The Double Gameweeks are upon us with the Premier League announcing that nine out of ten postponed fixtures have now been re-arranged. We can now start to plan in earnest, although the re-scheduling of Crystal Palace vs Everton, which was postponed due to their involvement in the FA Cup semi-final over Gameweek 35, could yet throw us a late curveball. Here’s my assessment of how we can best take advantage of the revised fixture list with minimal hits.

The three main weeks that require our attention to maximise the number of players we field are double Gameweek 34, the blanks in Gameweek 35, and double Gameweek 37. Different teams are affected in different ways by these Gameweeks and fall into five scheduling categories.

Doubles and Blanks

Double Gameweek 34, Game in Week 35, Double Gameweek 37

At the moment only Liverpool have two doubles and plays in Gameweek 35, but Everton could also join this elite group if their game at Crystal Palace is rescheduled in the midweek part of Gameweek 35. With seven fixtures in the last five weeks, Liverpool are the gold standard team of this congested fixture period.

Double Gameweek 34, Game in Week 35, Single Gameweek 37

Arsenal, Manchester City, West Brom and Newcastle will be good to have going into Gameweeks 34 and 35 as they have three fixtures over these two Gameweeks. However,  we may want to sell them ahead of double Gameweek 37 when they only play once. Crystal Palace could foreseeably join this group too if their game vs Everton is in the midweek portion of Gameweek 35.

Double Gameweek 34, Blank in Week 35, Double Gameweek 37

West Ham, Manchester United and Watford are good to have in moderation in Gameweek 34, but if you have too many you will find yourself struggling to field 11 players in Gameweek 35. A goalkeeper and three outfielders from this lot seems optimal for maximising players from both double Gameweeks whilst still being able to hide them on your bench in Gameweek 35.

Single Gameweek 34, Game in Week 35, Double Gameweek 37

Chelsea and Sunderland can be avoided in an early wildcard and then bought from Gameweek 35 onwards to replace players without any more double Gameweeks.

Single Gameweek 34, Blank in Week 35, Double Gameweek 37

Norwich only have one game in Gameweek 34 and then a blank in Gameweek 35 so are best avoided until Gameweek 36 at the earliest, but even then they play away at Arsenal so perhaps Norwich punts are best avoided until Gameweek 37 itself.

The Straight and Narrow Teams

These seven teams have no double Gameweeks but no blanks either. You may want to hold a couple of assets from these teams purely as good single Gameweek options, especially if you have already used your Wildcard early.

Crystal Palace and Everton

Crystal Palace vs Everton is a game which has yet to be scheduled as there are no obvious places to put it due to Everton’s fixture congestion. This fixture could realistically fall anywhere between Gameweek 33 and the end of Gameweek 37. If it goes in one of Gameweeks 33, 35 or 36 the teams either have to play Saturday-Monday or the fixture will clash with European TV scheduling such as a Champions League or Europa League quarter or semi final. Alternatively it goes in Gameweek 34 or 37 and like Middlesbrough in 2006, Everton could have a triple Gameweek playing Saturday-Monday-Wednesday. Expect plenty of rotation if this should be the case.

The Strategies

With two main double Gameweeks this year, having bench boost and triple captaincy chips as well as a second Wildcard intact will be crucial to success. Here are the various strategies for getting the most out of transfers, chips and Wildcards over this busy period. I’ve also looked at options for those who have already used their second wildcard.

Bench Boost Gameweek 34, Triple Captain Gameweek 37

The most conventional way to play out the last six weeks and maximising our player count is to Wildcard in Gameweek 33 with the following*:

3x Liverpool players (DGW34, GW35, DGW37)

4-6x** West Ham/Man United/Watford players (DGW34, Blank35, DGW37)

4-6x Arsenal/Man City/WBA/Newcastle players (DGW34, SGW35, SGW37)

*Everton and Palace can be mixed into these three groups when we know how their final fixture falls.

