FPL Gameweek 9 Deadline Report: Huge Haaland Captaincy

Fantasy Football Fix AI 25 Oct. 2024

Fantasy Premier League Gameweek 9 is here, and the FPL community have been buzzing with discussions about whether to play the Triple Captain chip on Haaland as Man City take on Southampton. We’ll dive into how many managers took the plunge and explore other key stats from this gameweek.

Smash that ‘like’ if you played your Triple Captain chip on Haaland! 👊 pic.twitter.com/F8wpdJbuFF
— Fantasy Football Fix (@FantasyFootyFix) October 25, 2024

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Captaincy

The captaincy choices for Gameweek 9 reveal some interesting trends across different rank tiers:

Player	Top 1M	Top 100k	Top 10k	Overall
Haaland	75.8%	75.8%	75.3%	62.7%
Salah	9.4%	8.1%	6.7%	8.2%
Palmer	6.5%	6.1%	6.7%	6.9%
Mbeumo	2.8%	4.1%	5.7%	1.7%
Watkins	2.1%	2.0%	2.0%	3.9%

Erling Haaland remains the overwhelming captaincy favourite across all rank tiers, with Manchester City facing Southampton at home. The Norwegian striker's popularity is particularly pronounced among top managers, with over 75% of the top 100k and top 10k entrusting him with the armband. This high captaincy rate, combined with his hefty price tag, makes Haaland a crucial player for the gameweek.

Mohamed Salah is the second most popular captain choice, though his selection rate decreases as we move up the ranks. This could be due to Liverpool's challenging fixture against Arsenal, with top managers perhaps opting for alternatives with more favourable matchups.

Chelsea's Cole Palmer emerges as an intriguing captaincy choice, particularly among the top 10k managers. His selection rate of 6.7% in this tier, higher than in the top 100k, suggests that some top managers are backing him for a big haul against Newcastle.

Bryan Mbeumo's captaincy numbers show a clear trend, with his popularity increasing significantly among higher-ranked managers. This indicates that top managers are more willing to take a punt on the Brentford midfielder for their home fixture against Ipswich.

Ollie Watkins maintains a consistent captaincy rate across the top tiers, but interestingly, he's more popular among the overall player base. This could be due to Aston Villa's attractive home fixture against Bournemouth, which may have caught the eye of more casual managers.

Effective Ownership

Effective Ownership (EO) provides crucial insights into player popularity and potential impact:

Player	Top 1M	Top 100k	Top 10k	Overall
Haaland	162.0%	161.2%	158.9%	137.7%
Palmer	74.4%	78.3%	83.8%	60.1%
Mbeumo	62.0%	68.6%	74.6%	35.2%
Salah	68.1%	68.4%	66.9%	46.9%
Watkins	37.2%	37.1%	38.2%	33.1%
Saka	15.7%	16.6%	18.8%	20.9%
Foden	11.2%	14.5%	18.7%	N/A
Son	7.6%	7.4%	8.1%	6.8%

Erling Haaland's EO exceeds 150% across all top tiers, highlighting his status as an essential player. His slightly lower EO among the top 10k (158.9%) compared to the top 1M (162.0%) might indicate that some top managers are exploring alternative strategies.

Cole Palmer's EO shows a clear upward trend as we move up the ranks, peaking at 83.8% in the top 10k. This suggests that top managers view him as a key asset for Chelsea's clash with Newcastle.

Bryan Mbeumo's EO follows a similar pattern to Palmer's, with a significant jump from 35.2% overall to 74.6% in the top 10k. This underlines his popularity among elite managers for Brentford's home game against Ipswich.

Mohamed Salah maintains a relatively consistent EO across the top tiers, despite Liverpool's tough fixture against Arsenal. This indicates that managers are reluctant to part with the Egyptian, even in challenging matchups.

Ollie Watkins' EO remains steady across different rank tiers, suggesting a consensus on his value for Aston Villa's home game against Bournemouth.

Bukayo Saka's EO is interestingly higher in the overall player base than among top managers. This could be due to injury concerns, with top managers perhaps more likely to have transferred him out.

Phil Foden's EO increases significantly among higher-ranked managers, indicating that they value his potential in Manchester City's home game against Southampton more than the average manager.

Son Heung-min's relatively low EO across all tiers might be due to injury concerns, with Tottenham facing Crystal Palace.

Chip Usage

The use of chips in Gameweek 9 varies across different rank tiers:

Chip	Top 1M	Top 100k	Top 10k	Overall
Triple Captain	4.9%	4.6%	4.4%	3.2%
Bench Boost	0.6%	0.8%	0.7%	0.5%
Free Hit	1.3%	1.6%	1.9%	0.5%
Wildcard	2.2%	2.6%	2.0%	1.3%

The Triple Captain chip is the most popular across all tiers, with usage rates highest among the top 1M managers at 4.9%. This suggests that many managers see this gameweek as an opportunity for a big haul, likely targeting Erling Haaland against Southampton.

Free Hit usage increases as we move up the ranks, peaking at 1.9% among the top 10k. This indicates that some top managers are taking advantage of favourable fixtures or navigating tricky team selection issues.

Wildcard usage is highest among the top 100k at 2.6%, possibly indicating that these managers are making significant team overhauls to climb the ranks.

Bench Boost sees minimal usage across all tiers, suggesting that managers don't view this gameweek as ideal for maximizing their bench players' potential.

Transfer Stats and Finances

Transfer activity and team value provide insights into managers' strategies:

Stat	Top 1M	Top 100k	Top 10k	Overall
Avg. Transfers	1.1	1.1	1.1	0.8
Avg. Points Hit	0.6	0.5	0.6	0.9
Avg. Team Value	£100.6m	£100.8m	£100.9m	£99.6m
Avg. Bank	£0.9m	£1.0m	£1.0m	£0.9m

Transfer activity is consistent across the top tiers, with an average of 1.1 transfers made. This suggests a balanced approach, with managers making calculated changes without overhauling their teams.

Interestingly, the overall player base has taken more hits on average (0.9 points) compared to top managers (0.5-0.6 points). This could indicate that top managers are more strategic in their transfers, avoiding unnecessary point deductions.

Team value shows a clear correlation with rank, increasing from £99.6m overall to £100.9m for the top 10k. This highlights the importance of value accumulation in achieving a high rank.

The amount of money in the bank is relatively consistent across tiers, suggesting that managers are generally fully investing in their squads rather than holding significant funds in reserve.

In conclusion, Gameweek 9 sees top managers heavily backing Erling Haaland for captaincy, with other options like Cole Palmer and Bryan Mbeumo gaining traction among the elite. The effective ownership data reveals the increasing importance of certain assets as we move up the ranks, while chip usage remains relatively low across the board. Transfer activity is measured, with top managers generally avoiding heavy hits, and team value continues to play a crucial role in overall performance. As the season progresses, these trends will be crucial to monitor for FPL success.