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            <p><strong>Gabriel </strong>is out for the rest of the season with a hamstring injury - here, we cover the best replacements as well as some other major dilemmas ahead of FPL Gameweek 31.</p>
<p>FPL content creator and pundit Holly Shand covers the important topics to help Fantasy Football Hub members with their decision making, including:</p>
<ul>
<li>Best Gabriel replacements</li>
<li>How to tackle the upcoming blanks and doubles?</li>
<li>Is <strong>Bukayo Saka </strong>worth buying now?</li>
<li>Who are the best differentials on wildcard?</li>
</ul>
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<h2>Who are the best Gabriel FPL replacements?</h2>
<p>The breaking news that came out of Arsenal on Thursday was that <strong>Gabriel </strong>is out for the rest of the season.</p>
<p>The Gunners centre-back suffered a hamstring injury in the 2-1 win against Fulham on Tuesday evening and will now require surgery.</p>
<p>Gabriel is now a sell, although for managers with strength and depth on their bench, it may not be a transfer which is necessary ahead of Gameweek 31.</p>
<p>In terms of replacements, Crystal Palace have the most fixtures in the next four gameweeks, with doubles in both Gameweek 32 and Gameweek 33.</p>
<p><strong>Daniel Munoz (£5.1m) </strong>remains their most attacking defensive asset this season, with eight goal involvements - three goals and five assists.</p>
<div id="attachment_71893" style="width: 808px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-71893" class="size-full wp-image-71893" src="https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/Munoz-GW1-31.jpg" alt="Daniel Munoz's stats" width="798" height="650" /></p>
<p id="caption-attachment-71893" class="wp-caption-text">Daniel Munoz's stats</p>
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<p>One obvious replacement would be the straight swap for teammate <strong>William Saliba</strong>, remaining invested in a defence with 11 clean sheets this season.</p>
<p>But the absence of Gabriel is a significant loss, which could severely hamper their clean sheet potential over the run-in. They also face Real Madrid next in the Champions League, so rotation in the league could be a factor.</p>
<p>For those managers planning to Free Hit in Double Gameweek 34, Manchester City's <strong>Josko Gvardiol </strong>is another worthy investment, having produced a leading five goals among defenders.</p>
<p>An away trip in the Manchester derby isn't the best entry point but then it's Crystal Palace at home next weekend followed by doubles in Gameweek 33 against Everton and Aston Villa.</p>
<p>For those without a Free Hit, Newcastle's defence is attractive given their double in Gameweek 32 and a fixture in the Blank Gameweek 34.</p>
<p><strong>Fabian Schar (£5.4m) </strong>is the safest route into their defence in terms of minutes but <strong>Tino Livramento </strong>does provide a cost saving and the attacking threat from full-back.</p>
<div id="attachment_71894" style="width: 808px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-71894" class="size-full wp-image-71894" src="https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/Livramento-gw1-30.jpg" alt="Tino Livramento's stats" width="798" height="650" /></p>
<p id="caption-attachment-71894" class="wp-caption-text">Tino Livramento's stats</p>
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<h2>How to tackle the upcoming doubles and blanks following the latest fixture news?</h2>
<p>On Thursday, we had the announcement of a Double Gameweek 33 for Crystal Palace, Manchester City, Aston Villa and Arsenal.</p>
<p>Doubles in consecutive gameweeks for Crystal Palace means a triple up is a must.</p>
<p>Nottingham Forest's home game against Brentford remains in Gameweek 34 but moves to the midweek, with the disrupted schedule caused by the FA Cup quarter-finals.</p>
<p>For those managers still holding the Free Hit chip, Blank Gameweek 34 is the most obvious time to play it, as the sides who blank have good fixtures (and doubles) either side of it.</p>
<p>For those without Free Hit, the second Wildcard becomes significant around the same window of Gameweek 34 or Gameweek 35 if it's possible to wait for more information.</p>
<p>Ahead of Gameweek 35 we will know the FA Cup finalists, with a further blank possible in Gameweek 37 for the sides involved.</p>
<p>Any rearranged fixtures could slot into Gameweek 36, producing one final double.</p>
<div id="attachment_71895" style="width: 735px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-71895" class="wp-image-71895 size-full" src="https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/Ben-Crellin-fixtures.png" alt="Ben Crellin's fixture forecasts" width="725" height="552" /></p>
<p id="caption-attachment-71895" class="wp-caption-text">Ben Crellin's fixture forecasts</p>
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<h2>Is it worth signing Saka now or should we hold off until Arsenal's double?</h2>
<p>Arsenal's <strong>Bukayo Saka </strong>is the most bought player ahead of Gameweek 31 after making his return from injury in the midweek win against Fulham, scoring from the bench.</p>
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FPL Gameweek 31 Q&A: Best Gabriel replacements, signing Saka, Wildcard differentials

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