We’re back with our regular Friday afternoon article, aimed at those eyeing up FanDuel’s weekend contests. As usual, we will review the prize pots and entry cut-offs but, before that, offer further insight into key player targets as I present our “strongest XI” that will form the nucleus of all our entries.
Once again, there are three deadlines for entering lineups into FanDuel contests this weekend.
Remember that, whatever you choose, FanDuel’s late-swap feature allows you to tweak your squads and change non-starters in later matches, right up until kick-off.
The full ten-fixture slate begins with Manchester City’s visit to Burnley at 12.30pm on Saturday.
There are also separate Saturday and Sunday slates.
The Saturday only contest begin at 3pm with five matches, including the early evening Stamford Bridge derby between Chelsea and Spurs.
On Sunday it’s an earlier start, with the 12pm fixture at Vicarage Road the first of four matches available to select from.
To get started with FanDuel, register for a free account via this link.
When you sign up, enter the promocode “SCOUT” and FanDuel will refund your first paid entry fee, up to £10, as free entry credit if you don’t win cash.
If you’re just getting started with FanDuel, we urge you to read on for this week’s player picks and also recommend that you take a look at our earlier strategy guide.
This examines the type of players to target in the various positions, based on the average scores they would have accrued if the FanDuel scoring was applied to last season.
My Strongest XI
Petr Cech £7.5m
Kevin Wimmer £4.8m
Billy Jones £5.3m
James Collins £6.5m
Matt Phillips £6.7m
Wilfried Zaha £7.9m
Gylfi Sigurdsson £10.3m
Eden Hazard £12.9m
Theo Walcott £11.2m
Roberto Firmino £11.6m
Sergio Aguero £15.3m
The Key Picks
We’ve decided on a bigger spend in goal for this weekend, as we tip Arsenal’s Petr Cech for a trouble-free afternoon and clean sheet points against Bournemouth at the Emirates.
The Cherries have been unconvincing on the road. Eddie Howe’s men have failed to score in half of their six away matches, and only three teams have mustered fewer shots from inside the box.
We’re fully expecting a vibrant Chelsea attack to notch against Spurs in the London derby at the Bridge. However, as defenders fail to benefit from clean sheets points in FanDuel, we’re seeking out candidates in this encounter who can earn us clearances, blocks and interceptions.
That highlights Kevin Wimmer as a potential budget buy, enabling us to spend increased funds on attacking players. The Austrian centre-back is expected to line-up with Eric Dier in a makeshift Spurs back four and, if that’s the case, he will surely be kept busy – earning points from defensive actions as he battles to repel attacks from Eden Hazard and Diego Costa.
Similarly, Billy Jones finds a starting berth in our selection, even though he faces a hard-hitting Liverpool attack.
The Sunderland full-back has started the last three league matches for David Moyes’ resurgent side. A solid 17.9 FanDuel points average since making his return to the teamsheet indicates that he could be a potential bargain for the Anfield visit.
West Ham’s James Collins completes a cut-price back-line this week.
The Welshman is expected to make an eighth league appearance as he slots in for the suspended Winston Reid at Old Trafford.
Collins has a 20.68 average this term and, with 10 CBI’s per match, he should be a useful asset given that he’s set to tussle with Zlatan Ibrahimovic.
Wilfried Zaha has been effective for Crystal Palace of late, serving up an assist in each of his last four outings from 11 chances created.
A healthy ten tackles won and seven attempts on goal over that spell also adds to the winger’s appeal, as the Eagles roll up to take on Swansea City in a crucial clash in south Wales.
Notably, only three sides have conceded more attempts down their left flank than the Swans this season.
We’re predicting goals in that encounter, with Gylfi Sigurdsson the chief architect and main threat in Bob Bradley’s side.
He has averaged 27.75 in FanDuel over his last six outings and is also the top midfielder in the Premier League for shots on target (worth five points each in FanDuel) with 18 this season.
Eden Hazard is joint second (16) for accurate efforts on goal among FanDuel midfielders.
As mentioned, the Belgian will face a disrupted Spurs backline and, while he blanked last time out in the narrow win over Middlesbrough, five goals and a pair of assists in the preceding four matches builds a very persuasive argument for inclusion in our line-ups.
We needed an inexpensive midfield option to help fund our big-hitters in midfield and attack, so have again turned to West Brom’s Matt Phillips ahead of a visit to Hull City.
The winger served us well in Gameweek 12 and now appears to have settled in Tony Pulis’ XI, scoring in back-to-back matches and picking up a pair of assists along the way.
Testing fixtures against Manchester United and Spurs may have dented Arsenal’s momentum but the visit of Bournemouth may just reignite their attacking verve.
Significantly, Theo Walcott, who is available for £11.2m this weekend, has a 25.1 FanDuel average. This compares favourably to Alexis Sanchez’s (£14.5m) average of 25.6.
There are potential selection doubts surrounding the pair but, having been rested to the bench in midweek, we just feel that the England winger is likely to start against the Cherries – although we will be ready with a late swap should the Gunners teamsheet disappoint.
We had to include at least one Liverpool asset for Sunderland’s visit to Anfield.
Roberto Firmino‘s 58.25 points haul in his previous home encounter has us leaning towards the Brazilian.
Jurgen Klopp’s “false nine” has netted five goals and provided as many assists this campaign. He’s also registered 15 attempts from inside the box in home matches – only Eden Hazard can better that tally.
After much deliberation, we’re keeping faith this week with Sergio Aguero for his encounter with Burnley in Saturday’s early kick-off.
While the Clarets are a strong unit at Turf Moor, our confidence in Sean Dyche’s back four took a knock with Monday’s 4-0 drubbing at the Hawthorns.
More significantly, Aguero ranks top for attempts on goal on the road, registering 24 over five matches – those efforts have brought him six of his eight goals this season.
While Pep Guardiola has revealed that he’ll be assessed having picked up a knock to his foot, we’re still backing the Argentine to start and will be ready to switch should the teamsheets from Saturday’s early kick-off reveal otherwise.
This Week’s Games
The full weekend slate presents the biggest prize pot on offer, with the £5000 Fan Favourite contest requiring a £5 entry fee. There’s a £750 prize on offer for top spot.
The Saturday only contest has a £1000 pot, with £3 entry and pays out £100 to the winner.
The Sunday Special boasts a £1400 pot with £280 going to top spot. There’s a £7 buy-in on that contest.
You can register for a free account at FanDuel via this link.
Remember that, when you sign up, be sure to enter the promo code “SCOUT” and FanDuel will refund your first paid entry fee, up to £10, as free entry credit if you don’t win cash.
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