Captaincy & Booster options for Gameweek 26: Building a five-man Park the Bus defence around European fixtures

DREAM TEAM managers have a lot to mull over ahead of Gameweek 26 but the captaincy debate is likely to be a short one.

Erling Haaland (£7.5m) plundered 41 points in Gameweek 25, over twice as many as the next-best performer, via an emphatic five-goal exhibition at Luton’s expense.

Next in the Norwegian poacher’s sights are Manchester United and Copenhagen, who both face the daunting task of a visit to the Etihad in the coming days.

In-form players from Liverpool, West Ham, Brighton and Aston Villa all look set for profitable outings this coming Gameweek but it’s almost impossible to look past Haaland for the armband after what he produced at Kenilworth Road.

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If the captaincy conversation is cut-and-dried then what about Booster options?

Many gaffers are yet to activate Park the Bus, the most-powerful Booster in the game, and Gameweek 26’s fixtures look rather appealing on paper.

Liverpool face Nottingham Forest and Sparta Prague in what has to be considered a favourable double header on current form.

Conor Bradley (£3.2m) and Virgil van Dijk (£3.9m) racked up 18 points each in Gameweek 25 while Joe Gomez (£3.5m), Kostas Tsimikas (£3.4m), Ibrahima Konate (£2.8m) and Andy Robertson (£3.5m) also registered double-digit hauls.

Jurgen Klopp’s side kept their sheets clean against Chelsea and Southampton in what was a high-scoring week for the Reds.

The only issue is that identifying Liverpool defenders who will definitely start both fixtures this coming Gameweek is deceptively difficult.

Van Dijk is the safest bet but it’s worth noting the Dutchman has played just 90 minutes of European football this season – surely Klopp is likely to call upon his skipper in a knockout environment?

Bradley is probably a double starter as well with Trent Alexander-Arnold (£5.1m) expected to be sidelined until after the international break – rotation is more likely at left-back.

Elsewhere, Emerson (£2.8m) is a potentially shrewd option ahead of West Ham’s trips to Everton and Freiburg.

Granted, the Hammers don’t keep all that many clean sheets but the industrious left-back has made more tackles (91) than any other defender in the game at this season.

Add in four goal involvements plus 20 bonus points and Emerson boasts a respectable tally of 144 points in total – he’s certainly capable of a satisfying double-digit haul in Gameweek 26.

Generally speaking, it’s best to target defenders with two fixtures when building a Park the Bus back line but with Arsenal up against Sheffield United this weekend, including one of Ben White (£3.6m), William Saliba (£3.4m) or Gabriel (£4.1m) could yield healthy returns.

Combining Van Dijk, Bradley, Emerson, Gabriel and, say, Ruben Dias (£3.5m) would look pretty good as a Park the Bus back five.

Ezri Konsa (£3.1m) is another defender to keep an eye on after he was pictured in training.

The Villa man is a favourite of Unai Emery’s and a keen bonus point collector but it’s currently unclear whether he’s ready to start one game, let alone two.

All that being said, it’s worth noting that Liverpool, West Ham, Brighton and Aston Villa all have back-to-back away games this Gameweek so waiting until Gameweek 27 to activate Park the Bus, when all four sides have two home fixtures, might be the smarter move.

Gaffers interested in playing a 12th Man this Gameweek would do well to peruse the players we recommended as transfer options.

Ollie Watkins (£4.5m) has banked 60 points across his last six outings and therefore seems likely to thrive against Luton and Ajax, assuming he’s selected in the Europa Conference League round of 16 first leg in Amsterdam.

Jarrod Bowen (£4.5m) bagged a hat-trick last time out and is once again a fantastic option now he’s been reunited with Lucas Paqueta (£4.1m) and Mohammed Kudus (£4.6m).

Kevin De Bruyne (£6.2m) is also a tempting 12th Man candidate for those gaffers who haven’t yet recruited him on a permanent basis.

Remember to lock in your captaincy, transfers and any Boosters you wish to play before Saturday’s 2pm deadline.

Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk