One of The Scout's panel of Fantasy Premier League experts, Holly Shand, is using her Wildcard chip in Gameweek 6 ahead of Saturday's 11:00 BST deadline.
Here she reveals her 15-man line-up and the reasons for her choices.
Goalkeepers
David Raya (£5.6m): The Spaniard feels like a must-have on Wildcard, providing he is passed fit ahead of the deadline, with Raya a minor doubt for Wednesday night's EFL Cup tie against Bolton. He is the cheapest route into a very solid Arsenal defence. He already has three clean sheets from five matches this season, while only two goalkeepers have bettered his 23 saves.
Lukasz Fabianski (£4.0m): He comes in as the back-up goalkeeper because he looks the best option at this price point. West Ham’s first choice Alphonse Areola (£4.5m) is often susceptible to injury, as we saw in Gameweek 3, when he was replaced by Fabianski.
Defenders
Gabriel (£6.1m): His inclusion means a double-up on the Arsenal defence, with high hopes that they can continue their good form. The Brazilian carries the biggest goal threat of the Gunners' defenders, with goals in his last two matches.
Josko Gvardiol (6.0m): The Croat could see his high position from 2023/24 replicated in the upcoming matches. Kyle Walker (£5.3m) is back in favour on the opposite flank, allowing Gvardiol to get higher up the pitch down the left wing.
Lewis Dunk (£4.6m): The Brighton captain is my mid-priced defender of choice given his many routes to points, offering goal threat and clean-sheet potential. Fabian Hurzeler's side should be a top-half team this season, without any European distractions.
Wout Faes (£4.1m): Looks the most dependable option at this price point from the promoted teams. Leicester City’s defence aren’t yielding many chances, and Faes provides some goal threat too.
Sepp van den Berg (£4.0m): A budget pick from a sound Brentford defence ahead of their favourable fixture swing. He could lose his spot if they switch to a back four from a five-man defence, but he's worth the risk for £4.0m.
Brentford's next eight fixtures
GW | Opp. | FDR |
---|---|---|
6 | West Ham (H) | 2 |
7 | Wolves (H) | 2 |
8 | Man Utd (A) | 3 |
9 | Ipswich (H) | 2 |
10 | Fulham (A) | 3 |
11 | Bournemouth (H) | 2 |
12 | Everton (A) | 3 |
13 | Leicester (H) | 2 |
*1 = easiest possible fixture, 5 = hardest possible fixture
Midfielders
Cole Palmer (£10.6m): Possibly the contentious pick, meaning sacrifices in both the forward line and defence. He should justify his price tag, given he's on penalties and shouldn't miss many minutes, given his omission from Chelsea's Conference League squad.
Bukayo Saka (£10.0m): My easiest midfield pick, due to the Arsenal talisman having the perfect balance of form and fixtures. His routes to attacking returns are plentiful, with goal threat from open play and set-pieces, including penalties.
Bryan Mbeumo (£7.2m): He has to be backed given his form so far this season, scoring four goals already. Brentford have the best fixtures over the next four Gameweeks, plus he’s on spot-kicks.
Morgan Rogers (£5.2m): The England Under-21 international is my route into an exciting Aston Villa attack, with Ollie Watkins (£9.0m) too expensive to fit in. Rogers finally backed up promising underlying numbers with attacking returns last time out and generally plays 90 minutes.
Harry Winks (£4.5m): He remains the most dependable player at this price point to come off the bench and provide two appearance points when needed, with no funds available to upgrade this spot.
Forwards
Erling Haaland (£15.3m): The Norwegian is a must-have and given his supreme form this season, I feel comfortable going without Mohamed Salah (£12.8m) and trusting Haaland with the armband every week. He’s scored in every single game to date.
Dominic Solanke (£7.5m): Spurs' forward comes in as somewhat of a differential, owned by only eight per cent of managers. He had four big chances against Brentford last weekend, when he got off the mark for his new club.
Joao Pedro (£5.6m): He completes the squad despite his fitness concerns over recent weeks. The Brazilian is a great long-term hold as one of Hurzeler’s key attacking players, plus he’s also on penalties. At his price, he looks a great option.