Scout Notes – Gameweek 24 – Sunday

Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain scores twice as Arsenal see off a stubborn Palace at the Emirates. The Gunners defence brings home the points again with an eleventh clean sheet of the campaign. Daniel Sturridge nets for Liverpool as Luis Suarez serves up a single assist, whilst Victor Anichebe benefits from Kolo Toure’s mistake to level matters at the Hawthorns:

Ozil Overshadowed Yet Again as Oxlade-Chamberlain Bags a Brace
The youngster hogged the headlines in his first start since Gameweek 1 yesterday. Handed a central role alongside Mikel Arteta due to Mathieu Flamini’s suspension and injuries to both Aaron Ramsey and Jack Wilshere, Oxlade-Chamberlain leapt onto Fantasy radars by notching both the Gunners’ goals in the 2-0 cruise over Palace. Price at 6.7, he’s certainly budget-friendly, whilst a 0.8% ownership also highlights his differential appeal but, with so many versatile midfield options at his disposal, Arsene Wenger may well look to rotate as the schedule picks up pace – his decision to shift Santi Cazorla right in order to accommodate Luka Podolski on the opposite flank is a case in point. Arsenal travel to Anfield next weekend before hosting United, Liverpool and Bayern in three successive home games across all competitions and, given that the youngster has only just cemented his full fitness, snapping him up still remains a real punt.

Yesterday’s 2-0 win is likely to persuade many Fantasy managers to part company with Mesut Ozil, though. Whilst the German’s influence on his side is undeniable, it’s failing to translate to tangible Fantasy returns – Ozil has assisted just two of Arsenal’s 14 goals over his last seven appearances and, priced at 10.0, is offering little value for money at a time when many mid-price options are delivering points aplenty. With some eyeing up a move for Robin van Persie, getting rid of the off-form Ozil may well be the favoured move in order to free up cash for the United frontman ahead of next week’s home game with Fulham.

Another Clean Sheet for the Gunners
The 2-0 win helped Arsenal chalk up their eleventh shut-out of the season and extended an outstanding Emirates record that has seen them concede just once in the last seven in front of their own fans. Wojciech Szczesny has now moved 13 points clear at the top of the keeper standings on 109 points – a tally beaten by only two defenders, Seamus Coleman and team-mate Per Mertesacker. Elsewhere at the back, Laurent Koscielny seems to have developed a penchant for delivering bonus points with clean sheets – he’s now earned two bonus points in each of the last four shut outs, whereas Mertesacker has picked up bonus in just two of those games.

Pulis Freshens up Defence
Joel Ward’s stint in central midfield looks over after Kagisho Dikgacoi returned from injury yesterday. The 4.2-priced defender returned to his normal right-back berth, which ended a run of eight successive starts for Adrian Mariappa (4.0) under Tony Pulis, whilst Dean Moxey immediately dropped back to the bench to accommodate the fit-again Jonny Parr. It seems that, providing the Eagles manager has a fully-fit squad to choose from, Ward and Parr are the preferred full-back options.

Sturridge’s Scoring Streak Continues
It’s five goals in four appearances since returning from injury for the Liverpool forward. Transferred in by over 194,000 Fantasy Premier League managers as a result of Sergio Aguero’s injury last week, Sturridge’s stock rose further after he notched the opener in a disappointing draw at the Hawthorns. With maximum bonus also accrued, he moved up to 115 points, or fourth top amongst forwards – all the more impressive given that he missed eight games due to an ankle problem. Sturridge now leads Luis Suarez by 38 points to 34 over the last four, strengthening the case for acquiring both in our three-man frontlines. Granted, a home clash with Arsenal is far from straightforward next but Sturridge’s relentless consistency (a goal or assist in 13 of his 16 appearances) bodes well for would-be suitors. Additionally, with Fulham, Swansea, Southampton and Sunderland in the subsequent four, both Liverpool frontmen are likely to plunder the points once again.

Toure Blunder Costs Reds Dearly
The Reds looked on course to register back-to-back clean sheets for the first time since Gameweek 3 but a dreadful mistake from the Ivorian allowed Victor Anichebe to fire past Simon Mignolet and clinch a point for the hosts . Not only did Toure’s error deprive Liverpool of the win, it extended a dreadful defensive run on the road which has harvested a single shut-out in their last 11 away matches. With Glen Johnson, Daniel Agger and Jose Enrique still sidelined, it leaves Martin Skrtel as the only first-choice option available at the back for Brendan Rodgers – hardly encouraging for the Merseysiders as Arsenal roll up to Anfield next weekend.

Mel Still Tinkering for the Baggies
Three games into his tenure at the Hawthorns and it’s clear the West Brom boss is far from certain over his first-choice XI. Mel made five changes from the side that were beaten 4-3 at Villa in midweek – whilst James Morrison and Nicolas Anelka missed out through injury, Diego Lugano and Steven Reid dropped out of defence and Zoltan Gera came in for Victor Anichebe further up the pitch. The Nigerian’s leveller certainly gives his manager food for thought ahead of next weekend’s trip to Palace, whilst Lugano also looks set for a return to the starting line-up after Mel confirmed Jonas Olsson is ruled out of the Selhurst Park showdown after being forced off early in yesterday’s stalemate. So far, Olsson is one of just four outfield players, along with Liam Ridgewell, Claudio Yacob and Chris Brunt, to start all three games under their new manager.