More than 2.3 million Fantasy Premier League The managers had dashed their hopes of a bumper push as their captain, Ollie Watkins (£8.7m), dropped for the third time in four games.
Aston Villa’s 15-match home run ended with a 1-1 draw at Sheffield United on Friday.
Much to the dismay of his supporters, Watkins appeared to have put up an assist Leon Bailey (£5.6m) only for VAR to disallow the goal for a foul in the build-up.
Watkins was not only the player with the most captains, but also the player with the most transfers, with over 900,000 snapping him up before Thursday’s deadline.
But once again that mantle proved to be something of a poisoned chalice as Gameweek’s top team recorded three points or less for the 13th time this season.
Attention now turns to his rivals for the armband.
Two popular options, Mohamed Salah (£13.2m) and Bucayo Saka (£9.0m), will face off when Liverpool entertain Arsenal on Saturday.
GW18 players with most captains*
Player | Captain from | Grades |
---|---|---|
Watkins | 2,351,544 | 2 |
Salah | 2,135,904 | – |
Son | 1,250,609 | – |
Satchel | 590,942 | – |
Fernandes | 174,246 | – |
*including vice-captains for the managers who captained Haaland
Salah’s captains will be hoping he resumes regular service after he sat out the previous round, ending a run of 16 consecutive home games with returns going back to Gameweek 23 of the 2022/23 Fantasy.
Meanwhile, Saka will be aiming to convert his promising stats into goals. He has collected 10 shots in his last three matches, which he had in his previous 11 outings.
Son Heung-minHis (£9.8m) knack for explosive runs saw him entrusted with the captain’s armband by more than 1.2 million managers for Tottenham’s home clash with Everton. The South Korea international has six double-figure returns this season and 53 in his FPL career.
With Manchester City participating in the FIFA Club World Cup, Erling Haaland (£13.9m) does not appear in the captain’s chat on this occasion.
His absence allowed Bruno Fernandes (£8.2m) to break into the leaders’ top five.
The Portuguese has completed 110 crosses and created 47 chances this season, both tops among midfielders this season. Manchester United travel to West Ham on Saturday.
Also in this series
Part 1: FPL GW18 Bonus Points