Captain Semenyo and go big in defence – FPL team of the week

Erling Haaland’s uncertain fitness has thrown the Fantasy Premier League landscape into flux ahead of the next deadline, with managers scrambling to redeploy £15 million of precious budget if the Norwegian is ruled out. While Mohamed Salah, Cole Palmer and Bukayo Saka have yet to justify their premium price tags, a cut-price, defence-heavy XI has emerged for gameweek 29, anchored by Manchester City’s Antoine Semenyo as skipper.

Playing under a hypothetical Free Hit and a £100 million salary cap, the side collected returns from eight starters in the previous round, led by captain Bruno Fernandes’ 26-point explosion and complemented by Hugo Ekitike’s 15-point breakout and Harry Wilson’s 12-point haul.

Between the posts, Gianluigi Donnarumma (£5.6 m) is retained for a home date with Nottingham Forest. City have kept three clean sheets in their last four at the Etihad, and with few reliable shut-out options on the slate, the Italian offers both security and savings.

Nico O’Reilly (£5.1 m) continues to operate as an auxiliary midfielder despite being listed as a defender, and he would have breached the scoresheet against Leeds had either of his two big chances converted. His 0.32 expected goals trail only Semenyo among players in the squad.

Arsenal’s Gabriel remains the set-and-forget defensive cornerstone. The Brazilian centre-back benefits from the Gunners’ relentless corner routine and has outscored all but four FPL assets this season, yet more than half of all managers still spurn his £6.0 m fee.

Bruno Fernandes (£9.9 m) travels to Newcastle having amassed 59 points since his return in week 21, the top tally in the game. Four double-digit returns in seven outings make the Portuguese a legitimate season-long cornerstone.

Antoine Semenyo (£8.2 m) wears the armband at home to Forest. The Bournemouth loanee keeps starting and keeps scoring, and while City’s looming cup and Champions League congestion invites rotation risk, his form is too hot to ignore. Fernandes serves as vice-captain should Semenyo be rested.

Wilson (£6.0 m) sits fourth among midfield scorers and visits a West Ham defence that shipped five at Anfield, while Bournemouth’s Marcus Tavernier (£5.3 m) offers multiple routes to points against a Brentford side that conceded three at Turf Moor.

Leicester’s Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall rounds out the midfield at £5.0 m. Three attacking returns in four appearances plus defensive contribution points make him an ideal budget anchor for the visit of Burnley.

Up front, Hugo Ekitike (£5.5 m) leads all strikers with 23 shots since week 22 and ranks third for expected goals. Last week’s 15-point reward hints at the ceiling still to come. Everton’s Beto, freshly restored to the starting XI, opposes the league’s leakiest away defence, while Leeds’ Dominic Calvert-Lewin (£5.7 m) hosts Sunderland.

The back line is completed by bargain enablers James Hill (£4.1 m) and Calvin Bassey (£4.4 m), both poised for clean-sheet upside at home to Brentford and West Ham respectively, while Jordan Pickford (£5.6 m) offers a double-up on Everton’s favourable Burnley clash.

With Haaland’s status the pressing question, managers are advised to monitor Pep Guardiola’s press conference and to join FPL analyst Gianni Buttice for a live Q&A at 15:30 GMT Tuesday, when premium alternatives will be debated in full.