Erling Haaland Man City 2023-24Getty Images

Revealed: Man City goal-machine Erling Haaland was captained by three Burnley players on opening weekend of Fantasy Premier League before scoring twice against them in comfortable win at Turf Moor

  • Three Clarets name Haaland skipper
  • No suggestion of impropriety
  • Raises questions about players' fantasy teams

WHAT HAPPENED? FPL Focal discovered that Burnley's Josh Brownhill, Jack Cork, and Arijanet Muric had all selected Haaland in their teams despite being a direct opponent. The trio also chose him as their captain which meant any points he earned at Turf Moor would be doubled.

THE BIGGER PICTURE: Of the three players who enjoyed Haaland's 26-point haul, Cork and Muric were unused substitutes while Brownhill's brief appearance came after the Norwegian goal machine was already resting up on the bench. But the issue raises questions about current players participating in the game. The most famous incident took place in 2021 when Jack Grealish's absence from the Aston Villa line-up became public when a number of his team-mates dropped him from their fantasy teams. This was to the dismay of then Villa boss Dean Smith who had hoped to keep that information from opponents Leicester.

IN TWO PHOTOS:

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Josh Brownhill 2023-24GettyErling Haaland Man City BurnleyGetty

WHAT NEXT FOR BURNLEY? There will be no such worries this week as Burnley have an early weekend off after their games against fellow promoted Luton Town was postponed.

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