As explained last week, we’re rolling out a Scout Picks squad in the middle of each week in order to give you a heads-up over our thinking for the Gameweek ahead.
This list of players also includes some names in contention for a place in our Spot the Differential article, though will, of course, be subject to change, depending on the injury situation as the days progress.
For Gameweek 2, though, here’s our current thinking…
Goalkeepers
West Ham’s resilient showing at Arsenal brings Adrian into consideration – the Spaniard racked up 11 points in the 2-0 win and welcomes Leicester to Upton Park this weekend. Last season’s top scoring keeper, Lukasz Fabianski, is also in our thoughts as Swansea play host to Newcastle.
Defenders
Again, the Hammers are prominent in defence. Aaron Cresswell’s security of starts and attacking potential – two goals and four assists in 2014/15 – make him the prime pick in Slaven Bilic’s rearguard, with some uncertainty still surrounding the rest of the back-four now that Carl Jenkinson is back in the picture.
Martin Skrtel’s propensity for picking up bonus points bring the Slovakian into our squad for Liverpool’s home clash with Bournemouth. At 5.5, though, Skrtel is far pricier than Joe Gomez (4.5), who should keep his starting berth after supplying the assist for Philippe Coutinho’s winner last Sunday.
Southampton’s Cedric Soares is also on our radar for the visit of Everton. The raiding right-back grabbed an assist during last week’s draw at Newcastle, though his half-time withdrawal – as a result of a yellow card – is somewhat disconcerting. Tottenham’s home encounter with Stoke brings Kyle Walker into consideration. Like Soares, he is also priced at 5.0 and seems to have edged ahead of Kieran Trippier for the right-back berth.
Watford’s Miguel Layun was fielded on the left of the attacking midfield three and grabbed a goal in the 2-2 draw at Everton. There’s still concerns over his pitch time but, at 4.5, he’s worth considering at home to West Brom.
United’s Matteo Darmian is our final selection as United make their way to Villa. The right-back’s forages down the flank quickly caught the eye on Saturday, whilst he also chipped in with a clean sheet and a couple of bonus points to suggest he has the form to justify that 5.5 price tag.
Midfielders
Having opened his account with an assist in West Ham’s win at Arsenal, Dimitri Payet is a major contender for the visit of Leicester. Sunderland new boy Jeremain Lens also picked up an assist last time out and will fancy his chances at home to a Norwich defence that shipped three goals at home to Palace on Saturday afternoon.
Sadio Mane’s pace and eye for goal will surely ask questions of Everton backline that shipped two goals at home to Watford in Gameweek 1. Philippe Coutinho is also in the mix after grabbing a goal last weekend, as is Swansea’s new signing Andre Ayew. The Ghanaian fired three shots inside the box at Chelsea last weekend and, at a price of 7.0, is kinder in the budget than team-mate Gylfi Sigurdsson.
Alexis Sanchez’s impressive display off the bench in Arsenal’s home loss to the Hammers will surely have earned him a start away to Palace’s porous defence. On the other side of north London, Christian Eriksen’s underlying stats (three shots, four key passes against United) persuade us to call him up as Spurs welcome Stoke to the Lane.
Forwards
There’s a number of strikers with home comforts jostling for a place in the picks. Bafetimbi Gomis and Graziano Pelle are arguably the form options – both are already off the mark ahead of visits from Newcastle and Everton.
Sitting second in this week’s Captain Poll, Christian Benteke is handed the perfect opportunity to get amongst the goals for Liverpool as Bournemouth roll up to Anfield on Monday night. At 6.5, Diafra Sakho should take advantage of a Leicester backline that conceded two to Sunderland last time out.
Harry Kane is also in the mix as Spurs prepare for the visit of Stoke, whilst Wayne Rooney – top of the Captain Poll for the second week running – is still in consideration as he makes his way to Aston Villa. Rooney will need to improve upon last season’s showings – where he scored one away goal – to barge his way into our final picks, though.
Community Champion
Representing the community in the Scout Picks this week is Daniel Levy – Not the Chairman of Spurs. This is his third season as a Fantasy Premier League manager. After a terrible first season, where he finished with a rank of 1,802,706 he completed the 2014/15 campaign with a far more respectable rank of 39,403. Like many of the FFScout community, Gameweek 1 was one to forget, as he scored just 33 points.
Gameweek 1 Community Champion Fuzzy Warbles’ faith in Leicester’s Riyad Mahrez proved the difference as he got the Community off to a winning start. While the Scout Picks mustered just 26 points, Fuzzy accrued 38 and takes an early lead in the race for the £100 Amazon voucher for the Champion who has the best lead over the Scouts during 2015/16.
