Named provisionally in the midweek-ish meander, here’s this week’s belated Scout Picks, with the usual feeble logic to back them up…

As I mentioned in the meander, I’m not overly confident in defenders this week, so options were somewhat limited at the back. The Liverpool, Arsenal, Chelsea and Everton defences were out of the question given the fixture list, so there’s some low-to-mid price names in the rearguard.

That starts with Schwarzer in goal. A close call this – I had Given between the sticks for a while but opted instead for Bridge as my City representative, his attacking potential against the West Brom right-side, clinching him a picks starting role and sealing a start for Schwarzer.

The Fulham keeper will be up for the game at Boro given that he is returning to his old club. He should see plenty of action, with Boro desperate for the win and likely to start with an attacking lineup. However, Fulham’s defence has surprised us on several occasions so far this season and another cleanie isn’t out of the question. I’m expecting a decent return from saves at the very least.

Tottenham’s Assou-Ekotto makes his first picks appearance of the season, with the Spurs defence showing such strong form at White Hart Lane and a struggling Newcastle in town. Woodgate and King are options if you have some extra cash to splash – they certainly have the edge when it comes to FPL bonus, so the extra outlay could be worthwhile.

Stoke’s Shawcross earns another picks start. With Santa Cruz and Roberts out for Rovers, I just don’t fancy them posing too much threat against the strong home Stoke defence. Shawcross and Faye are in commanding form and it’s a close call between the two but I’ve settled for Shawcross, who has the slight edge as a goal threat.

United have to wait until Wednesday for their home game with Portsmouth this week but, defensively, they should see a return to form in the league given that Ferdinand is installed back alongside Vidic. It’s the Serb who gets the nod here. He could well return to his consistent best for the season run-in.

The final spot is on shaky ground when it comes to a potential clean sheet but then, I see very few cleanies about this week, so it’s worth looking at a defender with an attacking edge. As mentioned earlier, the spot goes to City’s Bridge who will offer some threat against the West Brom defence and also has the potential to return a clean sheet, given the Baggies plight away from home this term.

Moving to the midfield and Ronaldo and Lampard go into the gameweek in sensational form from their Champions League ties. They represent the Tri-Force with Gerrard a slight injury doubt and with a tough fixture against Arsenal. That leaves two spots in midfield, which go to City’s Ireland and Portsmouth’s Kranjcar.

Ireland will be a key attacking threat for City against West Brom and is a good bet to profit, if City can bring their UEFA Cup fight to the league on Sunday. As for Kranjcar, he has two fixtures in the gameweek which should guarantee an increased return in the FPL. His second fixture is at Old Trafford so we can’t expect too much from that game, however, the home fixture with Bolton looks set for goals and the Croatian should be influential and amongst the bonus again if Pompey can prevail. Pennant is your other option here – if you need the differential.

The same logic is behind the selection of Crouch up front. As mentioned in the meander, Bolton have been involved in more high-scoring games than any other side away from home, so the Fratton Park encounter could be good for 3-4 goals. Crouch suffered last weekend against West Brom, but he could find profit against Bolton and he may even trouble United next Wednesday.

Beattie keeps last week’s forward line intact. He will start for Stoke and have the extra incentive of facing his former club and the bonus of facing the second worst away defence in the league. A Stoke win looks likely and Beattie and Fuller will be the key threat.

My bench offers a budget defensive option in the form of Anton Ferdinand. The Sunderland and Hull clash looks a strong candidate for a low scoring encounter and I can see the home side sneaking a narrow win with a cleanie. Portsmouth’s Johnson is another strong candidate back there, but I’m not gambling on three Portsmouth players in the lineup, despite his attacking potential.

The midfield pairing of Lennon and Modric look good options and it’s Lennon that makes my bench with Newcastle struggling for cover at left-back with Enrique a doubt. Sunderland’s Richardson, Stoke’s Lawrence and Boro’s Downing are all long shots worth consideration.

Up front I’ve opted for City’s Caicedo who should enjoy another start in City’s attack against the brittle Baggies defence. Villa’s Carew, and Tottenham’s Robbie Keane were my other contenders and are certainly worthy of support if you’re looking for effective differentials this week.