A 4-4-2 formation maximizes value this week, loading up on Man City's favorable fixture against Sunderland with three defensive assets while maintaining attacking threat through premium forwards.
Key picks
• Erling Haaland (£15.5m, 9.3 xP) - The essential captain pick faces Sunderland at home with the highest expected points in the game, owned by 72.3% of managers making him impossible to ignore.
• Marc Guéhi (£6.0m, 6.8 xP) - Outstanding value at just £6.0m with explosive potential against Sunderland, offering 1.13 points per million and clean sheet probability of 17.5%.
• João Pedro (£7.8m, 5.6 xP) - The most-owned player at 75.3% travels to Brentford with strong underlying numbers and consistent returns making him a template essential.
Captain choice
Haaland is the unanimous captain choice with 9.3 expected points doubling to 18.6. Man City host Championship side Sunderland in what should be a comfortable victory, and the Norwegian has been relentless this season. Guéhi offers an interesting vice-captain option at 6.8 xP given his defensive security and attacking threat from set pieces.
Budget breakdown
The £99.7m squad invests heavily in defense (£30.5m) with premium assets Raya, Gabriel, Guéhi, Gvardiol and budget enabler De Cuyper. Midfield (£36.4m) balances premium Saka with value picks Schade, Groß and Gibbs-White. The forward line commits £23.3m to Haaland and João Pedro, leaving just £9.5m for bench fodder including Palmer, Reed, Davis and Walle Egeli.
Differential spotlight: Morgan Gibbs-White (11.8% owned, 5.8 xP) offers excellent value at £7.9m against Coventry, while Kevin Schade (5.9% owned, 4.3 xP) at £6.0m provides a budget route into Brentford's attack. Both could separate you from the template-heavy masses while maintaining strong point potential.
Build this squad in the optimizer
Pre-selected 4-4-2 formation. Tweak the squad with your own preferences.