In our Fantasy Premier League newsletter you will find lots of our essential articles in the lead up to the deadline. We also share our Captaincy Exclusive 

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Gameweek 35 is one of the most open Fantasy Premier League (FPL) captaincy races of the season.

A host of options vie for favouritism, primarily assets from Brentford, Manchester City and Liverpool. The captaincy selection presents a real opportunity to go against the grain – and make late-season gains. 

As usual, Captain Sensible highlights which assets have the best chance of delivering a big haul.

First, we will assess the fallout of the captain poll before analysing the player and team statistics*, Rate My Team (RMT) and the Premier Fantasy Tools ratings ratings ahead of Friday’s 18:30 BST deadline.

*note these figures were correct before Thursday’s clash at the City Ground

THE CAPTAIN POLL

Omar Marmoush’s (£7.6m) stock may be declining following Erling Haaland‘s (£14.8m) return. However, given the Norwegian’s lengthy layoff, an expected phased return gives the Egyptian a stay of execution. 

Marmoush is at the top of the pile among Man City assets in terms of recent underlying numbers. 

With 4.34 non-penalty expected goal involvement (NPxGI) over the last six, he is backed by just over 25% of our voters.

Meanwhile, Bryan Mbeumo (£8.1m) is enjoying a truly break-out season as a Fantasy asset. 

The Cameroon international has broken the 200-point barrier in style, his double seeing off 10-man Brighton in Gameweek 33.

He’s backed by over 21% of votes ahead of Brentford’s increasingly favourable-looking fixture against a battle-weary Man United. 

Mohamed Salah (£13.8m) is in third place with 17.1% of the vote, with Kevin De Bruyne (£9.4m) and Alexander Isak (£9.6m) further back. 

THE PLAYER STATISTICS – LAST SIX MATCHES

Marmoush takes the top spots on the player table for several goal-threat statistics. 

The Egyptian leads the way for non-penalty xG (3.64), ahead of Isak and Salah, with 2.70 and 2.28, respectively. 

The former Eintracht Frankfurt speedster also claims the top spot for shots (24), closely followed by Isak’s 21 and Salah’s 19. 

Meanwhile, Sweden international Isak tops the charts for efforts in the box (19).

Marmoush sits at the summit for shots on target – posting a tally of 11 – with Isak and Yoane Wissa (£6.6m) further back on seven and six, respectively. 

In terms of big chances, Isak and Salah (nine apiece) are at the top level, with both players also missing seven high-quality opportunities. 

Brentford’s Mbeumo takes the overall creativity crown with an expected assists tally of 2.02 – some distance ahead of De Bruyne (1.16) and Salah (1.09).

Elsewhere, Marmoush has registered the most big chances created (five) in this sample, ahead of Mbeumo on four. 

Salah tops the charts for key passes (18), with Liverpool’s wideman ahead of Mbeumo (13), who takes the silver medal for creation. 

In terms of non-penalty expected goal involvement, Salah’s rate of one every 107.5 minutes is quickest in our assessment, closely followed by Isak’s 112.3 and Marmoush’s 120.5.

Two players that haven’t featured strongly on the datasheet are Cole Palmer (£10.6m) and Ollie Watkins (£8.9m). 

Palmer’s lean spell continues with the Chelsea talisman sitting bottom for big chances (one) and non-penalty xG (0.87) over the last six. 

Watkins, meanwhile, places bottom for shots on target (four), registering a non-penalty expected goal involvement every 230 minutes. 

TEAM ATTACKING STATISTICS – LAST SIX MATCHES

Salah’s Liverpool tops the charts for a few key attacking statistics. The Merseysiders sit at the summit for big chances (26), total attempts (127), and shots in the box (95). Crucially, Arne Slot’s side also claim the top spot for non-penalty xG, with a tally of 12.14. 

Meanwhile, Isak’s Newcastle have scored the most goals (18). The Magpies place second for non-penalty xG (11.31) and big chances (25) in this assessment. 

Elsewhere, Watkins’ Aston Villa tops the division for shots on target (39). In a strong showing for Unai Emery’s men, the Villans rank in the top four for big chances (22), goals (14), efforts in the box (68), and non-penalty xG (10.27) over the last half-dozen matches. 

