We start our look ahead to Gameweek 6 with the launch of our Captain Poll and a run down of the key contenders for the armband.
Harry Kane (12.5) ran away with our previous poll, with an emphatic 49% of the votes ahead of Spurs’ Wembley match against Swansea City. But the 0-0 draw that followed could mute interest when he drops by the London Stadium to face West Ham.
While he did score a brace in his side’s last road trip, away to Everton in Gameweek 4, that has been his only attacking return of the season.
West Ham’s recent resilience could also turn voters off Kane – the Hammers go into Saturday’s lunchtime fixture looking for their third consecutive clean sheet, after shipping 10 goals across the previous three.
Those still backing the underperforming striker, who has lost 71,000+ managers since Friday’s deadline, can still cling to some reassuring statistics for comfort. His tally of 32 goal attempts, 23 of which have arrived from inside the box, betters any other Premier League player.
With a hat-trick, assist and maximum bonus returns in Manchester City’s 6-0 away rout of Watford, Sergio Aguero (11.5) is expected to power his way to the summit.
A table-topping eight goal attempts against the Hornets in Gameweek 5 will give his backers further confidence, as will a home tie this weekend against a Crystal Palace side that has conceded eight times this campaign.
More than 324,000 FPL managers have recruited the Argentinian since Saturday, and it is also worth noting that on home turf only Liverpool have had more shots on goal than City.
Yet his striker partner Gabriel Jesus (10.5) also offers a very viable alternative. The pair have both scored four times in the last three Gameweeks, with the Brazilian serving up 12 points in his previous home outing.
Aguero has managed 11 points over his two appearances at the Etihad this term but failed to deliver double-digits last season, scoring just five of his 20 goals on home turf.
The form of Pep Guardiola’s side has persuaded 56,000 FPL managers to ditch Manchester United’s Romelu Lukaku (11.7) this week as they freshen up their frontlines. But given his goal, assist and three FPL bonus points in the 4-0 victory over Everton on Sunday, as well as attacking returns in all but one of his first five fixtures, the Belgian is likely to be a strong rival to Aguero and Kane when the Red Devils visit Southampton.
Although the Saints have yet to concede at St Mary’s in the league, they have allowed ten shots in the box – the fourth worst home tally.
Christian Eriksen’s (9.7) three assists and a goal, as well as Dele Alli’s (9.5) two successful strikes should ensure they attract interest for those backing a Spurs victory but have lost confidence in Kane. The midfield duo sit in 27.5% and 33.4% of FPL teams respectively.
A first successful strike of the season from Henrikh Mkhitaryan (8.5), against Everton, adds to a CV for 2017/18 that already includes five assists and ensures that he remains in our thoughts.
Among other differential options is Wayne Rooney (7.5), whose Everton side begin a far kinder run of fixtures with the visit of a Bournemouth this weekend. The Cherries have conceded the second highest amount of shots in the box, shipped nine goals and are still without their first clean sheet. For those that believe fixtures can improve form, the 16%-owned former England captain, who has two goals so far, may appeal.
Liverpool attackers could also push for a place near the top, despite only managing a 1-1 draw against Burnley on Saturday.
The Reds’ 35 goal attempts in that match, seven more than Manchester City fired off against Watford, suggests that stronger returns will come their way when they visit a Leicester City side that conceded twice against Chelsea at the King Power Stadium in Gameweek 4.
Mohamed Salah (9.2), with three goals and two assists, is likely to be their main source of interest, particularly as his 32.9% ownership is the highest among Jurgen Klopp’s troops.
Arsenal’s Alexandre Lacazette has scored in both of his home matches as West Brom make their way to the Emirates on Monday. And Alexis Sanchez could also come into contention for a start should Danny Welbeck fail to recover from the groin problem that forced him off at Chelsea on Sunday.
The 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.
Remember, we are looking for your vote for the player you think will be most effective, regardless of whether you own them or not.
We will be back to check in on progress in the poll later ahead of the Gameweek 6 deadline when we deliver our “Captain Sensible” article offering an analysis of the results and the statistics behind the leading contenders.
