Can Haaland avoid historic slump of £14.0m players in FPL?

Erling Haaland has become only the fourth player in the history of Fantasy Premier League to be priced at £14.0m, and history suggests that cost should give managers pause for thought.

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The Manchester City forward has earned his valuation after taking Fantasy by storm in his debut campaign.

Haaland scored 36 goals and supplied a further nine assists to collect 272 points, finishing as the top-scoring player in the game.

Fantasy managers have so far been undeterred by Haaland's price rise, with over 85 per cent selecting him in their opening squad.

But his backers should be aware that two of the three previous players who have had a price increase to £14.0m have suffered a drop-off in their FPL points total.

Points before/after £14.0m valuation

Arsenal’s Thierry Henry was the first player to be priced at £14.0m in Fantasy. 

The Gunners forward earned that valuation in 2005/06 on the back of hauls of 271, 242 and 231 points in the three previous seasons. 

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Henry just managed to improve his tally when his cost increased to £14.0m, totalling 239 points.

But when he was priced the same for 2006/07, he managed only 102 points in an injury-hit campaign.

Manchester United’s Cristiano Ronaldo cost £14.0m in 2008/09 after recording 283 points, a record total at the time. 

However, the Portuguese managed only 206 points with his new price tag before leaving for Real Madrid the following season. 

Robin van Persie equalled the record FPL price in 2013/14 after his exploits for Arsenal and Man Utd.

The Dutchman delivered 269 points in his final season with the Gunners in 2011/12, then claimed 262 points in his first campaign with the Red Devils in 2012/13.

Although he started 2013/14 in prolific form by scoring seven goals in his first 10 matches, Van Persie’s campaign was then hit hard by injuries. He started only nine more matches and ended the season with 112 points.

The big question now is whether Haaland can emulate Henry and justify his record price tag, or whether he will experience the same drop-off as Ronaldo and Van Persie.