Best Captain for Gameweek 4 - Fantasy Football Community

Fantasy Premier League (FPL) managers have a tricky decision to make this week. With that in mind we use some of our brilliant tools to decide who the best captain for Gameweek 4 is.

For this week’s Captain Sensible, we deep dive into the Erling Haaland (£15.2m) versus Mohamed Salah (£12.7m) debate. We also consider differential options from Crystal Palace and Brighton and Hove Albion.

CAPTAIN POLL

Erling Haaland made it back-to-back Premier League hat-tricks as Man City extended their 100% start to the season with an entertaining 3-1 win over West Ham United.

The Norwegian was at his ruthless best on his way to his eighth Premier League hat-trick in 69 appearances. His four shots on target at the London Stadium was the most by any player in Gameweek 4.

Afforded a summer of rest, Haaland has been simply devastating. The City frontman cannot be bettered for goals scored (seven) or Fantasy points (41) after the opening three rounds.

The former Molde marksman is backed by just over half of our users. They seemingly expect him to continue his rich vein of form as Man City host Brentford.

Meanwhile, Mohamed Salah produced a star-studded all-round performance in Liverpool’s dominant 3-0 win over Man United. This meant keeping pace with his captaincy rival.

The Egyptian demonstrated goal threat – with his three efforts in the box a match-leading total – and creativity in equal measure at Old Trafford.

Salah’s three big chances created against Man United place Liverpool’s talisman joint-top of the division for that metric in Gameweek 4.

The right-winger is backed by just over one-quarter of our users for the armband. Liverpool host a Nuno Espirito Santo’s defensively robust Nottingham Forest side this week.

Way further back it’s Bruno Fernandes (£8.4m) in third place with 3.4% of the vote. Following closely is Joao Pedro (£5.7m) and Cole Palmer (£10.6m).

THE PLAYER STATISTICS

SALAH V HAALAND

Haaland leads the way for goal threat over the first three Gameweeks. He sits top for big chances (seven), efforts in the box (12) and shots on target (10).

The Norwegian’s dominance extends to our Statsbomb expected data. City’s sharpshooter ranks first among all players for non-penalty xG (2.45). This is a tally which he has overperformed by more than three open play goals.

Meanwhile, Salah sits top in this assessment for non-penalty involvement (2.92).

The Egyptian’s underlying numbers highlight his multiple routes to points. He places second for shots in the box (10), attempts on target (six) and big chances received (five). A non-penalty xG tally of 1.32 is not far off half of Haaland’s.

In addition, Salah’s numbers are boosted by his creativity. The right-winger ranks top in this assessment for big chances created (four), level with Cole Palmer. That has resulted in an expected assists tally of 1.61.

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