Fantasy Sports
Kieran Darcy, ESPN Staff Writer 5y

Breaking down this weekend's surprising Premier League fantasy top scorers

Fantasy Soccer, Fantasy

Liverpool's 3-1 thumping of Manchester United on Sunday -- in which they outshot their archrivals 36-6 -- will be what most people remember from matchweek 17.

But there were some individual performances worth noting, with the top of the fantasy points leaderboard once again featuring some relatively unheralded players.

Four players scored braces this past weekend, and none of them is among the usual suspects. Let's take a look at these guys from a fantasy perspective.

Gabriel Jesus, Manchester City: Jesus finally broke out of his slump, scoring the first two goals in Manchester City's 3-1 victory over Everton on Saturday. They were excellent finishes -- one with his left foot, the other with his head -- and were his first goals in the league since matchweek 2, when he scored his only other one.

Here's the big problem, for Jesus himself at least: Sergio Aguero is healthy again.

Aguero was on the bench for the Everton game. He was an unused substitute, but that's still an indication Aguero is ready for action. It will be very interesting to see who starts when Manchester City play Leicester City in the Carabao Cup quarterfinals Tuesday.

The truth is, given Pep Guardiola's penchant for rotation, both Aguero and Jesus will likely get starts during the Premier League's jam-packed schedule around Christmas and New Year's -- in the two weeks between Friday and Jan. 3, each team will play four games.

In a single matchweek, like this coming weekend when Manchester City host Crystal Palace, I'd strongly consider picking either Aguero or Jesus if they start -- particularly Aguero, whose form has been much better this season, with eight goals (and four assists) in 13 games.

But in a double matchweek, like the one that will include both Manchester City's league game at Leicester City on Dec. 26 and their game at Southampton on Dec. 30, I'd probably stay away from both Aguero and Jesus, afraid that they'd only start one game apiece.

Henrikh Mkhitaryan, Arsenal: Mkhitaryan scored both of Arsenal's goals in their 3-2 loss at Southampton on Sunday. The first one was a nice header, but the second benefited from a significant deflection.

Furthermore, those were just his third and fourth league goals of the season. Mkhitaryan also scored one off the bench against Wolves on Nov. 11, and one against Chelsea way back in matchweek 2.

Arsenal had been playing very well coming in, unbeaten in 22 consecutive games in all competitions. But Mkhitaryan hadn't even started the previous two league games, and was taken off at halftime in the game before that.

Mkhitaryan has started only nine league games so far this season, and has played the full 90 minutes only three times since the end of August. It looks like new manager Unai Emery doesn't trust him, and therefore neither do I.

Xherdan Shaqiri, Liverpool: Shaqiri scored the game winner, and then game sealer, against Manchester United on Sunday. He popped up in the right places at the right times, but both of Shaqiri's goals were aided by deflections.

Still, Shaqiri is up to five goals on the season. He also scored one against Burnley on Dec. 5, and all five goals have come within the past two months.

Shaqiri has started only seven league games this season. Against Manchester United, he came on in only the 70th minute. But if Shaqiri starts, and particularly if he's positioned as a member of Liverpool's front three, I think he's a viable fantasy option.

He'd probably be categorized as a Tier 1 midfielder, alongside teammate Sadio Mane, and I'd seriously consider selecting Shaqiri over Mane if both were starting. Mane did score the other goal against Manchester United, but he's only scored two more goals than Shaqiri on the season, despite making twice as many starts.

Mane has seven goals (and one assist) in 1,261 Premier League minutes this season, or a goal every 180 minutes played. Shaqiri has five goals (and two assists) in 626 minutes, or a goal every 125 minutes played. And Shaqiri has 14 chances created, just three fewer than Mane, despite playing less than half as many minutes.

I think they're pretty similar in terms of being goal scorers, but Shaqiri is definitely better than Mane when it comes to creating for others.

Danny Ings, Southampton: Ings scored Southampton's first two goals in their victory over Arsenal -- two clean headers -- in his first action since Nov. 10 due to injury.

In doing so, Ings has immediately injected himself back into the conversation regarding the top options at Tier 2 forward.

Ings now has six goals and one assist this season, despite making only 12 appearances and 11 starts. And he has still taken 36 shots, with 16 of them on target, ranking him in the top 15 in the league in both categories despite the relative lack of playing time.

New manager Ralph Hasenhuttl, in only his second game in charge, plugged Ings right back into the starting lineup as soon as he was healthy, and Ings obviously played a big part in a huge victory. Up next is a game at 19th-place Huddersfield Town on Saturday, and Ings will certainly be given serious consideration for my fantasy team.

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