All good things must come to an end and unfortunately, we had a couple of those instances in Double Gameweek 7. Mo Salah (£12.6m) saw his run of at least one attacking return in each gameweek this campaign come to an end in cruel fashion after the officials failed to overturn an incorrect offside call for a Liverpool goal which Salah had assisted. This led to him picking up just 1 fantasy point in a 2-1 defeat for the Reds. Erling Haaland (£14.1m) blanked for the first time since Gameweek 2, shut out by Wolves who inflicted Man City’s first Premier League defeat of the season, winning by two goals to one at Molineux. However, it wasn’t all bad news as Kieran Trippier (£6.8m) fully justified our faith in him with an assist, a clean sheet and 12 FPL points against Burnley.
With the first double gameweek of the 2023-24 season in the books, its normal service resumed for Gameweek 8, the final one before the second international break of the campaign. As is standard, we’ve weighed up three premium captain picks who could score a big FPL points-return, alongside a differential selection ahead of Saturday’s 11:00 deadline.
PREMIUM OPTIONS
Heung-Min Son (£9.3m) vs LUT (a)
Luton have conceded 14 goals in the top flight so far this season, only two other clubs have let in more goals than that. They have been afforded less rest time ahead of Gameweek 8 after having played in midweek, so Spurs and Heung-Min Son (£9.3m) will be looking to take advantage when the two clubs collide on Saturday lunchtime. One thing’s for sure, Son in the current form he is in offensively warrants the captaincy from any FPL manager who currently owns him.
Over the course of the last four gameweeks, Son has delivered six goals and 43 fantasy points for his adoring ownership, including two double-figures. The quality Son possesses is likely to see him overwhelm the Luton defence and with Spurs currently purring from an attacking point of view under the command of Ange Postecoglou, another big haul is potentially on the cards for the long-serving midfielder.
Mo Salah (£12.6m) vs BHA (a)
Currently the fourth highest-scoring FPL midfield asset, Mo Salah is expected to take out the pent-up anger build up following that Spurs defeat last Saturday out on Brighton. The Egyptian international has been so consistent with his returns across the season and to be denied an attacking return in such an unjust fashion would have hurt, especially when it broke a streak the way it did.
Salah has already accrued seven attacking returns this season, but will no doubt be looking to improve on his tally of three goals, starting on the South Coast. A fired-up Salah should always be taken seriously and if Roberto De Zerbi’s Brighton defended like they did against Aston Villa, it could be another terrible experience for them, with Salah at the forefront from an attacking perspective. A Gameweek 8 captain pick? Without a doubt!
James Maddison (£7.9m) vs LUT (a)
We’ve already named Heung-Min Son as one of our captain picks for Gameweek 8, but he isn’t the only selection from the Spurs midfield worthy of consideration this weekend. James Maddison (£7.9m) has accumulated an unbelievable record away from home with all of his six attacking returns so far having come on the road. Spurs’ most recent away fixture saw Maddison set up both of their goals away to North London rivals Arsenal, bagging 9 fantasy points in the process.
Maddison has already put one newly promoted side to the sword on their own patch since joining the Ange Postecoglou ‘revolution’, scoring against Burnley at Turf Moor. He’ll be hoping to do the same again at Kenilworth Road, but with an ownership that currently exceeds 30%, the best way to capitalise on any potential Maddison returns is to name him your FPL skipper in Gameweek 8.
DIFFERENTIAL OPTION
Dominic Calvert-Lewin (£5.8m) vs BOU (H)
We know what you’re thinking right now! Choosing an Everton player as our differential pick is a laughable selection and you may well be right. But at least hear us out before totally writing him off. Dominic Calvert-Lewin (£5.8m) has shown himself to be a proven Premier League goalscorer when fit. The issue has been that for a long period of time, the Toffees striker simply hasn’t been fit. However, he is coming off the back of having just completed his first 90 minutes of the season last weekend and made an impact for Sean Dyche’s side.
Calvert-Lewin scored Everton’s only goal in Double Gameweek 7 and has now found the net in consecutive Premier League appearances when you include his Gameweek 6 goal off the bench against Brentford. Everton are back at home in Gameweek 8 vs Bournemouth and if they are to find the net, the likelihood is that Calvert-Lewin will be the one to do it. With that in mind, those fantasy bosses searching for a massive differential skipper should give the forward some thought.
