The Scout looks at players with favourable initial fixtures for Fantasy Premier League managers to consider in their squads.
Wilfried Zaha (CRY) £7.0m
The Crystal Palace star can be a big factor in the early plans of FPL managers.
Over his first eight fixtures, Zaha's Eagles face only one team who finished in the top nine last season.
And that match against Liverpool in Gameweek 2 is at Selhurst Park, where Zaha has enjoyed matches against Liverpool.
He has supplied an assist in each of his last two home meetings with the Reds.
Palace's first eight matches
| GW | Opponent | Venue |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Fulham | A |
| 2 | Liverpool | H |
| 3 | Watford | A |
| 4 | Southampton | H |
| 5 | Huddersfield | A |
| 6 | Newcastle | H |
| 7 | AFC Bournemouth | A |
| 8 | Wolves | H |
Despite missing nine matches through injury, Zaha supplied nine goals, seven assists and 136 FPL points last season.
His potential was boosted by a move up front in Gameweek 30.
Roy Hodgson's decision to play him as a striker helped Zaha get five goals and four assists from his final nine Gameweek appearances.
That included double-figure FPL points hauls in each of his last three home matches.
Indeed, when playing as a striker Zaha averaged 7.1 points per match in 2017/18.
Price point
Luka Milivojevic was the most-bought Crystal Palace player in FPL last season. The Serb was brought in by 1.15million managers.
He scored seven penalties and was the third-best midfielder in terms of points-per-million value.
But having started at £5.0m Milivojevic is expected to rise in price for 2018/19.
In contrast, Zaha is likely to be given a similar starting price of £7.0m.
If he continues as an FPL midfielder playing as a forward, he can become the standout contender for the Eagles’ excellent opening run.
Update: Zaha has since been reclassified as a forward for 2018/19
Also in this series
Part 1: FPL early ones to watch: Begovic
Part 2: FPL early ones to watch: Mee
Part 3: FPL early ones to watch: Coleman
Part 4: FPL early ones to watch: Van Aanholt
Part 5: FPL early ones to watch: Otamendi
Part 6: FPL early ones to watch: Sane
Part 7: FPL early ones to watch: Hazard
Part 8: FPL early ones to watch: Gudmundsson
Part 9: FPL early ones to watch: Sigurdsson
Part 11: FPL early ones to watch: Firmino
Part 12: FPL early ones to watch: King
