Sky Sports Fantasy Football Transfer Tips: Arsenal players a must

Dwight McNeil and Jamie Vardy worth consideration

By Dan Cox

Thursday 4 April 2019 17:47, UK

Former Sky Sports Fantasy Football champion Dan Cox highlights some key players for you to consider for your Fantasy XI this week.

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It is another weekend that is not quite as straightforward as it seems. There are six Premier League games, with the FA Cup semi-finals taking place too. Those eight games are spread out over four days, and the game week also includes three solo game days, so a player from certain teams is a must to cover the captaincy requirements.

The action starts on Friday, live on Sky Sports, as Liverpool travel to St Mary's Stadium. Sadio Mane and Mohamed Salah would be the obvious choices for me. Most people probably already own a Liverpool defender or Alisson - so, in my opinion, they would be suitable for captaincy choices.

Sadio Mane - £11m

In particular, though, Sadio Mane (£11m) would be my choice for captaincy. With 17 goals and three assists this season, the Senegalese international is outshining Salah, and is valued at almost £2m less - he has just 10 points fewer than Salah too.

Mane currently finds himself in 24.56 per cent of teams, and his stock is consistently rising. With five goals, one assist, and three MOTMs in the six games since the Overhaul, there are plenty of reasons why Mane's ownership is on the up.

Saturday is a bit trickier to navigate. There are just three fixtures, as Bournemouth face Burnley, Huddersfield welcome Leicester, and Crystal Palace travel to Newcastle.

Harry Maguire, at 17.16 per cent, is the most owned player out of the teams in action, followed closely by Patrick van Aanholt, James Maddison, and Aaron Wan-Bissaka who boast similar percentages. My choice of captain for that day, however, is a player in just 2.59 per cent of Fantasy Football teams.

Jamie Vardy - £11.5m

Jamie Vardy (£11.5m) has gone a bit under the radar this term. The Leicester striker has been directly involved in 17 goals through 13 strikes and four assists, so it is quite surprising to see him in only a few teams.

With a trip to already relegated Huddersfield on Saturday, Vardy could heap more misery on them and add to his tally of 129 points. If you bring in Vardy now, it also covers you for the solo game day on April 12 when Leicester face Newcastle.

Dwight McNeil - £5.4m

Another player that has been doing well, especially considering his impressively low price tag, is Dwight McNeil (£5.4m). The Burnley winger has scored twice and assisted once in the six games since the Overhaul.

That is 26 points in six games, an average of 4.3 points per game. Looking at his points per million per game (PPMG), he boasts a figure of 0.80 - when you consider Mohamed Salah's PPMG is 0.48, you will realise how valuable a pick McNeil is. He is in just 0.6 per cent of teams, so he really is a differential.

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang - £12.5m or Alexandre Lacazette - £11.4m

Onto Sunday - and the only game of the day is Everton against Arsenal at Goodison Park. It is live on Sky Sports, and ideally you will already own an Arsenal asset; if not, I would be looking at bringing in one of Unai Emery's men. The good thing is that you will be able to check the line ups before hitting the confirm button for potential transfers or captains.

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (£12.5m) and Alexandre Lacazette (£11.4m) are the stand-out choices, yet it would be good to check if either is starting before bringing them in.

Sead Kolasinac - £8.3m

With Arsenal's solo game days in the weeks ahead, you will definitely need some Arsenal coverage. If you aren't tempted by either of the forward pairing, then maybe Sead Kolasinac (£8.3m) is worth a look. The defender is on 87 points for the season and in just 0.8 per cent of teams, but he's a pretty regular fixture in Unai Emery's side, and one that will cover those vital captaincy days.

Eden Hazard - £11.8m

The week's action concludes on Monday night as Chelsea face West Ham at Stamford Bridge. The stand-out choice here would probably be Eden Hazard (£11.8m). The Belgian is the top-point scoring midfielder with 210 points from 13 goals and 11 assists.

However, with just two goals and two assists in his last six games, he is due a large haul. Present in 23.69 per cent of teams, it means that if the Belgian does have a good night, anyone without him in their side is facing a drop down the leaderboard.

If you have any dilemmas or questions, ask Dan on Twitter - @dancox82