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Fantasy Premier League: GW4 preview

James Siow

AUGUST 24, 2022

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Trent Alexander-Arnold (7.5 million)

FIXTURES

Bournemouth (H), Newcastle (H), Everton (A), Wolves (H)

FORM

MINUTES

90 mins vs. Manchester United (H)

STATISTICS

0.23 NPxG + xA per 90

RATING

The Liverpool right-back has not had an ideal start to the season, as he hasn’t managed to keep a clean sheet or make an attacking return so far this season. Premier League fans have outlined his lack of defensive capabilities in recent games, and he hasn’t had the same impact in the final third as what we we’re used to.

Whilst there is some concern over his form, I don’t think there are enough reasons to transfer him out anytime soon. Liverpool are in poor form, but their upcoming fixtures are a great opportunity to gather some momentum, with two good home games in quick succession.

The underlying stats show that they are still creating a decent number of quality chances each game, so from an attacking perspective, I can see lexander-Arnold still delivering attacking returns on a semi-regular basis.

For 7.5m, you’re getting a defender who’s nailed at right-back, likely to play 90 minutes, extremely attacking and on some set-pieces. I think that is incredible value, considering he’s been very consistent in delivering FPL points over the last few seasons and Liverpool are usually one of the best defences in the Premier League.

I don’t think this is the time to panic. Hold him for the next few weeks, unless you desperately need the money to fund other transfers.

Wilfried Zaha (7.1 million)

FIXTURES

Manchester City (A), Brentford (H), Newcastle (A), Manchester United (H)

FORM

MINUTES

81 mins vs. Aston Villa (H)

STATISTICS

1.1 NPxG + xA per 90

RATING

Wilfried Zaha (7.1m) scored two goals against Aston Villa over the weekend and is in fine form. Patrick Viera looks to be building a solid team with an abundance of attacking talent at his disposal.

Crystal Palace had a 2.69 xG against Villa, and also managed to create over 1.0 xG against Arsenal and Liverpool. They have plenty of pace and creativity going forward, and Zaha is often the one most involved. Each season, the forward usually delivers a solid number of attacking returns and he is usually on penalty duty if Luka Milivojevic (4.5m) isn’t on the pitch.

For these reasons, Zaha is a good option, particularly when he is close to being 1.0m cheaper than a number of comparable options around the 8.0m price point. However, his fixtures aren’t the easiest and it might be worth waiting until after the Manchester City game to transfer him into your teams.

Harry Kane (11.4 million)

FIXTURES

Forest (A), West Ham (A), Fulham (H), Manchester City (A)

FORM

MINUTES

90 mins vs. Wolves (H)

STATISTICS

0.72 NPxG + xA per 90

RATING

Harry Kane (11.4m) is finding his groove again this season, and there really isn’t much to split between Erling Haaland (11.7m) and the Spurs talisman for who is the better pick over the next few gameweeks.

Due to Manchester City’s possible rotation risk next week, Kane might be a safer option given he rarely misses a game under Antonio Conte, and he usually does not get subbed early in a game.

Whilst Richarlison (8.5m) provides healthy competition in the attacking positions, I think we will see him rotate with Heung-min Son (11.9m) and Dejan Kulusevski (8.2m) in most circumstances.

Kane is so integral to the team as a striker, as he offers something unique in the build-up play that the other players can’t provide. I wouldn’t take a -4 hit to bring him in for Haaland, but if you have a spare transfer up your sleeve and the rest of your team is fine, then I don’t mind this transfer at all.

OUR LATEST PLAYER PROFILES

Captaincy candidates

PLAYER

Mohamed Salah (13.0M)

FIXTURE

Bournemouth (H)

NPxG per 90

0.31

xA per 90

0.36

RATING

A+

PLAYER

Harry Kane (11.4M)

FIXTURE

Forest (A)

NPxG per 90

0.55

xA per 90

0.17

RATING

PLAYER

Gabriel Jesus (8.2M)

FIXTURE

Fulham (H)

NPxG per 90

0.58

xA per 90

0.32

RATING

PLAYER

Erling Haaland (11.7M)

FIXTURE

Crystal Palace (H)

NPxG per 90

1.11

xA per 90

0.13

RATING

B+

PLAYER

Kevin De Bruyne (12.1M)

FIXTURE

Crystal Palace (H)

NPxG per 90

0/17

xA per 90

0.47

RATING

FPL managers are spoilt for choice when it comes to captaincy options for Gameweek 4, as the reliable premium attackers of Mohamed Salah, Harry Kane and Gabriel Jesus are up against the newly promoted teams. Fulham, Forest and Bournemouth have shown early signs that they are capable of competing in the Premier League this season. However, I would still expect the big players to cause problems to their defences.

Salah had a poor game against Manchester United and was very fortunate to walk away with 8 points. Liverpool will be hungry for their first win of the season, and I don’t think their recent performances should change our minds about Salah too much. He is always likely to play 90 minutes and he is always heavily involved, so I think he is my favourite captain option for Gameweek 4. Kane and Jesus are also fantastic options and there’s not much separating these players apart.

The reason why I think Erling Haaland and Kevin De Bruyne may not be the most ideal choice this week, is not only because Crystal Palace are a decent team, but also because of the upcoming mid-week games in the Premier League and Champions League.

Manchester City are expected to take full advantage of the depth in their squad over the next few weeks, as Pep Guardiola is well-known for his player rotation during tight schedules (this is sometimes named as ‘Pep-roulette). You can expect plenty of future discussions on Manchester City’s rotation risk in the future. Regarding captaincy, this is what Pep Guardiola said about managing Erling Haaland’s fitness:

“The physios and doctors did an incredible job since he arrived to avoid injuries. Now he has one game a week. I tell you now when we have games every three days that Erling will not play, I will play Julian [Alvarez]. One of my favourite players is Bernardo and he did not play until today. Riyad is by far one of my favourite players – especially on the biggest stages – and today he didn’t play. When we start with games every three days, everyone is going to play.”

JAMES' TEAM SELECTION

It was a disappointing gameweek for me, as Marcus Rashford (6.3m) punished me for transferring him out and my new players, Kyle Walker (5.1m) and Luis Díaz (8.0m) both blanked. The defence massively under-performed, but I don’t think I’ll be using transfers on my defence any time soon, as they all have some great fixtures coming up and I still trust their attacking potential.

With one transfer up my sleeve, I’m either going to keep the team how it is or make an aggressive move and transfer in Harry Kane for Erling Haaland, with the number of minutes to be played over the next couple of weeks in mind. Pedro Neto’s (5.4m) three blanks this season have been very frustrating, but I’m likely to keep the faith before his upcoming fixtures against Newcastle (H), Bournemouth (H) and Southampton (H).

Moreover, there are not too many great options that catch my eye around his price point. I’m very happy with how the team is looking, Let’s hope for a better Gameweek 4, all the best!