From the blindingly obvious picks to the gratuitous curveballs, Sam, Marc, Tom J (in for the absent Tom Freeman) and Neale return with their Gameweek 10 Scout Squad suggestions.

There is consensus about six players this week, with a further five assets getting three votes apiece.

MORE ABOUT THE SCOUT SQUAD

In this article series, our in-house panel discuss who they think the best Fantasy Premier League (FPL) players are for the upcoming round of fixtures in isolation. Therefore, there’s no medium-term planning involved.

The players who get the most votes are much more likely to make Friday’s Scout Picks.

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: GAMEWEEK 10 PICKS

Most popular picks: Matz Sels, Rayan Ait-Nouri, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Mohamed Salah, Erling Haaland, Chris Wood (four) David Raya, Leif Davis, Bukayo Saka, Bryan Mbeumo, Matheus Cunha (three)

MARC SAID…

No triple-ups for me this week, as no fixtures particularly stand out. I do back Arsenal in the early kick-off at Newcastle though. It was good to see Bukayo Saka quickly get back amongst the goals last Sunday and, with doubts over the status of Gabriel, defensive coverage comes from David Raya.

It’s tricky for Liverpool too, hosting sixth-placed Brighton at Anfield. With Trent Alexander-Arnold, you not only get a mainstay of the tightest defence so far, you also get attacking contributions. Or someone trying hard to, at least. Team-mate Mohamed Salah has a brilliant six double-digit hauls from nine matches – although I don’t agree with the online community thinking an Erling Haaland sacrifice is acceptable.

The Norwegian somehow only scored once versus Southampton, despite four big chances and 2.33 expected goals (xG). Opponents Bournemouth may have just beaten Arsenal and drawn at Aston Villa but the champions have won all 14 Premier League meetings, including recent 6-1, 4-0 and 4-1 thrashings. What might put this streak in danger is their latest bunch of injuries, forcing Pep Guardiola to declare that tired Rico Lewis is “the only player we cannot rest.”

Man City and Crystal Palace were the only two sides to keep a clean sheet in Gameweek 9 and I think Dean Henderson will either repeat this or make loads of saves at Wolves. Hedging bets, I’ve gone for Matheus Cunha too – a player not getting many big chances (two) but is at least getting into the box often. On penalties, possibly.

Elsewhere, I think Jordan Pickford has a lovely fixture at Southampton but don’t have it in my heart to pick Dominic Calvert-Lewin. Owning him has been a depressing experience, especially when Chris Wood can’t stop scoring. The Nottingham Forest talisman is up to four goals in three matches, about to face West Ham. It’s also worth putting faith in Matz Sels, FPL’s joint-top-scoring goalkeeper.

Another individual in incredible form is Bryan Mbeumo. He’s been one of my favourite players to have over recent seasons, although it’s less fun when everyone else has him too! Eight goals in nine for the mid-priced midfielder, it’s almost impossible not to pick him, even if opponents Fulham have allowed the fewest big chances (12) of all teams.

Meanwhile, I’ve chosen an attacker apiece from Tottenham Hotspur v Aston Villa. Only Haaland has registered more penalty area shots than Brennan Johnson’s 29 but there’ll also probably be multiple chances for Ollie Watkins against this defence, one that’s now without the injured Micky van de Ven.

The match at Portman Road is between two promoted sides but, importantly, it pits the good form of Jamie Vardy and Facundo Buonanotte against an Ipswich defence that has conceded 12 goals in their last four outings. Being so leaky damages the appeal of Leif Davis but at least he’s able to contribute higher up the pitch. He assisted last week and remains the defender that’s created the most chances (22).

Of course, Rayan Ait-Nouri is the only one of them with three goals. I certainly regret the order of my own transfers, bringing in Nathan Collins last week instead of the Wolves left-back. He’s now been bought but perhaps it’s too late.

SAM SAID…

It’s Gameweek 10. We should at this point start to have greater clarity on the teams and players to invest in. In some ways, we do. But in other ways, it feels like we’re more topsy-turvy than before. Erling Haaland blanked three in a row and then returned his second-highest Premier League xG numbers ever to only score one goal. Meanwhile, Son Heung-min missed out again through injury in Gameweek 9. Arsenal keep conceding. A horde of budget forwards has suddenly emerged to make us all question big-money forwards.

There are others though, the likes of Bryan Mbeumo and Mohamed Salah, who are consistently returning on their underlying numbers.

In goal this week, I have opted for Matz Sels. The Nottingham Forest shot-stopper has three clean sheets so far this season, a tally only bettered by Alisson and Andre Onana. He has also made 26 stops, picking up an additional six save points in the process. The visit of West Ham United this weekend bodes well for another clean sheet.

Alongside him, Jordan Pickford and David Raya look the likeliest to keep shut-outs in Gameweek 10. Everton face struggling Southampton, while Arsenal travel to Newcastle United who are barely scraping 1.0 goal per game.

