Booster strategies for Gameweek 8: Arsenal v Manchester City makes Max Captain viable

GAMEWEEK 8 is set to revolve around Arsenal v Manchester City.

Sunday’s mega clash at the Emirates will feature seven of the ten most-popular players in the game and the four top point scorers.

The vast majority of gaffers will have representation on both sides and while it’s certainly possible for assets in direct competition to produce healthy returns, there’s also a risk they will cancel each other out.

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For example, if most-selected forward Erling Haaland (£8m) scores then William Saliba (£3.5m), Dream Team’s most-popular defender, will have his clean sheet wiped out – and of course it works the other way too.

Another knock-on effect of this highly-anticipated fixture concerns captaincy choice.

Many Dream Team bosses will stay true to Haaland but opting to place the armband on either a City or Arsenal player this weekend could easily backfire.

That brings us neatly onto Booster strategies for Gameweek 8.

Park the Bus and 12th Man are best reserved for double Gameweeks and the same could be said for Max Captain but the latter is viable this weekend because so many of the popular candidates are tied up in the same competitive fixture.

As a reminder, Max Captain ensures that whichever one of your players scores the most points will have their total for the Gameweek doubled – guaranteeing the optimum captaincy selection.

Activating this Booster would effectively counteract the uncertainty created by the treble winners visit to the Gunners.

Hypothetically, a gaffer with Haaland, Saliba, Martin Odegaard (£5m), Kyle Walker (£3.6m) and Julian Alvarez (£4.5m) in their XI would essentially cover most bases by deploying Max Captain.

And of course, it’s not only Arsenal and City players in the conversation.

With undefeated Tottenham due to face Luton on Saturday, many gaffers will be hopeful of sizeable returns from the likes of James Maddison (£4.4m), Son Heung-min (£4.7m) and Cristian Romero (£3.7m).

The South Korean superstar has been in particularly good form of late, banking 48 points across the last four Gameweeks.

Elsewhere, Mohamed Salah (£6.7m) will be licking his lips at the prospect of playing Brighton on Sunday after the Seagulls were torn apart by Aston Villa.

Roberto De Zerbi’s side pack a hefty punch in attack but their opponents generally get their fair share of chances too.

In short, Max Captain is best used when there is no obvious choice for the armband and Gameweek 8 undoubtedly fits the bill.

In what could be a low-scoring weekend, activating this Booster could help gaffers gain a leg up at an opportune time – although waiting for a double Gameweek would be justified.

Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk