Captains Picks Gameweek 30 – FPL Fantasy Football Premier League
GW30 provides a whole host of potential candidates for your armband and it’s really a week that if you get it right, you will see your side climb up the leagues. On the flip side, getting it wrong may see some dreaded red arrows, so some thinking and work needs to be done.
With Sergio Aguero’s injury last night putting off many a manager from including him this week, who is a decent alternative to the Argentinian – is it now Dzeko time? With Liverpool playing at Old Trafford will the Suarez or Sturridge debate be as prevalent as ever? Will the Garden of Eden again be smelling of roses for Hazard? Will Rooney continue his good run against the arch enemy? Or is Lukaku too obvious a skipper to ignore? We’ll attempt to answer these questions and more as we look in detail at all the obvious options for GW30.
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Romelu Lukaku
Seemingly Lukaku is a very obvious pick for the armband this week. With Everton playing Cardiff at Goodison Park, a home win looks a near certainty for your coupon, the striker has returned from injury by scoring two goals in two games and Everton’s record at home is pretty impressive as they have won their last four. However, closer analysis suggests caution – the Blues have scored only ten goals in their last eight league games with Lukaku scoring just two league goals since the end of November. And don’t forget that before he got injured, some were questioning whether Lukaku can produce the amount of goals in this Everton side as he did at West Brom last season. Then again, this is Cardiff, one clean sheet in thirteen. He’s a good choice!
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Adam Lallana
Lallana seems to be appearing more and more in this article and with good reason – seven goals and eight assists this season see him lie behind just Eden Hazard & Yaya Toure in the FPL midfield scoring charts. Despite three scoreless weeks, he is still at the heart of most of what the Saints produce and of course his confidence will have been buoyed by his debut for the national side last week. From a fantasy perspective, a home fixture vs Norwich is about as good as it gets – the Canaries have conceded 29 goals in their last 11 league games – even Villa put four past them. While some other candidates have potentially tricky away fixtures, maybe Lallana as skipper is the gamble that will pay off this week.
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Eden Hazard
The aforementioned midfielder needs very little introduction as he is part of the furniture in this Captain’s article – and with good reason. Thirteen goals and ten assists make the Belgian the standout midfielder this season and this weekend’s game should provide more opportunities for him to add to his tally. Villa have not kept a clean sheet at home in seven league games and with the Blues seven points clear at the top, a confident and solid display will be expected.
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Wayne Rooney
Wazza, Wazza, Wazza – give him £300k a week and look what happens – 2 goals and 1 assist in two away matches says it all and as we mentioned last week, the ginger one does like to go on a run of scoring once he gets going. Can he do it vs Liverpool? Yeah course, Swansea scored three against them and Fulham two. So this should be a walk in the park for the cash King. It’s at the other end that United need to worry. Largely ineffective when RvP is on the pitch, Rooney came to life when the Dutchie was taken off before he was sent off last week at the Albion and at that point we saw the old Wazza – running the game, scoring, making chances, ah it was just like the good old days. No doubt Moyes will be working on getting his two strikers to have more impact as a pair, and if he can succeed then those fantasy points should roll in.
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Robin van Persie
I very nearly didn’t include RvP in the article, but I’m assuming those who own him will consider him, otherwise there’s no real point in owning him, if you ask me. Well, to me the guy looks out of sorts – rumours he wants to leave, hates Moyes and is jealous of Wazza’s bank balance – perfectly understandable if you ask me. But things got worse at West Brom last week where he ran about looking for a fight in a way that Alan Pardew would be proud. RvP to Newcastle ? There you go, you heard it here first. But seriously, we all know RvP’s talent and capabilities and as we alluded to above, if Moyes can appease and motivate RvP then anything is possible – four goals and an assist in six games since returning from injury is still good and if Ashley Young plays, then penalties are likely. Wouldn’t be my choice this week, but then I’m up there with the worst gamblers in the world.
