More than 1.8 million Fantasy Premier League managers are celebrating their decision to recruit Bruno Fernandes (£8.5m) for Blank Gameweek 29 (BGW29) as he delivered a 17-point haul.
The huge number of transfers in puts Fernandes among the five most-bought Gameweek players of all-time - and the Portuguese has delivered the best immediate return of that elite group.
He scored and supplied two assists to claim maximum bonus in Manchester United's 3-0 win at Leicester City and eclipse the 13-point totals of Cristiano Ronaldo and Son Heung-min (£9.7m).
Most transferred-in players of all-time
| Player | Gameweek | Bought by | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ronaldo | GW4 2021/22 | 2,206,177 | 13 |
| Son | GW29 2023/24 | 2,091,060 | 2 |
| Son | GW5 2020/21 | 1,991,731 | 13 |
| Fernandes | GW29 2024/25 | 1,892,467 | 17 |
| Toney | GW29 2023/24 | 1,838,997 | 1 |
Fernandes has now produced three double-figure hauls in the last four Gameweeks, and his 46 points during that period is the most of any player in Fantasy.
Millions Free-Hit
Over a million Fantasy bosses used their Free Hit chip in BGW29, a season-high total and the third-highest on record.
Four teams were without a fixture due to the EFL Cup final between Liverpool and Newcastle United, meaning popular players such as Mohamed Salah (£13.7m) and Alexander Isak (£9.3m) didn't play in the Premier League. Their scheduled opponents, Aston Villa and Crystal Palace, are the other two teams who blanked.
As a result, many Fantasy managers found themselves struggling to field 11 players for BGW29. Using the Free Hit chip allowed them to select a squad suited to the reduced round of matches.
GW29 chips played
| Chip | Used by |
|---|---|
| Free Hit | 1,189,224 |
| Wildcard | 221,540 |
| Assistant Manager | 105,465 |
| Triple Captain | 14,819 |
| Bench Boost | 14,258 |
The large number of Free Hit chips played takes the total number of active chips over 2.1m for just the sixth time in Fantasy.
In addition to those Free-Hitting, more than 221,000 used their Wildcard and nearly 750,000 people had their Assistant Manager chip in play.
A total of 105,000+ managers activated the Assistant Manager chip in BGW29, adding to the 645,000 who were already using it.
Who were the most-bought players?
Deploying the Free Hit chip or Wildcard aren't the only ways to navigate BGW29, and many managers have simply used their transfers to improve their starting XIs.
A whopping 20m transfers have been made, the 10th-highest total on record.
GW29 most-bought players
| Player | Bought by | Pts |
|---|---|---|
| Fernandes | 1,892,467 | 17 |
| Haaland | 1,380,766 | 7 |
| Gvardiol | 902,874 | 1 |
| Wood | 850,308 | 2 |
| Kluivert | 814,657 | 2 |
More than 625,000 made the direct swap from Salah to Fernandes, with another 300,000+ ditching the out-of-form Cole Palmer (£10.9m), who missed Chelsea's defeat to Arsenal through injury, for the Man Utd captain.
But Isak to Erling Haaland (£14.8m) proved the most-popular single trade ahead of BGW29, with close to 650,000 upgrading the Swede to the Norwegian.
Haaland, also the most-captained active player, rewarded his new owners with a goal in Manchester City's 2-2 draw with Brighton & Hove Albion. He claimed a share of the bonus for a seven-point return.
Man City's talisman had three shots in the box, taking his tally to 27 over his last 10 appearances, encouraging numbers before an enticing home encounter with Leicester City in Gameweek 30.
GW29 most-captained active players
| Player | Captained by | Pts |
|---|---|---|
| Haaland | 2,712,570 | 7 |
| Wood | 1,597,259 | 2 |
| Fernandes | 873,574 | 17 |
| Palmer | 558,538 | 0 |
| Kluivert | 253,289 | 2 |
Second in the captaincy stakes for BGW29, Chris Wood (£7.3m) was also in demand, with more than 850,000 adding the New Zealand international to their squads.
Disappointingly for his backers, despite Nottingham Forest beating Ipswich Town 4-2, Wood wasn't involved in any of the goals. It was his third blank in as many matches, with his last goal coming back in Gameweek 25, away to Fulham.
Justin Kluivert (£6.2m) also proved a bit of a let-down.
Transferred in by over 814,000 and among the top five captains, hopes were high that the Dutchman could extend an excellent run of form that had seen him produce three double-digit hauls in seven matches.
Unfortunately, Kluivert also blanked, notching just two points as AFC Bournemouth lost 2-1 to Brentford.
Who were the most-sold players?
Trent Alexander-Arnold (£7.4m) to Josko Gvardiol (£6.0m) was the most-popular defensive transfer for BGW29, with 250,000+ making the direct switch.
GW29 most-sold players
| Player | Sold by | Pts |
|---|---|---|
| Salah | 1,638,721 | 0 |
| Isak | 1,627,244 | 0 |
| Alexander-Arnold | 1,234,858 | 0 |
| Palmer | 1,058,621 | 0 |
| Rogers | 861,782 | 0 |
Not only was Alexander-Arnold without a fixture in BGW29 but his participation in Gameweek 30 is in doubt following a midweek injury in the UEFA Champions League. Liverpool head coach Arne Slot said that he expects him back before the end of the season but wasn't able to give an exact timeframe for his recovery.
Recruited by more than 900,000 in total, Gvardiol came away with just a single point from Man City's draw at the Etihad Stadium, having failed to register any touches in the Brighton box.
