Having trouble deciding who to captain in Gameweek 36? It seems pretty obvious, right? The same player you’ll have more than likely captained in the previous 35 gameweeks.
The man that’s almost making this article a redundant feature. I was even tempted to captain him in Gameweek 32 when Man City blanked, just so my vice-captain knew whose armband he was wearing.
Who to captain in Gameweek 36?
Erling Haaland is the best choice of captain in Gameweek 36. Elsewhere, Mohamed Salah, Callum Wilson & Alexander Isak should be considered as good contrarian options.
Player Statistics:
| Player | Mins | G | A | xG | Pts |
| Haaland | 405 | 5 | 2 | 5.60 | 44 |
| Salah | 443 | 4 | 0 | 3.86 | 37 |
| Wilson | 266 | 5 | 0 | 3.62 | 33 |
| Isak | 351 | 2 | 1 | 1.49 | 25 |
Team Statistics:
| Team | Form | G | xG |
| Man City | WWWWW | 14 | 11.78 |
| Newcastle | LWWWL | 13 | 12.56 |
| Liverpool | WWWWW | 11 | 11.13 |
Fixtures:
Erling Haaland vs Everton (Away)
Mohamed Salah vs Leicester (Away)
Alexander Isak vs Leeds (Away) & Brighton (Home)
Callum Wilson vs Leeds (Away) & Brighton (Home)
Opposition Defensive Statistics:
| Team | Form | GA | xGA |
| Leeds | LLDLL | 15 | 11.53 |
| Leicester | LDDWL | 12 | 9.34 |
| Everton | WDLDL | 10 | 11.72 |
| Brighton | LWWLW | 9 | 7.77 |
Why Haaland is the best captain choice for Gameweek 36?
We all know who Haaland is by now and what he’s capable of, and it’ll come as no surprise when he’s the most captained player this gameweek, despite a couple of teams having two fixtures.
He’s scored 5 and assisted 2 in his last 5 matches, tallying up 44 points in the process. He’s also underperforming against his xG, which is always as good sign as it indicates he’s not been lucky to score 5.
This gameweek Man City travel to Goodison Park to face an Everton side who – despite upsetting the odds on Monday with a 5-1 victory over Brighton – have looked unconvincing at the back with an xGA of 11.72.
With Arsenal hot on their tails, this fixture is a must win for Man City. They dropped points against Everton earlier in the season, drawing 1-1 (with a goal from Haaland), and will be eager to seek revenge this time around.
Is Salah a good alternative captain pick?
Mohamed Salah will always be a good alternative captain pick and if you’re partial to a risk then he’s a good option in Gameweek 36. He has a similar FPL points output to Haaland over the last 5 matches, and benefits from the additional points per goal & assist due to being listed as a midfielder.
Part of what makes Salah appealing is that he’s an explosive player. This season he’s managed to score 10+ FPL points on 9 occasions (only 3 fewer than Haaland). This week he faces Leeds United, who are edging closer to the relegation and haemorrhaging goals at the back.
Should I captain Wilson or Isak?
Neither, unless you’re wanting to take a big risk to close a gap within your mini-league. Wilson (8.8%) and Isak (12.0%) both have relatively low ownership, so just owning them should give you an edge over the majority should they perform well.
Callum Wilson definitely seems the best option of the two, with more goals, FPL points and almost double the xG from the last 5 matches. The main drawback for Wilson, and also Isak, is that the pair compete with one another for minutes. It is possible, that despite having two fixtures, both players could average around 90 minutes played.
However, this doesn’t seem to affect Wilson as much, with 3 of his last 5 goals coming from bench.
What about Brighton?
But what about Brighton? They have a double gameweek too! True, but away fixtures against both Arsenal and Newcastle are far from ideal. At least not from a captaincy perspective. We wouldn’t even recommend this if you were chasing your mini-league leader because there is much safer alternative options.
