The 4.7m Fantasy Premier League managers who backed Mohamed Salah (£13.1m) for Gameweek 18 were left disappointed as the Liverpool forward blanked for only the second time this season.
Salah was the most popular captaincy pick for the 15th time in 2021/22 but could only return two points in the thrilling 2-2 draw with Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday evening.
GW18 most-captained players
| Player | Captained by (000's) | Pts |
|---|---|---|
| Salah | 4,738 | 2 |
| Ronaldo | 694 | 0 |
| Fernandes | 348 | 0 |
The top three most popular captains have been unchanged since Gameweek 10.
With Manchester United's meeting against Brighton & Hove Albion called off, Cristiano Ronaldo (£12.5m) and Bruno Fernandes (£11.6m) gained zero points for the second successive Gameweek.
They were replaced in the top three among the leading 100 FPL managers by the Manchester City pair of Joao Cancelo (£6.8m) and Phil Foden (£8.1m).
Most-captained by top 100
| Player | Captained by | Pts |
|---|---|---|
| Salah | 86 | 2 |
| Cancelo | 6 | 18 |
| Foden | 5 | 0 |
Those managers who picked Cancelo will be delighted after the 4-0 victory at Newcastle United as the Portuguese claimed a goal, assist and clean sheet to return 18 points.
Foden, meanwhile, was an unused substitute.
More than 1.3million managers suffered disappointment as the No 1 transfer target had his fixture postponed.
Ollie Watkins (£7.8m) was the most-bought player, only for Aston Villa's match against Burnley to be called off two hours before kick-off, due to a COVID-19 outbreak within the Villa squad.
He was the fourth most-transferred-in player this term.
GW18 most transferred-in players
| Player | Transferred in by ('000s) | Pts |
|---|---|---|
| Watkins | 1,336 | 0 |
| Lacazette | 594 | 5 |
| Foden | 544 | 0 |
There was better news, however, for the new owners of Alexandre Lacazette (£8.4m).
Snapped up by nearly 600,000 Fantasy bosses, the Frenchman supplied an assist in Arsenal's 4-1 win at Leeds United.
GW18 most transferred-out players
| Player | Transferred out by ('000s) | Pts |
| Antonio | 698 | 0 |
|---|---|---|
| Vardy | 525 | 0 |
| Gallagher | 516 | 0 |
All of the top three players sold did not have a fixture.
West Ham United's match against Norwich City, Leicester City's trip to Everton and Crystal Palace's encounter with Watford were all postponed. So Michail Antonio (£7.8m), Jamie Vardy (£10.5m) and Conor Gallagher (£6.2m) are next due to feature in Gameweek 19.
Free Hits played
With six out of the 10 GW17 fixtures postponed, a season-high 387,500+ managers played their Free Hit chip to revamp their teams for this one Gameweek.
A Free Hit can be taken once a season and allows for unlimited transfers in a single Gameweek. Managers can replace their entire squad for that Gameweek, but their 15-man line-up is returned to how it was at the start of the Gameweek for the next deadline.
Also in this series
Part 1: FDR Analysis: Festive schedule can revive Spurs
Part 3: GW18 Bonus points: Alexander-Arnold shines for Liverpool
Part 4: Who is suspended or close to a ban?