Fantasy Premier League 2015-16: Players to pick for gameweek 31

ByAkilesh Radhakrishnan, SportsCafe Editor

03/17/2016

The Foxes continued their incredible assault at the title with a 1-0 victory in Gameweek 30 over Benitez's Newcastle, sealed by a fantastic bicycle kick by Okazaki. The rich array of City's attackers put in a dire performance against a defensively frail Norwich side to fall further away from the top, but Tottenham kept in touch by putting away Villa as expected.

As for the teams that didn't play in GW30, Everton and Watford progressed to Wembley at the expense of Chelsea and Arsenal. Palace ended Reading's FA Cup dream, while Man Utd and West Ham will lock horns in a replay to decide who gets the last semifinal spot.

The remainder of the run-in will see a number of double gameweeks with potential to use any remaining wildcards and chips. If you played your wildcard in an attempt to salvage your team for GW30, you will need to make some wise choices starting now to ensure your team is in prime position to benefit.

Gameweek 31 fixtures

Everton vs Arsenal Chelsea vs West Ham Crystal Palace vs Leicester Watford vs Stoke West Brom vs Norwich Swansea vs Aston Villa Newcastle vs Sunderland Southampton vs Liverpool Man City vs Man Utd Spurs vs Bournemouth

Player Picks

Forwards

Kane (10.3) - A brace against Villa took Harry Kane to the top of the Premiership's scoring charts, and the Englishman's stock has never been higher. Ensure you are an owner as Bournemouth pull up to White Hart Lane.

Vardy (7.9) - Palace are yet to keep a Premier League clean sheet this year, so who better to pick than Leicester's chief hitman, who is looking to win back his place as the league's top scorer? The only thing diminishing his potential is the single GW34.

Midfielders

Sigurdsson (7.3) - Having notched up 7 goals and an assist since the turn of the year, there is no end in sight to Sigurdsson's remarkable 2016 form, The Icelander is a must-have until he goes cold.

Ozil (9.8) - The German has been Arsenal's shining light this season, and you have to get him at this point keeping in mind Arsenal's double GW34 as well as the fixtures that precede it.

(Read how Arsenal blew up a golden opportunity at the Camp Nou)

Firmino (8.2) - Roberto Firmino has tried to live up to the comparison to Luis Suarez by delivering at 10 points per game for the last 6 active gameweeks regardless of the nature of the opposition. He's another who plays twice in round 34. Get in.

Wijnaldum (6.8) - Despite being pretty much useless away from home, Wijnaldum is still among the top 10 midfielders. With games against Sunderland and Norwich to come, this is a gamble that could pay off.

Defenders

Bellerin (6.2) - Bellerin loves to contribute at both ends of the pitch, with 12 clean sheets and 4 assists through the season making him the 4th most valuable defender. Well worth the price.

Wimmer (4.6) - With 3 shutouts in 7 games since his involvement became necessary for Tottenham, the Austrian centre back has proved to be a bargain buy, and is worth considering for some time yet.

Dawson (5.1) - Craig Dawson has been a trusty selection, scoring beyond appearance points on 12 occasions this season. The Baggies have back-to-back matches against Norwich and Sunderland, making the full back an attractive option.

Keepers

Fabianksi (4.7) - There is clean sheet potential in Swansea's next pair of games as they host Villa and visit Stoke, making Fabianski a more than useful pick in the short term.

Elliot (4.0) - Elliot could prove to be a bargain buy as Benitez looks to rescue Newcastle's season starting with a winnable pair of games.

The Blogger's Team

This article was also published on the writer's personal blog.