The Scout Squad are back to name their Fantasy Premier League (FPL) picks for Gameweek 33.

In this feature, our resident writers – Marc, Tom, Sam and Neale – get the chance to nominate an 18-man longlist for the upcoming Gameweek.

All four panelists explain their notable inclusions and omissions in the article below.

MORE ABOUT THE SCOUT SQUAD

The focus is only on the upcoming Gameweek with the Scout Squad, so there’s no medium-term planning involved.

The players who get the most votes are much more likely to make the Scout Picks, although the final XI can’t exceed £83.0m. Occasionally, therefore, cheaper alternatives have to be found.

Each of our writers must meet the following requirements for this feature:

• At least one sub-£5.0m goalkeeper
• At least one sub-£5.0m defender
• At least one sub-£6.0m midfielder
• At least one sub-£7.0m forward
• No more than three players from the same club

SCOUT SQUAD: BEST FPL PLAYERS FOR GAMEWEEK 33

Most popular picks: Rayan Ait-Nouri, Sergio Reguilon, Cole Palmer, Mohamed Salah, Erling Haaland, Ivan Toney, Alexander Isak (four), Djordje Petrovic, Gabriel Magalhaes, Malo Gusto, Son Heung-min, Dominic Solanke (three)

SAM SAID…

For the last time for a couple of weeks, it’s a regular 10-match Gameweek.

Clean sheets have been at a bit of a premium recently but Mark Flekken has a good fixture at home to Sheffield United and the Bees’ shotstopper has made 103 saves this season, picking up 26 save points. If the clean sheet does fall, at least he has the potential for additional points.

David Raya is the goalkeeper from the league’s best defence: Gameweek 32 was Arsenal’s sixth clean sheet in eight matches and their 14th of the season. The Gunners have only allowed four big chances in 2024, 18 fewer than Man City have conceded.

Finally, Djorde Petrovic and Chelsea face Everton on Monday evening. The Toffees have struggled for goals all year and are fourth-bottom for expected goals in the last four weeks.

Like with Raya, choosing an Arsenal defender seems essential. In case Aston Villa wipe out the clean sheet in their quest for European football, Gabriel Magalhaes is the most attacking of the Arsenal backline. Gabriel has had 26 shots in the box this season; the rest of the Arsenal defence combined have 27.

Alongside Gabriel, I have added four of the most attacking defenders in the game: Andrew Robertson, Sergio Reguilon, Malo Gusto and Rayan Ait-Nouri. All four have the potential for clean sheets this week but also have the added benefit of attacking threat if the shutout is busted. In the last four Gameweeks, Gusto has created more chances than any other defender. Meanwhile, Robertson has only made two appearances but has supplied 29 crosses; only Alfie Doughty has provided more among defenders and he has played 175 minutes more than Robertson. Ait-Nouri and Gabriel are tied top for attempts on goal across the defenders with five.

In midfield, Mohamed Salah leads the troops. Salah was benched against Atalanta in the Europa League on Thursday and has a good record against Sunday’s opponents Palace. The Egyptian has seven goals and six assists in 10 matches against the Eagles.

Alongside Salah, Bukayo Saka. Yes, I have some worries about the Champions League fixture in midweek. However, the clash with Villa is a must-win for both sides as Arsenal attempt to win the Premier League and Aston Villa compete for a Champions League spot. The importance of this match means I think Mikel Arteta will go full strength. Saka has now taken the last three penalties for Arsenal, so seems to be back on spot-kick duty, which is another string to his bow. Villa have also conceded eight goals in the last four Gameweeks, the most in the league.

Chelsea have scored a league-leading eight goals in the last four Gameweeks and Cole Palmer has either scored or assisted all of them. I think he is essential right now – it’s just a shame he is too expensive now to count as our sub-£6.0m midfielder!

I have also kept the faith with Son Heung-min. It’s a difficult fixture on paper away at Newcastle but the Magpies have a number of serious defensive injuries and will play offensive football, which suits Spurs’ attack-minded style of play. Son picked up 17 points in the reverse of this fixture back in Gameweek 16 and could be on for another haul at the weekend.

Finally, Alejandro Garnacho makes the cut. The midfielder is in good form: he has accumulated 26 points in the last four matches.

Up front, Erling Haaland would normally be ‘essential’ against Luton but I do worry a little about his 90 minutes in the Champions League on Tuesday, and with the tie still balanced heading into the second leg next week. Even with that slight risk, I can’t overlook him.

Alongside him, Darwin Nunez, who has returned in four of his last five Premier League matches.

Ivan Toney faces Sheffield United, who have only kept one clean sheet all season. The 82 goals they have conceded is 15 more than Burnley, who have conceded the second most.

