Is Haaland essential in FPL?

There isn’t long to go until the new season of Fantasy Premier League begins. Whilst many are preparing themselves for another long season some could still be debating if Haaland is essential in FPL for the campaign ahead.

Being essential in FPL means investing in a player without second thought and keeping them. Only few players have been considered essential over the last several seasons which highlights how significant the players can be.

Manchester City fixtures

As we can see, Manchester City rank second on the fixture ticker for the first six matches – They face Burnley, Newcastle, Sheffield United, Fulham, West Ham, and Nottingham Forest. The early fixtures suggest that investing in the Manchester City frontline beneficial.

Manchester City attack

Manchester City blitzed their way to another league Premier League title last season. Their relentless form meant, yet again, that they were one of the top teams to invest in. One of the biggest reasons they added another trophy to their cabinet and completed the treble was their frontline. In fact, last season when compared to every other team in the division they ranked:

First for successful passes in the opponents half (11376).
First for passes in the final third (5237).
First for goals scored (94).
First for goals scored in the box (79).
First for big chances total (132).
Second for shots on target (214).

Not only are the starting fixtures some of the best in the league for Manchester City, but they also maintained some of the best attacking data last season as well. This further increases the appeal of the offensive line.

Erling Haaland

Erling Haaland (£14m) became the most expensive player in the game this season. This was largely due to his whirlwind first campaign with Manchester City. Not only did he rack up 36 goals and eight assists he also became the highest scoring player in FPL with 272 points.

In addition, when compared to every other attacker in the league Haaland ranked:

First for goals (36).
First for goals scored inside the box (35).
First for shots in the box (115).
First for big chances total (59).
Joint first for shots on target (60).

Other factors

Captaincy – Captaincy is one of the most important factors to playing the game and Haaland stands out as the main option for the start of the season and mostly throughout.

Ownership – Ownership and effective ownership is also very important in FPL. The Norwegian currently sits as the highest owned player in the game (86.4%). This also indicates that his effective ownership will also be very high meaning if he does well and you don’t own him, it could have a hugely negative effect on rank and mini-league position.

Haaland is literally Manchester City’ standout option. Not only does he take penalties but his teammates around him are either unconvincing in terms of output or expected minutes.

Manchester City also have one of the best assisters in world football – Kevin De Bruyne produced 16 last season in the league and will be serving Haaland with the same quality for the campaign ahead.

Is Haaland essential in FPL?

Yes. Manchester City have sustained the best attacking stats in the league for some time and they rank amongst the best teams for fixture difficulty. Investing in the Manchester City attack is key and there is no better option than Haaland.

Haaland was relentless in his first campaign last season, topped the FPL points chart, broke scoring records, and will go into the new season with the highest ownership and effective ownership in the game. Going without Haaland in FPL could be hugely damaging to your season so be sure to include him.