In a Blank Gameweek 28 where the captaincy is a key issue, Harry Kane (£11.8m) justified his status as the overwhelming favourite among Fantasy Premier League managers.
The incredible success of Erling Haaland (£12.0m) has made the Norwegian the go-to armband pick throughout the season. But Manchester City are without a fixture in Fantasy this weekend, due to their participation in the FA Cup quarter-finals.
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That gave FPL managers a tricky decision, with big consequences in mini-leagues this weekend.
Kane was given the armband by over 2 million people, the first time he has been backed by that many in exactly 70 Gameweeks.
And he rewarded his backers, scoring his 21st goal of the season in a 3-3 draw with Southampton.
He has now blanked in just one of his nine trips to St. Mary's Stadium, amassing 66 points in the process.
BGW28 most-captained active players*
| Player | Captained by (000's) | Pts |
|---|---|---|
| Kane | 2,074 | 6 |
| Saka | 694 | 18 |
| Toney | 625 | 2 |
Bukayo Saka (£8.6m) and Ivan Toney (£7.9m) completed the top three active captains.
Saka was backed by only a third of the number of managers who gave the armband to Kane, yet he produced his best FPL return with an 18-point haul.
The Arsenal star delivered two goals and an assist in Sunday's 4-1 win over Crystal Palace, to make it 23 attacking returns in 2022/23, his best tally across his five seasons in Fantasy.
Those who backed Toney will be ruing their decision, as he blanked in Brentford's 1-1 draw with Leicester City.
Managers deploy chips
Over 350,000 managers have used their Free Hit chip in Blank Gameweek 28 to navigate the problem that six clubs are without a fixture in Fantasy.
While that is a significant number of Free Hits, it is well below the figure from Gameweek 12, when over a million managers used the chip because Man City's match against Arsenal was postponed.
A further 265,000+ have used their Wildcard to not only negotiate the reduced set of fixtures this weekend but to capitalise on the fact that 12 teams have a Double Gameweek 29.
Chips used in Blank Gameweek 28
| Chip | Total used |
|---|---|
| Free Hit | 351,259 |
| Wildcard | 265,100 |
| Triple Captain | 13,541 |
| Bench Boost | 10,826 |
More than 965,000 managers snapped up Ben Chilwell (£6.0m) ahead of Chelsea's home encounter with Everton.
However he was unable to deliver a strong return to his new owners, conceding twice and only claiming one point in the 2-2 draw.
BGW28 most transferred-in players*
| Player | Transferred in by ('000s) | Pts |
| Chilwell | 965 | 1 |
|---|---|---|
| Watkins | 905 | 5 |
| Kane | 670 | 6 |
Seven attacking returns in seven matches led to a surge in popularity for Ollie Watkins (£7.5m).
Over 905,000 managers turned to the in-form forward, and he provided an assist in Aston Villa's 3-0 home win over AFC Bournemouth.
Since Gameweek 21, his tally of 55 points is the best among forwards.
BGW28 most transferred-out players
| Player | Transferred out by ('000s) | Pts |
| Haaland | 1,297 | 0 |
|---|---|---|
| Rashford | 609 | 0 |
| Salah | 560 | 0 |
The three most-sold players are without a fixture in Gameweek 28 due to the FA Cup quarter-finals.
Haaland and Mohamed Salah (£12.8m) are next set to feature in the Premier League in Gameweek 29, when Liverpool travel to Manchester City.
For Marcus Rashford (£7.3m), Manchester United are in next in action at Newcastle United in the same round of matches.
See: Fantasy Premier League stats
Also in this series
Part 1: FPL bonus points