** This needs to include a goalkeeper so that four can be benched in Gameweek 35.

This gives us 15 players to Bench Boost in Gameweek 34 and two free transfers going into Gameweek 35. In Gameweek 35 if we reduce our blank count down to four players (assuming one is a goalkeeper) by buying Chelsea or Sunderland assets we can field 11 players while maximising our DGW37 player count. If we use both free transfers we should now have nine Double Gameweek players ready for Gameweek 37.

Then in Gameweeks 36 and 37 we can use our next two free transfers to buy in two more Double Gameweek 37 players and field a full XI playing twice. In this week we will also have choice from the likes of Diego Costa, Dimitri Payet, Romelu Lukaku and Roberto Firmino for our Triple Captaincy chip.

A variation of this is to Wildcard in Gameweek 32 and have a floating free transfer for use in Gameweek 33 or 34, perhaps to hold onto Mahrez for his trip to Sunderland in Gameweek 33 before selling him for a DGW34 player.

Players without Wildcards may like to use this general strategy but holding some Leicester and Tottenham assets through Gameweeks 34 and 35, using them as strong SGW players in a bench boost and taking advantage of their favourable fixtures in Gameweek 35.

Triple Captain Gameweek 34, Bench Boost Gameweek 37

This strategy opens up the door to triple-captaining heavy-hitting Arsenal or Man City players such as Sanchez, Ozil, or Aguero or even a Manchester United player while they have two easy home games against Aston Villa and Crystal Palace. Two clean sheets and a goal for Smalling would be in the range of 60-72 points for a triple captaincy. It also allows us to hold key Leicester, Tottenham and Southampton players through to their favourable fixtures in Gameweek 35.

This strategy works best if one already has six double Gameweek 34 players and two free transfers currently.

With two free transfers and three more before Gameweek 34, we can build our squad up to 11 double Gameweek players. For these 11 there is more flexibility as we are not bound to three Liverpool players like we are in the other strategy and just need the following*:

6+ Liverpool/Arsenal/Man City/West Brom/Newcastle players (DGW34, SGW35)

Up to 5 West Ham/Man United/Watford players (DGW34, Blank35)

4 players with SGW34, SGW35

*Everton and Palace can be mixed into these three groups when we know how their final fixture falls.

Then with our free transfer in Gameweek 35 we can sell a blank player for a one-week punt of our choice. In Gameweek 36 we can then Wildcard and then bring in 15 double Gameweek 37 players and Bench Boost appropriately.

The ramifications of Crystal Palace vs Everton

As alluded to earlier, this fixture will force us to change our plans in some way. A double Gameweek 33, really pushes the Wildcard Gameweek 33 strategy and makes fitting in three Everton players a priority from the get-go. A triple Gameweek 34 would make triple-captaining Lukaku a real possibility; then, the Bench Boost would be delayed until Gameweek 37. A match for Everton  in Gameweek 35 also loosens the need for three Liverpool players, and makes passage for a late Wildcard easier. A double Gameweek 36 makes a Wildcard in Gameweek 36 even more enticing, while a triple Gameweek 37 makes an early bench boost with triple captaining Lukaku in a triple Gameweek 37 the ideal.

Hopefully this fixture is arranged at some point over the international break before Gameweek 32.

Caveats

For all this planning, both scenarios above are “best case” and don’t legislate for the actual appeal of the players, their fixtures, rotation worries or the fact red cards and injuries will probably reign you in from getting the idealistic double Gameweek teams. Furthermore these strategies are pushing the boundaries of double Gameweek availability, bench boosting a team with 13 Double Gameweek players; Harry Kane and Riyad Mahrez could easily do better on their day than 15 double Gameweek players. Finally, all this planning is designed to be hit-free, a well-planned four-point hit here or there can reap rewards if it gives you access to better players with better fixtures.

My Plan

As my team looks pretty well set for a late Wildcard, I am still open to either strategy. This week I will be holding my free transfer and hoping for some clarification on the Crystal Palace vs Everton fixture over the international break.

I hope this helps your decision on what to do with your current setup, and if you’re set on Wildcarding in Gameweek 33, good luck with your two-week punts in the meantime.