It was a mixed bag for our captain picks in Gameweek 22, with a couple impressing and others less so. However, no big hauls were accrued to our disappointment. Erling Haaland (£14.0m) came off the bench for Man City in his return to action against Burnley but failed to find the net. Neither did Jarrod Bowen (£8.1m) in West Ham’s 1-1 draw with Bournemouth. Both Kevin De Bruyne (£10.7m) and James Maddison (£7.9m) gained assists, scoring 7 FPL points apiece.
Me seeing everyone with Jota & KDB this week ..
— FPLNym (@FPLNym) February 1, 2024
Me still with Bowen.. pic.twitter.com/Dy4k39Dj3N
We’ve little time to dwell on the midweek action with another round of Premier League fixtures fast approaching. As always, we’ve picked out three premium players (whether that be through cost or ownership) who boast worthy captaincy credentials in Gameweek 23, alongside an alternate differential option ahead of Saturday’s 11:00 deadline.
PREMIUM OPTIONS
Kevin De Bruyne (£10.7m) vs BRE (a)
De Bruyne has wasted little time racking up attacking returns following his long-awaited return from injury. Two Premier League appearances against Newcastle and Burnley respectively have led to a goal and two assists, picking up 19 FPL points overall. Unsurprisingly, this has grabbed the attention of many fantasy managers, lots of whom had already brought him in ahead of the Gameweek 22 deadline, elevating De Bruyne into the captaincy conversation for Gameweek 23.
1.71 million #FPL managers have transferred in Kevin De Bruyne for Gameweek 22
— Fantasy Premier League (@OfficialFPL) January 31, 2024
That's a season high
Man City travel to Brentford on Monday night, giving De Bruyne plenty of rest time following their win this past Wednesday, increasing the expectation that the Belgian will start for a second consecutive Premier League fixture. The Bees are without a clean sheet since Gameweek 10 and such defensive vulnerability should be taken advantage of by Pep Guardiola’s side in this one.
Cole Palmer (£5.8m) vs WOL (H)
Although it was a rare blank for Cole Palmer in Gameweek 22, the Chelsea star had a tough fixture away at Liverpool. Back at Stamford Bridge, significantly higher returns are expected for a player whose ‘premium’ status is garnered via a whopping ownership percentage, which currently sees him owned by over 38% of FPL managers. When considering his price-tag and attacking returns so far this season, that is no surprise.
Palmer at home with a Chelsea team with a hell of a lot to make up for against a Wolves side that will be wounded from last night isn’t a bad sneaky shout
— Neil Robertson (@nr147) February 2, 2024
A total of 30 fantasy points accumulated across the past three gameweeks and five double-figure-scores so far this campaign has helped Palmer rack up 104 FPL points in 2023-24 as it stands. Had the midfielder been a regular starter for Chelsea from Gameweek 1 onwards, that number would likely be significantly higher. An expert penalty taker, Wolves at home in Gameweek 23 must see Palmer afforded significant captain contemplation.
Dominic Solanke (£7.1m) vs NFO (H)
Bournemouth striker Dominic Solanke was back on the scoresheet on Thursday night, netting his 13th Premier League goal of the season after just three minutes in the Cherries’ 1-1 draw vs West Ham. This was enough to see Solanke gain 8 FPL points, bumping up his tally to 108 points overall, the fourth highest score among forwards and ending a run of two consecutive blanks.
The most non-penalty goals in the @PremierLeague so far this season...
— AFC Bournemouth (@afcbournemouth) February 2, 2024
Dominic Solanke pic.twitter.com/SS8PtnakgS
Next up for Solanke and Bournemouth is a home clash with Nottingham Forest in Gameweek 23 and on paper, this looks an extremely attractive fixture and one to target from an FPL point of view. Forest have struggled desperately when it comes to stopping the opposition from scoring, not least due to fielding two goalkeepers across the season so far who are not up to the required standards. You have to go back to Gameweek 11 for their last clean sheet and Solanke will be licking his lips at facing the same side he scored a hat-trick against in the reverse fixture.
DIFFERENTIAL OPTION
Mohammed Kudus (£6.8m) vs MUN (a)
Back from the Africa Cup of Nations, it took just one game for Mohammed Kudus to make an impact offensively for West Ham, winning a penalty against Bournemouth which was converted by James Ward-Prowse, giving Kudus his fourth Premier League assist of the campaign. Before departing for international duty, Kudus had lit up the stage since signing for West Ham from Ajax, accruing six goals, four assists and 91 FPL points.
28 points in his last three #FPL games before AFCON for Mohammed Kudus
— Fantasy Premier League (@OfficialFPL) February 1, 2024
He is set to return for West Ham later #WHUBOU pic.twitter.com/FVxIFgrV8X
One of those goals came against Gameweek 23 opponents Man Utd, Kudus recording 9 fantasy points in that particular fixture. As it stands, his ownership is below 5% with many FPL bosses owning teammate Jarrod Bowen instead. But this only increases the differential appeal of Kudus and handing him the armband would afford you a rare point of difference in Gameweek 23.
