The Scout Squad – Gameweek 6

Another Gameweek, another heavy defeat for our panel of Fantasy Football Scout regulars and current Hall of Fame #1 Peter Kouwenberg.

On a more humane website, the curtains would have been drawn around them and an injection administered, but instead they’re back for more whether they like it or not.

This week, they’re hoping Man City assets will help them stop the selectorial rot.

There’s also a lot of agreement that Bosnian landmark Sead Kolasinac needs to be in their team for Gameweek 6, with Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah another to garner expert attention ahead of Liverpool’s Saturday evening trip to Leicester City.

Below is a rundown of their thoughts, and thought processes, around their squad selections. We’ll be back to see who makes the final cut later in the week.

Paul says…

Man City’s home clash with Crystal Palace has to dominate our thinking this week.

I’ve opted for Benjamin Mendy, David Silva and Sergio Aguero, though could easily have added Gabriel Jesus to the mix – the Brazilian is only omitted from my top five forwards for the sake of variety.

Pascal Gross has both the underlying numbers and points output to justify his spot at home to Newcastle. The Brighton schemer has created more chances (eight) than any player in the league over the last two Gameweeks, returning 25 FPL points in the process.

Aaron Ramsey and Sead Kolasinac offer cheaper alternatives to Alexandre Lacazette at home to West Brom. The Baggies are likely to sit tight – their previous two league visits to the Emirates ended in 1-0 and 2-0 losses, so the Frenchman loses out in my frontline.

Instead, I’m turning to Jamie Vardy for Leicester’s encounter against Liverpool. If fit, the Foxes’ frontman looks difficult to omit – he’s scored twice at home to the Reds in each of the last two seasons.

Jonty says…

Manchester City demand representation after scoring 16 league goals this season.

But I have, perhaps controversially, decided against Sergio Aguero, who has already seen his Fantasy Premier League price rise twice since his weekend hat-trick against Watford.

Instead, I’ve opted for his strike partner Gabriel Jesus, who at the Etihad has fired in a shot in the box at twice the rate of Aguero. The Brazilian also has two goals at home to his Argentine team-mate’s one.

Harry Kane should do better away to West Ham than his blank at home to Swansea City at the weekend. I can’t see past those incredible underlying statistics, which we detailed earlier in the week in our Captain Poll article. Even though I realise he may be an unpopular pick among those who captained him against the Swans, his brace in his last away match, at Everton, is still fresh in my mind.

Romelu Lukaku is another essential pick for me. Despite being offloaded by many of Aguero’s new suitors, he has delivered in four out of five fixtures, including goals in both his road trips.

All three will be costly, so I’ve looked to Burnley as a key source of budget picks to ensure we can afford the big guns. Clarets defender Ben Mee (4.5) looks primed for points at both ends of the pitch when Huddersfield drop by thanks to his seven penalty area efforts this season – more than any other defender.

Fellow Claret Robbie Brady’s 13 key passes is also impressive, and ranks him alongside Christian Eriksen, another of my selections, for creativity.

Newcastle’s Matt Ritchie looks another crucial enabler with the potential to score big. His 11 FPL points on the back of two assists last time out was his third consecutive attacking return.

Brighton’s shipping of two goals to Bournemouth last Friday shows how tough my team are finding it in the top flight. It is also worth noting that the Seagulls lost both their Championship encounters with the Magpies last season, conceding four times in total.

Peter says…

Last week’s choices were a mixed bag, with the Spurs and Liverpool treble-ups proving somewhat underwhelming but Jamaal Lascelles, Matt Ritchie and Pascal Groß all doing their bit.

This week will be a big test of the budget and of which star names to leave out – a reality facing most FPL managers at the moment as there are so many in-form options.

The stand-out fixture this week is indisputably Manchester City hosting Palace. The Premier League throws up a few unforeseen results, but surely the only risk here is City’s possible focus on their midweek European match and then a trip to Stamford Bridge, with rotation a possible issue.

FPL points have rained down on the Citizens’ assets, whether coming on as a substitute or only featuring for an hour, so I’m hoping that Sergio Aguero and David Silva avoid too many splinters and get in amongst the points.

Benjamin Mendy also keeps his place in a Manchester City defence which has only been breached twice all season and faces an Eagles team on The Long(est) Run ever without a goal in the opening to a top-flight season.

To a lesser extent, Arsenal also look a decent bet, with two clean sheets since their Anfield humiliation. Sead Kolasinac is becoming something of a cult hero among the FFS community and, in addition to his attacking prowess, faces an West Brom side which has only mustered a couple of shots on target per match in the last few weeks.

Aaron Ramsey looked lively against Chelsea, and although Alaxandre Lacazette didn’t, the fact that the Frenchman has just exited my FPL side is a guarantee that he’ll light up the Emirates this Monday. He takes a spot which will no doubt go to Harry Kane or Alvaro Morata in some of the other Scouts’ selections.

Those are, on paper, the most obvious fixtures to hunt down this week, but my remaining picks are based on a mixture of great form (Manchester United), gut feeling (Burnley and Everton) and all-out exasperation (Spurs).

Mark says…

While there’s every chance I will gamble and go without any Manchester City coverage for their gift of a fixture with Crystal Palace, I couldn’t let it cloud my judgement when it came to the Scout Picks.

Sergio Aguero has to be included and it would seem to be remiss of me not to accompany him with two other members of Pep Guardiola’s squad for the Eagles visit.

Benjamin Mendy is my first choice at the back – I see him as the biggest threat of the two full-backs/wing-backs at Pep’s disposal and recent statistics have backed that theory.

In midfield, I’ve opted for David Silva over Kevin De Bruyne. That’s partly because I’m sulking with the Belgian, partly due to Silva’s ridiculous record against Palace. He’s scored four goals and earned a single assist in just six matches against them. For Silva – a player not renowned for goal scoring – that’s bordering on uncanny.

Elsewhere, I’ve probably courted controversy by backing Harry Kane over Romelu Lukaku. I don’t expect that will help when it comes to Friday’s final selection, but I just feel that he has the better fixture.

I wasn’t impressed with Manchester United without Paul Pogba, and I think Southampton, in Oriol Romeu and Mario Lemina, have two powerful midfielders who could restrict Jose Mourinho’s side to scraps. They’ll likely nick it, but I think Kane can outperform Lukaku this week.

James Tarkowski – with superior baseline in the Bonus Points System – is my differential at the back if Nick Pope isn’t selected in goal. Meanwhile, my omission of both Lukasz Fabianski and Kyle Naughton is explained by Richarlison’s call-up. I fancy the Brazilian to break out with another decent haul at the Liberty Stadium.

The Community Champion

Representing the Community against the Scout Picks in Gameweek will be The UnderGods. This is his sixth season, with 2016/17’s finish of 8,695 his best to date.

The community champion who has the best lead over the Scouts during 2017/18 will win a £100 Amazon voucher (currently we can only offer Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com vouchers).

Gameweek 5’s champion Gregor achieved victory over the Scouts by a massive 33-point margin – 86 to 53 – with Sergio Aguero among his more prescient picks. He is now the manager to beat in the race for the £100 prize.