Spurs, Leicester and Chelsea are the three clubs with double-ups in the Gameweek 34 Scout Picks XI.
Following David, Neale, Tom and Andy’s Scout Squad submissions, we deliberated over the best players to own for the latest round of fixtures.
We line up in the traditional 3-4-3 formation and come in at a very cheaper £76.5 this time around, £6.5m inside our budget of £83.0m.
Goalkeeper
Edouard Mendy (£5.2m) should hold his starting berth when Chelsea host Fulham in Gameweek 34. The Cottagers remain ahead of only Sheffield United for goals this season (25) while the Blues are the Premier League’s best side for expected goals conceded (xGC) over the last six matches.
Defenders
Gameweek 34 looks a good round to invest in Aymeric Laporte (£6.0m) as Manchester City travel to face Crystal Palace. The centre-back was not involved in Wednesday’s Champions League win against PSG, suggesting he should start at Selhurst Park. Having nodded home from a corner in the EFL Cup final, Laporte will ask questions of a Palace defence that sits joint-worst for headed attempts conceded over the last six matches.
Leicester’s recent enforced switch to 3-4-1-2 has been of great benefit to Timothy Castagne (£5.8m) who, in Blank Gameweek 33, registered back-to-back scores of nine points or more for the first time since Gameweek 2. The last two matches have seen the defender get a goal and assist and record bonus each time.
Stuart Dallas (£5.3m) can benefit from Leeds’ ongoing defensive improvements in this weekend’s trip to Brighton. Over the last six, Marcelo Bielsa’s men have conceded just four goals; Manchester United are the only side to have given up fewer during that time. Meanwhile, the Seagulls have now gone three successive league matches without finding the net.
Midfielders
While Spurs have come under great scrutiny by local and national press in the past few weeks, Son Heung-min (£9.5m) has quietly kept himself on the Fantasy radar. He has two goals in his last three matches and, in Gameweek 34, faces a Sheffield United defence with the worst xGC score over the last six matches.
Kai Havertz (£8.2m) is another asset likely to start Gamewee 34 based on midweek Champions League commitments. The German international featured only as a second-half substitute against Real Madrid and, ahead of facing Fulham, has a goal and three assists in his past four Premier League appearances.
Burnley are a perfect opponent for Jesse Lingard (£6.7m) to get back in the goals after his scoring run came to an end in Blank Gameweek 33. Over the last six matches, the Clarets rank inside the bottom three for shots in the box and big chances conceded.
Matheus Pereira (£5.5m) has produced four goals and two assists in his last four Premier League appearances, setting him up well for a derby match against Wolves. Nuno Espirito Santo’s men may have two clean sheets in their last three although they did both come against the division’s lowest-scorers. Wolves have conceded at least three goals in four of their last seven and, over the last four, West Bromwich Albion have scored more goals than any other top-flight team (10).
Forwards
Harry Kane (£11.8m) is an easy inclusion in the Scout Picks ahead of a meeting with Sheffield United. As mentioned already, they are the Premier’s worst side for xGC over the last six, a period in which Kane has seven goals, two assists and three double-figure hauls to his name.
Chris Wood (£6.3m) has been in fine form of late. The Burnley forward has nine attacking returns between Gameweek 27 and 33 and, over the last six matches, is joint-top of the Premier League for big chances and best among all players for shots on target. Crucially, he has six career goals against West Ham, the most against any other current top-flight flight side.
Kelechi Iheanacho (£6.2m) is another in-form mid-price forward with nine goals and one assist across his last even Premier League appearances. Southampton have been particularly obliging of late, conceding at least twice in each of their last five in the league.
SUBSTITUTES
- Illan Meslier (£4.7m)
- Kurt Zouma (£5.3m)
- Conor Townsend (£4.4m)
- Allan Saint-Maximin (£5.1m)
THE CAPTAIN
We choose the Scout Picks captain using a four-way vote between our Scout Squad pundits.
Because we use Fantasy Football Scout data so heavily in this process, the skipper we choose each Gameweek is known only to those with a valid Fantasy Football Scout subscription and revealed to the public only when the deadline has passed.
Here is how we voted for Gameweek 34:
THE COMMUNITY CHAMPION
Each week, one of the Fantasy Football Scout community takes on the Scout Picks by pitting their chosen XI against ours.
The Community Member who beats our team by the largest margin will win a £100 Amazon Voucher and a place in our Moderators and Contributors League for the following season.
Wolverine takes on the Scout Picks in Blank Gameweek 29 going with a 3-5-2 line-up of Johnstone; Castagne, Alonso, Reguilon; Sterling (c), Bale (vc), Maddison, Sigurdsson, Bowen; Kane, Lacazette.
AA33 is the current leader, defeating the Scout Picks by a 53-point margin in Gameweek 2.
GET IN-GAME DATA AT LIVE FPL
2 years, 12 months agoI’ve actually just fell of my chair checking the United score!