Diego Costa, Anthony Martial, Jermain Defoe in Fantasy Football team of the week

By Matt Brocklebank

Image: Fantasy Football Team of the Week

Jermain Defoe joins the likes of Oscar, Diego Costa and Anthony Martial in the latest Sky Sports Fantasy Football Team of the Week.

Sunderland striker Defoe scored twice in a 3-1 Premier League victory over Aston Villa which breathed fresh life into the Black Cats' survival hopes.

Defoe's Man of the Match performance saw him claim 17 points for Fantasy Football managers, while Chelsea marksman Costa was also back among the top scorers after a 15-point haul for his goal and assist in the Blues' comfortable 3-0 win at Crystal Palace.

West Ham's Michail Antonio and rising Tottenham star Deli Alli both picked up 12pts, while Arsenal defender Laurent Koscielny earned the same amount for his match-winning goal in the Gunners' 1-0 defeat of Newcastle at the Emirates.

Artur Boruc (£4.3m)

Things were looking bleak for Bournemouth stopper Boruc after he was dropped on the back of conceding five at home to Spurs at the end of October but, after four games on the sidelines, he's come back into the team and kept three clean sheets from six games and made some important saves in Saturday's 0-0 draw at Leicester - a venue only Man City had managed to keep a clean sheet at in the Premier League before the weekend.

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Cesar Azpilicueta (£7.5m)

Chelsea appear to be coping quite well post-Mourinho and a solid defence looks to have been the starting point for interim manager Guus Hiddink. Azpilicueta has only been left out of the Chelsea side a couple of times this season and put in another good shift at Selhurst Park.

Laurent Koscielny (£7.8m)

Newcastle have been struggling to defend set-pieces all season and Arsenal's Koscielny was the latest to make them suffer after tapping home from close range following Olivier Giroud's flick-on at a corner. The table-topping Gunners have one of the meanest defences in the league but now face Liverpool (a), Stoke (a) and Chelsea (h) in their next three top-flight games. 

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Adam Smith (£3.7m)

Bournemouth full-back Smith has really taken his chance this season and despite the Cherries' attacking tendencies, Eddie Howe's men have managed two shut-outs in their last three games. With home clashes against West Ham and Norwich to come before trips to Sunderland and Crystal Palace, Smith could be an ideal budget option defender for Fantasy Football suitors.

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Michail Antonio (£5.5m)

Antonio struggled to get a game in the early stages of the season but injuries in the West Ham midfield have seen him introduced by Slaven Bilic and he's really delivered in the past couple of weeks. A goal against Southampton on December 28 was followed up by Saturday's header in the 2-0 win over Liverpool and it'll be hard to leave him out of the side for upcoming games with Bournemouth and Newcastle, despite the return of Dimitri Payet.

Oscar (£8.1m)

Oscar was one of the players seemingly frustrating Jose Mourinho in the early parts of the campaign and it's perhaps no great surprise that the Brazilian playmaker has weighed in with two goals in the four games since his former manager's departure. Either way, it looks like being a productive second half of the campaign for Oscar, who picked up 10 points from the Blues' 3-0 win over Crystal Palace.

Dele Alli (£4.0m)

Alli must now be considered one of the best value players on the whole game at just £4m. Manager Mauricio Pochettino appears to have maximum faith in the young England man and, after picking up his fifth goal of the Premier League season with a well-taken finish at Everton, why wouldn't he?

Ashley Young (£6.8m)

Young has become a real utility man for Manchester United and notched a valuable 10 points thanks to his weekend assist for Anthony Martial, despite playing at full-back. He has now started United's last four games and should get plenty more chances due to the long-term injuries to Marcos Rojo, Luke Shaw and Antonio Valencia. 

Jermain Defoe (£7.5m)

Sunderland's Premier League survival hopes were given a shot in the arm after they picked up their fourth win of the season over relegation rivals Aston Villa. Defoe played a pivotal role with two goals in the 3-1 success, showing he's still more than capable of picking up major points when given the service. This latest Fantasy Football Player of the Week now faces Swansea (a), Tottenham (a) and Bournemouth (h) before clashes with Man City, Liverpool and Man United.

Diego Costa (£9.8m)

Costa has tested the patience of many a Fantasy Football manager this season but he finally burst into life with a fine performance in Chelsea's win over Crystal Palace. He proved a constant menace to the Palace defenders and claimed a deserved goal after setting up Oscar for the opener. 

Anthony Martial (£7.5m)

Martial's Manchester United career started with such a bang that expectations perhaps became a little too high for him to live with, but recent weeks have been far more encouraging and the powerful forward took his weekend goal against Swansea with aplomb. He's reasonably priced, appears certain to start when available and could prove a major player in the second half of the season.

Not got a team yet? Enter Sky Sports Fantasy Football for free here, while there's a £1,000 cash prize available to players entering a third team.

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