Fantasy Premier League: Three essential tips ahead of Gameweek 6 | OneFootball

Our Fantasy Premier League column has returned after a short break to bring you the best tips on transfers, captaincy and using the wildcard ahead of FPL Gameweek 6.

Prices correct at the time of writing, subject to change. All statistics used in this article are from Opta unless stated otherwise.

Fantasy Premier League GW6 deadline: Saturday, 28 September, 11:00 BST

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Fantasy Premier League: Three essential tips ahead of GW6Is it time to wildcard?

If you haven’t activated your wildcard yet, now is a great time to do so, for a few reasons. The primary one being, Arsenal‘s next two fixtures are the best in the Premier League, so you’ll want to lump on their assets.

A wildcard is a great option right now if you also don’t have Bryan Mbeumo (£7.2m), still have either or both of Alexander Isak (£8.3m) and Anthony Gordon (£7.3m), have rotation risks in your squad, or a weak bench.

Brentford‘s schedule for the next eight gameweeks looks excellent, so Mbeumo is someone you need to get on, and you can add one or two more of their players too. Newcastle’s performances have been bad so far, and they have Man City up next – there is no need to hold on to them.

If your squad is already well set in these areas, and you don’t have other little fires to put out, then I commend you on your team management. You can save your wildcard for now, at least.

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Time to go all in on Arsenal?

Arsenal have been a curious team in the early weeks of the new season. Tipped by many to finally win the Premier League, they have not been firing on all cylinders. They were fortunate to beat Aston Villa, should have beaten Brighton even with the red card, played very negatively against Spurs and Atalanta, and drew with Man City in a game that is impossible to sum up in a few words.

The Gunners have only scored eight goals in five league games, which is not bad but certainly not title-winning form. They have a negative expected goal difference (-0.8xGD), although that is almost entirely due to the City game. But most worryingly of all, they’re missing Martin Odegaard, arguably their most important player, through injury.

On the plus side for Arsenal, they face two of the worst teams in the division, Leicester City and Southampton, at home in their next two games. Even with all the question marks hanging over them, I’d expect them to deal with with those encounters comfortably – and come out of them with plenty of FPL points.

I think the emphasis should be on defence; they continue to have one of the strongest backlines in the game and their attack has not been blowing opponents away of late. David Raya (£5.6m) should be the number one target for everyone who doesn’t already have him, but annoyingly he’s a doubt for this weekend. If I had to put money on it, I’d wager he will start.

Most FPL managers have at least one Arsenal defender, but a double up is almost a necessity at this stage. Gabriel Magalhães (£6.1m) continues to be Arsenal’s biggest threat at set pieces, as he showed against Spurs and City. William Saliba (£6m) offers next to no attacking threat, but he will be a source of clean sheets regardless. Ben White (£6.4m) is a tad too expensive for me to consider transferring in; you may as well try and find the extra money from somewhere to bring in Trent Alexander-Arnold (£7.1m).

Attack is a little bit trickier, although Bukayo Saka (£10m) is clearly the standout pick. He has just one double digit return so far this term, but he has managed at least an assist in every game. His delivery on set pieces is a huge weapon for Mikel Arteta’s side. The problem is who you will have to sell to get him, with the likely answers being Mo Salah (£12.8m) and Cole Palmer (£10.6m). I’m not wild about selling either, in particular Salah who could punish sellers with a big haul against Wolves on Saturday.

Up front, Kai Havertz (£8.1m) is an option. The German registered two goals and an assist in his first three games, but blanked in the past two gameweeks. The major issue with him is that he could be tasked with a deeper role over the coming weeks due to Odegaard’s absence. I still anticipate he will get in good attacking positions in the next two matches, but I do think there are better forward picks at better prices.

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The best captains for GW6

Looking ahead to this gameweek a month or so ago, I would not have pegged Erling Haaland (£15.3m) as the leading candidate for the armband, but a couple of things have changed that. The Norwegian has been in absolutely sensational form, even by his high standards, and Newcastle’s defence has been much worse than anticipated. The early kickoff can’t even put me off this one.

Saka was previously the primary pick for captaincy for GW6, as Arsenal face a Leicester team that have conceded 16 big chances in five games. He is instrumental to his side’s attack, but he doesn’t come close to matching Haaland’s goal threat.

Salah and Liverpool face a pretty poor Wolves side at Molineux. The winger has not been at his best in recent weeks, but there is still potential for a big haul here. Luis Diaz (£7.9m) has been brilliant over the past month and could blitz Wolves like he did Bournemouth.

If you want to go off the beaten track, then Mbeumo could be your guy. He’s been excellent for Brentford this season, on penalties, and faces a West Ham side that is conceding goals for fun lately.

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