14 August 2023 , 14:51
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Three Burnley players captained Erling Haaland in their fantasy football teams before the Manchester City star scored twice against the Clarets, according to a leak.
The Norwegian picked up where he left off by bagging a brace as the champions cruised to a 3-0 win over the Premier League new boys on Friday night, which kicked off the new top-flight season. Haaland scored 52 times in all competitions last term and needed just four minutes to get off the mark at Turf Moor.
Josh Brownhill, Jack Cork, and Arijanet Muric were the trio who captained the City star, doubling his points as a result. New Burnley signing James Trafford, who joined from City in the summer, opted to make himself vice-captain and left Haaland out - which will have cost him in the game.
City's main man was the top scorer in Fantasy Premier League (FPL) last season after enjoying a record-breaking year in front of goal. Harry Kane and Mohamed Salah were the other leading lights for users, although the former cannot be selected this year after his move to Bayern Munich.
A website called fplbot monitors the teams and progress of how players in the Premier League are doing. After the first week of the season Kieran Trippier sits top with two Burnley players in the top ten. Seven of the top ten teams all captained Haaland.
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Premier League clubs and players have been warned about how their players use FPL. There have been concerns that leaks of information, particular around injuries, can occur. Aston Villa's players were banned from the game after several of them subbed out Jack Grealish in 2021 when there was reports of an injury.
Automated software can be used to scan for changes in the teams of players or club staff - which leads to increased speculation around information that would usually remain internal. Sky Sports has reported that several clubs had told people not to select players from their own club.
Some have gone the other way though and have backed themselves to get the job done. Leeds star Patrick Bamford, back when the Whites were in the Premier League, was open about the fact he would often skipper himself.
Haaland's opening day brace came despite a heated conversation with boss Pep Guardiola on the pitch as the pair walked off at half-time. The Norwegian shed light on the incident: "I try to focus everyday, and I say it all the time that it’s a pleasure to work with Pep. I have to keep on developing because I'm still young, don’t forget! I don’t think there’s anyone better to learn from.
"That incident was from the last action [in the first half], because I got a bit mad at Bernardo [Silva] for not playing me in so he got a bit angry with me! But no, it’s a good start for the first game."