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Daniel Sturridge / Luis Suarez
Ah the old Suarez or Sturridge debate resurfaces after a week off. So which one, if either, will you choose? It really is gamble time here and I have included them as a pair instead of doubling up on saying “he’s in great form”, “Liverpool are scoring for fun”, “they are scoring against everyone” blah blah blah. So let’s get down to the nitty gritty. Suarez or Sturridge? Well, its best guess time as to what formation Brendan Rodgers decides to start with at Old Trafford. Young Joe Allen returned to the line-up at Southampton with Raheem Sterling benched, suggesting this may be the way forward for Liverpool in their “tougher” matches. Allen’s inclusion meant Suarez wasn’t isolated on the wing and was much more involved in the play, hence his improved scoring display. So can we assume this again will happen at United – possibly, but possibly not. It is understood Rodgers deployed this theory to counter Southampton’s higher pressing game and United don’t generally play like that. So there is also a chance that Rodgers will revert to the more attacking formation and go for it against a United defence that has not looked the most secure this season- though three clean sheets on the bounce will have helped with confidence….though two of those were against Palace and West Brom! Worth noting too that Suarez’s record vs United is not good – just one goal in five, whereas Sturridge has scored two in his last two vs the Reds. In conclusion, errrrm, not sure I’ve helped that much – but then generally I’ve got this choice wrong every time recently, so what do I know anyway?!
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Jay Rodriguez & Rickie Lambert
Saint’s two England strikers both feature in the top 10 forwards owned by fantasy managers and if you don’t captain one this weekend, you probably never will! We have discussed above Norwich’s ability, or lack of it, to defend on their travels. Both strikers will expect to have a few chances on Saturday with Lambert having the advantage of being the penalty taker and on some set pieces and also benefitting from playing through the middle while J-Rod has been pushed more to the left of that. It was J-Rod however, who scored the winner at Palace last week, so form is no issue. Both great options for the armband this week and if you own them, we feel they should be considered.
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Other considerations:
Seamus Coleman – home fixture vs Cardiff, who have failed to score in four of the last five away matches. Coleman also offers decent attacking potential, though be warned that Everton have not looked or performed as secure at the back in the absence of Jagielka.
Leighton Baines – as per Coleman but with the added bonus of being on set pieces and penalties.
Wilfried Bony – home fixture vs West Brom and we all know how good they are. Bony scores most of his goals at home and will probably score in this one.
Samuel Eto’o – with Torres injured, Demba Ba is his only competition, but expect Eto’o to start. With Villa unable to keep a clean sheet at home, you have to fancy Eto’o’s chances.
Edin Dzeko – With injury woes surrounding Sergio Aguero, expect Dzeko to see increased game time over the next few weeks. Fixtures vs Hull and Fulham may see some “Aguero dollars” going the way of the giant Bosnian.
Loic Remy – An away fixture at lowly, sieve-like Fulham, coupled with two home fixtures in DGW31, make Remy a potential diamond, especially as the striker has netted a goal in both of his previous two matches. He has been suffering from a knock on his ankle, so best wait for Pardew to give an injury update before buying him, but is it thought he will be ok to play.
Olivier Giroud – Maybe a surprising name to see on here, but with Arsenal coming away from Munich with great credit and Giroud having a decent game then he may be a cheeky differential call this week – and he does also have the advantage of a DGW31, albeit one of those games is at Chelsea. Also worth bearing in mind that Spurs are missing Michael Dawson, Younes Kaboul and Vlad Chiriches at the heart of their defence, a traditionally high scoring fixture should again live up to its reputation.
Well, I think we’ve covered most options there! But no doubt, there will be other names in consideration, so be sure to chat on the boards with any alternative thoughts and indeed who you be selecting as captain. Please also remember to vote on the Captain’s Poll below, the results of which should be very interesting this week.
Thanks for reading Captains Picks Gameweek 30, this article was written by Cookie
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it seems Aguero injury has injured many FPL managersfeeling great i waited for this to happennow i see scope for Mirallas n Lukaku in my line up however that involves doubling up on Everton
thoughts guys??
