GW31 Stats: Murphy rewards new owners as top signings disappoint

In a disappointing Gameweek for the most-bought players, it was left to Jacob Murphy (£5.1m) to salvage some pride for Fantasy Premier League managers as he produced his best return of the campaign.

Heading into the final match of the round on Monday, not one of the top five recruits had produced a return, with Bukayo Saka (£10.4m), William Saliba (£6.4m), Omar Marmoush (£7.6m) and Nikola Milenkovic (£5.1m) all blanking over the weekend. 

But Murphy gave his 384,000+ new owners something to cheer as he scored twice and claimed maximum bonus in Newcastle United's 3-0 win at Leicester City to finish on 16 points.

It was the second time this season that he had scored twice against Ruud van Nistelrooy's (£0.5m) side, having returned 13 points in the reverse fixture back in Gameweek 16.

GW31 most-bought players

Saka and Saliba were the top two transfer targets, snapped up by a combined 1.6m people, as more than 476,000 people wielded their Wildcard. But they could only muster three points between them as Arsenal drew 1-1 with Everton. 

Milenkovic, bought by over 446,000 managers, failed to return for the first time in six outings as Nottingham Forest lost 2-1 to Aston Villa.

And on Sunday, Marmoush, the third most-bought player, joined the list of flops after blanking in Manchester City's 0-0 draw at Manchester United.

GW30 chips played

Those Wildcarding will have been thinking about more than just this one Gameweek, however.

Man City welcome Crystal Palace to the Etihad Stadium in Double Gameweek 32 (DGW32) before playing twice in DGW33. 

Likewise, Mikel Arteta's (£1.5m) side host Brentford in the next round of matches before also playing twice in DGW33.

So despite the bumpy start, the next two Gameweeks will have a greater bearing on whether these transfers will be viewed as a success overall.

Captain flops

The five most-popular captain choices also suffered a disastrous Gameweek as they all blanked.

Mohamed Salah (£13.8m) was the top captain pick for the 18th time this season, handed the armband by more than 5.2m people.

But he was unable to add to his remarkable tally of 12 double-figure hauls in away matches as Liverpool lost 3-2 at Fulham.

GW31 most-captained active players

Cole Palmer (£10.7m) continued his indifferent spell of form, blanking in Chelsea's 0-0 draw at Brentford.

To the surprise of many, Palmer was left out of the starting XI despite being fit, appearing as a second-half substitute. Sold by more than 3m managers across the last four Gameweeks, that number is only likely to increase. 

The 204,000+ who entrusted Ollie Watkins (£8.9m) with the captaincy would have been pleased that he started against Forest after not being named in Villa's starting XI in their last two matches in all competitions. However he was withdrawn after 61 minutes, having failed to register a single shot, finishing on two points.

And unlike his team-mate Murphy, Alexander Isak (£9.5m) was unable to buck the trend as he came away empty handed from King Power Stadium.

Prior to his Gameweek 31 appearance, the Swede had scored or assisted in all four of his previous meetings with promoted clubs this season.

Howe-ay the lads!

In total, 1.6m managers invested in one of Eddie Howe's (£1.5m) players while the Newcastle head coach himself is the most-selected Assistant Manager, knocking Arne Slot (£1.5m) off top spot for the first time since the chip was introduced in Gameweek 24.

Howe picked up 11 points thanks to the win, three goals and clean sheet.

Among the other popular Newcastle players, Tino Livramento (£4.6m) appears to have benefitted from switching flanks to left back as he recorded his first double-figure haul of the campaign. 

Livramento created a match-high three chances and laid on an assist to earn a share of the bonus and delight the 267,000+ who transferred him in. 

GW31 most-selected assistant managers

The five most-sold players all missed Gameweek 31 through injury.

Chris Wood (£7.1m) is the closest to a return as he recovers from a hip injury sustained on international duty.

GW30 most-sold players