Fantasy Premier League: Captaincy Decisions, Team of the Week, and Chip Strategy

This week’s central Fantasy Premier League decision revolves around selecting a captain from the top-tier midfielders, particularly for managers possessing ‘the big three’. The options include Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah, currently the FPL’s leading scorer, playing at home against Fulham; Cole Palmer, who recently recorded two goals and an assist, facing Brentford at home; and Arsenal’s key player, Bukayo Saka, at Emirates Stadium against Everton. The question for managers is which player to choose. The weekly featured team is constructed to adhere to a £100m budget using current FPL player valuations, simulating a Free Hit chip. However, the previous week’s performance was subpar, yielding only 39 points. This was attributed to several setbacks, including the cancellation of Liverpool’s match, Noussair Mazraoui being benched for Manchester United, and the omission of Cole Palmer, identified as the incorrect premium midfielder choice. Despite these issues, Jarrod Bowen, Yoane Wissa, and Amad Diallo all contributed points. The most recent Fantasy 606 podcast is available for listening on BBC Sounds. Nick Pope (Newcastle, Goalkeeper, £5m) is recommended for his home fixture against Leicester City. Despite Newcastle conceding seven goals in their last two matches, a rationale supports this selection. Pope has accumulated 54 saves this season, averaging over three per game, which virtually assures a save point. Furthermore, Newcastle is expected to control possession against Leicester, making a home victory with a clean sheet a plausible outcome. Jurrien Timber (Arsenal, £5.7m) is suggested for his home game against Everton. Arsenal appears to have the highest probability of securing a clean sheet this week, but the selection of a specific defensive player is complicated by Mikel Arteta’s injury-hit squad, potentially sidelining Gabriel. William Saliba, while having scored two goals in two games, is more expensive than Timber, and his expected goals (xG) tally was “zero” in the preceding 13 games, indicating not even one shot in 13 games. Therefore, Timber is favored due to his greater offensive involvement and threat from Arsenal’s famous corners. Pervis Estupinan (Brighton, £5.1m) is highlighted for his home fixture against Crystal Palace. The Ecuadorian defender registered his first assist of the season last week, and his statistics are promising, including three shots and two key passes from the left-back position. Estupinan consistently offers a decent attacking threat, and there is an expectation that Brighton could also achieve a clean sheet. Milos Kerkez (Bournemouth, £4.6m) is recommended for his home match against West Ham, having impressed both statistically and visually. Recent observations of Bournemouth games show him frequently advancing down the left wing into all sorts of attacking positions. He leads all Bournemouth defenders in key statistics, including key passes (15), big chances created (four), assists (two), and touches in the box (26), among others. Over the last five weeks, only Leif Davis of Ipswich has a higher expected assists (xA) total. Milos Kerkez is noted as deserving his spot in the team for that “incredible mullet alone”. Justin Kluivert (Bournemouth, £5.5m) is considered for his home game against West Ham, acknowledged as a slightly speculative choice given that one-third of the Dutchman’s tally this season originated from a single game against Wolves involving three penalties, and he never plays 90 minutes. Nevertheless, his price point and penalty-taking duties make him a decent option. While Antoine Semenyo leads Bournemouth in underlying data due to his shot volume, he has only one return in nine games, leading to the selection of Kluivert. Cole Palmer (Chelsea, £11.1m) is designated as captain for his home match against Brentford, with Mohamed Salah (Liverpool, £13.3m) named vice-captain for his home game against Fulham, and Bukayo Saka (Arsenal, £10.6m) included for his home fixture against Everton. These three FPL studs are presented together as they form the core of the captaincy discussion. Managers are advised to consider their FPL choices if they do not possess at least two of these players. Despite a previous misstep, Palmer is chosen over Salah this week, citing Brentford’s defensive vulnerabilities and a speculative feeling that Salah must be due a blank (or at least a game where he doesn’t score double digits) at some point. However, it is noted that there may not even be a ‘wrong’ choice this week, as