A combined 671,000 Fantasy Premier League managers were left disappointed after their decision to go against Erling Haaland (£14.1m) with the captaincy backfired.
Son Heung-min (£9.1m) and James Maddison (£7.8m) were popular armband alternatives to the Norwegian for Tottenham Hotspur's enthralling home encounter with Sheffield United.
Spurs delivered on their attacking promise, mustering 28 shots in the match, with Son and Maddison having three attempts apiece. But the pair were unable to convert their chances, finishing on two points and one point respectively.
Son continued the trend this season of the most-bought player blanking, adding to the woes of those who backed Raheem Sterling (£7.2m), Bryan Mbeumo (£6.8m) and Ben Chilwell (£5.8m) before him.
And many managers were left to rue their luck as the most-sold Spurs player, Richarlison (£6.8m), emerged from the bench to produce a match-winning cameo and an eight-point return thanks to a goal and assist.
See: Richarlison inspires Spurs to latest ever turnaround
So this aged well...
— Fantasy Premier League (@OfficialFPL) September 16, 2023
Richarlison was @SpursOfficial's most-sold player for Gameweek 5. He earned a goal and an assist.
The most-bought players all blanked.
If that isn't #FPL in a nutshell, we don't know what is. https://t.co/rpcM2RNIRI
Meanwhile, Haaland rewarded the 7.1million managers who kept faith with him by scoring in Manchester City's 3-1 win away to West Ham United for a six-point return.
He could easily have had a much bigger haul.
Haaland racked up an Expected Goals (xG) total of 2.20, the most he’s recorded in any Premier League match since joining Man City. He had nine shots in the box and was presented with six big chances but could only convert one of them.
GW5 most-captained players
| Player | Captained by (000's) | Pts |
|---|---|---|
| Haaland | 7,158 | 6 |
| Salah | 386 | 10 |
| Son | 380 | 2 |
| Maddison | 291 | 1 |
The best choice as captain on Saturday proved to be Mohamed Salah (£12.5m), who extended his run of returns to 11 consecutive matches.
He supplied two assists in Liverpool's 3-1 win at Wolverhampton Wanderers for a 10-point score, his first double-figure haul of the campaign.
See: Gameweek 5 FPL bonus points: Joy for Salah owners
Captained by over 386,000 Fantasy bosses, the Egyptian has now outscored Haaland in three out of the five Gameweeks this season.
His consistent run of returns extends back to Double Gameweek 34 of last season, so managers may now give him more consideration for the captaincy.
Salah's consistent run of returns
| Gameweek | Opponent | Pts |
|---|---|---|
| GW34 | Spurs | 7 |
| GW34 | Fulham | 11 |
| GW35 | Brentford | 10 |
| GW36 | Leicester | 12 |
| GW37 | Aston Villa | 5 |
| GW38 | Southampton | 5 |
| GW1 | Chelsea | 5 |
| GW2 | Bournemouth | 5 |
| GW3 | Newcastle | 5 |
| GW4 | Aston Villa | 8 |
| GW5 | Wolves | 10 |
Also in this series
Part 1: GW5 FPL bonus points
Part 3: Why Salah's improving creativity can make him a Fantasy must-have