Welcome to our regular Friday lunchtime article that focuses on our partner game FanDuel. We will be running through the upcoming contests on offer, plus the prizes available, and, as usual, we will put forward our strongest line-up to help guide your player selections.
There are three opportunities to get involved and enter FanDuel contests over the weekend.
The full slate contests all ten fixtures of the round and begins with the 12.30pm early encounter between Spurs and West Brom, marking the first weekend deadline for entries.
You can also enter contests for just the Saturday and Sunday slates.
Saturday offers a “late start” option, with a deadline set for the three o’clock kick-offs. Meanwhile, to get involved in Sunday’s contests, you’ll need to submit entries in time for the 1.30pm kick-off between Everton and Manchester City.
FanDuel are again rolling out an offer for new accounts: users that sign up before midday tomorrow will receive £5 in free credit, no deposit required.
Use the promo code “SCOUTFIVER” when registering your account to claim the offer.
If you are just starting out with FanDuel then the selection below can be a useful example of how to structure a team and establish an approach to picking players.
We would also recommend taking a look at this strategy guide that examines who you should be targeting and offers further tips on how to construct a FanDuel squad.
My Strongest XI
Hugo Lloris £7.1m
Alfie Mawson £6.9m
Ashley Williams £7.4m
Danny Rose £8.6m
Junior Stanislas £7.7m
Yohan Cabaye £8m
Robert Snodgrass £8.8m
Gylfi Sigurdsson £11.0m
Dele Alli £12.6m
Jermain Defoe £9.3m
Olivier Giroud £12.2m
The Key Picks
We highlighted the value of Hugo Lloris in the Weekly Shop and can’t look past the Frenchman for our keeper’s jersey.
Mauricio Pochettino’s resilient side have the best defensive record in the league in front of their own fans, conceding just five goals in ten outings at White Hart Lane and just once in the last four. Visitors West Brom are set for a rearguard action and blanked at Arsenal and Chelsea over their last three away ties, giving us plenty of confidence in a Spurs shut-out.
Unlike goalkeepers, defenders in FanDuel don’t benefit from clean sheet points. However, we’re still doubling up on the Spurs defence due to Danny Rose’s attacking prospects.
The full-back’s forays down the left could provide returns, with Rose recording more goal attempts (21) than any other defender this season, while he also ranks fifth for chances created (21) despite only making 15 appearances.
Two goals and a trio of assists have contributed to Rose’s FanDuel average of 23.1 points per match to this point and we think he can hit that again for the Baggies visit.
Swansea City’s defence offer us an option for very different reasons.
We’re going to take a punt on Paul Clement’s selection and back Alfie Mawson for a recall after he was omitted from the Swans’ FA Cup line-up at Hull City. We will have to consult the teamsheets on this one and have a late swap ready but, at just £6.9m, Mawson looks worthy of the risk.
Impressive in the 2-1 win at Crystal Palace in Gameweek 20 and on the scoresheet that evening, Mawson would seem likely to earn a recall for the visit of Arsenal.
With Olivier Giroud likely to start for the Gunners, we’re expecting the young centre-back to be kept busy, which should see him rack up some strong numbers for clearances, blocks and interceptions (CBI).
An ex-Swan and a hugely reliable source of CBI’s completes our three-man defence.
Ashley Williams is in the top three defenders for CBI’s (55) over the last four Gameweeks and a strong 24.5 point average over his previous six looks likely to be maintained or even bettered for the visit of Manchester City to Goodison Park.
Goals look likely in the KCOM stadium encounter between Hull City and Bournemouth and that has us back two midfield assets on show on Humberside.
Bournemouth’s Junior Stanislas has been hampered by injury for part of this campaign, though the winger has still delivered returns in six of his last nine starts.
Back-to-back assists makes it six in total this term, while three goals and set-piece duties add to the appeal of the Cherries asset.
With Marco Silva overseeing his first league match in charge of Hull City, we’ve gone for their stand-out performer from the campaign so far.
Robert Snodgrass has notched goals in the last two Gameweeks to bring his tally to seven for the season. Four scores of 40+ points and an average of 23.5 FanDuel points make the Tigers midfielder a shoo-in for our line-up.
Crystal Palace’s trip to West Ham gives us the opportunity to consider Yohan Cabaye.
The playmaker appears to have benefited from Sam Allardyce’s appointment, averaging 27 FanDuel points over the three matches since the new manager’s arrival at Selhurst Park. Cabaye has recorded 13 interceptions, six tackles and scored once from four shots on target in that trio of outings.
Wilfried Zaha’s absence will put more onus on the Frenchman to serve up a first assist of the campaign, while his all-round role under Big Sam appears to suit the FanDuel scoring system.
We seriously considered including Christian Eriksen (£14m) but opted instead for his cheaper in-form team-mate.
A third consecutive brace for Dele Alli last time out made it seven goals in four matches, claiming a 44.25 FanDuel point average. With eight of his 16 shots in that period have been on target, the Spurs midfielder is our most expensive investment for the weekend’s matches.
Gylfi Sigurdsson also gets the nod in the centre of the park as we opt for a 3-5-2 set-up.
Ranked eighth top midfielder for points per appearance (24.18), the playmaker sits joint-top with Tottenham’s Eriksen for shots on target (27) amongst FanDuel midfielders in 2016/17.
Sigurdsson’s dead-ball abilities also look key – Swansea are second only to Palace for headed goal attempts (60 to 61) this season and Arsenal boast the fourth worst record for aerial efforts against ahead of their Liberty Stadium showdown.
Our front duo have both exhibited form of late.
Jermain Defoe has netted three over his last two league run-outs to make it 11 goals this campaign. It’s difficult to build a case against the Black Cats forward when priced at 9.3m, particularly when hosting a Stoke City side that has leaked 11 goals in their last three away matches.
Our final berth is filled by Olivier Giroud. The Arsenal forward has notched in three successive Gameweeks and also served up a pair of assists in his last outing. With Theo Walcott still on the sidelines, we reckon that the Frenchman is set for a fourth straight start in the league.
This Week’s Contests
The largest pot this weekend is again the Fan Favourite spanning the full weekend slate. This offers £5000 in prize money for a £5 entry, with the top placed manager claiming £750.
There’s also a double up game with £1000 available, with a £10 buy-in with the top 50 players fetching prizes.
The “Saturday Special” runs over the slate covering the three o’clock kick-offs and offers a £1000 pot for a £3 entry; the winning manager claims £100, with the cash prizes running up to 95th place.
The “Sunday Special” has a pot of £1400 for a fee of £7 to enter: the top prize is £280, with managers ranking up to 47th position winning cash.
Remember that, whatever contests you choose to enter, the FanDuel late-swap function means that it’s possible to scan the teamsheets and change any non-starters in your squad right up until kick-off.
A reminder that you can register for a free account at FanDuel via this link. Use the promo code “SCOUTFIVER’ when signing up to claim the current offer.
