Every so often a Gameweek comes along where the armband refuses to pick itself, and this is one of them.
Manchester City travel to Aston Villa, Chelsea welcome Spurs, Arsenal host Everton and Manchester United face Bournemouth at Old Trafford.
Each of those fixtures has a fair argument behind it, and I have changed my mind more than once already. Here is how I see the six main options.
The catch
Erling Haaland (£15.7m) is where it starts, as it always does. He leads the league for expected goal involvement and has blanked only once this season, back in Gameweek 1. He will be captained by a huge chunk of the game again, and the slight injury doubt has gone, with Enzo Maresca confirming he should be fit for the weekend.
The catch is Villa away, which is a tougher test than most of his fixtures. Cautious managers will stick with him, while those who like to take a swing have plenty of other places to look. Ownership matters here too. If you are chasing rank, matching the crowd only keeps you level, and Haaland is the one player who is almost impossible to leave out of a squad.
Riccardo Calafiori (£6.0m) is a left-field captaincy option worth a mention. He sits in the top three defenders for expected goal involvement this season and plays for an elite backline that has conceded far fewer expected goals than anyone else. Arsenal also carry roughly 50% clean sheet odds this week, comfortably the best on the slate, so he has a route to points at both ends of the pitch. Captaining a defender is always a gamble, but for managers who like a bold call, the upside is real.
Cole Palmer (£9.7m) has six attacking returns in seven league games, and Chelsea have scored 11 goals across their last three home matches. Spurs have been poor defensively, so it is about as friendly a fixture as he could ask for. Being classified as a midfielder also gives him extra points for goals and clean sheets, with the occasional defensive contribution as a bonus.
Joao Pedro (£7.9m) has created more xG per start than Palmer and sits second to Haaland among forwards for FPL points. The matchup looks good on paper. Even so, I would still lean towards Palmer for the armband, purely because of those extra points his position offers.
Bruno Fernandes (£11.8m) is always part of the conversation. The underlying numbers remain strong, and he has penalties and set pieces to fall back on. The problem is United themselves, who have looked unreliable and out of form, and that makes him hard to trust this week.
Bryan Mbeumo (£7.8m) leads the line with Sesko out for a while. He has scored in each of his last two league games and has played every minute of all seven Premier League matches, so his place is secure. The risk is the same one that hangs over Fernandes, which is relying on a United side that has blown hot and cold all season.
Final Thoughts
When in doubt, go with Haaland. He leads the league for expected goal involvement, has blanked only once all season and remains the safest armband in the game, even with Villa away being a tougher fixture than usual. If you would rather go differential, Palmer is the next best option. Calafiori is a bold alternative for those who like a swing, but the reliable route is still the one with the highest floor. If you cannot separate the options, trust the player who has delivered week after week.
Lastly, don't forget that the deadline is TONIGHT at 18:30! Good luck.
