Scout Picks – Gameweek 13

We move onto Gameweek 13 of this season’s Scout Picks this evening, where every Friday, Mark, Jonty, a different member of the community and I pick an XI for the upcoming round of fixtures. Each week, our line-ups go head-to-head and over the course of the season we’ll be keeping a tally of the points as we go along.

Similarly to the last few Gameweeks, we’ve kept the budgets at 83.5 apiece for our starting line-ups.

The Community – managed by Beavis

With just two goals in the last eight Gameweeks, I can’t see Aston Villa threatening a Burnley defence that has kept a respectable four clean sheets this season and draft in stopper Tom Heaton. The same can be said for Leicester, who have blanked in six of their last seven, thus making Steven Caulker a good option this week. Kyle Bartley and Chris Smalling have favourable home ties this week and I believe that both their teams will find some form following a tough run of fixtures.

That brings us on to the midfield. I think this picks itself, starting with the in-form Alexis Sanchez against a West Brom defence which has conceded two goals in five of their last six. Eden Hazard’s underlying stats and scores have improved recently and, with two goals last year at the Stadium of Light, I have high hopes for him. As mentioned earlier, United and Swansea have a lot of potential over the next two Gameweeks and this is why I’ve included Angel di Maria and Gylfi Sigurdsson, two players who have been consistency personified this season.

In attack, we have the ever-reliable Diego Costa. There is debate about whether or not he justifies an 11m price tag but nobody can deny that he will get goals. Charlie Austin is QPR’s focal point up front and I think that if they are to grab a goal, he’s likely to be involved. As for Wayne Rooney, everybody knows that he is a very streaky player and, with four goals in his last three now for club and country, he may even be the outstanding captaincy option this Gameweek for those brave enough to get draft him in.

Jonty

I’ve opted for a largely budget defence, all with easy home fixtures this week, to ensure I can take full advantage of the growing form of premium midfielders.

Hull have the fourth worst record for goal attempts away from home, which propels David De Gea into my side. Across my cheap back line I’ve opted for the strong assist potential of Burnley’s Kieran Trippier, who has the best home crossing statistics of any defender this season. Neil Taylor offers a budget route into a Swansea backline that has kept three clean sheets at home already this season. At 3.9m and facing Leicester, QPR’s Yun Suk-Young looks exceptional value.

My premium midfield’s star this week is Alexis Sanchez, with six goals in the last six matches I fancy him to score against West Brom. My old favourite Yaya Toure has quietly risen to the top of the midfielders goal attempts chart and I’m taking a chance that Southampton will struggle to keep him at bay. Chelsea offer lots of choice in midfield this week. With not enough to afford Eden Hazard or Cesc Fabregas I’ve opted for the slightly cheaper Oscar, who has two goals and two assists in his last six matches. Swansea’s Gylfi Sigurdsson completes my midfield. Of his 65 Fantasy Premier League points, 41 have been accrued at home.

Up front Diego Costa’s lack of assists and bonus make him a questionable captain pick but his goal scoring is not in doubt – I fancy this weekend he’ll add to his four goals scored already on the road. Wayne Rooney is in one of his purple patches and deserves our attention, especially when Hull visit. Finally Charlie Austin is the budget striker in form, especially at home. Among strikers only Aguero and Pelle have had more attempts on goal at home than the QPR man.

Mark

I’ve gone for a four-man defence for once, simply because I can see plenty of options and value in defence and I was reluctant to double on the likes of Swansea with both Gylfi Sigurdson and Wilfried Bony.

I’ve backed Burnley and QPR for shutouts and, in both cases, opted for defenders who offer me some attacking potential in Steven Caulker and Kieran Trippier. Similarly, I’ll stick with Branislav Ivanovic because I can see Chelsea doing another professional job on Sunderland and coming away with a 2-0 win: for me, Ivanovic is long overdue some attacking points.

Swansea’s Lukas Fabianski, for many the top keeper on show in the Premier League this season, is in nets, while, despite reservations, I’ve opted to back the United defence at home to Hull City. Chris Smalling looks the most assured of his start in Saturday’s encounter.

In midfield there was little thought required in the selection of Alexis Sanchez. Elsewhere, I went for Angel di Maria over Wayne Rooney as I just felt there were better options up front. Finally, Christian Eriksen’s display at Hull was enough to convince me that he’ll be a key factor in Tottenham’s meeting with Everton at the Lane.

Up front, I’ve opted for Diego Costa over Sergio Aguero simply because I think City have the tougher job when it comes to goal scoring, away at Southmpton. I’ve chosen to flank Costa with a pair of mid-price differentials. I really fancy both Bony and Rickie Lambert this weekend – the pair are certain starters and take strong form into meetings with Palace and Stoke.

Paul

In goal, David de Gea’s save point potential earns him the nod as United face a Hull side with a single goal in four. I’ve gone for Branislav Ivanovic and Steven Caulker – the top two defenders for shots on goal this season, both have a strong prospects of also delivering defensive points against Sunderland and Leicester. Swansea’s Kyle Bartley is a cut-price option at 3.9 whilst Federico Fernandez is out injured.

In midfield, Alexis Sanchez and Angel di Maria have recently been fielded up front and face two of the most porous backlines in the top-flight this weekend. Gylfi Sigurdsson has played a part in seven of Swansea’s ten home goals so far, whilst Christian Eriksen’s flourishing form earns him the nod – he lies second for attempts on goal from midfield this season. To be honest, I’d rather have Nacer Chadli but with Spurs confirming he’ll be closely monitored after returning to training, I’ll play it safe with the Dane.

Up front, I’m opting for Chelsea’s consistent Diego Costa alongside a couple of in-form options. Wilfried Bony has notched five times in six ahead of a clash with Palace’s porous defence and Rickie Lambert looks poised to start against a virus-hit Stoke squad – with a goal in each of his last two, he’s starting to find his feet and will be desperate to notch his first league goal at Anfield.

The Scores So Far

Jonty’s decision to select Jon Walters helped him win last week’s showdown with 52 points. I came in second on 48 points, whilst The Community (managed by Maillot Jaune) pipped Mark by 40 points to 37. After 12 rounds of fixtures, Jonty leads the way on 735 points, followed by myself (713), Mark (706) and The Community, on 601 points.