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Happy Manchester derby weekend everyone
Another week gone, another round of Premier League fixtures to watch, another set of tweaks to make to your Fantasy Premier League XI. This is the life you have chosen, and there’s no escaping it now. You are committed. We’re a third of the way through the season, and you have invested too much emotion to sack it off. That bet you made at the start of the season with your mates has got you in a vice. Everyone put a tenner in, winner takes all. ‘Sure, why not?’ you thought.
But the sheer unpredictability of the Premier League has made it a nightmare to pick your team. Are Watford still good? Who will Pep stick out on the wing? These are the questions that will have been circling your mind all week.
Fear not, my friends, for I am back with a list of five players who should perform well this weekend.
1. Isaac Success – Watford, £4.6m
After being given a run of games by Javi Gracia, Success has shown his quality while playing alongside Gerard Deulofeu in a fluid front line. You could argue that he’s been… a success. Watford play Southampton this weekend, who are quite frankly dreadful, and will be devoid of any confidence after taking a battering from Man City last weekend. Now this is a risk, as Gracia may bring Andre Gray back into the side, but Success has done enough in recent weeks to keep his place. And as a wise man once said: ‘Fortune favours the brave, so put Success in your FPL team’. Only 3.5% of managers have picked him up, so this could be the week to give him a run out.
2. Xherdan Shaqiri – Liverpool, £7m
After Liverpool’s midweek catastrophe in Belgrade, Jürgen Klopp will be looking to change his team and inject a bit of creativity into the side. Enter: Xherdan Shaqiri. Having sat out of the Champions League trip for his own safety, Shaqiri will be fit and raring to go this weekend. His impact off the bench has been notable on several occasions this season, and Klopp could well reward him with a start against Fulham, who are also dreadful in defence. I genuinely fear for Fulham’s defence this weekend. If they ship more than three goals, it will surely be the defeat that seals Jokanović’s fate.
Only 2.3% of managers currently have Shaqiri in their side. It would be rude not to, really.
3.  Grady Diangana – West Ham, £4.5m
If you’re looking to save some money in midfield to splash some on a new striker, then look no further than West Ham’s Grady Diangana. In the absence of Jack Wilshere and Andriy Yarmolenko, Hammers boss Manuel Pellegrini has had to do some shuffling. Moving Snodgrass into a more central role, Diangana has been given a chance to impress on the wing. And he’s taken it. No goals so far, but very promising performances would suggest that eventually the end product will come. West Ham travel north to take on Huddersfield on Saturday, who are struggling down in 18th having conceded 21 goals already this season.
Unsurprisingly, he is owned by just 0.1 per cent of FPL managers. But on the off chance that he bags a hat-trick, you could be one of a select few to reap the benefits.
4. David Brooks – Bournemouth, £5.1m
When joined Bournemouth from Sheffield United for £11.5m, there was a lot of excitement surrounding David Brooks. And it’s clear to see why, as the 21-year-old has settled into the Premier League seamlessly. With three goals for Bournemouth to his name already, the Welshman will be looking to add a fourth this weekend against Newcastle. At a very reasonable price of just £5.1m and featuring in just 2.5% of FPL teams, Brooks could be the difference maker in gameweek 12.
5. Ricardo Pereira – Leicester, £5m
One of the great tricks of fantasy football is to take advantage of the categorisation of players’ positions. For example, Mohamed Salah is counted as a midfielder, despite basically being a striker. You can gain a similar advantage by selecting defenders who sometimes play in midfield, as is the case with Leicester City’s Ricardo Pereira. Claude Puel has switched between using him as a right back and a right winger, but whichever position he plays this weekend, he will be bombing forward, looking to get in behind Burnley’s uncharacteristically frail defence.
He costs just £5m, but has racked up 40 FPL points this season and has been selected by just 4.8% of coaches.
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