More than 1.3million Fantasy Premier League managers are celebrating their decision to captain Erling Haaland (£14.0m) in the opening Gameweek of the 2025/26 campaign.
The Norwegian scored two goals in Manchester City's 4-0 win away to Wolverhampton Wanderers, earning the maximum three bonus for a 26-point captaincy haul.
He outscored the more popular armband pick, Mohamed Salah (£14.5m), who produced a 16-point captaincy return in Liverpool's 4-2 win over AFC Bournemouth on Friday.
The 900,000+ managers who backed Cole Palmer (£10.5m) with the armband were left disappointed after the Chelsea man failed to produce an attacking return against Crystal Palace.
GW1 most-captained players
| Player | Captained by | Pts |
|---|---|---|
| Salah | 3,635,092 | 8 |
| Haaland | 1,373,607 | 13 |
| Palmer | 904,893 | 3 |
Haaland has now produced more points against Wolves than any other Premier League opponent he's faced. In six appearances he's racked up 61 points thanks to 10 goals and nine bonus.
His two goals on Saturday are the first time that he's scored twice in a match since Gameweek 20 last season, at home to West Ham United. Indeed, Haaland's owners will feel encouraged by his performance with his six shots inside the box his best tally since Man City's trip to Leicester City in Gameweek 19.
Meanwhile, Salah extended his fine opening weekend record.
Remarkably, he’s never blanked in Gameweek 1, with 107 points across nine appearances.
Salah's Gameweek 1 record
| Season | Fixture | Pts |
|---|---|---|
| 2025/26 | BOU (H) | 8 |
| 2024/25 | IPS (A) | 14 |
| 2023/24 | CHE (A) | 5 |
| 2022/23 | FUL (A) | 12 |
| 2021/22 | NOR (A) | 17 |
| 2020/21 | LEE (H) | 20 |
| 2019/20 | NOR (H) | 12 |
| 2018/19 | WHU (H) | 8 |
| 2017/18 | WAT (A) | 11 |
There will have been huge relief among Salah’s owners when he finally found the net against Bournemouth, having previously witnessed fellow Liverpool attackers Hugo Ekitike (£8.5m), Cody Gakpo (£7.5m) and Federico Chiesa (£6.5m) all score.
Ekitike has enjoyed a flying start to his Liverpool career. He scored against Crystal Palace in the Community Shield and continued that fine form here, with a goal and an assist, amassing 11 points.
His underlying stats also caught the eye.
Ekitike took four shots, three from inside the penalty area, and was presented with two big chances, all placing him first or joint-first in the match. He also created two chances for his team-mates.
Liverpool’s front four v Bournemouth
| Player | Shots | Shots in the box | Big chances | Chances created |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Salah | 3 | 3 | 0 | 2 |
| Ekitike | 4 | 3 | 2 | 2 |
| Wirtz | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 |
| Gakpo | 3 | 3 | 0 | 3 |