I’m not sure about Mirallas…Martinez has talked recently about his options and let’s face it, those options are in midfield so I would expect a certain amount of rotation.
evening guys!!Wow Aguero proper screwed things up last night didn’t he I now have no idea what to do with my transfers this week!! (3 for an 8 pointer!!) Am totally confused :oogle:
peakydave – yeah I’m with you there! How about Adebayor to Lukaku? I’m most likely going to do that same move. At least, I will if Mirallas has learned to pass the ball now instead of shooting at every opportunity… or even Bentaleb to Nolan?
Yeah, I hope Mirallas a) plays, and b) isn’t a selfish prick.
Josh721 which starting XI would u prefer for the DGW coming up?!?!?!
Mannone
Cahill Zab Baines
Nolan Sissoko Hazard Yaya
Lukaku Sturridge Suarez
or
Mannone
Cahill Kolorov Baines
Hazard Gerrard Yaya Nolan Sissoko
Sturridge Suarez
What do people reckon???
So Zab & Lukaku or Gerrard & Kolarov then.
I’d go Zab & Lukaku… Zab is more nailed to start, plus while Gerrard could get the odd goal/assist, lukaku has the potential to be more explosive… plus looks quite hungry since he’s back.
Cheers Dangermouse its actually the first time ive written this down and ur breakdown of it makes it v simple really!! One good thing about Aguero’s injury (sorry Kun) is it makes that UFPL game a whole lot easier!!!! 😉
Agreed… I’ve just re-done my UFPL team!
A wildcard in my normal AND UFPL team this week…. I’m getting giddy with all the transfers! :whacky:
I will wait on word on Kun if he is out only 2 games or so. I might just stick him in the UFPL team and stash him away.
I almost did the same… but UFPL is more about the squad game… and you can do a lot to improve the squad if you aren’t shelling out Aguero type money on a striker.
You are right DM, but with 2 DGW’s in the future he would be a great candidate for captain to have up the sleeve. Possibly.
It’s a roll of a dice..
If I leave him out I can always loan him in for a DGW or two if he happens to be fit & firing again
If I bring him in I’m stuck with him in the squad… injured or not.
At the mo he’s looking dodgy so am leaving out, but if Manuel says something more optimistic tomorrow I may reconsider.
DM, I think I will go with you on this one. Unless Pelligrini says something that can be considered very good news, I will just loan him in for a week if needed.
peaky, I think I would prefer that first one. Zabaleta is more nailed on than Kolarov and I think it’s better to have Lukaku in there instead of Gerrard since you already have Sturridge and Suarez.
I think I’ve settled on my WC team now… any thoughts?
Cech (Adrian)
Coleman / Azpi / Kompany (Bardsley / Chester)
Yaya / Hazard / Lallana / Nolan (Ki)
Suarez / Sturridge / Lukaku
Should give me 10 for DGW31, and then another 6 who have more double still to be scheduled…
Can u afford to put Sissoko in instead of Nolan (away to stoke this week) then bring Nolan in for Ki for the DGW benching Lallana???
I’ve got half a mil stuck in Nolan and 0 in the bank, so if I sell him he’s not coming back unfortunately…
He may go after the double as West Ham have a horrid run of games, but with Carroll back I want to keep him for a bit if I can… can see a few goals/assists on the horizon.
@DM, If I had a WC it would almost be the same exact players. 2 City and Everton so you are good for other doubles plus a Sunderland player for their doubles. You are still covering CFC and their schedule from here to the end, so that’s good. I think it’s a very nice squad, you should do well over the coming weeks. Nice set up
Cheers Mito…
Have put (far too much) time into thinking about this one after buggering my team up in January.
Plus worked on the idea of doing it this week, so have an extra FT saved for the run in… so if Aguero manages to shake off his case of Wiltshere’itis then I can bring him back without tooo many hits.
am i the only one, that has lost interest in the ultimate game ?
