Dec 14

Gameweek 21 Captain Picks

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FPL Holly is back this week with her selection of captain picks for Gameweek 21. The New Year's fixtures should get 2019 off to a bang and getting the captaincy right here will allow green arrows from the off! Kane, Salah and Aguero all delivered last time around, but Hazard and Aubameyang frustrated their respective owners. FPL managers have been lucky that rotation hasn't hit our key captain options over the last couple of games, despite the congested schedule, with Gameweek 21 the last time squads could be significantly rotated due to congestion. Once more it's important to select a captain wisely and also consider where the vice captain should go.

Shield Pick: Mohammed Salah vs Manchester City (A)

Anytime Goalscorer Odds: 13/10 Mohammed Salah has been in great form over the festive period and has now overtaken Marcos Alonso as the most owned player in the game. He's got 3 double digit returns in a row, with a goal and an assist in each game. Managers will be comforted by his form against Arsenal last time out, as he has struggled against top six teams this season. An away trip to the Champions Manchester City looks like an unphill struggle on paper, but Liverpool have emerged as the superior side in the Premier League this season. This fixture ended 0-0 earlier this season, but Liverpool had the upper hand in 3 of the 4 fixtures last season, with Salah amassing 3 goals and 2 assists. He looks unstoppable in the central striker role and will look to exploit City's defensive weakness in the right channel, with Delph currently banned. City are without a clean sheet in 7 games, conceding an average of 2 goals per game in recent weeks. Salah could keep penalty duties in the absence of James Milner. The fixture does present a challenge and gamble when it comes to captaincy, but he's guaranteed to start and should be considered a safe Vice Captain at worst. Will you go conservative with the shield pick?

Sword Pick: Harry Kane vs Cardiff (A)

Anytime Goalscorer Odds: 4/6 An away game for Kane against a defensively weak Cardiff side looks great on paper: we have been here before with this fixture though, Kane managed just 1 point in the home fixture. His form cannot be ignored, he has 4 goals and 2 assists in his last 4 games, plus he is on penalties. Spurs have had one of the toughest schedules over the festive period in terms of congestion, so there is a risk that Kane could be rested here. Cardiff do have back to back clean sheets, but conceded 5 to Manchester United and 3 to Watford during the festive period. Spurs are well in the title race and need to bounce back after a disappointing loss to Wolves the other day. Are you going for the sword pick?

Form Pick: Paul Pogba vs Newcastle (A)

Anytime Goalscorer Odds: 6/4 Pogba's price has sky rocketed since Solskjær took the reigns, and there's no wonder: he has 3 consecutive double digit returns under his new manager, contributing 4 goals and 4 assists, amassing 46 FPL points. With an away trip to Newcastle next, the points could continue: Newcastle have 2 clean sheets in their last 4 games, but did concede 4 to Liverpool a few weeks ago. The manager is building the team around star man Pogba so a rest looks highly unlikely here. Will you opt for the bandwagon form pick?

Fixture Pick: Heung-Min Son vs Cardiff (A)

Anytime Goalscorer Odds: 6/4 Son has returned in 7 of his last 8 games, with 5 goals and 4 assists in his last 4 Premier League starts. He has seen significant minutes in recent games so could be a big rotation risk once more here: choose a vice captain wisely if you opt for Son. He managed an assist in the last game against Wolves, in a performance which was underwhelming for Spurs. Cardiff frustrated Spurs last time around, and could pull off another surprise result. Are you opting for the fixture pick?

Reverse Pick: Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang vs Fulham (H)

Anytime Goalscorer Odds: 8/13 Despite two clean sheets in their last 3 games, this Arsenal attack should have the bettering of Fulham here, and a 5-1 home defeat earlier in the season suggests an uphill struggle at the Emirates. Arsenal and Aubameyang need to bounce back following a highly disappointing trip to Anfield: Aubameyang has 3 goals in his last 4 starts, plus he's on penalties. Worryingly, Aubameyang was a substitute in this fixture earlier this season, but he managed 2 goals and 1 assist from the bench to haul 15 FPL points in just 28 minutes. He could easily be rested again here, but could provide a huge threat from limited minutes. Will you go with the reverse pick?

Punt Pick: Raul Jimenez vs Crystal Palace (H)

Anytime Goalscorer Odds: 13/8 After a couple of blanks, Jimenez managed an important goal against Spurs and bonus points, to keep his points total ticking over once more. He now has 6 goals and 6 assists for the season, including an assist in the reverse fixture. With Neves out of favour, Jimenez could be on penalties too, but is perhaps due a rest after playing the majority of minutes in his last 3 games. The majority of goals have arrived at home this season and Palace haven't managed a clean sheet on the road since Gameweek 13, conceding 2+ goals in each of their last 3 away games. Should you take a punt on the Wolves man?

Park the Bus Pick: Marcos Alonso vs Southampton (H)

Anytime Goalscorer Odds: 10/3 Clean Sheet Odds: 5/6 Owners who kept faith were rewarded with a clean sheet last time out and it could be another defensive return here: Chelsea now have 9 clean sheets this season, including in the reverse fixture. Southampton are without a clean sheet in their last 10 games, conceding more than 2 goals per game: could Alonso provide attacking returns here? Saints have struggled to find the back of the net this season, so a clean sheet for Chelsea looks likely. Alonso has a goal and 2 assists in 5 appearances for Chelsea against Saints, including a goal in this fixture last season. Are you brave enough to captain a defender?

Clueless Husband Pick: Eden Hazard vs Southampton (H)

Anytime Goalscorer Odds: 8/11 The Clueless Husband dead team has the captaincy locked on Hazard as he refuses to use his time off over Christmas to attend to FPL matters. The lazy approach could pay dividends here though: Hazard has 3 goals and 1 assist in his last 4 games, plus he got a goal and an assist in this fixture earlier this season. He is on penalties and should be back up front if Giroud is ruled out with yet another injury. He's seen significant minutes of late, but Sarri can't afford to rest him given the large amount of injuries the squad are currently dealing with. Will you side with my Clueless Husband? Until Next Week… Good Luck! Holly and her Clueless Husband Follow fplbet for weekly fantasy features... [/fusion_text][/fusion_builder_column][fusion_builder_column type="1_6" layout="1_6" spacing="" center_content="no" hover_type="none" link="" mer_position="all" padding="" dimension_margin="" animation_type="" animation_direction="left" animation_speed="0.3" animation_offset="" last="no" element_content=""][/fusion_builder_column][/fusion_builder_row][/fusion_builder_container]