Scout Picks – Gameweek 25

That old faithful of football formations, the 4-4-2, is the Scouts’ system of choice for Gameweek 25 as we reveal the players from the weekend Squad article to earn a Scout Picks berth.

Our quest for value between the sticks leads us to Alex McCarthy (4.4), who looks to have secured the number one jersey at Southampton since replacing Fraser Forster in Gameweek 21.

His clean sheet prospects look strong at home to a Brighton side that is the only Premier League club to have gone goalless over their last six road trips. The Seagulls last found the net away back in Gameweek 11, when they beat Swansea City 1-0.

Stoke right back Moritz Bauer (4.5) offers another cut-price route to shut-out points as the Potters host an out-of-sorts Watford side that has only scored twice over their last five league away days.

The Hornets come into this match having lost 1-0 to Southampton at St Mary’s in the FA Cup on Saturday, in new boss Javi Gracia’s first match in charge.

By contrast, the hosts already look to be prospering under their new manager Paul Lambert. In his Gameweek 24 debut at the helm, the Potters beat Huddersfield 2-0 at the Bet365 stadium, which was also their first home clean sheet since October.

Since his Gameweek 23 debut, Bauer is second only to Xherdan Shaqiri among his team-mates for chances created (three to five) and fired over the same number of successful crosses as the playmaker.

Nicolas Otamendi’s 6.5 price tag is again proving too much for our 84 million budgeted side, so we’ve turned to his centre-back partner John Stones (5.4) for Manchester City defensive cover when West Brom drop by.

The England defender was rested for the Sky Blues’ FA Cup victory over Cardiff on Sunday and looks certain to start for a clash with a Baggies side that has scored just three goals in their last six road trips. City, meanwhile, have allowed fewer shots in the penalty area (43) than any other home team.

Shkodran Mustafi (5.5) is another with strong clean sheet potential, having helped Arsenal register seven shut-outs across his 14 starts and racking up baseline Bonus Point System (BPS) returns at a faster rate than his team-mates (5.0 per minute).

Despite beating Liverpool 1-0 at the Liberty Stadium last time out, the Swans have struggled to find the net in front of their own fans over the season, scoring seven goals and registering just 28 shots on target at home – both league-low tallies.

Chelsea’s Marcos Alonso (7.3) takes our final defender spot as he looks to earn his ninth points return in a row when Bournemouth visit.

A goal, assist and clean sheet against Newcastle in the FA Cup on Sunday served as a powerful reminder of the wing-back’s all-round Fantasy potential. He ranks top for points per million value (18.8) among outfield players and his prospects are boosted further by the Cherries’ poor way form.

Across their last four road trips, they’ve conceded eight goals and failed to record a single clean sheet.

Another Scout Picks stalwart to impress in the FA Cup was Mohamed Salah (10.3), who set up Roberto Firmino’s opener and got on the scoresheet himself late on in the 3-2 loss to West Brom.

That strike takes his goal tally to 25 in all competitions, with 18 coming in the Premier League. Further returns look likely this week for the Egyptian, who has a goal or assist from 13 of his last 15 appearances, as he travels to a Huddersfield defence that has conceded more goals (nine) than any side over their last three matches.

Such is the fragility of the Bournemouth travelling backline that we have doubled up on Blues assets and reserved a spot for Eden Hazard (10.6). The Belgian (7% owned) looks a strong differential captaincy option this Gameweek, with five goals and an assist across his six encounters with the Dorset side.

Another Stoke asset, Xherdan Shaqiri (6.0), earns a spot given Watford’s failure to earn a clean sheet in their last 10 road trips.

The midfielder impressed in a wide role in Gameweek 24’s victory against Huddersfield, with three efforts on target (all inside the box) and an assist. Over the last two Gameweeks, only Harry Kane (seven) has had more shots on target than Shaqiri’s five and he’s enjoying his most productive season for the Potters, having been directly involved in ten goals – scoring four and assisting six more.

Surprisingly, more than 75,000 Fantasy Premier League (FPL) managers have ditched our final midfield selection, Manchester City winger Raheem Sterling (8.9), since Saturday.

He goes in search of his 15^th goal of the season at home to a Baggies outfit that has just one clean sheet in their last 11 road trips. The England midfielder is particularly prolific at the Etihad, where he has scored nine times, earned two assists and racked up 11 big chances, with only Salah registering more (14).

A hat-trick against Newcastle last time out makes Sergio Aguero (11.8) another City asset who looks impossible to ignore. Like Sterling, he also enjoys home comforts, having scored 10 league goals in front of his own fans – a record he shares with Harry Kane.

Joining the Argentine in our two-man attack is Liverpool’s Roberto Firmino (9.2). Despite his penalty miss in the FA Cup on Saturday night, he could well retain spot-kick duties ahead of the trip to Huddersfield. The Brazilian has also served up double-digit FPL hauls in three of his last four away starts and scored in the reverse fixture at Anfield.

A trip to Newcastle earns Burnley defender Ben Mee (4.9) a place on our subs bench as the fixture list eases for the Clarets after facing Manchester United, twice, and Spurs and Liverpool in their last six.

The centre-back’s nine penalty area efforts in away matches is the fourth best tally among defenders, so he offers us the prospect of returns at both ends of the pitch against a Newcastle side that has scored just 10 goals at home: only Burnley and Swansea have found the net less often in front of their own fans.

Crystal Palace’s Bakary Sako (4.9) takes another of our bench spots away to a West Ham side ravaged by injuries, suspension and lack of confidence after being dumped out of the FA Cup by League One side Wigan at the weekend.

The Eagles midfielder has impressed in an attacking role alongside Christian Benteke over his last two starts. He’s scored and registered six shots in the box –a record among midfielders that he shares with Salah and Manchester United’s Anthony Martial during that time frame.

Jamie Vardy (8.5) is unlucky to miss out on a starting berth with three goals and eight bonus points over his last five starts. He faces an Everton side that have struggled at the back over their last four matches, conceding more shots (74) and big chances (11) than any other team. They’ve also shipped nine goals – another unwelcome record league which they share with Stoke, Watford and Huddersfield.

The Community Champion

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.

This week’s champion Pras United has opted for a 3-5-2 line up of Pope; Moses, Chilwell, Yoshida; Mane, Hazard, De Bruyne, B.Silva, Allen; Firmino, Aguero.