We have selected a Liverpool triple-up for our Scout Picks as Crystal Palace come to Anfield in Gameweek 23.
It took a lot of work to pull the best XI out of the squad submitted by Paul, Joe, Az and Peter earlier this week.
But it’s here for you to test against your own side now, coming in at £83m, £0.5m below our budget.
Goalkeeper
For once we are spending big in net as Manchester City man Ederson (£5.6m) gets the nod. He was the top pick of both Paul and Peter, while Az also asked for his inclusion in the squad. Only Cardiff have scored fewer goals than Huddersfield in the last four Gameweeks, who come into Gameweek 23 without a permanent manager. Furthermore, they have mustered just 11 shots on target since Gameweek 19, only three teams have managed fewer in that time frame. It should prove a quiet afternoon for Ederson.
Defenders
In the week that Andrew Robertson (£6.7m) went ahead of Marcos Alonso’s FPL price, it seems only fitting that he is the headline defender for the Scout Picks. All four of our pundits selected the Liverpool man as their best option in this position as Crystal Palace come to Anfield. The Reds have still only conceded three league goals there this season, while Palace rank 12th for shots on target in the last four Gameweeks. In every home match Robertson has played against non-top-six opposition this season, he has recorded either an attacking return, a clean sheet, bonus or a combination, averaging 8.5 points across those six Gameweeks.
Lucas Digne (£5.3m) is starting to cement his place in the group of defenders whose attacking threat make them unbenchable for their owners. Even though Everton’s clean sheet potential against Southampton is not too strong, we still believe the French left-back can involve himself in any goals they score in Hampshire. The Saints are the second-worst side in the last four home matches for shots conceded in the penalty box, while only one defender has registered more goal attempts than Digne since Gameweek 19.
Matt Doherty (£5.2m) has been in the unbenchable defenders club for some time, so it’s no surprise we’re bringing him back for Gameweek 22. He continues to surge forward and operate in opposition penalty boxes, only four defenders managing more touches there in their last four home matches, remembering that Doherty has faced Chelsea and Liverpool in that run. Leicester come to Molineux on Saturday lunch-time having allowed more shots in the box than all but three sides in the league in their last four away matches.
Midfielders
Given the form he is in, it would have been hard not to include Mohamed Salah (£13.4m) in the Scout Picks this week. The Egyptian earned the backing as the best option in midfield from all of our pundits apart from Az, who had him in second place. It’s five double-figure hauls for Salah in the last seven Gameweeks and while James Milner’s return could see him lose penalty kicks, he has still been earning them and is posting encouraging underlying statistics too ahead of Crystal Palace’s visit to Anfield.
We are sure that there will be goals for Manchester City at Huddersfield Town this week. The Terriers are bottom of the league for big chances conceded in their last four home matches and are still without a permanent manager following David Wagner’s departure earlier this week. Leroy Sané (£9.6m) is our chosen representative from City’s attack, as we still view him as the most likely to start. Sergio Aguero has serious competition from Gabriel Jesus currently, while Raheem Sterling could be rotated with Riyad Mahrez. Sané has three goals and an assist in his last four starts on the road.
Paul Pogba (£8.6m) is in the sort of unstoppable form that makes it very hard to overlook him for the Scout Picks XI. All four of our pundits wanted him in their squad, Paul his biggest fan by placing him in second place. Az selected him in the third slot, Joe and Peter in fourth. Those who have read our most recent Captain Sensible article will know what sort of form the Frenchman is in, arguably the most in-form option in the Premier League right now according to the statistics. While Brighton’s recent defensive performances might put some people of captaining Pogba, we believe Manchester United will have what it takes to find the back of the net and their number six is sure to be involved.
In the last four Gameweeks, no player has created more chances than Ryan Fraser (£6.1m), which is why he gets back into the Scout Picks once again. Az was the only one to name-check the Bournemouth winger for his squad, but given the Cherries will be hosting West Ham, we feel Fraser is worthy of inclusion. The Hammers may have defended admirably against Arsenal in Gameweek 22, but they rank fifth-worst for big chances conceded in the last four away matches. It presents a decent opportunity for Fraser to add to his 14 attacking returns this season.
Forwards
Roberto Firmino (£9.3m) completes our Liverpool triple-up this week and looks a decent replacement for anyone needing to offload the recently injured Harry Kane. The Brazilian has done particularly well at Anfield this year, second for goal attempts among all players over their last four home matches. Furthermore, since Gameweek 19 Firmino has registered more shots on target than his esteemed colleague Salah.
Marcus Rashford (£7.5m) was the only other player to receive a unanimous top vote in the Scout Squad. All four of our pundits picked him out as the best forward option for Gameweek 23 on the back of his five goals and four assists since Gameweek 16. In the last four Gameweeks, the only Premier League player to record more accurate efforts on goal than Rashford is team-mate Pogba, indicating just how threatening he is right now.
Salomón Rondón (£5.7m) completes our line-up as Newcastle have an opportunity for a first home win since Gameweek 12. Rafael Benitez’s men host a Cardiff City side on Saturday expected to be without key defender Sean Morrison, who underwent a procedure earlier this week. Even with the centre-back in the side, the Bluebirds are still bottom of the league for goal attempts conceded in the box over the last four away matches. Rondón seems the most likely to capitalise having produced attacking returns in four of his last five matches against sides outside the top-six.
Substitutes
Luke Shaw (£5.0m) came close to inclusion in the final Scout Picks XI ahead of Brighton’s visit to Old Trafford. The Seagulls have blanked in two of their last three away trips giving some hope of a first home clean sheet for Manchester United since Gameweek 13.
Ademola Lookman (£5.1m) got his second start of the season against Bournemouth and impressed enough to suggest he is in with a shot of keeping his place at Southampton. Having already clocked up 398 minutes this season, he has actually averaged a key pass every 40 minutes, the same as colleague Gylfi Sigurdsson and could prove the next budget midfielder worth considering if he can keep his place.
Troy Deeney (£5.9m) rounds off our bench ahead of Burnley’s trip to Vicarage Road. The Watford man had the backing of three of our pundits after recording the same number of shots in the penalty box as Salah since Gameweek 19.
Community Champion
Representing the community against the Scout Picks in Gameweek 23 is Athletico Timbo. They have opted for a 3-4-3 formation of: Alisson; Lindelöf, Robertson, Bednarek; Pogba, Sterling, Salah, Pedro; Aguero, Deeney, Ings.
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.
Last weekend, FPL_SUNNY narrowly beat our Scout Picks 53-52, but fclackless‘s winning margin of 33 points (77-44) in Gameweek 10 is the current target to beat.
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