This little break from Fantasy Premier League (FPL) has been a bit of a blessing after the rigorous fast-paced schedule in December but it’s time to get out of hibernation.

To get into the groove of things, I asked the FPL community to send me some questions and I’ve answered a couple of important ones in this article.

Q) Who are the best defensive options for people looking to replace Marcos Alonso, especially with Brighton also having a blank this week? (From @FPL_Mihir)

Thanks for the question, Mihir. It’s good that you mention the fact that Brighton have a blank because my answer would probably be different if you were buying next week compared to this week. In the latter scenario, I’d probably go for Marc Cucurella (£5.1m). I like that Lewis Dunk (£4.8m) is likely going to be back fit, which will improve an already good defence.

Albion are fourth for expected goals conceded (xGC) this season in the league, have a ‘double’ in Gameweek 25, a potential rumoured Double Gameweek 26 and have a good run of fixtures afterwards until Gameweek 28. It is worth mentioning that their matches after that point are a little difficult so this is more suited for someone looking to Wildcard in Gameweek 28 or 29. Since Cucurella’s debut, only three FPL defenders have more bonus points. He’s a chance creation machine and is a solid, reliable pick in my opinion.

If you weren’t looking at Double Gameweekers, I would go for Lucas Digne (£5.1m). Aston Villa have a good run of fixtures in the mid-term and we’ve seen them be much stronger under Steven Gerrard. In the two games he’s played for Aston Villa, Digne has recorded nine attempted crosses and created four chances, figures that are top amongst his teammates. He’s on some set pieces and historically, Gerrard’s full-backs do really well in attack, which is already visible in the narrow 4-3-2-1 formation they play.

I also like Aymeric Laporte (£5.7m), who undoubtedly plays for the best defence in the country and has a significant goal threat. If you do go for him, however, you will need to take the odd benching on the chin with the Champions League fast approaching.

If you were upgrading Alonso, Andrew Robertson (£7.1m) is also a great option. He has seven assists in his last eight appearances and is visibly looking a lot sharper and more advanced when playing for Liverpool. I do think that he was tired for the first half of the season and now looks a lot like the old Robertson, playing far up the pitch. The two-week winter break should only help that. I do have some concerns over Liverpool’s defensive form looking at how many chances they conceded against Crystal Palace and so, because of the value that the £5.0m-£6.0m defenders are offering, I would prefer them to Robertson at the moment.

If you are in a punty mood, I would plump for Diogo Dalot (£4.5m) but know that he’s a risk. I do think he’s made his way into being first choice at right-back but that is merely my opinion and not a fact.

Q) How much do we need to prioritise bringing Mohamed Salah (£12.7m) back immediately and how long can we survive without him? Bruno Fernandes (£11.7m) and Kevin De Bruyne (£12.2m) have excellent fixtures, plus Salah blanks in Gameweek 27. Is it worth taking a hit to bring him in for Gameweek 24 when he could be facing limited minutes and a blank? (@FPLFreud)

Thank you for the question. This is a dilemma that a lot of FPL managers are having and one that is very crucial to how we play the next few weeks.

The big issue here is that we don’t know what Salah’s minutes are going to look like in Gameweek 24 but I do think that we will have a lot more information about this matter closer to the deadline. If there are strong indicators that Salah will start against Leicester City, then for me, he’s the best captaincy option in the upcoming Gameweek. So it all depends on the signs we get. In my opinion, there is no comparison between the calibre of Salah as a premium asset versus the other two. He’s comfortably the best heavy hitter in the game.

That said, if you want to bet against him with Fernandes or De Bruyne, there are valid reasons to do so given both have captain-able fixtures in Gameweek 24 (Burnley v Manchester United and Manchester City v Brentford). Both have looked a lot more like their old selves off late. Everything good that Manchester United have done in the last three games has come through Fernandes and he has a free role in a 4-3-3, so is very involved in all of the Red Devils’ attacking play. He’s also clocked six shots and created nine chances in the last three games and, while Fernandes without penalties is not going to offer value for his price in the long term, he should be involved amongst the points in the coming weeks, in my opinion. It’s also worth noting that Salah blanks in Gameweek 27 and in that week, Fernandes and Ronaldo face Watford at home, which is a great fixture for captaincy.

It’s the same case with De Bruyne. When I watch Manchester City, he looks heavily involved in everything they do. For me, with De Bruyne, where he plays doesn’t matter. It is always about his sharpness, which he had been lacking earlier due to various reasons. It is worth noting that City’s Gameweek 25 clash against Norwich is before two important back-to-back ties: away to Sporting Lisbon and a home game against Tottenham Hotspur. That said, if Salah’s minutes do look questionable against Leicester, De Bruyne is the stand-out captaincy option in Gameweek 24 for me. When Liverpool blank in Gameweek 27, De Bruyne also has an enticing away tie against Everton which, on paper, is armband territory.

Eventually which way you lean depends on two primary factors: your risk appetite and Salah’s expected minutes. It is worth mentioning that the risk is a little lower than anticipated if Salah’s expected minutes in Gameweek 24 are low because of most FPL managers captaining a Manchester United player in Gameweek 25 and Salah blanking in Gameweek 27.

But it is also worth noting that we could still receive further Double Gameweek news after the FA Cup fourth-round ties, which could lead to Spurs and Liverpool having a double in Gameweek 26 – and that would totally change the complexion of what to prioritize.