The defence has three heavy hitters in Trent Alexander-Arnold, Josko Gvardiol and Pedro Porro. These three feel worth the budget this week given their attacking threat, especially as all three face defences who have been leaky this season. Aston Villa and Bournemouth, for instance, have only kept one clean sheet each.

Alongside them, a couple of budget-friendly options in Rayan Ait-Nouri and Leif Davis. Both £4.5m defenders registered an attacking return in Gameweek 9 – Ait-Nouri with a goal and Davis with an assist.

Into midfield and there is only one place to start with Salah the highest-scoring player in the game right now. The Liverpool midfielder is in great form with 11 attacking returns this season; only Cole Palmer can better that.

Bukayo Saka was an injury doubt for Gameweek 9 but, surprise surprise, made it and scored nine minutes into his return. He’s only blanked once this season.

Mbeumo feels like the definition of essential at present, given his price. His eight goals in the league is more than any other midfielder in the game and he faces a Fulham side who, despite playing well, have only kept one clean sheet so far this season.

Son Heung-min and Morgan Rogers play each other at the weekend but this feels like a match where there will be goals at both ends of the pitch. Ange Postecoglou suggested that Son would be available for Sunday and therefore he makes the long list; if there is any doubt then Brennan Johnson makes a great substitute option.

Up top there is a lot of chatter about selling Haaland this week but I think a trip to Bournemouth presents a good opportunity to silence the doubters. His underlying numbers last weekend suggest now is not the time to part with the forward, who let’s be honest looks set to walk away with the Golden Boot again.

Alongside him, it is budget-friendly options all the way in Matheus Cunha, Yoane Wissa, Liam Delap and Chris Wood.

Wissa returned from injury in Gameweek 8 and made his first start the following week. He scored and registered an assist, the latter of which has now been upgraded to his goal (although his FPL points will not change). Wissa was in great form pre-injury, with returns in three of the opening four matches, and he’s carried on where he left off.

Meanwhile, Cunha has four attacking returns this season, even after a horrendous fixture run – only six forwards in the game have more than his four goals. He’s had 27 attempts so far in fixtures against teams like Arsenal, Chelsea, Villa, Man City, Liverpool, Newcastle and Brentford, so maintaining that rate heading into the next run of easier matches should bring him more big chances and more goals.

Wood, who is a slight doubt, has started every game so far this season. Of the forwards, only Haaland has more goals than the seven Wood has registered. The Kiwi has one of the best goal conversion numbers in the league, too. With seven goals from his 19 attempts, almost 37% of his efforts have found the back of the net.

Delap is a slight risk as he didn’t start in Gameweek 9 but came off the bench to score, so I think he’s worth the gamble against Leicester this weekend.

TOM J SAID…

Gameweek 10 looks a tricky one to predict with tough match-ups for many of the Premier League’s top teams.

To that end, a Liverpool triple-up is an obvious first port of call. You wouldn’t bet against Mohamed Salah making it seven double-digit hauls for the season, especially against a Brighton defence probably missing their organiser-in-chief Lewis Dunk. The Egyptian is the best captaincy option in my view and I’ll be making that case for the final Scout Picks! At the back, no team has conceded fewer expected goals than Liverpool’s 7.08, almost two goals better than Man City and Aston Villa (9.02). Caoimhin Kelleher and Trent Alexander-Arnold therefore make the squad. With clean sheets so hard to come by this season, it makes sense to back the best defence in the league at Anfield. Even if Brighton do score, perhaps Alexander-Arnold will finally come good on his underlying data. The Englishman has picked up just one assist this season from an xGI of over three.

After tripping up Arsenal in Gameweek 9, Bournemouth will be out to play giant-killer again when they host an injury-ravaged Manchester City. Erling Haaland is being sold by many in the FPL community but did record over 2.0 xG against Southampton. You feel the narrative would be different had he tucked away another goal or two. Encouragingly, he did get a full rest in midweek. Pep Guardiola said after the defeat to Spurs that he can’t rest Rico Lewis with Kyle Walker injured and I’ve taken his words at face value. Josko Gvardiol would have been preferred though had he not been spotted getting treatment at full-time on Wednesday.

As a Chelsea fan, the sacking of Erik ten Hag couldn’t have come at a worse time with the potential for Manchester United to benefit from a ‘new-manager bounce’ under Ruud van Nistelrooy. However, if the EFL Cup tie against Leicester is anything to go by, attack is very much Ruud’s best form of defence and there aren’t many teams better suited than Chelsea to playing against a high line and attacking on the transition. You would have to be a brave, or very optimistic Man United, to expect a double-pivot of Casemiro and Christian Eriksen to keep Cole Palmer in check. Ahead of Palmer, Nicolas Jackson continues to go from strength to strength; only the aforementioned Erling Haaland has a higher xG amongst forwards this season.

