Gameweek 20 was all about Mo Salah (£13.2m) from a captaincy point of view. With Erling Haaland’s injury leaving plenty of options on the table for FPL managers, those who went with the Egyptian were most rewarded. A rollercoaster ride saw Salah miss a first-half penalty against Newcastle, but redeem himself in dramatic fashion. A second-half brace and an assist saw him finish on 16 FPL points, the perfect send-off ahead of his extended Africa Cup of Nations enforced absence. Other premium assets also performed well such as Heung-Min Son (£9.8m) with a goal and 9 fantasy points, whilst Ollie Watkins (£8.9m) bagged a pair of assists and 8 points.
Salah captainers at HT vs at FT :D #fpl #LIVNEW pic.twitter.com/xmMAlKbztl
— Troll Fantasy Football (@FPL_Trolls) January 1, 2024
Gameweek 21 is already proving stressful for FPL managers due to a combination of injuries and the Africa Cup of Nations ruling out plenty of highly-owned assets who would normally be regarded as captain candidates. With options becoming thin on the ground, we’re on hand to assist with three premium captain picks from the current pool of players available, along with a differential selection ahead of Friday’s 18:15 deadline.
PREMIUM OPTIONS
Bukayo Saka (£9.1m) vs CRY (H)
Assuming that Erling Haaland doesn’t feature in Gameweek 21, Bukayo Saka (£9.1m) should be comfortably the most owned player among FPL bosses set to take to the pitch. His ownership will be hoping that his goal in Gameweek 20 against Fulham represents a return to form for the England international, who prior to that had not scored in the Premier League for Arsenal since Gameweek 14 vs Wolves.
Saka has 4 big chances over the last 2 games, the same number of big chances he'd registered in 13 games before that! pic.twitter.com/KFwo3Bl9yW
— FPL Focal (@FPLFocal) January 10, 2024
Despite that fact, Saka remains the fourth highest-scoring midfield asset in FPL and one of just seven players to have accrued 100 fantasy points or more. Arsenal host Crystal Palace in Gameweek 21, a fixture of huge importance to them following consecutive league defeats alongside getting knocked out of the FA Cup. Saka could be the man to spearhead a revival and a worthy FPL skipper in the process.
Cole Palmer (£5.7m) vs FUL (H)
Although the price-tag of Cole Palmer (£5.7m) is anything but premium, his booming ownership of over 32% at the time of writing deems him worthy of that tag. The Chelsea midfielder’s recent returns from a fantasy perspective have been huge with two double figure hauls and a whopping 33 FPL points across the last three fixtures in which Palmer has featured, thanks to his three goals and two assists.
If Salah was at home to Fulham, we'd captain him.
— Azz (@FPLHelicopter) January 9, 2024
So surely this man has to be the favourite this weekend? #FPL pic.twitter.com/8YefOobelJ
Motivation will be high for Chelsea against local rivals Fulham with West London bragging rights up for grabs. Palmer missed a big chance in his side’s Carabao Cup defeat away at Middlesbrough in midweek and will want to make up for that here. With eight goals and five assists in the league so far this season, Palmer warrants serious consideration for the armband.
Dominic Solanke (£7.1m) vs LIV (H)
Although Dominic Solanke (£7.1m) failed to get on the scoresheet against Spurs in Gameweek 20, it wasn’t for the lack of trying. An overall xG rating of 0.84 puts into perspective how close he was to finding the net across that game and continuing his recent hot-streak in front of goal which has seen him score five goals across his last four Premier League appearances, recording 32 FPL points in the process.
Solanke’s Bournemouth take on Liverpool in Gameweek 21 and they’ll be hoping that the Reds are fatigued following their midweek Carabao Cup clash with Fulham. Solanke has extra motivation, the powerful forward is facing his former club, whom he’ll want to show why they should have kept him. With 12 league goals to his name in 2023-24 so far, it would be no surprise to see Solanke add to that.
DIFFERENTIAL OPTION
Rasmus Højlund (£6.8m) vs TOT (H)
Gameweek 19 may well have marked a turning point for Rasmus Højlund (£6.8m) in the Premier League after the Danish forward finally bagged his first ever English top flight goal for Man Utd in their 3-2 win over Aston Villa. Højlund was badly missed the following weekend, illness keeping him out of the Red Devils’ trip to Nottingham Forest which ended in a 2-1 loss for Erik ten Hag’s side.
A Stretford End winner doesn't get much sweeter than this
— Manchester United (@ManUtd) January 6, 2024
Rasmus Hojlund wins our December Goal of the Month! #MUFC
Højlund has since recovered and could have had a first half hat-trick in his side’s FA Cup win over Wigan this past Monday. Whilst he was wasteful at the DW Stadium, for Højlund to be getting in those goalscoring positions is a big positive and it may only be a matter of time before his luck turns. Against a notoriously attack-minded Spurs side in Gameweek 21 who will push bodies forward at will, the Man Utd striker must fancy his chances of further attacking returns here at Old Trafford. With options limited, there is arguably no better time than now for FPL managers to take a punt on a differential captain like Højlund.
