Best Captain for Gameweek 5

The new round of Fantasy Premier League is approaching with haste. So, here, in this article we take a look at the best captain for Gameweek 5.

After his third consecutive double-digit return this season, backing against Erling Haaland (£15.2m) as captain in Gameweek 5 of Fantasy Premier League (FPL) is a daunting prospect.

However, a favourable home fixture for Arne Slot’s Liverpool could lead us into temptation.

Meanwhile, the Norwegian sharpshooter is set to face the Premier League’s meanest defence, Arsenal, on Super Sunday.

As usual, Captain Sensible highlights which assets have the best chance of hauling.

First, we will assess the fallout of the captain poll, before then analysing the best options, Rate My Team (RMT) and the Premier Fantasy Tools ratings ahead of Saturday’s 11:00 BST deadline.

THE CAPTAIN POLL

Despite a Gameweek 4 loss, Mohamed Salah (£12.7m) once again put his best foot forward. He produced match-leading totals for both shots on target (two) and penalty area touches (11).

The former Roma wing-wizard is backed by just under half of our users to rediscover his goal-scoring touch when Liverpool host Bournemouth on Saturday afternoon.

Meanwhile, superlatives simply don’t do Erling Haaland justice, with the Nordic sniper starting the season at breakneck speed.

It’s nine goals in just four matches for Haaland, with a trio of successive double-digit hauls highlighting the risk of backing against the Norwegian.

Moreover, no other player in the division could better him for efforts in the box (six) and shots on target (four) in Gameweek 4.

Our users are willing to dabble with risk engagement this week – Haaland is backed by around one in seven of the electorate.

Ollie Watkins (£8.9m) occupies third place with a mite over 10% of the vote. Cole Palmer (£10.6m) with Jarrod Bowen (£7.5m) are further back.

THE PLAYER STATISTICS – FIRST FOUR GAMEWEEKS

Top for shots in the box (18) and attempts on target over the first four Gameweeks, Haaland’s statistical appeal is obvious. He’s also best for non-penalty xG, with a healthy tally of 3.61.

When it comes to big chances received, his division-topping eight gilt-edged chances are equalled by Ollie Watkins. The Aston Villa marksman, however, has lacked accuracy, missing six high-quality chances across the opening four matches.

The former Brentford striker’s tally of 2.64 non-penalty xG trails only City’s Norwegian.

Meanwhile, Liverpool’s Salah continues to promise multiple routes to points. The right-winger is the key creator in this assessment – supplying four big chances and an expected assist tally of 1.68.

Salah’s 13 shots and five big chances both rank third-best here, with the Egyptian rising to second place for shots on target (eight).

Furthermore, only Haaland betters Salah’s non-penalty involvement tally of 3.09.

Elsewhere, Chelsea’s Cole Palmer has supplied the most key passes (12), with his tally of four big chances created level with Salah.

In terms of goal threat, Palmer has been limited to shots from range. Of his nine goal attempts, just two of them have come from inside the box, with tally registering the second-worst non-penalty xG tally (0.88) in this sample.

Among the Spurs contingent, both Son Heung-min (£10.0m) and Dominic Solanke (£7.5m) have posted underwhelming numbers. The ex-Bournemouth man at least has the excuse of fewer minutes after a brief injury.

Finally, Eberechi Eze (£6.9m) equals Haaland for shots (19). The England international boasts the highest combined total of shots and key passes (27) in this assessment.

The penalty-sharing arrangement at Palace, however, significantly dents Eze’s appeal.

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