No defender has picked up more attacking returns than Rayan Ait-Nouri (three goals and two assists) in 2024/25. There’s a fair chance of a clean sheet as well, Crystal Palace have been poor in front of goal of late, scoring just two goals in their last five matches. They may also be without Eberechi Eze after he limped off in the League Cup midweek. In attack, Matheus Cunha is a key target for many FPL managers this week, including myself. The Brazilian’s return of four goals in nine matches is respectable when you consider Wolves have played eight of the current top nine.

Bryan Mbeumo’s inclusion needs little to no explanation with the Brentford talisman in red-hot form. On Monday Night Football, he faces a Fulham team with just one clean sheet all season. However, at the other end of the pitch, the Bees are struggling. They have conceded two or more goals in six of their last eight matches and are yet to keep a clean sheet. Consequently, I’m backing Raul Jimenez and Adama Traore to profit. The former has scored in all three home starts this term while the latter looks set to face Brentford’s auxiliary left-back, Sepp van den Berg.

Nottingham Forest have been the season’s surprise package and a favourable home fixture against West Ham allows them an opportunity to continue their strong form. Matz Sels is the top-scoring goalkeeper in the game and has the potential to stay there with Nottingham Forest fourth best for xGC and second best for big chances conceded. Providing he shakes off his yellow flag, Chris Wood should join Sels in the Scout Picks.

Finally, James Tarkowski and Brennan Johnson complete my Scout Squad. Everton have tightened up in recent weeks and you would expect this trend to continue with Jarrod Branthwaite’s looming return. Meanwhile, the darling of Gameweek 8, Johnson, has disappointed his owners in the last couple of matches – but the underlying numbers remain strong and I expect a goal sooner rather than later.

NEALE SAID…

Clean sheets are in short supply this season – there are fewer being averaged per Gameweek (4.0) than we even saw in a goal-filled 2023/24. I’m struggling to pick many out this week, too. It’s a rarity when there’s no one above 40% in G-Whizz’s clean sheet odds list.

You could easily see the top three, for instance, conceding this weekend. Still, in the absence of too many convincing alternatives, side with the big guns with the big stats. Trent Alexander-Arnold, Josko Gvardiol and Gabriel Magalhaes have all hit double figures for shots this season, with the former second among defenders for chances created. There are obvious injury concerns hanging over the latter two, so Friday’s press conferences will have to be keenly watched. The rumours sound good surrounding Gabriel, at least, and if Arsenal can take a competitive, near-full-strength backline to Tyneside, there’s every chance that a Newcastle United side scraping one goal per game can be nullified.

Elsewhere at the back, I’ve sided with Rayan Ait-Nouri and James Tarkowski.

Ait-Nouri has, like Alexander-Arnold, hit the 10+ mark for both shots and chances created this season. There are still reservations about the Wolves defence but they will be encountering a Palace side not only joint-bottom for goals scored but also potentially missing the string-pulling Eberechi Eze.

Southampton are level with the Eagles on a miserable six goals, half of which have been scored against their fellow Premier League new boys. Saints are also rock bottom for goals conceded from set pieces (seven), which should interest Tarkowski and whoever lines up alongside him at centre-half. I am very keen on the corner-taking, in-form Dwight McNeil for similar reasons but I may have to admit defeat when it comes to the Scout Picks crunch, given the lingering injury concern.

The only other defence represented that I’ve not yet discussed is Nottingham Forest’s, who have conceded one or zero goals in eight of their nine matches so far. The save-making, assist-claiming Matz Sels, who is slowly starting to change the minds of the doubters, gets the nod to face a really unconvicing West Ham United side that has fluked results againt Manchester United and Fulham.

I’ve had my cake with the premiums and nominated all four, although Mohamed Salah is the only one I’m truly set on. The other three carry caveats: Cole Palmer now has to face a United side potentially buoyed by Erik ten Hag’s departure, while Erling Haaland may be getting service from the Gallagher brothers, Johnny Marr and Mark & Lard at the rate the injuries are mounting in the north-west. A rousing display from Newcastle United and some timely tactical tweaks from Eddie Howe (Tonali as the ‘six’, Joelinton in the front three) also means that Bukayo Saka‘s trip to Tyneside may be tougher than the five-match winless league run suggests.

I could’ve filled the forward slots twice over this week. Matheus Cunha is extremely unfortunate to miss out; I just fancied Palace’s slowly improving backline over those of clean-sheet-less Brentford (Raul Jimenez), injury-hit Ipswich Town (Jamie Vardy) and a combustible West Ham (Chris Wood). An injury to Micky van de Ven, plus Ollie Watkins’ strong away record and midweek rest, makes me confident of the Villa man’s chances this weekend, too.

Facundo Buonanotte, Morgan Rogers and Sammie Szmodics were all in the budget midfielder mix but I’ve ultimately sided with Emile Smith Rowe, who has that unerring ability to ghost into goalscoring positions – something that even Ipswich, bottom for xG, did on multiple occasions against Brentford last weekend.

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