Gameweek 31 Scout Picks built on Liverpool triple-up

Liverpool’s key players form the spine of our Gameweek 31 Scout Picks.

Following David, Neale, Tom and Andy‘s Scout Squad submissions, we have chosen a starting XI of our best players for the next round of action.

This week we line up in the traditional 3-4-3 formation and come in at £82.1m, £0.9m inside our budget of £83.0m.

Goalkeeper

Bernd Leno (£5.0m) is our representative from the Arsenal defence in Gameweek 31 ahead of a trip to Sheffield United. The Blades have scored 10 goals at home this season, only West Bromwich Albion and Fulham (nine) mustering fewer at their own grounds.

Defenders

From a Fantasy perspective, Trent Alexander-Arnold (£7.3m) looks set to offer points potential for the 2020/21 run-in. He has produced 5.6 points per game over the last six matches, a period in which he among the top two defenders for key passes and big chances created.

We believe Chelsea’s 5-2 defeat to West Brom was a blip, a Gameweek 31 trip to Crystal Palace offering César Azpilicueta (£5.9m) and his colleagues a chance for redemption. The Eagles are currently second-bottom of the Premier League for shots on target over the last six, while Azpilicueta remains the most nailed-on starter in the Chelsea defence outside of goalkeeper Edouard Mendy.

Only Sheffield United and Fulham offer a lower goal conversion rate over their last six matches than Newcastle. That could be good news for value defender Matt Lowton (£4.4m), who is joint-top for big chances created among defenders over the same period.

Midfielders

Only two FPL midfielders have registered more shots in the box than Mohamed Salah (£12.4m) over the last six matches. The Egyptian also ranks joint-top among players in his position for big chances.

Raheem Sterling (£11.3m) is our chosen representative from the Manchester City attack as they prepare for a potentially end-to-end meeting with Leeds. Rests against Leicester and Borussia Dortmund suggest the England international will feature on Saturday afternoon and, if he lines up on the left-hand side of a front-three, he will enjoy a decent match-up. Leeds have conceded 20 chances down their right-hand side since Gameweek 25, more than through the middle or left.

Diogo Jota (£6.9m) has hit the ground running since his return from injury. The former Wolves man has produced three goals in his last two matches and is offering the sort of form that arguably makes him undroppable for Jürgen Klopp. Still, even if he does find himself on the bench, the fact that he has been involved in 50% of his team’s league goals scored when on the pitch this season shows that even a substitute’s appearance can be fruitful, just as it was against Arsenal last time out.

Sheffield United still have the worst figure for expected goals conceded (xGC) over the last six matches, suggesting Arsenal’s attackers can enjoy their trip north on Sunday evening. During the same period, Bukayo Saka (£5.2m) ranks joint-second among Mikel Arteta’s charges for shots in the box.

Forwards

While a Gameweek 31 meeting with Manchester United is hardly an appealing fixture, there is no ruling out Harry Kane (£11.7m) recording an attacking return on Sunday afternoon. He has two double-digit hauls across his last four matches from a total of five goals and two assists.

Chris Wood (£6.2m) faces a Newcastle defence that has conceded at least twice in nine of their last 13 Premier League matches and has good form of his own to bring into Sunday’s Turf Moor clash. Over his last six matches, he ranks second in the whole division for shots on target, netting in each of his last three.

Without Declan Rice, West Ham conceded the second-highest number of shots in the box of any team in Gameweek 30. Kelechi Iheanacho (£5.8m) could take advantage of that on Sunday afternoon having supplied at least one goal in three of his last four starts.

Substitutes

• Edouard Mendy (£5.2m)
• Ben Mee (£4.9m)
• Rob Holding (£4.2m)
• Pedro Neto (£5.7m)

THE CAPTAIN

We choose the Scout Picks captain using a four-way vote between our Scout Squad pundits.

Because we use Fantasy Football Scout data so heavily in this process, the skipper we choose each Gameweek is known only to those with a valid Fantasy Football Scout subscription and revealed to the public only when the deadline has passed.

Here’s how we voted for Gameweek 31:

THE COMMUNITY CHAMPION

Each week, one of the Fantasy Football Scout community takes on the Scout Picks by pitting their chosen XI against ours.

The Community Member who beats our team by the largest margin will win a £100 Amazon Voucher and a place in our Moderators and Contributors League for the following season.

Peteski29 takes on the Scout Picks in Gameweek 31 going with a 3-5-2 line-up of Leno; Alexander-Arnold, Alonso, Rüdiger; Salah (c), Sterling (vc), Mount, Jota, Neto; Kane, Vydra.

AA33 is the current leader, defeating the Scout Picks by a 53-point margin in Gameweek 2.