FPL GW7 Preview: Semenyo Over the Cherki Rush

Haaland is my GW7 captain. If you are adding a Manchester City midfielder alongside him, I would pay £0.4m more for Semenyo over Cherki, provided the extra money does not weaken another starting position.

The Algorithm gives Semenyo 5.5 projected points this week and 36.7 across the next eight gameweeks. Cherki reads 4.7 and 31.3. The more popular purchase has the lower forecast in both columns.

That is a reason to choose carefully when buying. It is not a reason to spend four points replacing a healthy player you already own.

The GW7 deadline is Saturday 17 October at 11:00 UK time (BST). Player projections were published on 14 October and cover GW7–14. Prices, ownership and availability were checked that afternoon. These are forecasts, not promised returns; recheck the final team news before the deadline.

Who should captain your team in GW7?

Haaland leads the whole player board at 6.8 xP, with Semenyo next at 5.5 and Gabriel at 5.4. A 1.3-point lead over second gives me a clear preference, while still leaving plenty of room for a different actual result.

City host Ipswich. The Algorithm expects City to score 2.8 goals and gives them a 48.2% clean-sheet chance, the strongest attacking and defensive figures in GW7. The next attacking figures are Spurs' 2.1 at home to Coventry and Brighton's 1.9 at home to Palace.

If Haaland is already yours and fit, give him the armband. If you do not own him, Semenyo is the highest-projected alternative. Gabriel's Forest away fixture carries a 41.8% clean-sheet chance, but I would not buy an expensive defender solely for a captaincy fallback.

You can compare every player in the eight-gameweek predicted-points table.

Why prefer Semenyo to the Cherki rush?

Cherki has attracted 358,365 transfers in during the live transfer window, against 60,849 for Semenyo. Both totals were checked on 14 October. Ownership is 31.9% against 13.7%.

Cherki's recent returns explain the appeal: 44 points, four goals and two assists from 392 minutes. Semenyo has 36 points, two goals and three assists, but has played all 540 available minutes.

For a new purchase or Wildcard, I prefer Semenyo if the £0.4m fits. The projected advantage is 0.8 this week and 5.4 over eight gameweeks, assuming both occupy a starting position in your FPL team throughout the window and before captaincy or transfer deductions.

For an existing Cherki owner, I would not force the switch on a hit. The eight-gameweek advantage would be only 1.4 after a four-point deduction, before any other changes to your squad. A useful forecast gap is not a guarantee large enough to ignore the rest of the team.

Both use a City place. Check whether you already have Haaland, a defender and another City player before planning a fourth. Selling an existing holding to create the slot belongs in the comparison too.

The other transfer choices I would make

Prefer Guéhi over Gvardiol when choosing a City defender. Guéhi is £6.0m, 17.9% owned and has 36 points from all 540 minutes. Gvardiol is £5.8m, 28.1% owned and has 41 points from 458 minutes.

Guéhi projects 4.8 in GW7 and 32.1 across eight gameweeks, against Gvardiol's 4.4 and 27.5. The extra £0.2m buys a projected 4.6-point advantage across the window. On a Wildcard I would pay it; for an existing Gvardiol owner, the 0.4-point GW7 gap is too small to justify an automatic hit.

Gvardiol started on the bench at Liverpool and played 24 minutes. That is a reason to watch the next lineups, not proof that he will be benched against Ipswich.

Keep Fernandes unless his money has a better job elsewhere. Man United's £11.9m midfielder is 34.6% owned, with 32 points and all 540 minutes. He projects 4.8 away at Leeds, then 6.3 at home to Bournemouth, and 44.4 over the eight gameweeks.

Selling him for Semenyo releases £3.6m but gives up the higher eight-gameweek forecast. That can work if the saving improves another position or funds your captain. It should not happen just because Fernandes returned one point in GW6. The captaincy miss and the transfer outcomes are marked in our GW6 review.

The differential: Van Hecke at 6.3% owned

Van Hecke (£4.9m), Spurs. He has 27 points, six starts and all 540 minutes. Coventry visit in GW7, with Spurs given a 40.4% clean-sheet chance.

His 4.5 GW7 xP is the highest among defenders costing £5.0m or less. Across eight gameweeks he totals 29.5.

The catch arrives immediately afterwards: Chelsea away in GW8, where he drops to 2.7. I would consider him for a cheap starting-defender slot with cover for that fixture, rather than buy him for Monday and spend another transfer selling him straight away.

What still needs checking before Saturday?

City play PSG on Wednesday evening. Assess the minutes, any new knocks and the manager's final comments before buying into their Ipswich fixture. A midweek start does not automatically mean a weekend rest.

All the players discussed above are currently unflagged. Spurs cleared Van Hecke to play before GW6 and he completed 90 minutes, but that does not confirm the next team sheet.

GW7 questions

Is Cherki a bad buy?

No. He projects 4.7 against Ipswich and costs £0.4m less than Semenyo. I prefer Semenyo when the budget allows; I would keep Cherki where the saving strengthens the whole team.

Should I take a hit to switch the two City midfielders?

Not for this week alone. The projected gain is 0.8 before a four-point deduction. Across eight gameweeks the margin after that deduction is still narrow.

Test the available City slot in the free team planner. Captain Haaland if fit, prefer Semenyo for a new midfield purchase, and make every forced sale or hit earn its place in the full eight-gameweek plan.