Fantasy football scout tips gameweek 10: Alexis Sanchez, Richarlison, Mohamed Salah and more

The first rule of fantasy football management is selecting players who are certain to start and many were cruelly reminded of that last week when Pep Guardiola opted to leave Raheem Sterling and Gabriel Jesus on the bench.

The Manchester City pair were tipped by many going into gameweek 9 but picked up one measly point between them, with Jesus making a 14-minute cameo from the bench in the 3-0 win over Burnley.

With that in mind, our six selections this week are - we think - nailed-on starters and each stand a decent chance of returns this weekend. How many of them are in your team?

Alexis Sanchez

It has been a long time coming but finally, the highest-scoring player in the game last year is in fantasy contention again.

Alexis Sanchez scored his first Premier League goal of the season last week in the 5-2 demolition of Everton and has Swansea City visiting the Emirates this weekend.

His price tag, a hefty £11.8m, will be too much for many but if you are able to move funds around and bring him in, a big score combined with his relatively low ownership could see you shoot up the rankings.

Richarlison

Still priced at just £6.3m, Watford’s Richarlison is marking himself out as our best value midfield option this season.

The Brazilian should have done better than returning just one assist at Stamford Bridge last week, but it was his second in two games and he is not afraid of shooting at goal either.

His next four games should tell us much. Marco Silva’s side entertain a struggling Stoke City side at Vicarage Road this weekend, with Everton (A), West Ham United (H) and Newcastle United (A) to follow.

Shane Duffy

Chris Hughton’s organised Brighton and Hove Albion have shown an ability to keep things tight and that is partly thanks to Shane Duffy, nailed on in the centre of their defence.

The Seagulls have a smattering of favourable fixtures over the next few weeks, broken up by meetings with some of the big boys, but at £4.5m, Duffy offers a rotatable option at the back and carries some goal threat.

First up at the Amex is Southampton, whose attack has often been wasteful in front of goal so far this season. Brighton have the ability to stifle them and pick up what would be a third clean sheet in their last five.

Nicolas Otamendi

City may be scoring for fun but with all the uncertainty surrounding Guardiola’s attack, it seems wise to invest at the other end of the pitch.

Nicolas Otamendi has been on the radars of many a manager in recent weeks and his price has steadily climbed to £5.9m. Still, it is not too late to invest, even after his goal against Burnley last week.

The Argentine has started all of City’s league games so far this season, so there seems little risk of rotation, and a trip to goal-shy West Bromwich Albion on Saturday is not exactly off-putting.

Jamie Vardy

It is slim pickings up front this week, with Harry Kane and Romelu Lukaku facing each other at Old Trafford and the difficulty in second-guessing who will start in City’s blistering forward line.

All things considered, we are putting our faith in Jamie Vardy again, but approach with caution. The Leicester City striker has let us down recently, blanking against Bournemouth, West Bromwich and Swansea.

Vardy comes up against something of an unknown quantity in David Unsworth’s Everton and is, of course, now playing under a new manager of his own, Claude Puel. Still, given just how poor Everton have looked in recent weeks, he should cause them problems at the King Power.

Mohamed Salah

For those without Arsenal attacking assets, Liverpool might offer the best captaincy options this week, with David Wagner’s Huddersfield Town arriving at Anfield.

Roberto Firmino is in something of a funk and Sadio Mané remains out injured, which leaves us with Philippe Coutinho and Mohamed Salah to consider.

Our vote goes to Salah, just. The Egyptian promises more shots in dangerous areas and provided attacking returns with a goal in last week’s defeat at Tottenham.