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Q: Triple Captain Erling Haaland?

A: The ‘conventional’ wisdom has always been to use your Triple Captain chip in a Double Gameweek. However, with the fixture changes this season and the FA Cup handed exclusive weekends, it means that we are likely to have fewer Double Gameweeks than before. They will probably be smaller in scale, as well.

It means that we may not require the Free Hit chip in a big blank like Gameweek 29 last season. It therefore might be better served in one of the two mooted Double Gameweeks. The Bench Boost could be more effective than a Triple Captaincy in a Double Gameweek, as well. You are gaining up to four additional fixtures rather than just one.

Then there’s the Mystery Chip, which we know nothing about at the moment. Could that be of more use in a Double Gameweek as well? There’s too much ambiguity there.

What that means is that more than ever, the Triple Captaincy chip is a serious consideration in a single Gameweek. There could, of course, be a random postponement due to weather etc but that’s an anomaly that you can’t really plan for.

As per the below image from @robtfpl, the goal projections for Manchester City v Southampton are the joint-highest they have been yet this season:

So in terms of fixture appeal, this is one of the best we are going to get. Yes, Mohamed Salah (£12.6m), Cole Palmer (£10.9m) etc will play Southampton and Ipswich Town again. However, either or both of those clubs could have new management by then (unlikely in Ipswich’s case). 

All that said, I don’t feel as confident putting the Triple Captain on Erling Haaland (£15.4m) as I should. He’s had very little service over the last three league matches where he’s blanked and it doesn’t take a genius to figure out that the lack of Kevin De Bruyne (£9.4m) obviously plays a part. The Belgian international almost certainly won’t start this weekend. 

Haaland reminded us of his quality with his brace in the UEFA Champions League on Wednesday. He will no doubt be looking to get back to scoring ways in the Premier League, as well. I think the fact that Jeremy Doku (£6.3m) is out might also be beneficial to Haaland in terms of service. 

I don’t have a firm opinion on whether it is definitely the ‘right’ play but I can say it’s definitely not the ‘wrong’ play. However, there’s a comfort factor with having it in your locker for the later part of the season when you can go for a Hail Mary, say bring in a Salah when his ownership is very low and hope for a big differential boost against a popular Haaland captaincy.

Q: Foden? Palmer? Son? Salah?

Phil Foden

Phil Foden (£9.2m) was surprisingly benched against Wolves but looked sharp when he came on and bagged an assist for John Stones’ (£5.3m) goal. The recent injury updates on Jack Grealish (£6.4m) and Doku mean that Foden’s expected minutes have gone up and I think I like him the most as a short-term pick given City’s immediate fixtures. He is also cheaper than Saka, so doesn’t require an additional transfer to free up funds. 

Son Heung-min

A big appeal of Son Heung-min (£9.9m) is captaincy for the Ipswich Town fixture in Gameweek 11. If you are going to captain Haaland that week against Brighton and Hove Albion, I think the appeal is reduced a bit as Crystal Palace away and Aston Villa at home might not be that easy. Then there’s Manchester City straight after Ipswich. 

Cole Palmer

Chelsea impressed me against Liverpool despite losing. The team looks much improved from last season and Palmer is someone that you can just stick in your squad long term and forget about it. Even if it requires the additional transfer, I like going for Palmer and sorting that spot out for the long run.

Mohamed Salah

If you can afford it, I think Salah is an outstanding pick for the long term, even better than Palmer. The Egyptian is also a captaincy contender in the three fixtures after Arsenal away. There’s a £1.8m difference from Palmer so you do need to factor in what the opportunity cost of that is. 

Forward planning is key in FPL, so we highlighted the best teams and players to invest in for Gameweeks 9-11 here

We look at which players are a buy sell and keep for Gameweek 9 here:

You can also find the top 10 predicted player points for the round ahead here:

Our fantasy football expert @FPLReaction reveals his team for Gameweek 9 in this article here:

It’s Playmakers week in FPL Challenge, so here are our top tips and an expert team reveal to help you come out on top

Be sure to check out all of our latest articles over at Fantasy Football Community.