United’s backline.

That particularly hurt the 41.7% of managers with David de Gea in their squads – the keeper is the third most popular player in FPL – and injuries to both Jones and Eric Bailly have revealed a soft centre to an otherwise obdurate defence.

But with Pogba back in the side, the Red Devils look capable of outscoring most opponents once again.

With Brighton and Watford up next, the French international has been snapped up by 114,000 managers.

Spurs stars outgunned

It took Lukaku 70 minutes to delight his captaincy devotees and Harry Kane 74 to confirm the worst fears of his armband acolytes.

Close to a million managers, or 17.2%, were hoping for double delights from Kane in the north London derby.

What they got was a fourth blank in five Gameweeks, with a yellow card and an early departure adding lumps of salt to the one-point wound.

Kane has now been booked three times this campaign – the same number of cautions he picked up across the entirety of last season – and each card has coincided with a single-point performance.

Spurs’ schedule is now strong (WBA lei wat STK BHA), but our confidence in Kane is weakening.

His 38.2% ownership has yo-yoed dramatically in recent weeks, which is more than can be said for Christian Eriksen and Dele Alli.

The Dane lost 230,000+ managers going into the Gameweek, and he responded with a fourth consecutive blank, while Alli was sold by more than 110,000 and now has just one goal and two assists from his last eight starts.

All the big-name performances came from the home side, with Alexandre Lacazette and Mesut Ozil providing the assists in Arsenal’s 2-0 win.

That proved to be business as usual for the German, who now has a goal and three assists from his last four starts. Such form has failed to convince any of us, however, as he resides in just 1.9% of squads and has endured net ownership drops in all but two Gameweeks this season.

Lacazette’s assist was his first of the campaign, which placated the 2.1% who captained him on the day, and he also has two goals to show from a fruitful last three starts.

Alexis Sanchez’s second goal in four matches was great news for the Gunners, but only truly explosive returns will do when he costs 11.8 in FPL.

Instead, the 6.0 needed to acquire Sead Kolasinac continues to be money well spent – particularly at home.

In six matches at the Emirates the Bosnian has four clean sheets, three assists, a goal and six bonus points for a whopping 48-point tally.

A visit from Man United aside, Arsenal’s fixtures are set fair over the next six weeks, in defensive terms at least. Kolasinac looks like he has so much more to give.

More of the same from Liverpool

A routine 3-0 win for Liverpool over Southampton included a now standard haul from Mohamed Salah.

Only Lukaku is owned by more managers than the 43.3% on the Egyptian, who produced a second consecutive double-digit display that took him to the top of the FPL scoring charts, with 88 points, and into the lead in the Golden Boot race, with nine goals.

His consistency is impressive – he’s produced a goal or an assist in six of his last eight Gameweeks. Faith in Salah as a captain is now building at pace, with 8.9% handing him the armband for yesterday’s clash. He is as close to essential as there is at the moment.

Meanwhile, Liverpool’s defensive resolve at Anfield remained. They claimed a fifth home clean sheet against a shot-shy Southampton.

Investors in Joe Gomez were left disappointed, however, as he was benched for the first time in six matches just as 55,000+ managers tapped into his budget (4.6) charms. Trent Alexander-Arnold earned his first start since Gameweek 5 and impressed to claim a single bonus point.

Aguero benched as Stones suffers setback

Sergio Aguero spent his day out in Leicester firmly attached to the bench, although his no-show at least freed up a vice-captain slot for the 9.2% of managers who had handed the striker their armband.

Pep Guardiola’s consistent rotation of his strikers meant that it was the turn of Gabriel Jesus’ 15.4% ownership to reap the rewards of City’s attacking riches as the Brazilian scored for the second consecutive Gameweek.

He tapped in from a David Silva pass, the Spaniard’s eighth assist of the season taking him to the top of that particular table. Meanwhile, Leroy Sane recorded his sixth assist, and Kevin De Bruyne confirmed his return to the Fantasy top table with back-to-back goals and a superb run of three goals and as many assists across the last six Gameweeks.

City’s victory was tainted by an injury to John Stones which robbed his 10.6% ownership of a seventh clean sheet. Guardiola suggested post-match that the England international could be out for up to six weeks.

Nicolas Otamendi returns from his one-match suspension for the Gameweek 13 trip to Huddersfield but, without Stones, it’s questionable whether we should rush back to the City defence. Saturday’s shut-out was just their second in five Gameweeks.

Chelsea back in the game

Four straight wins, ten goals scored and three clean sheets kept – Chelsea are starting to look like reigning champions once again.

And at the heart of the revival are Alvaro Morata and Eden Hazard, who were way too much for a beleaguered West Brom to handle.

The Spanish striker scored for the second consecutive match and also has two assists from his last three starts. Small wonder, then, that he is now the top scoring forward.

Hazard, meanwhile, was back to his best in an 18-point display from his advanced position in support of Morata.

The Belgian’s 10.6 price tag and Chelsea’s travails have left Fantasy managers wary – he’s still only owned by 5.1% and actually lost over 13,000 owners going into Gameweek 12.

