Hello everybody and welcome to my all new fantasy football article: Under the Radar. The title explains a lot really, but I’ll run through it nevertheless. In the build-up to each and every Fantasy Premier League (FPL) game-week I’ll by providing analysis of TWO differential picks that COULD help your squad fly up the rankings. I’ll be ensuring that each player I choose is selected by 10% of users or less across the entire globe. When deciding upon my choices I’ll be taking into account, form, playing time, points per game and of course the Holy Grail of FPL: the fixture list.
So now that’s all cleared up let’s begin!
Enner Valencia
My first pick for game-week twelve is the Ecuadorian striker of West Ham United. A selected by percentage (SBP) of just 1.8, YES 1.8, hangs around the young forward which means a high scoring week will fly any owners up the rankings. A great start to the season for the Hammers sees them sitting in 4th place after 11 games have been played. A 0-0 draw was all they could manage at home to Villa but this week they face a trip to Goodison. At first glance this may seem like a huge disadvantage for any Valencia owners, however, Everton’s back line is looking a little… shall we say damaged? Yes damaged, after this international break. A ‘grade one’ hamstring injury suffered by star man and high-flyer Leighton Baines means it is very possible that he will miss out on the tie, whilst centre-half Phil Jagielka is also suffering with a leg injury that could also see him side-lined at the weekend. So with this in mind I see no reason why you shouldn’t gamble on Valencia, these defensive problems could prove costly for Roberto Martinez’ men and I wouldn’t doubt an away win. Costing just £7.0M this super differential has the capability of bagging some serious points over the coming weeks. 24 points in 4 weeks is an average of six which is not bad at all for a below average priced striker. A trip to Everton, a home tie against Newcastle and West Bromwich Albion away are the Hammers’ three upcoming League fixtures. Taking everything discussed into account I see no reason why you wouldn’t give Valencia a chance, especially if you’re looking for a hidden gem to push you up your mini leagues or the overall world rankings.
Mohamed Diame
An unorthodox choice this one, but it was based on a spur of the moment kind of thing. The main reason for this choice was Hull City’s fixture, a home tie against Tottenham Hotspur. Despite the fact that I myself am a Spurs fan, I really think this is an opportunity for Hull to capitalize on Spurs’ extremely poor form. Diame has been a regular scorer for Hull since his arrival and has made a great impact from the centre of the park. I have noticed recently that my beloved Spurs are exceptionally weak when it comes to stopping players running straight through our midfield and defence, so with this in mind it might be worth having a punt on Diame, a £5.6M midfielder who loves to get forward. Only selected by 4.5% of players means ‘Mo’ will be a great differential this week and one who could really make a difference.
So that’s all for this week guys, I hope you enjoyed the first edition of Differential Picks. Feel free to follow my twitter @DanRahilly and hit me up with any questions you may have. Also remember to check out all of the other FPLUpdates articles on the website. Good luck for game-week 12 and goodbye!
