Captaincy options for Gameweek 9 – Bruno Fernandes among leading alternatives to Erling Haaland

ERLING HAALAND (£7.7m) remains Dream Team’s most-popular captain by a wide margin but gaffers who have taken him on have been rewarded for their bravery of late.

In fact, all the alternatives we put forward for Gameweek 8 outscored Manchester City’s No9 and would therefore have been a better option for the armband.

Dream Team bosses who backed Mohamed Salah (£6.5m) watched on with glee as he registered 14 points (doubled to 28) against Brighton while Haaland mustered just three against Arsenal.

We also suggested James Maddison (£4.3m) as a strong option because of his favourable fixture against Luton – he obliged with an eight-point return.

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Looking forward to Gameweek 9, Haaland is a perfectly viable choice for captain as he’s set to take on Brighton, who have conceded 16 goals in eight league games, and Young Boys, who have earned just one point from their first two Champions League fixtures.

However, the Norwegian poacher has scraped together ten points across his last three outings and he hasn’t returned a double-digit haul since his trip to the London Stadium in mid-September.

With that in mind, let’s take a closer look at some tempting alternatives.

Bruno Fernandes (£5.8m)

Manchester United have not been at their best this season but they have the luxury of the most-favourable Premier League match-up possible this weekend in the form of Sheffield United.

The Blades have played eight, drawn one, lost seven in the top flight since promotion and the wounds inflicted by Newcastle during that 8-0 mauling at Bramall Lane are yet to fully heal.

Wes Foderingham (£1.9m) has been forced to make 45 saves in the league already, nine more than the next busiest goalkeeper, and he’s also picked the ball out of his net 22 times, meaning Paul Heckingbottom’s side hold the worst defensive record at this stage.

Fernandes leads the way among United players for both shots on target and big chances created so he seems the man most likely to take advantage of Sheffield United’s woes on Saturday.

Plus, the Red Devils welcome Copenhagen to Old Trafford in midweek.

The Portuguese midfielder averages a shade under six points-per-game this season so even if he maintains that rate he would return 24 points as captain this coming Gameweek and that doesn’t even account for additional points likely to be conceded by the Blades.

Mohamed Salah (£6.5m)

Liverpool’s main man provided the goods last time out and he’ll be licking his lips at the prospect of Saturday’s Merseyside derby.

Salah has notched four goals and an assist in his last six games against Everton.

The Egyptian superstar has raced to ten goal involvements this season (six goals, four assists) and he can count himself unlucky not to have more given he’s created TEN big chances – no other player has registered more than seven.

Jurgen Klopp’s side are also scheduled to play Toulouse in the Europa League but Salah’s minutes are uncertain – he’s played 61 of a possible 180 minutes in Europe this term.

Not that Salah needs many minutes to cash in on Thursday nights, he’s earned 12 points in the competition so far.

Kieran Trippier (£5.6m)

Saturday’s visitors to St James’ Park, Crystal Palace, have enjoyed a positive start to the season and are currently just one point behind Newcastle in the table.

However, the Eagles have scored just seven goals in the league – only Luton, Bournemouth and Sheffield United have a worse attacking record – and with key man Eberechi Eze (£3.6m) injured, Eddie Howe’s men will feel confident of a clean sheet.

Defensive returns are only one aspect of Trippier’s game.

Only Ollie Watkins (£4.3m) has more assists (seven) than the 33-year-old right-back’s six at the time of writing.

To hammer the point home, Trippier is also the defender with the most bonus points (15) after eight Gameweeks.

A clean sheet looks less likely against Borussia Dortmund on Wednesday night but the Magpies will have home advantage in that clash and they beat PSG in fine style last time out in the Champions League.

Trippier has amassed 60 points across the last four Gameweeks!

With Arsenal, Aston Villa, West Ham and Brighton also pulling double duty in Gameweek 9, there is no shortage of captaincy options.

Gaffers may even be tempted to activate their Max Captain Booster to ensure the optimum choice.

Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk