Our captain poll has been overhauled once again as we prepare for the third and final round of quick-fire fixtures in this busy week of Premier League football.
As with the last two Gameweeks, this looks like another where no clear captain will emerge, with all of the top six sides – Spurs, Liverpool Arsenal, Chelsea and both Manchester clubs – enjoying kind fixtures.
Once again Alexis Sanchez (11.6), who pipped Leicester City’s Jamie Vardy to top spot in last Gameweek’s poll by just 1% of the vote, looks set to garner interest when Arsenal drop by Crystal Palace on Monday.
With both sides yet to play in Gameweek 31, Fantasy managers will need to monitor whether the Gunners’ top scorer can prosper against West Ham from what appears to be a regular role on the left flank.
Attacking returns in eight of his last ten going into tonight’s match suggest the 27.9%-owned Chilean is more than capable of delivering once again.
Meanwhile, there will be keen attention on whether the Eagles’ resilient backline, which has kept three clean sheets and conceded just once in their last four, will prosper when they visit Southampton tonight.
Spurs assets are also expected to compete for the summit as they welcome Watford to White Hart Lane this weekend.
The Hornets might have defeated West Brom 2-0 at Vicarage Road last night, but away from home against a far more attacking side – and with injuries and suspensions biting – this looks to be an enticing clash for Dele Alli (9.0) in particular.
While Walter Mazzarri’s troops have conceded 25 times and kept just two clean sheets on their travels, the 31.6%-owned Spurs midfielder goes into tonight’s Liberty Stadium tie against Swansea City with attacking returns in each of his previous four league starts.
Six assists and five goals in front of his own fans means Christian Eriksen (8.8) is another Spurs player likely to attract attention.
Three goal attempts and a converted penalty for Zlatan Ibrahimovic (11.4) in Manchester United’s 1-1 home draw with Everton last night should once again bring votes for the big Swede, who grabbed third spot in our last poll and emerged as the most popular captain among all FPL managers in Gameweek 31.
United’s top scorer, with 16 league goals, will be up against a Sunderland defence at the Stadium of Light that has conceded 11 times and kept just one shut-out in their last six.
Following last night’s Gameweek deadline, Ibrahimovic has already emerged as the most popular acquisition in FPL’s transfer market.
Sergio Aguero (12.7) will be leading the charge for Pep Guardiola’s troops in our latest poll ahead of Hull City’s visit to the Etihad Stadium.
The 21.7%-owned Argentine goes into tonight’s visit to Chelsea in strong form, having scored three in his last five. Leroy Sane (7.6) is another Sky Blue that could prove appealing – he’s notched two goals and an assist in his last six starts. With a mere 4.3% ownership, he looks a strong differential option for those willing to take a risk with the armband.
Chelsea’s attacking assets also emerge as serious contenders when they drop by the Vitality Stadium to take on a Bournemouth rearguard that has conceded 23 times in their 15 home league matches.
Diego Costa (10.6) watchers will be paying close attention to his performance against City tonight to see if he can turn his strong underlying promise into an equivalent Fantasy showing. Over his last six, he’s had more close range efforts than any other player, but has only scored twice.
Two goals and the same tally of assists over the same period suggests the 27.6%-owned Eden Hazard (10.2) cannot be overlooked either.
Elsewhere, Liverpool visit a Stoke City side seemingly happy to see out the season in mid-table, scoring just once and conceding five times in their last four.
Motivated by a Champions League spot, the Reds’ expected front three of Roberto Firmino (8.5), Divock Origi (6.2) and Philippe Coutinho (8.4) all look like strong captaincy prospects, with the latter the most likely to compete for the top. The 23.1%-owned Brazilian schemer goes into tonight’s Anfield clash with Bournemouth buoyed by his goal and assist against Everton in Gameweek 30.
Strong form should also help Jamie Vardy (10.0) gather votes, having registered his fifth goal in as many matches at home to Sunderland last night.
While his Gameweek 32 trip to Everton looks like a far trickier clash, his prospects are boosted by a set of injuries and suspensions to the host’s backline. Already without Seamus Coleman and Ramiro Funes Mori through long-term injury, Ronald Koeman’s side will also have to do without the suspended Ashley Williams, who received a red card against Manchester United.
Romelu Lukaku’s (10.4) chances of top spot may take a dent given Leicester’s strong form of five straight wins since Craig Shakespeare took charge.
However, with five shots against Jose Mourinho’s troops last night and 13 Goodison Park goals, the Toffees’ talisman can never be ignored for the armband on home soil.
His hefty 45.7% ownership also makes him a player that is arguably too dangerous to overlook in terms of overall rankings.
The London Stadium looks the likeliest venue for alternative captaincy candidates. Swansea are the visitors, but both have porous defences: West Ham have shipped 13 goals in their last six, while Paul Clement’s side have conceded nine times over the same time frame.
Andy Carroll (6.3) should be the front runner in our latest poll among Slaven Bilic’s side, courtesy of five goals in his last eight. For the visitors, Gylfi Sigurdsson (7.8) is another that looks primed to turn strong underlying form into returns. He’s registered 20 goal attempts without scoring over his last five, ahead of tonight’s visit of Spurs to south Wales.
If Fernando Llorente (6.4), the Swans’ top scorer with 11 goals, is fit he looks another inviting differential armband option. However, the Spaniard remains a doubt for the Spurs clash after already missing two league matches with an ankle injury.
The Captain Poll is now live in the middle column on your homepage on desktop, or via the slide-in menu on mobile and tablet under Recent Comments.
We will be back to check in on progress in the poll ahead of the Gameweek 31 deadline when we deliver our “Captain Sensible” article, offering an analysis of the results and the statistics behind the leading contenders.
