Thursday’s press conferences brought bad news for owners of Nordi Mukiele (£4.6m), as Sunderland manager Regis Le Bris revealed his highly-owned defender will miss the next two to four weeks because of a calf injury.

The good news? Ahead of Fantasy Premier League’s (FPL) period of Blank and Double Gameweeks, there’s a reason to sell someone whose form has dropped, in a team that looks to be running out of steam.

So, let’s consider who the best Mukiele replacements might be, priced at £5.0m or below.

Is it worth holding Mukiele?

In short, probably not. For starters, Sunderland’s medium-term fixtures are so-so, and the Black Cats have lost five of their last seven league outings. 

As mentioned, the recent decline in Mukiele assists and defensive contributions (DefCon) makes the lack of clean sheets more noticeable.

He’s been one of Le Bris’s best players this season, so his absence will probably be felt. 

“It will be shorter for Nordi [Mukiele] and Brian [Brobbey], between two and four weeks, depending on the way they respond to their treatments and the rehab. Let’s wait a bit.” – Regis Le Bris

And, by the time he’s back, the remaining Blank and Double Gameweeks will be upon us. Meaning we’ll want a full set of fit and ready players in our squads, without stragglers.

Without further ado, then, let’s look at some Mukiele replacements.

NICO O’REILLY (£5.0m)

An obvious choice, but with a few caveats.

Firstly, depending on your current level of money in the bank, you may not be able to stretch as far as the in-form O’Reilly without downgrading elsewhere.

There’s also the fact that Manchester City are pretty likely to blank in Blank Gameweek 31, meaning you’re buying a player for three matches before having to either Free Hit, bench him in a week where many will have other blanks to deal with, or sell him.

Now, for the positives. An FPL defender, O’Reilly has recently returned to midfield as a left-sided number eight in Pep Guardiola’s 4-1-3-2.

Over the past two Gameweeks alone, that new role has led to three goals, a team-high seven shots, eight penalty box ball touches, four bonus points, a clean sheet, and a league-high 30 FPL points!

Oh, and those three fixtures between now and his likely blank? Leeds United, Nottingham Forest and West Ham United.

Two of those are away, of course, while all four of O’Reilly’s double-digit FPL point hauls have come at home. But the youngster does at least have a modest assist and clean sheet pairing across the reverse fixtures of these upcoming meetings.

Facing the clubs ranked 15th, 17th and 18th – even if Leeds and the Hammers have each only lost one of their last six – may be too good to overlook, despite the blank.

The 20-year-old is evidently a key cog in Pep Guardiola’s team right now. He’s playing out of position in a good way, for a side that is clicking into form to challenge for yet another league title. 

JAMES HILL (£4.1m)

But, if you aren’t convinced, then why not drop all the way down (price-wise) to Hill?

He finally lost his impressive DefCon streak last time out. But a clean sheet on his ninth successive start – during which time Bournemouth have lost only once, to Arsenal – means he’s racked up 35 points in the last five Gameweeks.

That’s fewer than only O’Reilly and Virgil van Dijk (£6.0m) among FPL defenders.

He’s looking more and more like the better pick over early-season favourite Marcos Senesi (£4.9m), especially with his teammate treading the suspension tightrope again.

Hill has more DefCon points (14) than Senesi (10) since the two started playing together.

The Cherries are charging in the right direction form-wise, and their immediate fixtures are also appealing.

Plus, he won’t blank in Blank Gameweek 31.

JOACHIM ANDERSEN (£4.5m)

Neither will Joachim Andersen, who is a pretty easy sideways move from Mukiele in terms of price.

The Fulham man has been a steady, decent value pick all season. A 90-minute man when fit, the Dane may not have many clean sheets (five) to his name, but he’s been making up for that with a fairly reliable stream of DefCon rewards.

You shouldn’t expect much else, aside from the odd bonus point, but the Cottagers looked good when beating Sunderland last weekend. It ended their own losing streak, as they bid for an outside shot at European qualification.

Adding to Andersen’s appeal is seeing Marco Silva’s men play three of their next four at home. It’s a place where they’ve picked up 23 of their 37 points. They’re also about to face the lacklustre trio of Tottenham Hotspur, West Ham and Burnley. 

The one away day in their upcoming stretch is at goal-shy Nottingham Forest, who Fulham beat 1-0 in the reverse.

KRISTOFFER AJER (£4.4m)

Nearby in the capital, we find Brentford’s Ajer. The Bees have had an excellent season so far and on paper boast a solid upcoming run of fixtures – including at Burnley and Wolverhampton Wanderers – that could make European football a real possibility if they can bounce back quickly from last weekend’s disappointing home loss to Brighton and Hove Albion.

Ajer has been a reliable presence in central defence for Keith Andrews over the last few months, delivering six sets of DefCon points in his past 10 appearances.

A bit like Hill, Ajer started the season lower down the centre-half pecking order but is arguably now the first one on the teamsheet, with Nathan Collins‘ form (£5.0m) tailing off. Ajer has now started 10 matches in a row.

DANIEL BALLARD (£4.6m)

If you fancy a Mukiele replacement from Sunderland’s own ranks, big Dan Ballard is probably the go-to guy.

Attacking returns have been relatively sporadic, but he did assist last weekend by winning his side a penalty. Ballard just missed DefCon that time but hit the threshold in four of his previous five matches.

Only two of the Black Cats’ next six league games are at home, which until recently had been an unconquered fortress. It remains to be seen if they can reverse this recent downturn in form.

Ballard also ranks top among defenders for total Opta-defined ‘big chances’ (eight) this season.

ANYONE ELSE?

Aston Villa have faltered recently, with right-back Matty Cash (£4.9m) therefore fading in appeal. To make matters worse, a brief injury meant he missed his side’s only clean sheet in their last four, plus attacking returns have also dried up.

But it’s last-placed Wolves up next and, after tests against Chelsea and Manchester United (though Villa did beat both earlier on), there is a great run of games until the end of the season.

If Cash is too dear or otherwise unappealing, teammate Ezri Konsa (£4.4m) is cheaper and carries a slightly better chance of DefCon points.

Elsewhere, Man United’s own right-back Diogo Dalot (£4.5m) is one of many benefitting from the club’s unbeaten run under Michael Carrick.

Last weekend’s win brought a third clean sheet in six, while two rounds earlier he hit double digits thanks to his sixth assist of the season. Across the campaign, creating 24 chances and five big ones are both among the division’s leading defensive tallies.

Upcoming fixtures are a mixed bag, but Carrick evidently has the wind in his side’s sails as they push for a Champions League return.

Finally, Leeds’ cheap but cheerful Joe Rodon (£3.9m) comes in as the most budget-friendly option on this list. But he’s here on merit too – even if teammate Pascal Struijk (£4.3m) is more of a shot-taker.

After hosting Man City this weekend, Daniel Farke’s lot have one of the league’s best season-ending runs in terms of fixture difficulty. Rodon hitting the DefCon mark in five straight matches is unquestionably a big part of their effort to avoid the drop.

It’s worth noting that Leeds have been better at home than away, which can help decide benching dilemmas.