With one round of the latest Fantasy Premier League season already in the history books, it’s time to start preparing for Gameweek 2.
Where better to start than with the all-important captain debate, which looks like it will be less clear-cut than it was in Gameweek 1.
Mohamed Salah (£13.0m) will obviously remain the favourite with his 54 percent ownership but his next fixture is arguably tougher than a home tie with a new-look West Ham side. In the final nine Gameweeks of 2018/19 the only outfit to keep more clean sheets than Crystal Palace was Liverpool themselves. Since James Tomkins (£4.5m) and Mamadou Sakho (£5.0m) were paired together again the Eagles have been a difficult prospect to break down.
For those not in possession of Salah, there are other alternatives amongst his team-mates including Sunday’s brace-scoring midfielder Sadio Mané (£9.5m), left-back Andrew Robertson (£6.0m) who assisted and kept a clean sheet, and striker Roberto Firmino (£9.5m).
Manchester City’s options certainly win out when it comes to fixture difficulty as they host Huddersfield Town on Sunday afternoon. However, the fact that every player has now returned to the group since the World Cup the dreaded issue of rotation could cause some problems.
Sergio Aguero (£11.0m) is the most backed ownership-wise, in 32 percent of squads, but could be benched to allow Gabriel Jesus (£10.5m) a first start of the season. Raheem Sterling (£11.0m) looks to be back in the conversation sooner than expected too, his seven-point haul in Gameweek 1 putting him on the captain radar, especially as his 2.5 percent ownership makes a potentially powerful differential option.
Just as Robertson may be considered for the captaincy, his Man City counter-part Benjamin Mendy (£6.0m) has forced his way into the conversation with 15 points scored against Arsenal from assisting both of his team’s goals.
Tottenham’s options have dragged themselves into the conversation after seeing off Newcastle on Saturday and preparing for a home match against newly-promoted Fulham. Harry Kane (£12.5m) may not have set the world on fire but with 31.1 percent ownership he should be considered by those in possession of him.
Elsewhere on the Spurs roster Gameweek 1 goalscorer Dele Alli (£9.0m) may be turned to as another differential option while Christian Eriksen (£9.5m) offers the more creative angle for the fixture.
Anyone brave enough to place their captain on a player from Chelsea v Arsenal have a few outside outside options. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (£11.0m) will be the obvious choice from the Gunners while Marcos Alonso‘s (£6.5m) performance against Huddersfield may have convinced some of his doubters. Don’t forget that Eden Hazard (£10.5m), backed by 11 percent, may alsio play a part in the fixture.
Make sure you watch our Captain video below and then vote in the poll underneath it. Why not tell us why you made your choice in the comments? We’ll be rounding off the debate later this week with another Captain Sensible article.
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