Scout's Picks: RSL Fantasy Matchweek 2

In this new series, RSL Fantasy expert Ghenwa Al Zain, who picked up SAR 100,000 as third-place winner in the 2023-24 season, offers her picks ahead of every matchweek to help fellow RSL managers make up their minds before the deadline.

Goalkeeper:

In a difficult away fixture at Al Shabab, Marek Rodak (SAR 5.0M) stood out on his RSL debut, not only keeping a clean sheet, but also picking up two additional save points to finish Matchweek 1 as the top-scoring goalkeeper.

A home encounter against an Al Okhdood side who failed to get a single shot on target in their opening match against Al Hilal provides an excellent prospect for a second clean sheet in a row for the Al Ettifaq goalkeeper.

Defenders:

The one premium defender slot goes to Merih Demiral (SAR 5.0M), the Al Ahli centre-back who returned a clean sheet and one bonus point on the opening matchweek against Al Orobah. His upcoming fixture is against a Al Fateh side unable to score in the opening round and have proved susceptible to conceding from crosses - two of Al Qadsiah’s goals came from those.

Demiral is an adept headerer of the ball as he has shown during the most recent European Championship in Germany. There is potential for returns at both ends of the pitch for the Turkish international.

Emerging as an interesting value option in defence, Al Qadsiah right-back Mohammed Abu Al Shamat (SAR 4.5M) produced a tasty assist to set up Julian Quinones for the third goal in that 3-0 win over Al Fateh, while also securing a clean sheet to walk away from Matchweek 1 as the highest-performing defender with 11 points.

Rounding up the scout’s selections in defence is another right-back. Saeed Al Muwallad (SAR 5.0M) might not have produced returns in Matchweek 1, but the Al Wehda man has a favourable fixture up next at home against newly promoted Al Orobah and he could well be primed for both defensive and attacking returns.

Midfielders:

While Franck Kessie (SAR 9.5M) and Riyad Mahrez (SAR 10.5M) are solid options, Gabri Veiga (SAR 6.5M) offers a budget route into the Al Ahli midfield ahead of their journey to Al Fateh.

Meanwhile, Al Riyadh’s new-look midfield and attack produced some entertaining football on the opening day and delivered three goals against Al Wehda. At its heart is Toze (SAR 7.0), the playmaker who was an RSL Fantasy favourite in 2023-24 while at Al Hazem and has already got off to a positive start with an assist on his Al Riyadh debut. He will also be on set-piece duty, promising a consistent attacking threat.

With Malcom having missed the opening match and remaining a doubt for the second, Sergej Milinkovic-Savic (SAR 10.0M) stands out as a key attacking weapon in Al Hilal’s midfield. He opened his account for the season with a fine free-kick against Al Okhdood and will look to keep the momentum against Damac.

The final midfield spot goes to Al Ittihad’s Houssem Aouar (SAR 6.5M) after the Algerian playmaker netted his side’s winner deep in added-time against Al Kholood and was involved in all the team's attacking play. While the game against Al Taawoun will represent a difficult challenge, the scout is keeping faith in Aouar to deliver once more.

Forwards:

In attack, the scout is also keeping faith in RSL Fantasy’s top two assets. Cristiano Ronaldo (SAR 14.5M) and Aleksandar Mitrovic (SAR 12.5M), to deliver points against Al Fayha away and Damac at home, respectively. Filling the third attack spot is Al Wehda’s Australian forward Craig Goodwin despite a price rise to (SAR 7.1M) courtesy of his two goals and assist in the opening round.

Also keep an eye on:

While not quite making the scout’s XI, SAR 9.0M-rated forwards Abderrazak Hamdallah and  Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang are ones to keep an eye on ahead of their respective club debuts, while in goal, last year’s top two Yassine Bono and Edouard Mendy remain solid points, with both priced at SAR 5.5M.