Back once again with a dubious selection of players that make up my tips for the weekend’s heavy-hitters. Read the midweek meander and the words that follow to decipher the logic behind it all…

It’s getting late, so lets crack on. As usual I’ve tried to use the goalkeeping spot to gamble on a mid-to-low price defensive option and the place goes to Given this time. Newcastle are strong defensively but Wigan have apparently lost both Zaki and Heskey to injury, plus their form is dismal right now. A rare clean sheet for Newcastle perhaps and at the very least, a few points from saves.

In front of Given I’ve stuck with the big two defences with Bosingwa and Agger coming in. The Chelsea man picks himself with assists always on the cards at West Brom. Ivanovic is your cheap alternative with Alex out injured. As for Agger, I can see a goal just around the corner for the Dane and he took the bonus points from Carragher last time out. Aurellio is also an option here.

With mid-price defensive points looking at a premium I’ve played safe an opted for the United and Arsenal rearguards to complete the defence. Vidic will be crucial to United’s cause against Stoke and could earn bonus if they can see off Delap’s throws and Stoke’s aerial threat. Clichy is the pick of the Arsenal defence which looks a fairly decent bet against an out-of-form Villa at the Emirates.

Moving into midfield and Lampard and Ronaldo pick themselves as usual. I won’t waste time talking over their merits – they speak for themselves. I’ve kept Geovanni alongside them because I’m expecting goals in the Hull vs City clash. The Brazilian will be keen to impress against his former club and on the same stage as Robinho. It appears to be all set up for him and I’m expecting returns for his owners.

The final midfield slot goes to Arsenal’s Nasri who will surely keep his place after his two-goal salvo against United. Again, I’m expecting goals in this game with Arsenal buoyant after their win and Villa struggling defensively.

Up front has been a tough one for me. Torres faces a difficult task at Bolton, Adebayor is a doubt and I’m not 100% convinced on the partnership that Ferguson will go with against Stoke. Anelka is an obvious choice and perhaps the striker that offers the biggest returns again this week but I like to steer away from picking three Chelsea players so I’ve looked elsewhere. Plus there’s always the threat of Drogba who could take some minutes off him.

I’ve gone for the in-form Saha against the unpredictable Boro. A dangerous game given that Boro always seem to piss on my chips when it comes to backing against them. Everton should be confident however and with a front two of Yakubu and Saha, they surely have goals in them.

I’ve partnered him with Bent, even though I see the game at the Cottage as being a tight affair which could return a dreaded 1-1 scoreline. Bent is by far and away the most likely to find the net for Spurs though and is difficult to ignore in his current form.

There are some strong alternatives to my eleven. Defensively the Blackburn defence could be worth backing at home to Sunderland with Warnock perhaps the best option in his midfield role. Belhadj should keep his midfield role for Pompey at West Ham, although with Cole back for the Hammers I expect them to ruin the clean sheet. Lescott and Jagielka will fancy themselves for a shut-out at home to Boro – as I’ve mentioned though, I hate banking on Boro being predictable.

Staying at Goodison and Arteta looks a strong option with Pienaar also looking decent as a cheaper option. I like the look of Kranjcar on his return from injury – he could find some joy at Upton Park in a game which should have a few goals. In the same game, Defoe could be worth backing against his former club. At Ewood Park we have some strong mid-price options on show with Santa Cruz, Cisse and Jones on show. I’m not convinced on Santa’s fitness just yet, while Sunderland just don’t score goals away from home often enough to back them. That might change once the partnership clicks.

For a good cheap option up front though, Ameobi looks a decent bet against a leaky Wigan defence, while team-mate Martins could also profit. I also like Hull’s King, although his place could be under threat given the midweek Casino incident.

I’ll end on the FPL captain issue as usual, although there’s little to discuss. Ronaldo has to be the option this week at home to Stoke. He has won the poll by a landslide and will surely be the chief architect of Stoke’s downfall at Old Trafford. If you’re without Ronaldo then you are likely to be wincing your way through that particular fixture and will doubtless have to turn to Lampard at West Brom – another strong option. Outside of these two, Anelka looks the next best option and for a real gamble how about Saha or Martins? Crazy talk I know. It really is getting late.