But he’s now produced 37 points over the last four Gameweeks as he threatens to break up the midfield template.

Next week’s trip to Anfield will be huge for both Hazard and Salah. After that, the Blues have a superb run through to the New Year – a chance for the Belgian, and Morata, to build further.

Chelsea are also restoring confidence in their defence.

A third successive clean sheet cemented Cesar Azpilicueta’s place at the top of the defenders’ standings – he’s now ten points clear of Antonio Valencia – while Marcos Alonso scored for the first time since Gameweek 2 to produce a 14-point haul.

And if that pair – at 6.8 and 6.9 respectively – are too rich for our blood, Andreas Christensen (5.4) was handed a second consecutive start by Antonio Conte, although Gary Cahill and David Luiz – who returned to the bench at The Hawthorns – clearly remain factors.

A new king at the Palace

The league table might say otherwise, but things are on the up under Roy Hodgson at Crystal Palace.

Much of that is thanks to Wilfried Zaha – the Ivorian now has three goals from his last three home starts.

Zaha was again deployed as a striker by Hodgson, and nearly 44,000 new managers bought into him for the visit from Everton.

Palace have further home matches with Stoke City, Bournemouth and Watford to come before Christmas and Zaha’s 5.1% ownership could have swollen quite considerably by then.

However, it should be noted that Christian Benteke’s return – a 15-minute cameo from the bench – shifted Zaha back to a role on the flank. Benteke will surely be in line for a start for the visit of Stoke in Gameweek 13.

Elsewhere for Palace, doubts over his fitness saw Ruben Loftus-Cheek benched by 80% of his 280,000 owners, though he started and produced a second assist in three matches to build on his fine recent form for club and country.

Clean sheets, however, continue to elude Palace’s backine – they have precisely zero this season – and they were their own worst enemies in the 2-2 draw with Everton.

Scott Dann was involved in the errors that led to both goals from the visitors, although keeper Julian Speroni was perhaps the chief culprit for the second.

The 4.0-priced stopper has enjoyed slow but steady ownership rises since Hodgson handed him a starting role in Gameweek 8. His hospital ball to Dann yesterday will not have helped his long-term cause.

Ban could derail Niasse bandwagon

Everton are currently being powered by the exploits of Oumar Niasse.

The cut-price striker has now scored three times in his last five appearances for the Toffees – and all for just 4.9.

In fact, in a mish-mash of starts and substitutions since Gamweek 6, he’s produced five goals and an assist for a team so otherwise devoid of firepower.

A goal and an assist at Selhurst Park has clearly tempted many – he’s currently the third most popular transfer target – but there could yet be a sting in the tail.

His role in the penalty awarded to Everton at Palace could come under scrutiny. If that prompts a review, the striker’s recent adopters may have to see out a two-match suspension.

More bonus for Burnley’s Pope

Burnley’s defence once again delivered for their growing army of Fantasy owners.

The Clarets saw off Swansea City 2-0 to record a third consecutive clean sheet and their fifth shut-out in seven matches.

Goalkeeper Nick Pope was again in the bonus points – he’s now earned them in six of his nine matches this season as he continues to equal, or even surpass, the exploits of Tom Heaton in 2016/17.

Only the hugely popular de Gea picked up more new owners than Pope’s 67,000 heading into Gameweek 12 and once next week’s visit from Arsenal is out of the way, Burnley have the fixtures (bou, lei, WAT, STO, bri) to tempt many more to his cause.

Carroll and Abraham cause concern

Tom Carroll has long been established as a go-to 4.5 fifth midfielder option, selected due to his consistency of starts rather than his points potential. However, the former Spurs schemer was benched by Paul Clement at Turf Moor to cause concern for his 6.4% ownership.

Tammy Abraham was another of Swansea’s key Fantasy assets to prompt anxiety. He has been one of the few bright sparks of a dismal campaign to date, only for the 17.6%-owned forward to be stretchered off with a back injury at Turf Moor.

Paul Clement has stated that Abraham will be assessed in the week ahead of a plum home fixture with Bournemouth. If Abraham is sidelined for that fixture, he won’t make a return until Gameweek 15 as he is ineligible to face parent club Chelsea following the Cherries clash.

Wilson submits third striker CV

Concerns over Abraham’s fitness will only promote the appeal of Cherries striker Callum Wilson.

Currently 0.1 cheaper than the Swans’ asset, Wilson hit a hat-trick in Bournemouth’s 4-0 win over Huddersfield and has the fixtures (swa BUR SOU cry) to make the third striker spot his own.

Some Fantasy managers agree – he’s the fifth most bought player of Gameweek 13. However, with Josh King, Benik Afobe and Jermain Defoe at Eddie Howe’s disposal, rotation will remain a prime concern over the busy festive spell.

Howe’s defence kept a second consecutive clean sheet yesterday, much to the delight of Charlie Daniels’ 10.4% ownership, while Andrew Surman continued to demonstrate his fifth-midfielder credentials with an assist against the Terriers.

That’s a goal and two assists for Surman from his last four starts now – nice work from a 4.7-priced player whose 7.5% ownership grows by the Gameweek.