Money saved through strong value picks across defence and midfield help some big-name players from the midweek Scout Squad article make the cut for our Gameweek 27 Scout Picks.
One of them is this season’s runaway success story between the sticks – David De Gea (5.9).
The Manchester United stopper visits Newcastle having scored 22 points more than any other Fantasy Premier League (FPL) keeper. He has racked up 15 clean sheets – three more than nearest rival Thibaut Courtois. Only Swansea City’s Lukasz Fabianski (99) has made more saves than his 85, though De Gea’s save percentage of 82.4% is again, top-ranked.
The Spaniard’s prospects for further returns look strong at St James’s Park as the Magpies have the joint third worst home attacking record, scoring just 11 goals.
Three sub-5.0 priced defenders grace our selection, with Moritz Bauer (4.5) looking strong value for the visit of a Brighton side that has the Premier League’s worst goal tally on the road (six). The right-back has impressed going forward since arriving at the bet365 – his six chances created is joint top among defenders over the last four Gameweeks.
Charlie Daniels (4.7) also offers us the prospect of points at both ends when Bournemouth visit a Huddersfield Town. His attacking talents could be unleashed in a wing-back role with Steve Cook thought to be back in contention following his hamstring injury. Meanwhile, the Terriers match Newcastle’s poor home scoring tally of 11, with just a single strike recorded from their last six matches.
We didn’t have quite enough in the bank to afford Swansea’s Alfie Mawson (5.1), but we think his slightly cheaper team-mate, Kyle Naughton (4.5), will be a more than able deputy against Burnley. The full-back scored in the emphatic 8-1 FA Cup replay victory against Notts County and is the top ranked Swans defender for chances created with 11.
Naughton also has strong clean sheet potential given that the Clarets’ recent woes on their travels. They’ve scored just three goals in their last six road trips, with only Brighton and Watford netting fewer.
Chelsea’s Marcos Alonso (7.3) is handed a spot even though he has let us down over the last two Gameweeks, registering just a single point against Bournemouth, while missing out at Watford on Monday night.
Missing out due to “fatigue” at Vicarage Road according to the troubled Antonio Conte, the wing-back will be expected to return for West Brom’s visit on Monday night.
The top scoring defender, Alonso boasts 43 points from his previous five Stamford Bridge outings and scored 14 points at The Hawthorns in Gameweek 12. Meanwhile, Alan Pardew’s Baggies have scored just three and shipped ten in their last six away days.
Our bargain-hunting in midfield supplies Stoke City’s Xherdan Shaqiri (6.1) with another call-up.
The playmaker has impressed since Paul Lambert took charge of the Potters in Gameweek 24, registering a goal and an assist. Only Manchester City’s Kevin De Bruyne and Chelsea’s Eden Hazard have produced more than Shaqiri’s eight key passes over that three-match spell.
In addition, his set-piece delivery could be vital against a Brighton and Hove Albion defence that has conceded more goals from corners (12) than any other side.
Everton’s Theo Walcott (7.3) – who scored a brace in his last home match – looks likely to reward our faith for the visit of a Crystal Palace side that has conceded in each of their last four away trips.
Claiming his regular midfield berth in the Picks, Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah (10.4) opened the gap at the top of the FPL overall points table with a brace against Spurs last weekend.
The Egyptian has only failed to deliver attacking returns in two of his last 17 Gameweek appearances. He will face a Southampton defence with just one clean sheet in their last 13 at St Mary’s. Salah scored 16 points when the two sides met at Anfield back in November.
With just two of his nine goals at Stamford Bridge, we have swerved Chelsea playmaker Eden Hazard (10.7) for the Baggies’ visit. Instead, we’ve handed a spot to his new team-mate Olivier Giroud (8.2).
Following his cameo off the bench at Watford, we anticipate the Frenchman will earn his first start since sealing his move from Arsenal. In his 17 appearances this season he has scored a goal every 100 minutes, having struck every 99.5 minutes in 2016/17.
Harry Kane (12.8) will go into tomorrow’s early kick-off in the north London derby on the back of exceptional home form. No player has had more shots (91), or more penalty area efforts (55) on home turf than the Spurs striker, with ten goals from his 13 Wembley outings.
He also boasts a superb record against Arsenal, with six goals in as many derby appearances. Meanwhile, the Gunners will arrive at their rivals having failed to keep a clean sheet in their last eight matches.
Another shoo-in is Manchester City’s Sergio Aguero (11.9), who hosts a Leicester City side that has shipped 20 goals and earned just two clean sheets on their travels.
The Argentine has been unstoppable at the Etihad Stadium, scoring 11 goals – a league-high he shares with Salah. He’s netted 10 times in his last six home outings in all competitions and on Saturday will bid to score in seven successive home matches for the first time in his City career.
Burnley’s Ben Mee (4.9) takes a place on our bench ahead of a trip to Swansea. Promising attacking statistics, coupled with the hosts’ lack of cutting edge at the Liberty Stadium, make him a viable option in an encounter that could end goalless.
Over the last six Gameweeks, the centre-back has recorded six penalty area shots – only Brighton’s Shane Duffy can match that among defenders. Meanwhile, the Swans have only managed to score 10 goals on home turf this season, with only Burnley themselves recording fewer (nine)
A goal and assist against Chelsea earlier this week earns a substitute’s role for Watford’s on-loan winger Gerard Deulofeu (6.0). He travels to a West Ham backline that last earned a clean sheet way back in Gameweek 18.
The final bench spot goes to Bournemouth striker Callum Wilson (6.0), who faces a Huddersfield Town defence that has shipped a league-worst 11 goals over the last four Gameweeks. Over that same period, the in-form Cherries striker has earned two goals and as many assists. Wilson also fired a hat-trick and delivered a season-high 17 points against the Terriers back in Gameweek 12.
The Community Champion
Representing the community against the Scout Picks in Gameweek 26 is PKW, who has opted for a 3-5-2 line-up of: Fabianski; Coleman, Shawcross, Smalling; Salah, Sterling, De Bruyne, Willian, Walcott; Kane, Wilson.
The community member who beats our picks by the biggest margin over the campaign will win a £100 Amazon Voucher and a place in our Contributors and Moderators League for the following season.
