Welcome to our regular Friday lunchtime article, which scans FanDuel’s weekend contests and discusses our key player picks.
This weekend FanDuel is offering free entry into their £1,000 free roll when you make your first deposit. In addition they will match your first deposit up to £400, and players who deposit more than that amount will receive three entries into that free roll contest.
Register here using the promo code SCOUTBONUS.
There are three deadlines to consider this Gameweek, with the 12.30 kick-off between Sunderland and Arsenal getting things underway – that is the first encounter in FanDuel’s full ten-fixture slate.
Remember that, with the late-swap feature, you can check in on the teamsheets for the later kick-offs, swapping out non-starters in your squad.
FanDuel also offers separate Saturday and Sunday/Monday contests for Gameweek 10.
The Saturday-only matches begin at 3pm and finish with the clash at Selhurst Park between Crystal Palace and Liverpool.
On Sunday, FanDuel squads for the two matches that day and the encounter between Stoke City and Swansea City on Monday night must be submitted prior to the 1.30pm kick-off at Everton.
We also have a strategy guide for new players, assessing which players to target in the various positions in your squad, based on the average scores they would have accrued if the scoring was applied to last season.
Finally, a reminder that FanDuel are sponsoring our latest FPL Fantasy Football Scout Cup, which gets underway with the Qualifying Round in Gameweek 11.
There is more than £1,000 worth of prizes to win plus FanDuel are also offering £10 free credit to UK entrants that register. More information about the FFS Cup and how to enter can be found here.
Now let’s take a closer look at my strongest FanDuel XI for the weekend…
My Team
Lee Grant £5.7m
Marcos Alonso £5.8m
Michael Keane £7.4m
Winston Reid £7.7m
Danny Drinkwater £8.4m
Joe Allen £8.6m
David Silva £10.6m
Paul Pogba £11.3m
Philippe Coutinho £13.3m
Romelu Lukaku £10.4m
Roberto Firmino 10.7
The Key Picks
Stoke City have conceded only twice in the four matches Lee Grant has been first choice. The veteran shot stopper appears to have injected some belated stability in a backline that allowed 14 goals in their first five matches. Consecutive clean sheets and a budget price tag earn him the keeper’s jersey in our line-up for the visit of Swansea.
Wing-back Marcos Alonso is another budget option who has prospered over the last four Gameweeks since being introduced to a restructured Chelsea side. The Spaniard has notched 12 tackles, while demonstrating his attacking intent by creating six chances, resulting in an assist against Manchester United last weekend.
Our next defender pick has registered the most clearances, blocks and interceptions (CBI) over the last four matches. Michael Keane‘s 63 CBI’s signal the exact traits we target for our FanDuel back line. The centre-back has made more clearances (86) than any other player this campaign and he will surely be kept busy in Burnley’s clash with Manchester United at Old Trafford.
West Ham United’s Winston Reid is second behind Keane for CBI’s, recording 61 of those actions over the last four Gameweeks. A 34-point average over that period has also been boosted by a goal and assist in his last three outings. But, even without attacking returns, Reid’s underlying numbers are impressive ahead of the clash at Goodison Park.
Leicester City’s Danny Drinkwater earns a midfield berth for the visit to White Hart Lane.
The Foxes midfielder has won 14 tackles in his last four outings – only upcoming opponent Victor Wanyama (£8.5m) has made more (15). Drinkwater is also ranked amongst the top three for attempted passes, which has also helped keep his points ticking over to deliver a 20.2 point average over the campaign.
Stoke City’s Joe Allen faces his former club Swansea in fine form on Monday night. Only Theo Walcott (eight) has mustered more shots on target than the Welshman’s seven over the last four rounds. The midfielder’s number ten role appears to suit the FanDuel scoring system, with the industrious Allen picking up points from six different actions last time out.
Doubts around the availability of Kevin De Bruyne for Manchester City’s trip to the Hawthorns have us turning to David Silva.
The Spanish playmaker has created 16 chances over his last four league matches, helping to reward him with a 24-point average over that period. If De Bruyne misses out, we’re expecting Silva to be even more prominent as Pep Guardiola’s men seek to break down the West Bromwich Albion defence.
Paul Pogba‘s return to Manchester United has not yet seen him provide consistent performances, although his form at Old Trafford has shown improvement of late. We’re taking a chance on the Frenchman for the fixture against a Burnley side that have been woeful on their travels. Pogba has drawn nine fouls (worth 0.5 points each) as well as creating 10 chances and hitting 13 attempts in home matches this term.
Our midfield selection is completed by Liverpool’s Philippe Coutinho, who is joint top with Dele Alli (£10.4m) and Christian Eriksen (£11.4m) for shots on target away from home (seven).
The Brazilian travels to Crystal Palace having created 13 chances over the last four. A season average of 29.1 FanDuel points persuades us he’s worthy of his hefty price-tag.
Coutinho’s team-mate and compatriot, Roberto Firmino, also makes the XI. We had pencilled in Arsenal’s Theo Walcott in this slot but, with doubts surrounding his availability for the trip to Sunderland, we’ve settled instead on the Liverpool man.
We’re more than happy with the move – Firmino has actually surpassed Walcott’s FanDuel average so far this season, returning 29.81 per appearance. We see Palace causing the Liverpool defence problems at Selhurst Park, which will likely draw the sting from Jurgen Klopp’s attack which will inevitably see Firmino in on the action. With 25 chances created and 10 shots on target, he has the statistics to back up his place in our line-up.
Romelu Lukaku completes the XI after stumbling on some uncharacteristic consistency this season. The Belgian has provided six goals in as many outings and has also created 17 chances, ranking him in the top three forwards for that statistic. In addition, Lukaku loves to face the West Ham defence – he’s scored in all eight of his matches for Everton against the Hammers.
This Week’s Games
The Saturday and Sunday timeframe has the biggest pot on offer this weekend, with £5000 on show in the Fan Favourite contest. This has a £5 buy-in and a £750 first-place prize.
The main game for the Saturday only slate is a £1200 special, it has a £3 entry fee with £200 up for grabs for top spot.
There’s a £777 contest for Sunday, which has a £7 entry-fee. The deadline for entry is 1.30pm but, as with all contests, the late swap function is available for the players you select in Sunday’s 4pm kick-off.
A reminder that you can register for FanDuel’s £1,000 free roll and deposit match offer for this Gameweek here.