Marmoush’s Man City, meanwhile, rank third-best for non-penalty xG (10.85). Importantly, Pep Guardiola’s side has managed 13 goals, 25 big chances and 33 shots on target in this sample. They are all top-four totals here. 

Thomas Frank’s Brentford side are the flavour of the month before Man United’s visit. The Bees, however, sit in the bottom half for efforts on target (22) and non-penalty xG (6.08). 

Finally, Chelsea placed in the top four for shots (97) and attempts on target (35). Enzo Maresca’s men have found goals (six) challenging to come by and sit midtable for non-penalty xG (6.75)

TEAM DEFENDING STATISTICS – LAST SIX MATCHES

In terms of non-penalty xG conceded, Aston Villa has the most promising fixture. Fulham (7.81) has the eighth-worst defence above, with 59 shots in the box allowed and five placed in the box. 

Meanwhile, Fabian Hurzeler’s Brighton & Hove Albion have not kept a clean sheet in their last eight Premier League matches. The Isak propaganda continues, with the Seagulls conceding the second-most goals (15) and placing in the bottom four for big chances shipped (16). 

Elsewhere, Wolves’ underlying numbers hardly inspire Marmoush as an armband heavyweight. Vítor Pereira’s side have shipped the joint-fewest goals (four) over the last half-dozen, with three clean sheets to their credit. The Molineux outfit has shipped 40 efforts in the box and a chance every 10 minutes – both top-six tallies in this assessment.  

Meanwhile, Mbeumo’s visitors, Man United, are in the top four for non-penalty xG conceded (4.96) and attempts in the box allowed (34). 

Only two sides have allowed fewer big chances than Salah’s hosts Chelsea (nine). Maresca’s men have been better defensively for the last six, with three clean sheets and four goals conceded, placing the Blues among the top two rearguards. 

Finally, Palmer’s visitors, Liverpool, posted some of the best defensive numbers in our assessment. Slot’s side has allowed 31 efforts in the box, a tally of 4.0 non-penalty xG, and a chance every 12.1 minutes—totals that put the Merserysiders in the division’s top two over the last six. 

RATE MY TEAM

Above: RMT’s leading captaincy selections for FPL Gameweek 35

Saka tops the RMT ratings in Gameweek 35, with Arsenal’s talisman forecast to score 6.2 points against Bournemouth. These figures could change tomorrow, however, after the pre-match press conferences and expected minutes are tweaked.

Salah’s 5.91 points are in second place, followed by Vardy and his 5.3.

PREMIER FANTASY TOOLS

Above: Leading captaincy candidates for FPL Gameweek 35 according to Premier Fantasy Tools

Our friends at Premier Fantasy Tools offer a complete range of captaincy tools on their website, including the Captain Picker.

They side with Salah this week, with Bryan Mbeumo second and Cole Palmer third from the key names mentioned here.

You can also use Premier Fantasy Tools’ Captain Analyser to assess your armband picks for the season – and see where they went right and wrong.

IN CONCLUSION

Above: FPL Gameweek 35 teams to target from @robtfpl on X

Both Marmoush and Mbeumo have substantial merit as alternatives to captaincy mainstay Salah for this week’s armband, for managers looking to gamble. 

The Man City frontman’s numbers in the player table arguably make him the standout candidate based purely on underlying stats. The Wolves’ match-up also projects 2.4 goals for Guardiola’s men. 

Meanwhile, Mbeumo has excelled throughout the season, with his combination of creativity, goal threat and spot-kick duties a big draw ahead of the visit of a potentially rotated Man United.

Undoubtedly, Ruben Amorim’s side will surely be focused on the Europa League and first-season silverware for the Portuguese manager. 

The spectre of rotation for the Red Devils is evident in the all-important spread market data, with Thomas Frank’s side clear second favourites this week. 

Completing the top three is Mohamed Salah, with Liverpool’s talisman needing little introduction in this article.

Motivation is a question mark hanging over Liverpool following their season-defining victory over Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday.

The underlying remains strong, of course, but risk appetite is a significant factor in opposing Salah in this Gameweek; after all, we are all chasing rank. 

Not sure who to buy this week? Our expert shares his plans for the new round:

Which players are going to get the most points in Gameweek 35? Find out here:

You are going to need differentials to attack the last part of the season:

Player ownership is vital at this point, so here are the top 10 most popular picks for Gameweek 35:

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