Welcome to Round 34 of Sofascore’s Fantasy Premier League and as the relegation battle rages on in the domestic top flight, we will be highlighting some of the top players of the clubs that are involved in this relegation dog-fight – clubs such as Tottenham, West Ham, Nottingham Forest and Newcastle United.

This is the time when struggling clubs look to their big game-changing personnel to help lift the club out of their current situation, so without further ado, let’s take a look at some of the high-profile players who are capable of becoming their respective club’s saviours in the next coming weeks – it’s up to you who you choose from our following list…

In Round 35, we will be focusing on the club’s players chasing European spots.

Round 34 starts with a Friday night encounter between Sunderland and Nottingham Forest at the Stadium of Light.

Formation: 3-5-2

Nick Pope  (Arsenal v NEWCASTLE UTD) – €5.8M

Newcastle United face a tough trip to north London for Saturday evening’s fixture against Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium, especially as The Magpies have lost their last four matches on the trot in all competitions.

However, Newcastle United goalkeeper Nick Pope will be hoping Arsenal’s recent stutter will spill over into this weekend’s fixture and with an overall Sofascore rating of 6.89 together with a total of 113 Fantasy points under his belt so far this season, the Magpies stopper will be hoping he can help steer his club to safety here.

Pope has collected 6 clean sheets in his previous 14 fixtures against The Gunners.

Malick Thiaw (Arsenal v NEWCASTLE UTD) – €7.2M

Such has been the extent of German midfielder, Malick Thiaw’s exploits so far in this season’s campaign for Newcastle United that the defender ranks in 3rd place in Newcastle’s Sofascore player ratings with a score of 7.04 to his name heading into Round 34.

Thiaw is fully expected to be picked for Germany’s upcoming World Cup squad and why wouldn’t he be? The defender has also chipped in with 4 goals so far this term in the Premier League and has been part of a Magpies defence that have collected 8 clean sheets so far this season.

Thiaw is likely to cause Arsenal a few problems in the air from set-pieces.

Neco Williams  (Sunderland v NOTT’M FOREST) – €7.2M

Nottingham Forest face a tricky outing to the north-east on Friday night as they come up against one of the surprise packages of this season’s Premier League in the shape of promoted Sunderland at the Stadium of Light.

Nevertheless, the Tricky Trees bring a seven-game unbeaten sequence into this upcoming clash and one of the catalysts behind Forest’s rejuvanation has been Welsh defender, Neco Williams, who has registered a Sofascore rating of 7.0 or over in his last three appearances including a goal in an 8.1 performance away at Aston Villa.

Williams has scored 2 goals along with contributing 3 assists to date as well as racking up a total of 160 Fantasy points to date.

Nikola Milenković  (Sunderland v NOTT’M FOREST) – €7.4M

Serbian defender, Nikola Milenković, joins fellow Forest defender Neco Williams in our suggested list of personnel for Round 34 as he looks to help pull the Tricky Trees further away from the relegation zone with a positive result at the Stadium of Light on Friday night.

Milenković possesses an overall Sofascore rating of 6.78 for Nottingham Forest so far in this season’s Premier League campaign and indeed, the Serbian defender has registered a Sofascore rating of 7.0 or more in four of the last five completed months.

Milenković has accumulated a total of 147 Fantasy points so far in this season’s Premier League.

Mateus Fernandes  (WEST HAM v Everton) – €6.6M

Another crucial fixture awaits West Ham in Round 34 as The Hammers play host to mid-table outfit Everton at the London Stadium with another precious three points at stake for Nuno Espírito Santo’s side on Saturday afternoon.

Portuguese midfielder, Mateus Fernandes, may only be 21 years old but the West Ham midfielder is already catching the eye as he has not only picked up a total of 159 Fantasy points so far in this season’s campaign, but he also leads the way in West Ham’s Sofascore player ratings as well.

An overall rating of 7.18 has been helped by Fernandes scoring 3 goals along with producing 3 assists so far this season and Nuno Espírito Santo will be hoping his midfield starlet can produce another match-winning performance on Saturday.

