Cristiano Ronaldo has been the top addition since gameweek one among elite Fantasy Premier League bosses.
By analysing the movements of a group of 1,000 managers with multiple top-10,000 finishes to their names, we can find out what the best of the best do to prepare their sides.
And the return of the Portuguese to Old Trafford has caught the attention of the cream of the crop more than most.
Ronaldo reigns
Ronaldo was added by more than 860 of our top manager sample since GW1, although it is fair to say that had he been an option since the first day of the season, he would likely have started with a big following.
Nevertheless, 582 of our top sample added the 36-year-old to their squad at the first opportunity, while hundreds more followed in the weeks to come.
With the additional appeal of games against Newcastle, West Ham and Aston Villa, Ronaldo managed three goals in his first two games before a blank in GW3.
Threat scores of 90, 135 and 41 demonstrate that the Portuguese is putting decent shifts in up top, but some dispiriting team performances from Manchester United could see his elite ownership plateau.
With Liverpool, Tottenham, Manchester City and Chelsea to come in the next five gameweeks, will the best bosses stick with one of the league’s greatest ever players?
Bargains at the back
While our top managers flocked to a five-time Ballon d’Or winner, they showed that bargain buys are just as important.
That much is clear in the popularity of Southampton’s Tino Livramento, who has seen a rise in his elite ownership of 519 since GW1.
Starting at £4m, the Saints defender was owned by 47 of our top sample in the first week of the season, and thanks to regular minutes and a couple of clean sheets has seen his price rise to £4.2m.
Elsewhere, Brighton’s Shane Duffy has risen from £4m to £4.3m thanks to a goal, an assist and a couple of clean sheets.
Duffy’s elite ownership, meanwhile, has gone from five in GW1 to 234 in GW6, with 29 FPL points making him the joint-10th highest scoring defender.
And Norwich’s Brandon Williams (£4m) has seen his top ownership rise from zero in GW1 to 203 in GW6 thanks to four consecutive starts.
Take a chance on mid
Three unproven yet promising affordable midfielders also appear in our top 10 biggest increases in elite ownership since GW1 – Demarai Gray (£5.8m), Raphinha (£6.5m) and Ismaila Sarr (£6.3m).
Gray’s top ownership has risen to 272 after an impressive start saw the Englishman score three goals and notch an assist too for Everton.
Raphinha, meanwhile, has been a bright spot during an otherwise disappointing start for Leeds, with three goals in his side’s winless run.
The Brazilian was actually backed by 301 of our top managers in GW1 and that has risen to 504 in GW6 – with four fixtures approaching rated two out of five for difficulty, could this prove a masterstroke from the elite?
And last but certainly not least, Sarr has turned heads with four goals and a host of impressive Threat scores which have seen him ranked third for the metric among midfielders.
With around 350 top bosses adding him since GW1, anyone considering the Watford star might feel encouraged by the impression he has clearly made on our elite sample.
