Following on from the new go-to option in the Manchester United rearguard, The Scout's watchlist of high-value defensive picks continues.
Sead Kolasinac (Arsenal) £6.0m
New Arsenal recruit Sead Kolasinac (£6.0m) could be the latest wing-back to impact on our Fantasy Premier League campaigns.
Marcos Alonso (£7.0m), Kyle Walker and Danny Rose (both £6.5m) all prospered in the position last season.
Kolasinac has the talent to surpass their returns in 2017/18.
Signed on a free transfer from Schalke, the Bosnia & Herzegovina international produced three goals and five assists in the Bundesliga last term.
He is effective at left-back or on the left of a three-man defence.
But he is expected to be unleashed down the left flank as a wing-back in manager Arsene Wenger’s 3-4-2-1 formation.
Nacho Monreal (£5.5m) was handed that role last season, though Kolasinac appears likely to have a bigger impact in the final third.
Monreal supplied 12 key passes, averaging one every 262.7 minutes.
In contrast, Kolasinac created a chance every 90 minutes, with 23 key passes in total.
Kolasinac also made more successful tackles (69) than any Schalke team-mate and ranked second for interceptions (81).
His arrival could therefore help to improve Arsenal’s record of 13 clean sheets last season, down from 18 in 2015/16.
Arsenal won eight of their nine matches in all competitions in the 3-4-2-1 formation.
They have an early schedule that could help to extend that run of results.
Six of Arsenal’s first eight Gameweek matches score just two in the Fixture Difficulty Rankings (FDR).
Currently owned by just 7.5% of FPL managers, if Kolasinac finds his feet he will challenge at the very top of the FPL defender standings.
Arsenal's opening Gameweeks
| GW | Opponent | FDR (1 = low 5 = high) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Leicester City (h) | 2 |
| 2 | Stoke City (a) | 2 |
| 3 | Liverpool (a) | 4 |
| 4 | AFC Bournemouth (h) | 2 |
| 5 | Chelsea (a) | 5 |
| 6 | West Brom (h) | 2 |
| 7 | Brighton (h) | 2 |
| 8 | Watford (a) | 2 |