Jarrod Bowen (WEST HAM v Everton) – €8.6M

West Ham’s influential attacking midfielder, Jarrod Bowen, should be amongst one of the first names on England manager Thomas Tuchel’s World Cup squad list as the England midfielder has been one of the few shining lights for the east London club this term.

Bowen possesses an overall Sofascore rating of 7.00 ahead of this weekend’s Round 34 fixtures and having contributed with 8 goals and 8 assists, he has also accumulated a total of 158 Fantasy points so far this season.

Bowen has produced 3 assists in his last 5 Premier League games along with scoring 4 goals and 3 assists in 11 appearances versus Everton.

Joao Palhinha  (Wolves v TOTTENHAM) – €5.6M

Tottenham midfielder Joao Palhinha has recently returned from injury for the troubled north London club and at just about the right time as new boss Roberto de Zerbi seeks a way to preserve Tottenham’s top flight status in the Premier League.

Despite playing limited minutes for Spurs in his recent four games upon his return, the Portuguese 30 year-old midfielder sits in 2nd place in Tottenham’s Sofascore player ratings with a score of 6.99 so far this season.

Palhinha has also chipped in with 3 goals along with 2 assists together with a total of 103 Fantasy points to date, and he looks a real steal at just €5.6M!

Xavi Simons  (Wolves v TOTTENHAM) – €8.9M

Dutch midfielder, Xavi Simons, joins fellow Tottenham player Joao Palhinha in our suggested list of personnel for Round 34 as he looks to pull Spurs out of the relegation zone with a match-winning performance in the west midlands against Wolves at Molineux on Saturday afternoon.

Simons’ output for Tottenham this season has largely been disappointing with the occasional glimpse of what he’s capable of but in Spurs’ previous game against Brighton, the Dutch midfielder all but helped his side to a precious three points with a goal and an assist.

An overall Sofascore rating of 6.90 has been helped by 2 goals and 5 assists but one feels there’s more to come from the Dutchman.

Bruno Guimarães  (Arsenal v NEWCASTLE UTD) – €9.0M

Our ‘marquee’ midfielder for Round 34 is Newcastle United’s influential play-maker Bruno Guimarães who has been The Magpies’ equivalent of Manchester United’s Bruno Fernandes – only on a smaller scale.

Nevertheless, the Brazilian 28 year-old has almost single-handedly kept Newcastle United out of harms way in terms of relegation thanks to leading the way in both the goals and assists charts for the north-east club; 9 goals along with 4 assists.

Guimarães tops Newcastle United’s Sofascore player ratings with an excellent score of 7.47 along with having accrued a total of 178 Fantasy points to date.

Richarlison  (Wolves v TOTTENHAM) – €6.1M

Another Brazilian who will be desperate to improve the fortunes of their respective club is Tottenham striker, Richarlison, who faces what could turn out to be a tricky affair at Molineux against already-relegated Wolves who now have nothing to lose.

Richarlison will be seeking further goals in the closing weeks of this season’s Premier League campaign to not only save Spurs from the drop but to also boost his prospects of making Brazil’s World Cup squad.

His numbers still look good despite Tottenham’s troubles, scoring a total of 9 goals along with producing 3 assists on his way to a Sofascore rating of 6.87, while also netting 6 goals in his previous 13 appearances against Wolves.

Nick Woltemade  (Arsenal v NEWCASTLE UTD) – €7.6M

German forward, Nick Woltemade, is on a similar mission for his club, Newcastle United, as well as his personal ambition of making the German World Cup squad as the final few weeks of the Premier League season could well determine both outcomes for The Magpies.

Mathematically, Newcastle United are still not completely safe from relegation although it would take a monumental shift in form for both Tottenham and Eddie Howe’s side for the current situation to take a darker turn for The Magpies.

Woltemade for his part has contributed to Newcastle’s cause this season with 7 goals along with 3 assists whilst totting up 84 Fantasy points this term; the German forward also netted against Arsenal in the earlier corresponding fixture at St James’ Park.

Total Budget: €76.4M