Our Friday night regular returns with a trio of overlooked alternatives for your consideration ahead of tomorrow morningโs deadline. Weโve turned to a pair of London-based protagonists with strong upcoming schedules on the horizon and scoured the bargain basement for a cut-price defensive option at the DW…
Shaun Wright-Phillips
No more than a mere bench-warmer in Mark Hughesโ last few matches in charge at QPR, the winger has made his way into the starting lineup under Harry Redknapp. With Jamie Mackie moved to the lone frontman role in favour of the ineffectual Djibril Cisse, Wright-Phillips has been handed a berth on the right of the Rโs midfield as the new man in charge looks to engineer a climb out the drop zone.
While the likes of Esteban Granero and Junior Hoilett have been peripheral in Redknappโs thoughts, Wright-Phillips seems to have his managerโs faith and justified his inclusion by producing an assist in last weekโs 2-2 draw at Wigan. It sums up QPRโs season under Hughes that this was the wingerโs first attacking returns of the campaign but with three home games in the next four (FUL, new, WBA, LIV) heโs afforded a chance to build on last weekendโs output.
Priced at 4.9 in Fantasy Premier League (FPL) and 5.1 in the Sky Sports game, itโs no surprise that Wright-Phillips has an ownership of around the 1% mark in both games but, if Redknapp is to work his magic, he could be an integral figure in his sideโs battle against relegation.
Jan Vertonghen
The Belgianโs start to life at the Lane has been a distinctly underwhelming one. Vertonghen arrived in the Premier League with a goal-getting pedigree โ 14 strikes in his last two seasons at Ajax is indicative of his attacking sensibilities but so far, heโs found the net just once, with a single assist also accrued.
Two clean sheets in 16 games sums up Tottenhamโs lack of resilience at the back but with Benoit Assou-Ekotto soon to return from a knee injury, Andre Villas-Boasโ side could be set for an upturn in defensive returns. With a superb run of fixtures to follow (SWA, STOK, avl, sun, REA, qpr) Vertonghen looks a decent differential shout not just for this weekend but all the way up to the winter wildcard in Gameweek 22.
Priced at 6.3 in FPL and 7.2 in the Sky Sports game, heโs far from cheap but as his Eredivisie stats suggest, Vertonghen has the class to prosper as Villas-Boas looks to take advantage of the festive schedule and boost his sideโs chances of a top three finish.
Ronnie Stam
A raft of injuries and suspensions at the back for Wigan has afforded the Dutchman a run of starts in recent weeks. With the treatment room at the DW still seemingly packed to the rafters, Stam looks set to continue on the right of Roberto Martinezโs midfield four, with Emmerson Boyce dropping into the back-three to cover for the likes of Gary Caldwell and Ivan Ramis.
Over his four consecutive starts, Stam hasnโt exactly propelled himself onto Fantasy radars. No goals, assists or clean sheets hardly offer too much hope but his out of position berth and rock-bottom FPL price of 3.8 may appeal to those Fantasy managers looking for a cheap defender who would free up budget further up the pitch. Priced at 4.0 in the Sky Sports game and with an ownership of under 3% in FPL, there are few, if indeed any, players who come cheaper with the guarantee of a start this weekend as the Latics look to put the brakes on Norwichโs recent unbeaten run.
