Liverpool and Leicester players dominate the Blank Gameweek 28 Scout Picks.
Fixtures against Watford and Norwich mean that five players from those clubs make the final cut this weekend.
After deliberating over Scout Squad submissions from David, Neale, Paul and Geoff, we have picked our best XI.
Lining up in a 3-4-3 formation, we have come in at £84.9m, £0.1m inside our budget.
There is a technical issue with our Scout Picks graphic at present, so the graphic on the home page has not been updated.
Goalkeeper
Alex McCarthy (£4.4m) gets into the Scout Picks for Blank Gameweek 28 ahead of a trip to West Ham. Still offering a budget price, the Southampton goalkeeper has helped his side to third-best for fewest shots conceded over the last four Gameweeks, and over the last nine, only two clubs have secured more clean sheets than them (four).
Defenders
Scout Picks regular Trent Alexander-Arnold (£7.7m) is back once again, still yet to blank in a match he’s started since Gameweek 13. Now with double the assists of colleague Andrew Robertson this season, we’re expecting more attacking returns at Watford from Liverpool’s right-back.
Over the last four matches, only one defender has had more touches in the penalty box than Matt Doherty (£6.1m). The Wolves man is also top in his positional classification for shots in that area of the pitch too. Meanwhile, in that time, only three teams have allowed fewer big chances than Nuno Espirito Santo’s men, who face a Spurs side struggling for goals since injuries to Harry Kane and Son.
Charlie Taylor (£4.2m) is our budget route into the Burnley defence as they prepare to face Newcastle. Over their last four home matches, the Magpies have the lowest goal conversion rate in the Premier League.
Midfielders
Mohamed Salah (£12.8m) offers points potential from a variety of avenues ahead of Blank Gameweek 28. Over his last four matches, no player with a fixture this weekend has registered more shots in the box and he sits second in that time for big chances created – suggesting goals and assists are likely in equal measure. Meanwhile, Watford sit inside the league’s bottom four for shots conceded in the penalty area over the last four matches.
Sadio Mané (£12.4m) has scored in each of his outings since returning from a Double Gameweek 24 injury and will be eyeing up Watford’s right flank at Vicarage Road. The Hornets have conceded more key passes and shots on that side of the pitch than anywhere else over their last four at home.
Bruno Fernandes (£8.2m) is fast becoming the key man for Manchester United, playing an important role in the absence of an injured Anthony Martial in the Europa League midweek. Everton have recorded just one clean sheet since Gameweek 20, while the penalty-taking Fernandes has already involved himself in three goals in as many league matches for the Red Devils.
*We are having some issues displaying Bruno Fernandes in the Scout Picks graphic so we are using Anthony Martial as a placeholder until the issue is fixed.
No Leicester player has had more shots in the box over their last four matches than Harvey Barnes (£6.0m), a feat achieved even in missing a portion of Gameweek 27. During that time, the midfielder has scored twice and provided one assist, form enough to suggest he can trouble a Norwich defence short of some key personnel.
Forwards
The absence of Norwich’s first-choice centre-back Christoph Zimmermann, and left-back Sam Byram, could be exactly what Jamie Vardy (£9.7m) needs to get back on the scoresheet. We readily admit that including the Leicester forward is more about the fixture than the form on this one, Vardy without a league goal since Gameweek 18.
A meeting with West Ham’s obliging defence is good news for Danny Ings (£7.1m). The Hammers have conceded more shots in the box than any other Premier League side over the last four matches, while Ings has found the net four times in his last six away trips.
Dominic Calvert-Lewin (£6.3m) is in the form of his life, scoring seven goals in the nine matches since Carlo Ancelotti arrived at Everton. Over the last four, the centre-forward has been afforded the joint-most number of big chances, suggesting he will get some opportunities to continue his scoring run even against Manchester United.
Substitutes
Nick Pope (£4.7m) is a slightly more expensive route into the Burnley defence but stands a better chance of additional points than Taylor.
Çaglar Söyüncü (£5.0m) and the Leicester defence have some clean sheet potential this weekend, as Norwich have now gone three matches in a row without scoring.
Romain Saïss (£4.4m) is a cheaper alternative in the Wolves defence, offering plenty of goal threat and assist potential from set-pieces, as shown by his 11-point haul against Norwich.
Stuart Armstrong (£5.2m) has had more shots on target than any other Southampton player over the last four, suggesting he could prove an effective option against West Ham this weekend.
The Captain
The Scout Picks has a captain for the 2019/20 campaign.
This skipper is chosen using the conclusions of the latest Captain Sensible article and a four-way vote between David, Neale, Paul and Geoff.
Because the use of Fantasy Football Scout data is used so heavily in this process, the captain we choose each Gameweek is usually known only to those who have signed up to Membership for the 2019/20 season and revealed to the public only when the deadline has passed.
Here’s how we voted:
Community Champion
Representing the community against the Scout Picks in Blank Gameweek 28 is ZoumasBloomers.
They have gone for a 3-4-3 of Fabianski; Alexander-Arnold, R Pereira, Azpilicueta; Mané (c), Richarlison, B Fernandes, Willian; Vardy, Jiménez, Rodriguez.
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.
ringwraith was triumphant in Gameweek 27 beating the Scout Picks by a 78-68 score-line.
Community Champion gwitbrock beat our Scout Picks 86-63 in Gameweek 25 and as a result, their winning margin of 23 points is now the target to beat.
