Captained by more than a million Fantasy Premier League managers, the in-form Alexander Isak (£9.3m) registered his fifth double-figure haul of the campaign to delight his backers.
Isak scored twice and supplied an assist in Newcastle United's 3-0 win over Wolverhampton Wanderers to earn maximum bonus and a 16-point return.
For the first time this season - and just the third time ever - FOUR players were captained by more than one million Fantasy Premier League managers.
The 1.4m who backed Cole Palmer (£11.4m) got the second-best total among the top captain picks as the Chelsea talisman produced his eighth double-figure return of the campaign.
Palmer scored the opening goal in the Blues' 2-2 draw with AFC Bournemouth, earning maximum bonus for a 10-point return.
GW21 most-captained players
| Player | Captained by | Pts |
|---|---|---|
| Salah | 4,479,806 | 2 |
| Haaland | 2,087,729 | 2 |
| Palmer | 1,419,674 | 10 |
| Isak | 1,080,286 | 16 |
| Fernandes | 233,459 | 4 |
The split captaincy totals reflected the difficult decision Fantasy bosses faced ahead of the deadline.
The popular choice in recent Gameweeks, Mohamed Salah (£13.7m), had a trip to Nottingham Forest, the only team to beat Liverpool in the league so far this season.
And managers were right to have their doubts as Salah blanked for the first time in 13 appearances, as it ended 1-1 at the City Ground.
Erling Haaland (£14.8m), who produced 13 points in his previous outing, also disappointed those who captained him. The Norwegian returned two points in Manchester City's 2-2 draw at Brentford.
Bruno Fernandes (£8.3m) completed the top five captains.
The differential choice, with just under 235,000 selecting him for double points, the Portuguese had delivered an attacking return in four of his last six home matches heading into Thursday's encounter at Old Trafford.
Although he blanked in Manchester United's thrilling 3-1 win over Southampton he picked up two bonus points, thanks to two key passes and two shots on target.