Dominic Solanke also comes up against a defence he can exploit. Opponents Manchester United are 19th out of the 20 Premier League clubs for shots faced and 17th for expected goals conceded (xGC) this season.

Finally, Alexander Isak. The Swede has returned in every home game since returning from injury. He is also facing a Spurs side who have kept just one clean sheet since Gameweek 17.

MARC SAID…

It’s a shame that this weekend’s standout fixture coincides with the return of ‘Pep Roulette’, as the champions’ hosting of Luton is sandwiched between two huge Real Madrid clashes. That’s why I’ve stayed away from Phil Foden, seen limping on Tuesday night. Guardiola benching both Foden and Erling Haaland for Luton could be considered too risky, especially when his team needs to quickly boost their goal difference in this enthralling title race. Defensively, they pretty much have five people fighting for four spots. Rico Lewis scored last weekend but didn’t start at the Bernabeu, so I think he plays here.

Elsewhere, there are two triple-ups in this 18-man squad.

Liverpool’s match with Crystal Palace won’t be easy but I still think Mohamed Salah and Darwin Nunez will get on the scoresheet. The former may have blanked in all four outings versus promoted sides but that’s irrelevant for the Eagles because he tends to do well against them. The latter has a reputation for being frustrating but perhaps the correct word of late should be ‘consistent’, as all but one of his last seven appearances have ended with either five or six points. Imminent returns for Alisson and Trent Alexander-Arnold make Virgil van Dijk the safest route into their backline for Double Gameweek 34. He’s the defender with most attempts inside the penalty area (28).

Another team with a trio of selections is Brentford, at home to Sheffield United. Maybe it’s still too soon to whisper Sergio Reguilon’s name but, if managers can find the strength to forget Blank Gameweek 29, they’ll see an attacking full-back with five assists in his last seven starts. Out-of-form Ivan Toney has the perfect opportunity to get back into the groove and Bryan Mbeumo marked his first start for a while by scoring. At the time of his injury, Mbeumo was one of the league’s best players for attacking returns yet still sat 2.37 under his expected goal involvement (xGI) tally.

Just like the recent Newcastle v West Ham match promised goals and ended 4-3, I think the Magpies and Spurs will bring plenty at St James’ Park. After all, 30 have been netted in their last six encounters. December’s reverse meeting brought in a 17-point haul for Son Heung-min, whilst Alexander Isak scored twice in last season’s memorable 6-1 win.

Looking around, it’s hard to call Nottingham Forest v Wolves. Bargain forward Chris Wood has bagged a goal in four successive matches and – handily for Fantasy Challenge – is the highest-scoring FPL player to have not yet received a card. But potentially robbing Rayan Ait-Nouri of a clean sheet doesn’t automatically make the Algerian a bad pick. Used further upfield, he has two goals, an assist and four big chances from his last four outings.

The cheap midfielder of choice is Alejandro Garnacho away at Bournemouth, placed joint-fifth for this season’s touches inside the box (199). Team-mate Andre Onana is a fine mix of occasional clean sheets and saving lots of shots, with my other goalkeepers being Bart Verbruggen’s visit to Burnley and Djordje Petrovic, despite Chelsea only securing two shut-outs in 23 games.

Of course, let’s not leave out Cole Palmer, fresh from ten goals and six assists in his last 11 appearances. More will be expected on Monday night versus Everton. And I’ve decided not to pursue Bukayo Saka, instead having defender Gabriel Magalhaes as my Arsenal representative. Aston Villa are tough opponents but this is a classic case of form over fixtures – the Gunners have kept six clean sheets in eight, conceding a measly three big chances.

TOM SAID…

Manchester City and Arsenal’s upcoming UEFA Champions League quarter-final second legs have to be factored into Pep Guardiola and Mikel Arteta’s plans for Gameweek 33.

Experience tells me there are simply way too many doubts over team selection to get too heavily involved.

Nonetheless, I think it would be far too risky to assume that Erling Haaland and Bukayo Saka will be rested, and feel we can’t ignore them come Friday’s picks.

Even the prospect of managed minutes could bring returns for Haaland, given that Luton Town have conceded 38 away goals in the Premier League this season, more than any other side. They are one of only two clubs (along with Sheffield United) without a clean sheet on the road.

As for Aston Villa, they will be without key midfielders Douglas Luiz and Boubacar Kamara and recent form has been erratic, having thrown away a two-goal lead to draw 3-3 with Brentford in Gameweek 32. They’ve also had problems defending set-pieces, which could be exploited by Gabriel Magalhaes.

Elsewhere, Liverpool and Brentford’s home matches against Crystal Palace and Sheffield United respectively are the big draws this weekend.

Mohamed Salah and Ivan Toney will surely appear in every Scout Squad selection this week, though there may be more debate over which supporting cast to include – Caoimhin Kelleher (or Alisson Becker if we expect him to start), Virgil van Dijk, Mark Flekken and Sergio Reguilon get my vote.

