Fantasy Premier League

The best FPL captain alternatives to Haaland for Gameweek 1

By The Scout 10 Aug 2023

The Scout pinpoints the players who can rival Man City’s forward for points on the opening weekend

Erling Haaland (£14.0m) is owned by more than 86 per cent of managers for his trip to Burnley and is expected to be the runaway captain favourite in Gameweek 1 of 2023/24 Fantasy Premier League.

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Haaland’s Manchester City team-mate Julian Alvarez (£6.5m) could be a big differential against the Championship winners, shortly after the Fantasy deadline of 18:30 BST this Friday, 11 August.

See: The Scout's golden rules for picking an FPL squad

The Argentinian amassed 46 points against promoted sides last season, just one fewer than the 47 of Haaland.

Alvarez averaged 11 points per match in his four starts in such matches last term, thanks to five goals and two assists.

He sits in under four per cent of squads yet is one of only two players, along with centre-back Ruben Dias (£5.5m), to play from start to finish in each of Man City’s final two fixtures of the summer.

Arsenal pair Martin Odegaard and Bukayo Saka (both £8.5m) can also bring in major hauls at home to Nottingham Forest.

Odegaard was the Gunners’ most reliable player for big returns last term, producing nine double-figure hauls to the four of Saka.

In saying that, it’s worth noting that all of Saka’s double-figure scores arrived in home matches in 2022/23.

Furthermore, he has been his side’s top performer over the summer, scoring twice and supplying three assists.

See: FPL stats from EVERY player during pre-season

Marcus Rashford’s (£9.0m) form at Old Trafford looks encouraging for his prospects against Wolverhampton Wanderers on Monday evening.

The Manchester United star was the second top-scoring player in home matches last term, with his 143 points bettered only by the 161 points of Haaland.

Significantly given the Gameweek 1 fixtures, Rashford averaged 8.4 points per home start, compared with the 6.5 points per start of Haaland in away fixtures.

Finally, Haaland’s fellow big-hitter Mohamed Salah (£12.5m) has been in superb form over the summer period.

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Liverpool’s Egyptian visits Chelsea on the back of two goals and seven assists in the Reds’ four friendlies.

Crucially, Salah was the top-scoring player in 2022/23 Fantasy after the Reds changed their formation, averaging 7.8 points per match over his final 10 outings.