all three could haul. Bukayo Saka has accumulated 16 returns in 14 games this season. Alexander Isak (Newcastle, £8.6m) is considered for his home game against Leicester City. While a “set and forget” approach for Isak in one of the forward spots might yield satisfactory season-long results, his point returns can be hard to predict; he has scored against strong opponents like Chelsea, Liverpool, and Arsenal but blanked in much easier games. Nevertheless, the home fixture against Leicester is deemed a prime fixture, with confidence in him providing a couple of returns. Jorgen Strand Larsen (Wolves, £5.6m) is presented as a very decent second option, though Matheus Cunha remains the primary Wolves striker target for those able to afford his £7.1m price. Strand Larsen’s six goals and two assists are considered excellent for a budget forward, especially as he faces an Ipswich team that has kept only one clean sheet this season. Nicolas Jackson (Chelsea, £8.2m) is identified as a potential choice for his home match against Brentford, given the limited options in this price range this gameweek. While Kai Havertz was very tempting at home to Everton, Jackson is favored, sharing the same rationale as Palmer, suggesting a huge potential ceiling this week. It is anticipated that if Chelsea click, they are going to put “three or four” past Brentford. How a dog got the highest FPL score in the world, & time for a differential captain? The bench consists of Killian Cahill (Brighton, Goalkeeper, £3.9m) for his home game against Crystal Palace; Jacob Murphy (Newcastle, Midfielder, £4.9m) for his home match against Leicester; Jarell Quansah (Liverpool, Defender, £3.9m) for his home fixture against Fulham; and Cameron Burgess (Ipswich, Defender, £4.0m) for his away game at Wolves. These selections reflect a strategy of choosing “super cheap options” due to budget constraints, with the hope that the bench isn’t needed this week. The total cost for the team is £99.9m. The question is posed regarding the inclusion of Enzo Fernandez (Chelsea, Midfielder, £5m) in FPL teams. Having recorded six returns in his last five games, the £107m man is starting to prove his worth. At a price of £5m and with Chelsea facing a dreamy run of games for the next six, he could be a great budget enabler. Crystal Palace’s upcoming fixtures include Brighton (away), Arsenal (home), and Bournemouth (away). Looking a little further ahead, after that Bournemouth game, Palace will play Southampton at home and Leicester away a couple of weeks later. With Eberechi Eze back as a midfield option and Jean-Philippe Mateta looking sharp up front, Palace assets may be back on the menu. A significant discussion point in FPL this week was the grand reveal of the mystery chip – the ‘Assistant Manager’ chip, set to be introduced from gameweek 24. This chip allows managers to acquire a Premier League manager, priced between £0.5m and £1.5m, and subsequently earn points based on their club’s results for three gameweeks in a row. For example, if their team wins you’ll get six points, a draw is worth three points, there’s two points for a clean sheet and one point for every goal. An added twist states that if your chosen manager goes up against a club ranked at least five places higher in the table at the start of the gameweek you’ll get an extra 10 points for a win and an extra 5 points for a draw. The initial selection of a manager for this chip does not consume a free transfer. However, changing to a different manager in either of the following two gameweeks will incur a transfer cost, just like it does with your players. Once the Assistant Manager chip is active, no other chips can be utilized during that three-gameweek period. Furthermore, managers cannot be captained to double your points. The optimal strategy for deploying this chip will be explored in next week’s podcast, with an anticipation that it’s going to “confuse Chris Sutton.” Feedback and thoughts can be submitted via e-mail to fantasy606@bbc.co.uk. The code to join the BBC Sport FPL league is ‘bbcfpl’. The standings for the Fantasy 606 podcast league are presented. Sandi Toksvig is joined by Gyles Brandreth, Lulu, Emmanuel Sonubi and Alan Davies. Take the mic for Queen, Taylor Swift, Bon Jovi, Katy Perry and more… Ben Fogle and Kate Humble are back for the festivities at Longleat Safari Park. Topics range from micro plastics in our air, soil, and waterways, to the extent of food waste at this time of year. © 2024 BBC. The BBC disclaims responsibility for the content of external sites. Information regarding its approach to external linking is available.