Bruno Fernandes
Part of our picks for the third week running, Fernandes has only returned with one assist in his last two outings and Manchester United are playing horribly. Why are we keeping the faith? Well, Ralf Rangnick’s side have a double against Norwich at home and Liverpool away.
Clearly, one of those fixtures is better on paper than the other, but Fernandes has potential of starting and returning in both. Cristiano Ronaldo’s minutes are more uncertain, making him a less appealing prospect to buy and to captain. After Chelsea’s Champions League elimination, there’s a chance of another United double next week too.
Bukayo Saka
It has been a difficult couple of weeks for Arsenal, with back-to-back defeats against Crystal Palace and Brighton severely damaging their top-four aspirations. Saka has compounded the misery for his fantasy backers, blanking on both occasions to pick up a mere three points.
Even so, it is hard to ignore a pair of fixtures that starts with a Southampton side who look a little all over the place and conceded six at St Mary’s last time out. Arsenal then face Chelsea, who are having to endure an erratic spell of form themselves. Saka continues to provide excellent value for his price and could easily find himself back in the points.
Kasper Schmeichel
The first of three doubles for Leicester between now and the end of the season starts with a pair of away days at Newcastle and Everton. The only issue is the risk of rotation, with Brendan Rodgers known to chop and change even with a Conference League campaign to consider.
The one player all but guaranteed to start every game between now and the end of next month is Schmeichel and Leicester’s dodgy defensive record over the season should not put buyers off, given the potential for save points as well as clean sheets. Last week’s penalty save from Wilfried Zaha earned a nine-point haul.
Matt Targett
That being said, Leicester’s weakness on set pieces is one reason why we’re looking at Targett this week. The Newcastle left-back plays Rodgers’ side and Crystal Palace in the double, and he is likely to be on corner-taking duty in the absences of Kieran Trippier and Ryan Fraser.
Targett carries some attacking potential in open play too, while Newcastle’s defence has improved under Eddie Howe. For those managers with an injured Matt Doherty to shift and a wildcard in hand, he is an excellent short-term punt until Newcastle’s fixtures shift in gameweek 35.
Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall
Returning to Leicester, Dewsbury-Hall has emerged as a cheap and cheerful budget midfield option for the run-in. His 13-point haul last time out has put him on many a manager’s radar but it is the 4.4m price tag that has us interested. That’s a very fair price for a player who has been a regular since early December.
As we start to look for ways to accommodate Mohamed Salah, Harry Kane, Kevin De Bruyne and maybe even Son Heung-min into our squads all at once, budget options like Dewsbury-Hall are a gift. Do not expect a ton of points to follow but he is an excellent enabler with all the forthcoming doubles.
