In a low-scoring gameweek, the Bookies’ Advantage squad managed to put 48 points on the board, slightly higher than the gameweek average of 43. The forwards failed to fire, with captain Sergio Aguero’s 2 point return the cracked jewel in an unpolished crown, so it was upto the defence and midfield to remedy matters. Fortunately, the back line obliged, with Phil Jones and Danilo both scoring 7 points, whilst Thibaut Courtois banked a further 6. Dele Alli (7) also contributed from the middle of the park following his strike against Burnley. With the first international break of the season now behind us, read on as we analyse the clean sheet and anytime goalscorer odds on offer to help you with those all-important transfer, squad selection and captaincy decisions…

Defensive odds

Team Best clean sheet odds Implied chance of a clean sheet Man Utd 2.05 49% Southampton 2.2 45% West Ham 2.38 42% Brighton 2.55 39% Arsenal 2.55 39% Chelsea 2.57 39% Burnley 2.6 38% Tottenham 2.8 36% West Brom 2.88 35% Swansea 2.88 35% Crystal Palace 3.2 31% Man City 3.5 29% Newcastle 3.6 28% Everton 4.2 24% Huddersfield 4.5 22% Leicester 5 20% Watford 5.3 19% Stoke 6.2 16% Liverpool 6.7 15% Bournemouth 11 9%

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A trio of clean sheets to start the new campaign sees Manchester United (49%) top the bookies’ defensive rankings ahead of their Gameweek 4 trip to Stoke. The Potters have managed just 2 goals in their opening 3 games, and with Mourinho’s unit yet to concede, a fourth consecutive shutout could be on the cards. Daley Blind, who chalked up 2 assists for Holland over the international break, makes our starting XI having cemented the left back spot at United.

Southampton (45%) rank second for the gameweek when they host Watford. Mauricio Pellegrino’s men have started life well, defensively at least, under their new coach with 2 clean sheets in 3 outings. Watford, meanwhile, blanked last time out against Brighton, albeit having played the majority of the match with 10 men. Cedric offers attacking threat from the right back position, as well as providing value (£5.0m) and starting security.

West Ham (42%) and Brighton (39%) round off the top four defensive prospects this weekend. It may come as a shock that the bookies have plumped for the worst defence in the division, having conceded 10 goals, but it is the fixture that promotes interest in the Hammers’ back line. A home game, their first of the season, against Huddersfield offers optimism. The Terriers have started their maiden Premier League campaign in fine fettle, but did fail to find the back of the net against Southampton in Gameweek 3. Joe Hart, therefore, offers a mixture of clean sheet and save point potential on Monday night. Brighton, meanwhile, registered their first Premier League shutout at Vicarage Road last Saturday and have the chance to make it two on the bounce when they welcome West Brom to The Amex this weekend. The Baggies have notched a solitary goal in each of their 3 games to date, so a clean sheet for the Seagulls is not out of the question. Shane Duffy is the highest scorer from Chris Houghton’s defense after bagging 3 bonus points last time out, whilst he also scored for the Republic of Ireland over the international break.

On the bench, Rob Elliott (£4.0m – 28%) travels to Swansea, who have failed to score in 2 of their 3 games, on Sunday afternoon as our backup keeper, whilst Stephen Ward (£4.5m – 38%), who scored on the opening day of the season against Chelsea, hosts a goalless Crystal Palace side on Sunday lunchtime. Chancel Mbemba (£4.0m – 28%) bagged 9 points in Gameweek 3 and looks like the only ultra-budget defender who could feature, having started both of the last 2 for the Magpies – although news filtering in suggests he may have picked up a long term injury playing for DR Congo against Tunisia.

