Who to captain for FPL Gameweek 8? Spurs, Man City, Liverpool and Aston Villa candidates assessed

Another week in Fantasy Premier League, another tricky decision – who to captain? Gameweek 8 sees a lot of the players we usually give the armband to facing tough fixtures, and that means that we’ll have to think long and hard about who we want bagging the double points for us this week rather than simply clicking on Erling Haaland and calling it a day.

We’ve got a more in-depth guide to the FPL this week (and indeed every week) which you can find over here, but for now let’s focus in on this one big question and run through the main options for the FPL captaincy this weekend.

Son Heung-Min

The South Korean has scored six goals in four games since being moved to a central striker’s role and is one of the most in-form players in the division – and an on-song Spurs side have what should be a relatively straightforward trip to Luton Town to look forward to. It’s hard to look past Spurs’ new captain as the man you should be handing the armband to as well.

The only arguments against are that he’s playing in the early fixture – which typically sees fewer goals – and that Son hasn’t played the full 90 minutes in any of his last four matches, being hauled off around the 70^th every time. It doesn’t seem to have done him too much harm so far, though.

Captain Grade: A

James Maddison

The only pressing reason to pick Maddison over Son is simply if you have him and not the Korean, so we’re mentioning him more to simply state that he’s a great choice in his own right, and while his team-mate would likely be the better pick, there’s no reason to twist your team out of shape to transfer Son in should you have Maddison already.

Maddison doesn’t have as strong an xG and isn’t as likely to bag a brace or anything along those lines, but we’re still talking about a player with 41 FPL points so far, so don’t feel too downcast if he’s your best bet for this week.

Captain Grade: B

Erling Haaland

Just because Haaland is playing a tough match away to Arsenal doesn’t mean that he won’t score – you don’t bag 36 Premier League goals in a single season by only bagging against relegation fodder. He also scored in both league meetings between the two sides last season, games which City won by an aggregate score of 7-2.

In other words, while it’s absolutely reasonable to move the armband elsewhere this week, do bear in mind that Haaland is still good, is still more likely to score than not, and is still one of the highest-scoring assets in the FPL.

Captain Grade: B

Mohamed Salah

Salah failed to register a goal or assist for the first time in 12 gameweeks last time out, and we’re not convinced that failing to score when your team has nine players away to a top four contender proves anything very much. Salah is still one of the best and most reliable assets in the game.

And while an away fixture to Brighton may be tough, the Seagulls still haven’t kept a single clean sheet all season, not to mention that they took a 6-1 spanking at the hands of Aston Villa last weekend. Salah isn’t necessarily the best choice going, but he’s still odds-on to do something for you.

Captain Grade: B

Ollie Watkins

Watkins is on searing form and just bagged a hat-trick against Brighton, while Wolves concede at a rate of almost two goals a game – don’t let their performance against Manchester City fool you too much, they’re vulnerable at the back.

As a general rule, we recommend captaining midfielder who are likely to score over strikers, because of the extra point earned on goals and the potential for doubling up a clean sheet point, but Watkins is on fire right now and it’s hard to argue against him. Will playing three games in a week sap some energy from his or his team-mates legs, however?

Captain Grade: C