Don’t know Bench, but I’m enjoying it.
No way Bench!!! I’m 22nd and because ive told ‘ her indoors’ that theres a tablet computer to be won shes v keen for me to spend quality time doing my transfers!!!! 😉
:big-lol:
Wow good darts peaky , and best of luck
Judging by your scores in the regular game, it seems you have lost interest there also. 😉
BOOM
haha Mito you may be right 😉
I agree with you Bench. Find it a less skilful game if i’m honest. Picking a 15 man squad is tougher than a 25 man squad in my view, then sticking or twisting is luck. Not saying there is NO skill involved but less in my view. I won’t play it next season.
I disagree, you get a free transfer every week in the normal game. After this week you need to stick with your squad until the end of the season.
I disagree also.
i think there is a fair bit of skill involved, i actually think the “loan” thing will take more skill than normal transfers as, from what i can make out; you have to decide how long you want them for and lose pts according to the lenght of loan
I agree with Cookie that it requires less skill because in most gameweeks you’re getting ‘second’ chances with the subs. However, I do enjoy it ! ( maybe because it’s easier to do well 😉 ) I prefer the original though….but i’ll mostly like do both next year.
Yeah Gasco that is what I gather also. The best part is you get deducted and you don’t get to keep them, so if they are doing well you might see yourself extending a loan and a steady stream of what constitutes to hits on a weekly basis. Plus I assume you have to lose a player of equal value or have enough in the bank to cover the cost of the player. So it will be interesting. I really do like the UFPL game.
Without exaggerating, It just took me about 5-10 minutes to do my WC team for UFPL. Lol….
Because is a Beta and you don’t care, wait until you start from week 1 and see if you don’t take a lot longer.
yeah mito but from my reading of it you decide how many weeks you want them for “up to 4 weeks” and if the player yo originaly had comes back early and you want him back you still lose the original pts. it will take alot of consideration
have a feeling at this stage of the season everyones team will be very similar especially as its played by everyone a week before a dgw 😉
Lol, it’s nothing to do with it being a beta because I still want to do well. If I didn’t want to try and do well I wouldn’t have signed up. It’s just the fact that it’s very easy to select a strong squad (that’s on form) with that money and half decent reserves. You’re right it will take longer at the start of next season because you won’t know who will be on form … so it might take 20mins then 😉
actually going back to benchs original comment.. i must have lost interest i forgot we had a w/c this week
Hi Bench. It’s funny I was going to post exactly the same as that.
It only took me about 5 mins to do my ultimate wildcard this GW.
0-0 draw between pompey and cheltenham .Pleased I didnt go to the game.
That’s 3 goalless draws for Pompey on the bounce yawn!
haha Horse looks like we will both be in that division next year too,
It’s sad the lack of ambition at my club.
But if we finish in the top 4 leagues this season that counts as a success
Haha
Thanks for writing the preview for the semis.
I can’t wait!!!!!
watch out potty predictions , i hear he has something up is sleeve
bench i’m sure i will given another week or 2
gasco mate , best of luck in cup this weekend , taxi here of to enjoy a couple of hours in the pub
thanks mate i’ll need all the luck i can get 😉 galow forwarded me the thing you put up yesterday, don’t know how i made the semis i’m miles behind the others in rank and transfer value.. gallow says i’m like wigan
always love an underdog 
enjoy the :beer:
Just got a chance to read it. Good work Blue!! As Commandant Eric Lassard would say ” Many Many” good choices there. #KingRomelu
Need to make some transfers I have 2ft 1.5 in the bank don’t mind a -4 point hit
Krul (Henderson)
ivanovic Coleman fonte (moxey and Chester )
Lallana hazard paulinho silva (ince)
J rod Sturridge Suarez
Need to get rid of paulinho but for who? And could I drop ince to Mutch?
Any suggestions appreciated
Thanks guys