More than 6.6million Fantasy Premier League managers had their vice-captains promoted after Erling Haaland (£14.0m) missed Gameweek 16.
The Norwegian was left out of Manchester City's squad for their trip to Luton Town with a foot injury, meaning those who captained him had their vice-captains assume the armband.
This was good news for the combined 2.4m who backed either Mohamed Salah (£13.1m) or Son Heung-min (£9.5m) with the vice-captaincy, as the pair each produced their sixth double-figure hauls of the campaign.
Who did Haaland backers vice-captain?
| Player | Vice-captained by | Pts |
|---|---|---|
| Salah | 2,025,467 | 13 |
| Saka | 809,512 | 2 |
| Son | 427,204 | 17 |
| Ederson | 233,322 | 2 |
| Watkins | 194,459 | 2 |
It was a let-off for many, as over 1.4m managers removed the armband from Salah for Liverpool's game at Crystal Palace from the previous Gameweek.
The midfielder experienced a drop in captaincy numbers after blanking at Sheffield United in Gameweek 15.
But in addition to the 1.5m who kept faith with the Egyptian, more than 2m benefited from making him their vice-captain as he scored and assisted in a 2-1 win for Jurgen Klopp's side.
Salah also earned the maximum three bonus for a 13-point return to extend his lead at the top of the Fantasy player standings.
GW16 most-captained players
| Player | Captained by | Pts |
|---|---|---|
| Haaland | 6,626,667 | - |
| Salah | 1,524,632 | 13 |
| Saka | 251,172 | 2 |
| Son | 213,958 | 17 |
| Watkins | 176,590 | 2 |
The real winners, however, are the 427,000+ Haaland backers who vice-captained Son Heung-min (£9.5m), as the Spurs star produced the best score of the round.
Son laid on two assists and scored a penalty in Tottenham Hotspur's 4-1 win over Newcastle United to secure maximum bonus and a 17-point return.
Together with Salah, his six double-figure hauls are two more than any other player this season.
2023/24 most-double-figure hauls
| Player | Double-figure hauls |
|---|---|
| Salah | 6 |
| Son | 6 |
| Haaland | 4 |
| Gordon | 4 |
| Trippier | 4 |
Ederson (£5.5m) was the most vice-captained Man City player out of those who entrusted Haaland with the armband.
Frustratingly, despite a first win in five matches for Pep Guardiola's men, Ederson conceded a goal for the sixth consecutive appearance as Luton scored from one of their two attempts on target.
Two of the top three differential captains went head-to-head when Aston Villa hosted Arsenal. A combined 427,762 gave the armband to either Bukayo Saka (£8.9m) or Ollie Watkins (£8.4m).
Saka was the only member of the top five captains to return in Gameweek 15, but he blanked for just the third time this season as the Gunners lost 1-0.
Watkins, meanwhile, was unable to add to his 17 attacking returns and could only deliver two points.
Nonetheless, already the second most-selected forward in FPL, Watkins has gained 115,000+ new owners following news of Haaland's injury.
Elsewhere, the "curse" of the most-bought player struck for the 11th time this season.
Recruited by nearly 500,000 Fantasy bosses for Chelsea's trip to Everton, Cole Palmer (£5.5m) mustered a match-high five shots but failed to find the back of the net as the Toffees triumphed 2-0. A yellow card reduced his score to one point.
Also in this series
Part 2: Gameweek 16 FPL bonus points