Eberechi Eze, Arsenal, £7.7m – Chelsea (a)
Why not ride the hot hand of London derby hero Eze?
His hat-trick against Spurs was not out of the blue and he makes this team of the week before because of his underlying statistics.
With 31 shots in 11 starts, Eze leads the way among Arsenal players. He had six in the derby alone.
The only note of caution is that he is yet to have a ‘big chance’ this season. While he has 21 shots in the box, they tend to be from near the edge of the area. His goals against Spurs were all from about 15-16 yards out.
But when you are that good shooting from range, is it really an issue?
Morgan Gibbs-White, Nottingham Forest, £7.3m – Brighton (h)
Speaking of hot streaks, Gibbs-White has three goals in three games for Sean Dyche’s revitalised Forest.
He scored a 10-pointer in this team of the week in his most recent home game against Leeds, so he comes back in.
Forest have a nice fixture run coming up too, with Wolves away next.
Morgan Rogers, Aston Villa, £6.9m – Wolves (h)
It would be negligent not to target Wolves this week – they have lost five in a row and conceded 27 goals in 12 games.
If you are feeling brave then Donyell Malen is Villa’s most explosive midfield option, with the highest expected goals (xG) of 2.08 this season, four big chances (three more than any other midfielder) and three goals.
But his gametime is not guaranteed and Rogers showed with last week’s double at Leeds what a key part of Villa’s attack he is. His goal and assist threat make him an easy choice this week.
Phil Foden, Manchester City, £8m – Leeds (h)
Since his double-digit haul against Manchester United in week four, Foden has only one assist, but that does not tell the full story of some fine performances.
For a start, he has created 20 chances. He has had more shots in that period than any City player except Haaland – 14 – and has an xG of 1.29.
This game against struggling Leeds is surely the moment Foden turns underlying data into returns.
Dango Ouattara, Brentford, £6m – Burnley (h)
Burnley have the leakiest defence in the league away from home and are a team to attack this week.
It is a toss-up between Outarra and Kevin Schade for a midfield spot. Per start, they have almost an identical xG of 0.27 and 0.28.
What swings it Outtara’s way is his 0.88 big chances per 90 minutes compared to Schade’s 0.33.
If you have watched Outarra recently, he always seems to be getting chopped down in the box, so his assist potential is high.