Much as I’d have liked to promote Luis Diaz and Bryan Mbeumo over defensive double-ups, I just couldn’t put them in ahead of Cole Palmer and Son Heung-min.

Over the last six Gameweeks, Palmer is ranked top for shots (29) and key passes (20), while Son should be the key man should Tottenham Hotspur prevail at St James’ Park, even if he is dislodged from a centre-forward role.

I’m also backing Bournemouth to recover from the 2-1 loss at Luton that ended their five-match unbeaten run last time out. Dominic Solanke isn’t in great form, with five blanks in seven, but opponents Manchester United have allowed more shots and efforts in the box than any other side from Gameweek 24 onwards, so I fancy his chances.

For value, I like the look of Brighton and Hove Albion’s Simon Adingra up against a Burnley defence with just one home clean sheet all season. Fulham’s £4.7m forward Rodrigo Muniz is another enticing budget enabler, given that West Ham United face tough European assignments against Bayer Leverkusen on either side of Gameweek 33.

NEALE SAID…

As mentioned above, Cole Palmer creeping above the £6.0m mark means that he can no longer be the default budget midfielder in our selection. It not only means that we have to find another budget gem but also that there’s one fewer spot for the pricier midfield picks, so no Bryan Mbeumo or Anthony Gordon this week. I was also considering a second Manchester City midfielder, maybe Jeremy Doku, but it seemed like an unnecessary gamble with the game-time uncertainty.

Kevin De Bruyne is not assured of a start either but after sickness rendered him unable to feature against Real Madrid in midweek, I think Pep Guardiola will give him minutes to maintain rhythm ahead of the rematch. He might not last the course but there are three recovery days on either side of the Luton game, and if he didn’t feature in some capacity against the Hatters, it’d be 11 days with no fixture.

I may change my mind come predicted line-up time but I’m also thinking that Guardiola will want to play Erling Haaland back into some sort of form ahead of Madrid’s visit. Luton are a side that City walloped 6-2 just over six weeks ago, with Haaland scoring five goals and De Bruyne assisting four of them. That would have been worth a combined 41 points, with bonus, had it been in FPL!

City’s title rivals are also represented here, as they often are.

Mohamed Salah and Andrew Robertson began life on the bench against Atalanta on Thursday, which heavily signposts a start against Palace. Robertson was extremely attacking against Manchester United (the absence of Trent helped), registering more final third touches, penalty box touches and shots than he had done in any game all season.

There’s an argument for Luis Diaz over Salah but despite the early withdrawals and the substitute appearances, the Egyptian still betters every other Fantasy midfielder for shots and big chances over the last six matches.

Marginally better underlying numbers also lead me to nominate Kai Havertz over Bukayo Saka. Havertz has been picking up some excellent close-range shooting positions since his move to centre-forward, while he could get joy from Villa’s aversion to defending crosses. Short of defensive midfielders for protection, Villa’s backline are also posting some worrying figures of late.

There may be a temptation to double up on the defences of Chelsea and Brentford, given the fixtures. But while I can’t resist glorified wingers Malo Gusto and Sergio Reguilon, I’ve stopped short of nominating their goalkeepers. Chelsea are without a clean sheet in three months and have conceded twice to Burnley and Sheffield United in recent weeks. I can also see the much-improved Blades, with their promising McBurnie/Brereton strike pairing, busting Mark Flekken’s clean sheet.

I’ve gone for some less obvious selections between the sticks, therefore.

Matz Sels will be up against a Wolves side whose first-choice front three are either injured or half-fit. They’ve mustered only seven goals in their last eight league fixtures, when they’ve not had Messrs Neto, Hwang and Cunha all available. Nottingham Forest are also an excellent fifth for xGC since Nuno came in.

Goalkeeper number two is Bernd Leno, who is shortlisted despite Fulham’s poor away form. They should be encountering West Ham United at an opportune time, right in the middle of a two-legged UEFA Europa League tie and potentially without Jarrod Bowen.

Golden Glove frontrunner David Raya needs less explanation, although he’ll be tested for sure by Aston Villa’s strong attack.

There’s a Brighton double-up for their clash with Burnley. Lewis Dunk, second for shots among defenders this season, will be coming up a Clarets side ranked 19th for xGC from set plays. Joao Pedro is more of an eye test pick, as he’s looked lively since his very recent return from injury.

Finally, back to where we started: the budget midfield slot once reserved for Palmer. It was a tricky one but I’ve gone with Brennan Johnson, who has had at least one big chance in each of his last six runouts. I can only see goals on Tyneside this Saturday, with the hosts’ Alexander Isak also among my forwards.

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