Attacking odds

Player Best anytime goalscorer odds Implied chance of scoring Alexandre Lacazette 1.75 57% Alexis Sanchez 1.91 52% Romelu Lukaku 1.98 51% Sergio Aguero 2 50% Gabriel Jesus 2.08 48% Javier Hernandez 2.1 48% Alvaro Morata 2.23 45% Harry Kane 2.3 43% Manolo Gabbiadini 2.5 40% Tammy Abraham 2.75 36% Theo Walcott 2.8 36% Eden Hazard 3 33% Steve Mounie 3 33% Sam Vokes 3.1 32% Christian Benteke 3.2 31% Dwight Gayle 3.2 31% Jermain Defoe 3.2 31% Roberto Firmino 3.25 31% Sadio Mane 3.25 31% Dusan Tadic 3.25 31% Kelechi Iheanacho 3.25 31% Dele Alli 3.3 30% Henrikh Mkhitaryan 3.3 30% Jamie Vardy 3.35 30% Michail Antonio 3.4 29% Glenn Murray 3.4 29% Jay Rodriguez 3.4 29% Mohamed Salah 3.45 29% Jordan Ayew 3.55 28% Salomon Rondon 3.6 28% Nathan Redmond 3.6 28% Andre Ayew 3.6 28% Wayne Rooney 3.6 28% Sandro Ramirez 3.6 28% Aaron Ramsey 3.6 28% Pedro 3.65 27% Kevin de Bruyne 3.7 27% Paul Pogba 3.75 27% Joshua King 3.8 26% Anthony Knockaert 4.33 23% Andre Gray 4.33 23% Richarlison 4.5 22% Thomas Ince 4.5 22% Saido Berahino 4.7 21% Christian Eriksen 4.8 21% Matt Ritchie 5 20% Kevin Mirallas 5 20% Jese Rodriguez 5 20% Riyad Mahrez 5.4 19% Robbie Brady 5.4 19% Christian Atsu 5.75 17% Pascal Gross 6 17% Matt Phillips 6.1 16% Andros Townsend 6.4 16% Xherdan Shaqiri 6.75 15% Aaron Mooy 7.5 13% Ryan Fraser 8.5 12% Tom Carroll 8.5 12% Etienne Capoue 9 11% Jason Puncheon 9 11%

Alexandre Lacazette tops the bookies’ attacking ranks for the first time this season as he prepares to take on Bournemouth at The Emirates on Saturday. The Gunners’ record signing has a 57% chance of scoring according to the odds compilers, with his opening day goal, previous goalscoring history, and the current malaise of his opponents, who have lost their opening trio of matches, all contributing. Having been named on the substitutes bench against Liverpool last time out, and given the crisis Arsenal find themselves in so early in the season, we fully expect Lacazette to be restored to the starting XI this weekend and, as a result, he dons our captains armband for Gameweek 4.

Romelu Lukaku (51%) and Javier Hernandez (48%) complete our front three for this round of fixtures. Lukaku has already scored 3 times for Manchester United in the top flight this term and hit another 4 goals in 2 games for Belgium over the international break. He travels to Stoke for Saturday’s evening kick off. Chicharito, meanwhile, has scored twice in 3 outings for the Hammers, and even though opponents Huddersfield are yet to concede this season, the bookmakers clearly rate his prospects for his first London Stadium appearance.

The bookies also fancy the chances of Manchester City duo Sergio Aguero and Gabriel Jesus, but the pair prove too expensive for our squad this time round and are overlooked as a result.

Eden Hazard (33%) returned from injury over the international break with a goal, an assist, and over 90 minutes of game time across Belgium’s 2 matches. We can expect Antonio Conte to restore his star man to the Blues’ starting lineup this weekend when they travel to The King Power to take on Leicester, against whom Hazard scored last season.

Sadio Mane and Dusan Tadic (both 31%) join the Belgian superstar in the middle of the park for our squad. Mane has found the net in all 3 of Liverpool’s top flight games this term and the Reds kick off Gameweek 4 at The Etihad, where goals are expected to be on the menu. Having kept a clean sheet on the opening day at Brighton, City have since conceded to both Everton and Bournemouth, so Jurgen Klopp’s fearsome attack could well profit once again. Tadic, meanwhile, confirmed himself as Southampton’s first-choice penalty taker (when Charlie Austin, who is currently out of the starting XI, isn’t on the pitch) back in Gameweek 2, when he bagged from the spot against West Ham. During his time on English shores, the Serb has scored twice in 3 appearances against Saturday’s opponents Watford.

Henrikh Mkhitaryan (30%) completes our midfield and starting lineup for the gameweek. The fluid Armenian has produced points for his owners in each appearance so far (5 assists in 3 games) but is yet to find the net, although with United rampant in front of goal at the moment, scoring 10 times in 3 matches, it shouldn’t be too long before a player of his attacking ilk triumphs. A trip to Stoke offers him the chance to reward his owners. Tom Carroll (12%) takes the first spot on our substitutes bench, with a home game against Newcastle and his £4.5m valuation both attractive and crucial for our squad.

The bookies also fancy the chances of Arsenal pair Alexis Sanchez and Theo Walcott, but we overlook them due to sky high pricing and lack of starting security respectively, whilst we give Dele Alli the middle finger as he also weighs too heavily on the budget.

Team of the Week

Good luck with your fantasy weekend!

May the odds be with you🙏

Daniel Victory is a Fantasy football and anytime goalscorer betting enthusiast. Enjoys SSS – statistics, strategising and spreadsheets. Follow his great tips on Twitter.