Premier League action continued with more key players struggling for form, while João Pedro is out for a few weeks with a thigh injury suffered before Chelsea’s London derby defeat by Tottenham. Bukayo Saka is another big name out injured.

Carabao Cup action in midweek offered the opportunity for the bigger clubs to rotate, so some top names should be fresh this weekend.

Defenders

Gabriel Magalhaes (Arsenal, £7.9 million v Liverpool, Sunday)

The Brazilian has been an ever-present domestically for the Gunners and scored his first goal of the year in their shutout win over Everton as well as picking up a fifth clean sheet of the year. Gabriel had his first double-digit Fantasy haul of the campaign, marking it with 14 defensive contributions to gain the allotted two extra points. His multiple routes to points brings major upside as the Gunners have a tricky period.

James Hill (Bournemouth, £5.5m v Leeds United, Saturday)

Bournemouth have kept their first two shutouts of the league season in consecutive weeks and destroyed European giants AC Milan last week on their home debut in continental competition. Young centre back Hill has been important to that cause and has the most defensive contributions at this position. Upcoming fixtures against Ipswich and Fulham bring further Fantasy upside in addition to the possible attacking return from a set-piece.

Ronald Araujo (Liverpool, £5.4m v Arsenal, Sunday)

New Liverpool recruit Ronald Araujo has a few tricky fixtures coming up, namely Arsenal and Manchester United, both at home. However, the Uruguayan stands a chance of three more clean sheets in their visits to Crystal Palace and Everton and he is among the most popular defenders coming into this round.

Midfielders

Alex Iwobi (Fulham, £5.4m v Aston Villa, Saturday)

Iwobi may only have one goal involvement to his name so far but his influence on games have gained him six total bonus points, joint-fourth among midfielders. The attacking returns should accrue in fixtures against Newcastle and Bournemouth at home, with the Nigerian to create chances.

Iliman Ndiaye (Manchester City, £5.8m v Brighton, Saturday)

Senegal star Ndiaye has profited from the challenging form of regular starter Cherki, who is the most transferred out asset. His four assists are tied for the second-most at this position, but he has yet to find the net. Those goals could come in fixtures against Forest, Fulham and Leeds United either side of the international break.

Yasin Ayari (Brighton, £5.4m v Manchester City, Saturday)

Ayari may have only two goals and one assist so far, but he is among the most valuable midfielders in the division and faces promoted Hull and a struggling Manchester City midfield in coming games.

Forwards

Alexander Isak (Liverpool, £9.1m v Arsenal, Sunday)

Liverpool may have a tricky few games coming up but Isak is second-top scorer and has the joint-most bonus points among attackers (14 with Haaland), but this is a long-term option in case Joao Pedro misses multiple games.

Omar Marmoush (Tottenham Hotspur, £7m v Crystal Palace, Saturday)

Spurs stunned rivals Chelsea last weekend and the Egyptian scored his first goal at home to Coventry in the previous match. His form, though still not at its best, is a decent gamble for strong fixtures in the next five, including Ipswich and Fulham at home.

Nicolas Jackson (Aston Villa, £6.8m v Fulham, Saturday)

Jackson is probably in the form of his career and Villa have the third-easiest matches in the next five games (2.8, according to fixture difficulty rating), with three of those against teams in the bottom eight. His conversion rate (21.1 per cent) is third-best among the suggested attackers.

The verdict

European and domestic cup action across the next two weeks will help Fantasy managers make educated decisions for their teams, with costly options like Bruno Fernandes and Cole Palmer losing their attacking panache.

Budget players like Marcus Tavernier and Iwobi are more suited and confident in the current period, with less-favoured names taking the shine from the bigger faces.

Please remember the time difference change this week before our clocks go back on Sunday, so the deadline for team submissions is Saturday at 8am.