Holly Shand from Fantasy Football Community returns with captaincy corner and her three player picks in three positions for Gameweek 24.
It's the first Double Gameweek of the season, and potentially the first obvious point to dust off that Triple Captain chip, with Liverpool and West Ham playing twice. With two other Double Gameweek's predicted before the end of the season, it's certainly not the only time to play the Triple Captain chip, since Liverpool have two away fixtures against Wolves and West Ham. However, the stakes are likely to be higher now than towards the end of the season, and there's no better team in the league to trust in. For me, it's an obvious week to activate the chip: a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush!
Rotation could well be an issue in Gameweek 24, not least because it's a midweek round of games - don't miss the deadline on Tuesday evening. Add into the mix that West Ham and Liverpool both have their FA Cup Fourth Round fixture. You'd expect rotation to be less of an issue for Liverpool, given their status as League leaders, and with opponents League One's Shrewsbury Town in the FA Cup - we should see the reserves out in force once again. I would be surprised to see Salah and Mane not play close to 180 minutes and the full-backs too.
Captaincy Corner
The shield pick is likely to be the most captained player of the week, allowing you to play safe and keep pace with the pack. The sword pick will be a less popular selection: if they perform it can shoot you up the overall rankings, but the risk from failure is higher.
Shield Pick: Sadio Mane vs Wolves (A) & West Ham (A)
Anytime Goalscorer Odds: 11/10
Sadio Mane will be the most captained player for Gameweek 24. He has the highest ownership of all Liverpool attackers, at over 40% and deserves to be in the conversation given his away record this season. He has a thirteen point advantage over Mo Salah in FPL, with them on equal footing for points per game. Mane has three goals in three games against Wolves, plus three goals and three assists against West Ham. He has just four blanks this season on the road, against Chelsea, Sheffield United, Manchester United and Spurs respectively. He's likely to be my Triple Captain for this Double Gameweek 24. Will you play safe with the Shield Pick?
Sword Pick: Mohammed Salah vs Wolves (A) & West Ham (A)
Anytime Goalscorer Odds: 11/10
It's our very first taste of Mo Salah in a Double Gameweek since he has taken the Premier League by storm: it's hard to resist backing a player who's been the outright top fantasy asset in each of the last two seasons. He's bang in form, having grabbed two goals and one assist in his last four starts, plus with James Milner still struggling with injury, he's destined to be on penalties again too. He has preferred home comforts this campaign, with one goal and four assists on the road this season. He's blanked away from Anfield on three occasions. His season has been impacted by injury, meaning he trails Mane for fantasy points. Are you going to take a risk in selecting the Sword Pick?
Holly's Hopefuls
I share my top three players for each Gameweek, selecting one defender, one midfielder and one striker. These are players that I'm tipping for the FPL Dream Team and they could also make intriguing differential captain decisions for you to consider too.
DEF: Trent Alexander-Arnold vs Wolves (A) & West Ham (A)
Trent Alexander-Arnold has the best form of all players in the Premier League right now, and for the first time in fantasy history, he could be a credible defensive option for the captaincy or even triple captaincy. Liverpool have seven consecutive clean sheets, and Trent has one goal and four assists over that period too. He's collected thirteen attacking returns this season, plus thirteen bonus points - the most of all defenders. It may take a brave manager to captain or even triple captain a defender, but there's never been a better opportunity.
MID: Robert Snodgrass vs Leicester (A) & Liverpool (H)
West Ham are the forgotten team in this Double Gameweek, who also have the perks of a Double Gameweek this week. It's an away trip to a faltering Leicester side, plus the league leaders Liverpool - it's hard to imagine any fantasy fortune in the latter fixture, but given Leicester's struggles right now, the lure of two games could be enough to take a punt. I have a soft spot for Snodgrass from his Hull City days: he has three goals and two assists this season. He's created six chances in his last four games, plus he's had four shots in the same spell.
FOR: Roberto Firmino vs Wolves (A) & West Ham (A)
Bobby Firmino is the away star of this Liverpool team, with seven attacking returns in his last ten trips away from Anfield. He now has twelve attacking returns for the season, and comes in at around a £3.0 million saving on their key midfielders. The downside for him is no clean sheet points and one less point per goal, but there's plenty of upside. He is resurgent this season, and has had plenty of joy from attacking returns himself, which has been a little absent in previous seasons. In a two game window, he could easily outscore Salah and Mane.
Until next time…
Good luck and Happy New Year!
Holly
Find even more Fantasy Premier League Tips over on Holly's website: Fantasy Football Community
