Gm football fans.

This is Route One, drilling through the football news mountain to bring you the most precious gems. No drills are needed, just a pair of reading glasses!

Today’s briefing is a ~5 min read:

• Gameweek 9 preview… a weekend full of derbys 🥊

• Fantasy Friday: Who’s our GW9 differential? 🤩

• Extra time: the England lads had one too many Vodka Red Bulls 👀

🗞️ Morning Brief

It’s back…!

GW9: Derby Weekend Preview ❗️

🔴 Liverpool vs Everton 🔵 

Saturday @ 12:30 on TNT Sport

Gameweek 9 starts with a cracker. The Merseyside Derby.

It’s no surprise that Liverpool are entering this game as favourites.

But, it might not be all swings and roundabouts. The Reds have conceded first in 21 of 46 Premier League games since the start of last season, and five of eight this campaign.

The Toffees also have the fifth-best xG (15.71) in the league, and they’ll be on a high after their 3 - 0 win versus Bournemouth.

That said… Everton’s away form is weaker than their home form.

And, let’s be honest, Anfield isn’t the place to suddenly pick up form…

• 💉 Quick hit: Everton have failed to score in 26 Premier League matches against Liverpool - more than any other opponent. (via Opta)

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🔵 Chelsea vs Arsenal 🔴

Saturday @ 17:30 on Sky Sports

Believe it or not… former Spurs manager Mauricio Pochettino has never lost a home Premier League game against Arsenal.

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has won 65.2% of his Premier League games against Chelsea.

So… who’s going to slip up this time?

The data can’t even decide: Opta predicts Arsenal have a 36.3% chance of victory, compared to Chelsea’s 34.7%.

It’ll likely come down to fitness and availability.

Poch has struggled with injuries this season. Chukwuemeka, Disasi, Broja, Chilwell, Lavia, and Nkunku are all unavailable.

Plus, Chelsea have lost their last two home Premier League games to Forest and Villa… compared to Arsenal losing just one game in their last 12 games in all comps.

We have Arsenal nipping this one… but it’ll be close.

• 💉 Quick hit: Arsenal could become the first team in English top-flight history to win their first four away games while keeping a clean sheet in every victory.

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⚪️ Spurs vs Fulham ⚫️

Monday @ 20:00 on Sky Sports

Spurs went into the international break at the top of the league.

And things look to be going their way. Injury-doubts Heung-min Son and Cristian Romero are both expected to start against Fulham.

On the flip side, Fulham have some key players out: Kenny Tete, Adama Traore, and Issa Diop.

Fulham haven’t enjoyed London derbies recently. They have zero wins and just four points from their last 10.

It’s looking like a good fixture for the league leaders…

But, Spurs fans, we wouldn't want to get too comfortable now… would we? 👀

• 💉 Quick hit: Since 2008, Fulham have failed to score one goal in a league game against Spurs.

FPL GW9… Deep Breaths! 🧘‍♀️

So, managers, how are you feeling?

With a two-week rest from a tough FPL campaign, it’s time to chase green arrows.

Let’s get into it…

Mo’ Salah, Less Problems…

Football is fickle. The quicker you accept it, the better you’ll do at FPL.

It was only a week ago that Haaland was the top dog… but now he’s the sixth most transferred OUT player.

Who’s the FPL king now? You guessed it: Mo Salah.

Liverpool’s enticing fixture run of Everton and Forest at home, followed by Luton away, explains the rush to sign the Egyptian.

What else?

• He’s now the highest-scoring in the game with five goals and four assists.

• His xG of 5.24 (first among midfielders) and an xA of 2.81 (third overall) are hard to ignore.

But, remember this… 

Everton are top six for both goals conceded and xGC AND…

Luton Away is a tricky fixture (a moment for the managers who captained Son🙏). There’s a reason the Hatters are in the top 10 best teams for xGC at Home.

Look, Salah will return. Just get in quick before his price rockets. 🚀

Captaincy Pick… 🤔

Haaland?

• Exp Points: 8.6

• Opponent: Brighton (H)

• % of managers captaining Haaland as per FPLTips poll: 56%

Son?

• Exp Points: 7.1

• Opponent: Fulham (H)

• % of managers captaining Son as per FPLTips poll: 10%

Salah?

• Exp Points: 7.0

• Opponent: Everton (H)

• % of managers captaining Salah as per FPLTips poll: 29%

Last season, Haaland found 29 of his 45 goal involvements at home. He likes the Etihad and the Etihad likes him.

This is why managers are bullish on him against a leaky Brighton defence.

Man City have struggled to score (and defend) since Rodri’s sending-off in GW6. But the main man is back this Saturday.

The City boys are back in town…

Psst.. if you’re looking for a good resource for injuries, we’ve found one. Here! It’s a little old-school but it does the job.

EXTRA-TIME ⏱️

Girona are second in La Liga after 9 games. Who? You may ask. The small Catalan club with a stadium capacity of 13,286 were promoted in 2021-22. But this small club masks a huge backing: City Football Group, the same people who own Man City. Watch this space.

A few too many Vodka Red Bulls… The England lads rack up a £35,000 bar bill as they celebrate Euro 2024 qualification. Ever the professional, Harry Kane was nowhere to be seen. C’mon H. Have a drink on us.

Ever heard of Fabio Paim? Neither had we. Apparently, Chelsea was paying him £6,500 per week when he was just 13! (is that legal?) He claims that he should’ve won the Ballon d’Or and that CR7 said he was the only player better than him. He looks decent but we’re not convinced he’d reached GOAT status.

It’s been 10 years since Jack Wilshere’s 2013 Goal of the Season. You know… THAT goal.

Satisfying watch. If you want to be mesmerised, check out footballers unintentionally copying each other for 1 minute and 5 seconds.

GW9 Differential? 🤩

Watkins would’ve been our differential this week.

But, we can’t justify it after he’s the most transferred player IN this week.

Luckily, there’s one FWD that has caught our eye.

Alexander Isak (£7.5m) is our GW9 differential pick.

He is selected by just 21.3% of managers, but he boasts some of the most impressive stats.

We did a bit of analysis here at the Route One HQ. We’ve done a full write-up on this so we’ll keep it short here…

Isak has the second highest FD Index which means he’s got good fixtures and he's in good form.

We’re going with him. Are you?

MEME 😂