The three players you need in your Fantasy Football team this week

Sergio's time to shine.

J-League

After one of the worst point-scoring weeks in the history of the J-League (and the history of Fantasy Football we’d wager), Ciaran Tracey’s Bacuna Mata-ta remain top, with a healthy 56-point lead over the leaders of the chasing pack. The man closest to Tracey is Pairic Sheehan, whose charges jumped up the leaderboard in midweek and hold a slender one-point lead over Keith O’Brien’s Hon d’Cabayes in third. Allan Johnson’s Comeback Kids are a further point back in fourth place, with Eoghan O’Mahony’s Cech Mate hanging on to a top five spot despite scoring only 32 points.

J-League Top 5

Gameweek 22

Liverpool’s clash with Manchester United is the standout tie of the weekend and after six goals between them in midweek, you might think it will be another goal-fest at Anfield. We have a sneaking suspicion that the managers, particularly Louis van Gaal, might play it extra conservative as a result, but if form is anything to go by, Roberto Firmino and Wayne Rooney (three goals, an assist and 24 points in his last two games) are looking particularly hot right now. If you, like us, think that Manchester City won’t go goalless two home games in a row, then a Sergio Aguero or a Kevin de Bruyne might take your fancy ahead of their meeting with Crystal Palace at the Etihad. Sunderland, meanwhile, may be coming off the back of a good win over Swansea, but we think Harry Kane could have a lot of fun against a very creaky defence as Spurs seek to bounce straight back from defeat to Leicester at White Hart Lane. Speaking of Leicester, Robert Huth’s late winner against Spurs was their first league goal in four games, so they may be showing signs of slowing down. With that in mind, it’s a good job for them they’re playing bottom side Aston Villa this weekend.

This week’s picks

Safe bet: Harry Kane (£9.9 million). He’s gone three league games on the bounce without scoring but we think he’ll put an end to that against Sunderland in the early kick-off on Saturday. Dark horse: Willian (£7.1 million). Chelsea’s best player this season, there’s only been one game in the last five where he hasn’t delivered either a goal or an assist. In that time he’s grabbed a goal, five assists and four bonus points for himself, all of which has added up to an impressive 36 points. Captain’s choice: Sergio Aguero (£13.2 million). Mark our words, the best striker in the league is going to go on a hot streak soon as long as he can stay clear of injury, which is by no means a guarantee given his history. The Crystal Palace defence will have a handful keeping him out on Saturday afternoon.

Potential to use chips

Sergio Aguero scored five goals in 20 minutes in a home match against Newcastle earlier this season. If you think he has another performance like that in him against a Crystal Palace side that have been decent on the road in this campaign, then give him the triple captaincy. Otherwise, we’d agree with this guy. What we would consider, however, is pulling out your wildcard, one of which everyone has at their disposal in January, even if you used one before Christmas. With Aguero back fit and some early pace-setters (Vardy, Mahrez, Ozil et al) beginning to fade, it might be time to freshen up that squad.