Our Saturday morning regular arrives once again as the clock ticks down on today’s deadline. We’ve a trio of tempting alternatives on offer for your perusal, all blessed with a run of favourable fixtures beyond this weekend to extend their appeal.

Rickie Lambert

A cut-price Fantasy sensation in his debut Premier League campaign, the Southampton forward racked up 15 goals and eight assists on his way to 187 points in the Fantasy Premier League (FPL) game in 2012/13. After notching just twice in the first eight Gameweeks this term, Lambert seemed to be suffering from “second-season syndrome”, with a failure to replicate the previous year’s output seeing many Fantasy owners look elsewhere.

The exploits of team-mate Jay Rodriguez has hardly helped. Fantasy managers looking for a way into the Saints attacked mainly turned to the former Burnley man, whose initially price of 6.0 was far kinder on the budget than Lambert’s 7.5. Whilst Rodriguez has been the more consistent of the pair, Lambert’s 15-point haul against Fulham last weekend took him to 104 points – just three behind Rodriguez and on a par with far more popular Fantasy assets such as Loic Remy and Romelu Lukaku.

As Mauricio Pochettino’s side gear up for a very favourable schedule – Stoke, Hull, West Ham, Palace and Norwich in the next six – Lambert is back on the radar. Crucially, the price difference with Rodriguez (7.0 to 6.6) is now minimal and, with spot-kicks and a share of set-pieces also in his favour, Lambert (8.7 in the Sky Sports game and 3.5 in the Sun Dream Team) looks a viable contender for the third forward spot as he looks to produce the goals which may well earn him a spot in England’s World Cup squad this coming May.

Wilfried Zaha

Sir Alex Ferguson’s final signing as manager of United found it virtually impossible to earn game time under David Moyes at Old Trafford. Handed no more than a couple of brief sub appearances by the new man in charge, Zaha had fallen far from Fantasy radars before Old Gunnar Solskjaer swooped to acquire his services on loan for Cardiff over the remainder of the season.

Climbing off the bench against Norwich last weekend, Zaha made a quick first impression on his debut for the Welsh outfit by supplying the assist for Craig Bellamy’s equaliser as the Bluebirds turned around a one-goal deficit to emerge triumphant. His pace and direct style of play seems ideal for Solskjaer’s attacking ethos and Zaha looks poised to be handed his first start for tomorrow’s Welsh derby against Swansea.

Following that, the Bluebirds have three very favourable home games in the subsequent four (AVL, HUL, FUL) to boost their bid for survival, suggesting Zaha, at 5.4 in FPL (4.9 in the Sky Sports game and 1.5 in the Sun Dream Team) could well be worth considering as a budget option for our five-man midfields.

Stevan Jovetic

Frustrated by injury, the Montenegro striker arrived at the Etihad with a £22 million price tag but has yet to be handed the opportunity to really prove his worth to the City faithful. Two lively appearances off the bench at Spurs and in the defeat to Chelsea have offered a preview of his talents and, with Alvaro Negredo struggling to shake off the repercussions of a shoulder injury, Jovetic may get his opportunity at Carrow Road on Saturday.

A very different “beast” to Negredo, Jovetic has the ability to work well with Edin Dzeko, dropping deep to link play in tandem with the promptings of David Silva. His trickery between the lines, with Dzeko occupying the centre-backs, could be a key feature of Saturday’s clash should Manuel Pellegrini grant him only his second league start of the campaign.

At 8.8 in the FPL, Jovetic is an expensive short-term option but, with strong home fixtures scattered around City’s Champions League tie with Barcelona, there’s every chance that he will gain further opportunities as City rotate their options. A player of his talents in Pellegrini’s goal-getting side is almost guaranteed returns and, with an ownership of less than 1%, Jovetic could be a difference-maker.