Pros and cons of a Haaland, Salah and Isak draft
As we head into this long two-and-a-half-week Premier League break, FPL managers have plenty of time to see how feasible it is to own all of Erling Haaland, Mohamed Salah and Alexander Isak.
Let’s check out the pros and cons of having this superb trio.
DRAFT WITH ALL THREE
PROS
Gets Haaland in time for Leicester
After the combination of an eye-watering price tag and poor form kept Haaland out of most active FPL squads for a while, Gameweek 29 was part one of his comeback. Over 1.3 million bought the Norwegian and many immediately handed their captaincy to him, as he netted past Brighton and now gets to face struggling Leicester at home.
Newcastle triple up
Eddie Howe’s glorious Magpies now have the freedom to do anything, with the 56-year trophy drought finally over. Powered by immortality, their upcoming league fixtures are at home to Brentford, away to Leicester then they’re one of only two sides to play twice in Double Gameweek 32.
Isak is essential and opting for cheap midfielder Jacob Murphy seems very shrewd. Meanwhile, although their defence isn’t particularly great these days, such fixtures need attention via Tino Livramento.
Still has room for Gabriel, Wood + Mbeumo
Not too many sacrifices need making to afford Haaland, Salah and Isak. Highly-owned assets like centre-back Gabriel, top-scoring forward Chris Wood and third-best overall Bryan Mbeumo fit in here.
Admittedly, this draft instead opts for Jarrod Bowen over the Brentford attacker but it’s a 50/50 call. Some may even prefer Jean-Philippe Mateta to Wood.
CONS
We mightn’t know the whole picture by Gameweek 30
Chip strategy is a huge part of the remaining Gameweeks and – while we’ll know about Blank Gameweek 34 by the next deadline – there won’t necessarily be announcements on match rearrangements.
On a similar note, those intending to Bench Boost or Free Hit may tweak this squad accordingly.
No Cole Palmer
The big departure would be Chelsea attacker Palmer. Last season’s highest FPL scorer is currently second, despite a horrific run of form that’s brought only one attacking return since Gameweek 21 ended.
What could make this sale easier to stomach is Enzo Maresca’s words on a potential injury.
“His injury was from yesterday’s session, it’s a muscular problem. He needs a scan, and it is planned for tomorrow morning. I hope he can be back for our next game, but we need to wait for a scan.” – Enzo Maresca on Cole Palmer
By also staying away from Bruno Fernandes’ fixture run, this draft has no midfielder between £7.6m and £13.7m Salah. That could become restrictive at some point.
No Liverpool or Man City defence
League clean sheets are coming at a respectable pace for leaders Liverpool but their last four matches in all competitions have been unconvincing. Perhaps they’re entering a rough period. Of the remaining fixtures, the only strong shut-out contenders seem to be Everton at home and Leicester away.
As for Man City’s backline, they’ve long been one to avoid, either due to rotation or unreliability.
However, managers determined to include these sides could maybe plump for Conor Bradley – depending on the injury status of both he and Trent Alexander-Arnold – and Abdukodir Khusanov.
