Saints’ playmaker added to FPL squad ahead of Gameweek 2

The new Fantasy Premier League season is up and running and it was certainly an eventful start.

With Arsenal’s Alex Iwobi failing to feature for the Gunners against Leicester City, it did appear that our GW1 gamble had backfired. However, we were more than happy to be on the receiving end of a stroke of good fortune, as Ahmed Hegazi, who had done enough in pre-season to not only make our squad but also earn that coveted first substitute spot, admirably filled the void left by the Nigerian youngster. Not only did he score on his debut for the Baggies but he also managed to keep a clean sheet in the process!

It seems unlikely that Iwobi will see much playing time this weekend either, so on top of Cesc Fabregas’ dismissal, it leaves us somewhat short of numbers in midfield. We could take a chance on Tom Carroll, our 5th midfielder, but we’re not expecting him to get too much joy out of the Swans’ home fixture with Manchester United. It is also worth pointing out that Iwobi has dropped in value, meaning that we would be forced to look in the £5m bracket, should we opt for a like for like replacement.

Another alternative would be to stack our defence and try to ride out the storm but our preferred option is to discard of Chelsea’s suspended playmaker. So, who will we bring in?

Well, doubling up in offensive areas on any side that goes 545 minutes without scoring at home might seem unthinkable but there are a few positives to take from the new look Southampton side under Mauricio Pellegrino. The Argentinian had promised that a brand of high intensity, attacking football would be on display at St Mary’s and even though the Saints only managed to get 2 of their efforts on target in GW1, they did manage a week-high 29 shots in total, suggesting that their new manager is intent on sticking to his promise.

Now Dušan Tadić is the type of player that often divides opinion and he even had the indignity of being recognised as the Premier League’s most wasteful finisher in a report that appeared on the BBC Sport website. However, he could be one to thrive under a new coach, especially with a favourable run of fixtures that sees the Saints facing West Ham United, Huddersfield Town, Watford and Crystal Palace in their next 4 matches, So, we’re going to take a chance on the Serbian international who clearly has a point to prove in the hope that he can rediscover the sort of form that enabled him to score 7 times while registering 12 assists in the 2015/16 Premier League season.

Romelu Lukaku keeps the armband for GW2 and we have no fears about his ability to cut it away from home.

We have opted for a formation change though, with last week’s substitute Hegazi slotting into the back 4 in a 4-3-3 set-up. However, news that Kevin Wimmer is close to joining the Albion does not augur well for the Egyptian’s long term fantasy prospects!

It promises to be another fascinating Fantasy Premier League weekend but will the punt on Tadić pay-off?