We’ve put together our Scout Picks ‘bus team’ ahead of Gameweek 11 of Fantasy Premier League (FPL).

In this early selection, we select a first draft of our regular picks before they are finalised and published much closer to the deadline.

We are limited to a £83.0m budget for our starting XI, while our bench is also price-capped after a reader vote – although we will continue to offer our ‘alternative’ substitutes when necessary in the final Scout Picks based on the old criteria.

In the meantime, this ‘bus team’ article – a term coined by the Always Cheating chaps – will discuss the players who are likely to be in the running.

THE LIKELY LADS

We’ll not waste our time on explaining why FPL’s leading points scorer, Erling Haaland (£12.2m), is included; only a midweek injury will force us to reconsider.

It’s a fair bet to assume a Tottenham Hotspur attacker will feature in the Scout Picks, too. The Conor Coady (£4.9m)/James Tarkowski (£4.4m) central defensive partnership has worked pretty well for Everton so far. Still, they were exposed against Manchester United on Sunday, while The Toffees’ -5.54 xGC delta indicates they have been fortunate to concede only nine times.

Harry Kane (£11.4m) is undoubtedly the stand-out pick: from Gameweek 2 onwards, the England forward has plundered 10 attacking returns (eight goals, two assists) in eight appearances, and is yet to blank in that timeframe. Son Heung-min (£11.7m) is also back on the radar after he created Kane’s goal at Brighton, and was unlucky to see a trademark curling effort disallowed for a tight offside call. He may not be performing at his very top level, but he is moving in the right direction after a slow start.

Reece James (£6.1m) is another strong candidate for inclusion, with Chelsea visiting an Aston Villa side who have scored just six goals so far. The wing-back, who sits third among all defenders for xGI, was benched for Saturday’s win over Wolverhampton Wanderers due to a dead leg but is expected back in midweek. The Blues, meanwhile, followed up their 3-0 win over AC Milan in the UEFA Champions League with another clean sheet in Gameweek 10.

Gabriel Martinelli (£6.6m), FPL’s third-highest scoring midfielder, will also surely be a consensus Scout Squad pick against a Leeds United side he scored two goals against in 2021/22. The hosts are winless in five, so an attacking double-up isn’t completely out of the question, via either Bukayo Saka (£7.8m) or Gabriel Jesus (£8.0m).

IN CONTENTION

Returning to Man City, the in-form Phil Foden (£8.2m) will be under strong consideration after a run of 38 points in his last three matches. Kevin De Bruyne (£12.4m) is also hovering on our radar, but the £4.4m price difference is significant, especially given the former’s recent output. An attacking double-up at City is appealing, too, given that opponents Liverpool have allowed three goals in each of their last two league fixtures, highlighting their defensive issues.

It’s not beyond the realms of possibility that we end up with Joao Cancelo (£7.3m) in our side. However, regardless of whatever criticisms can be thrown at Liverpool right now, their attack generally functioned well at the Emirates, with Darwin Nunez (£8.8m) showing good movement and pace throughout. It won’t be enough for any of their frontline, including Mohamed Salah (£12.7m), to be included in our Scout Picks, but it does at least suggest they can threaten City’s clean sheet in Gameweek 11.

Ivan Perisic (£5.5m) is certainly on our ‘maybe’ pile, but midweek minutes against Frankfurt will need to be monitored first. Hugo Lloris (£5.5m) and Eric Dier (£5.1m) are safer alternatives, should the wing-back starters end up being too tough to predict.

Staying in north London, Arsenal defensive representation, be it through Aaron Ramsdale (£4.9m), Gabriel Magalhaes (£5.1m) or William Saliba (£5.0m), also looks on the cards for the Scout Picks. The Gunners have managed just one clean sheet in their last six, but have faced some tough opponents in that time, while Leeds have scored only four in five matches from Gameweek 4 onwards.

There is more confidence in Leicester City and Crystal Palace attackers than there is in their defensive counterparts, with James Maddison (£8.2m) and Wilfried Zaha (£7.4m) the talismans of their respective sides. However, there is plenty of competition in midfield this week, with Raheem Sterling (£10.0m), Jarrod Bowen (£8.1m), Mason Mount (£7.6m), Antony (£7.6m), Leandro Trossard (£6.8m) and Marcus Rashford (£6.5m) all vying for places.

Further forward, Aleksandar Mitrovic (£6.8m) will also come into the reckoning and almost certainly force his way into the Scout Picks XI if passed fit. All eyes are on Marco Silva’s pre-match press conference, then.

There probably won’t be too many takers in Fulham’s defence in Gameweek 10, despite an appealing home fixture against Bournemouth, but Robert Sanchez (£4.7m) and Lewis Dunk (£4.6m) may prove more popular. Roberto De Zerbi has overseen a 3-3 draw at Liverpool and a narrow 1-0 home loss against Spurs so far but will fancy his team’s chance against a Brentford side that have managed just one goal in their last three league outings – and that was a penalty.

Perhaps one of the likeliest sources of defensive returns, however, will come at Molineux, where Wolverhampton Wanderers entertain Nottingham Forest. We’ve included Max Kilman (£4.5m) for now, but Jose Sa (£5.0m) has the superior points-per-match total and may be favoured if the Scout Squad panel aren’t convinced by Ramsdale.

West Ham United failed to keep a clean sheet against Fulham on Sunday, but David Moyes has now guided his team to three straight victories in all competitions. After Thursday’s home meeting with Anderlecht, they face a Southampton side that have managed just one goal in their last four league matches. That could promote Lukasz Fabianski (£5.0m) and Kurt Zouma (£4.5m) in our thinking, which is something we’ll be mulling over in the coming days.

Team news will also be important this week: if Gianluca Scamacca (£6.7m) is benched in Europe, it may hint at another start in Gameweek 10. The Italian has impressed of late, delivering three attacking in three matches in the past week.

THE LONG SHOTS

Forward assets like Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (£9.1m), Ivan Toney (£7.3m), Danny Welbeck (£6.5m) and Dominic Solanke (£5.7m) are hard to make a case for, given how appealing Haaland and Kane, plus Mitrovic if fit, are in Gameweek 11.

Wolves attackers also probably belong in this camp, given that their best bets – Goncalo Guedes (£6.0m), Adama Traore (£5.5m) and Diego Costa (£5.5m) – all have various fitness issues, at least at the time of writing.

GAMEWEEK 11 – BUS TEAM

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