With three Scout Pick selections in the space of seven days, my ability to uncannily select the wrong Everton defender, unwisely keep faith with Gareth Bale and opt for at least two benched players, is almost exhausted.
Unluckily for you, I’ve managed to untangle enough of the threads in my head to put together another ill-fated collection of players that carry my ailing Fantasy credentials into another Gameweek.
And yes, I did consider Matt Taylor.
The Defence
Tim Krul
The Newcastle defence remains hopelessly unpredictable. Having gathered a fine clean sheet at the Emirates last weekend, they were caught out twice by Blackburn in midweek to take another step back. With clean sheets looking hard to come this by Gameweek, beyond the big three of Chelsea, United and City, Newcastle’s Dutch keeper at least presents a cheap option at the back, with the potential of Save Points against a Fulham side who have scored just 5 in 6 on their travels.
Richard Stearman
After weeks of being left in wilderness but a severe run of opponents, Mick McCarthy’s Wolves appear to offer some budget potential over the next month as a result of their improved schedule. Stearman has benefited from the injury to stalwart Jody Craddock and has taken his opportunity well. His duel with Kevin Davies this weekend will be a feature of the Molineux clash with Bolton and, if he comes out on top, Stearman is in with a decent shout of Bonus Points along with possible clean sheet returns for a sum of just 3.9 in the Fantasy Premier League game.
Kolo Toure
City have claimed two clean sheets in their last three matches and with Birmingham at Eastlands this weekend, Toure and his defence have every chance of improving on that record. While the rest of the rearguard around him looks somewhat vulnerable to Roberto Mancini’s rotation whims, Toure is a nailed on starter and offers a secure route to defensive points from a well-drilled and disciplined City side.
Nemanja Vidic
The United back four is set for a reshuffle following injuries to Rafael and Patrice Evra at City in the week, but Vidic will remain a constant, the rock in the centre of Alex Ferguson’s rearguard. With such injuries it is perhaps a risk to invest in the United defence, but they will face a Villa side who are far from free-scoring (if you discount the three goals against a second-string Blackpool) and who could be relying on the raw talents of Nathan Delfouneso for goals at Villa Park this weekend. Vidic should gobble him up and help steer United to another clean sheet.
Ashley Cole
Almost ever-present in the Scout Picks this season, Cole goes into the game with Sunderland armed with Chelsea’s record of zero goals conceded in six Stamford Bridge encounters this season. That statistic, coupled with Cole’s attacking threat makes his inclusion in the Picks and in many a Fantasy lineup a complete no-brainer.
The Midfield
Rafael Van der Vaart
Spurs are playing at White Hart Lane this weekend; that’s basically all you need to know when it comes to considering the inspirational Dutchman as a Fantasy option. When Harry Redknapp’s side are at the Lane, Van der Vaart scores – he’s done so in all four of his league games this season. The imminent return of Jermain Defoe may cloud the issue slightly, but Van der Vaart is such an influence for Tottenham, both from open play and from a deadball, you would back him for returns for every home game – Blackburn at the Lane this weekend is no exception.
Matt Jarvis
Fresh from today’s England call-up, the Wolves winger is in hot hot form but is yet to deliver a Fantasy return that would see him blink wildly on our radars. The home clash with Bolton won’t be an easy proposition for Jarvis and his team-mates but the visitors bring a record that shows just a single clean sheet this season – and that came on the opening day. Wolves look good for a goal or two then and, if that proves to be the case, Jarvis is a strong bet to be involved.
Cesc Fabregas
Arsenal can’t afford to drop points having stumbled more than once at the Emirates this season. Three points at Goodison is a must and to achieve that, the Gunners are likely to need at least a couple of goals. Having returned to some semblance of form with an assist and Bonus Points at Wolves in midweek, Fabregas is surely a strong bet to earn profit from any Arsenal victory again this weekend.
Florent Malouda
Despite a desperate run of Fantasy form, I’m going to stand by Malouda and back him for profit against Sunderland this weekend. With Didier Drogba still feeling the effects of Maleria and Nicolas Anelka not yet a confirmed starter, the onus will be on Malouda and possibly Salomon Kalou to provide the cutting edge against Steve Bruce’s side. The visitors won’t make it easy for Chelsea but a 2-0 home win seems a likely outcome and I see Malouda back amongst the goals.
The Forwards
Andy Carroll
Carroll’s form is so strong right now it’s almost impossible to ignore him with his modest valuation across the Fantasy games. Carroll is showing no sign of stalling in his ascent to become one of the Premier League’s most feared frontmen and those Fantasy Managers that have held off this long must surely be beginning to concede that he is an almost essential element of this season’s FPL squad. The Fulham defence turns up at St James’ Park this weekend and while Brede Hangeland and co will go all out to stop Carroll, you’d have to back the big number nine to register points in every home game right now, particularly as Chris Hughton’s back four continue to be unpredictable at the other end, forcing Newcastle to chase games.
Frederic Piquionne
While the likes of Didier Drogba, Fernando Torres and Carlos Tevez will be popular options for Fantasy Managers this weekend, with expensive assets in my midfield, I’ve decided to make the most of some potential lower down the price bracket up front. West Ham may still be floundering at the wrong end of the table but they are showing good attacking threat and in Piquionne have a striker who has found some form. The Frenchman notched his fourth goal of the season from the spot against West Brom on Wednesday and will likely be on penalties again when Blackpool arrive at Upton Park this weekend. Goals at both ends looks on the cards and at 5.1 in the FPL, Piquionne offers potential for a budget price.
In Reserve
Finding defensive returns this week looks difficult to say the least. There isn’t even an easy route to attacking points from your defenders with Seamus Coleman and Elmohamady both potential risks having spent the midweek programme on the bench. In my view both will start but neither has desirable opposition. You could gamble on the West Ham defence at home to Blackpool and could possibly back Wigan’s defence at home to West Brom. I’ll turn to Liverpool’s Paul Konchesky again for a place on my bench though, with Sotirios Kyrgiakos offering a risky second option. If the big Greek can return to reclaim a starting role, Roy Hodgson’s side will be well equipped to cope with Stoke’s major threat and both could leave the Britannia with a further boost to their Fantasy tallies.
In midfield there are far more options available. Wigan’s Charles N’Zogbia is one that leaps out and clearly offers potential at home to West Brom. We should see goals here and likewise Chris Brunt in opposition could emerge with returns as he did at West Ham on Wednesday night. Too close to call and I preferred Jarvis as my cheap midfield selection in the Picks.
Newcastle’s Kevin Nolan is of course a popular option, West Ham’s Scott Parker another worthy of consideration, while City’s Adam Johnson could flourish if he gets the start he’s been craving for against Birmingham. Finally, despite selecting Van der Vaart, owners of Gareth Bale could take some encouragement from the fact that their man will likely be up against Blackburn’s Michel Salgado – Bale took him apart on his last visit to the Lane and that will be a major worry for Big Sam going into this weekend. N’Zogbia’s the safe bet and will be backed by many so I’ll ignore that and opt for Johnson for my bench.
Up front and again the options are plentiful. Wigan’s Hugo Rodallega and West Brom’s Peter Odemwingie will come face to face at the DW Stadium and will carry the burden of goalscoring for their respective teams. I see at least a couple of goals in this contest and both could well leave with profit. Wolves will likely look to Kevin Doyle to at last find some goalscoring form at home to Bolton and likewise Kevin Davies will likewise carry the load on his broad shoulders in opposition, particularly if Johan Elmander fails to recover from illness. I’ll go with Rodallega though – he scored in midweek, has represented the one big threat for Wigan this season and is up against a West Brom defence that keeps on conceding goals.
