FPL managers to get extra Free Hit chip from Gameweek 20: Initial reaction

Fantasy Premier League (FPL) have revealed that managers will be given an extra Free Hit (FH) chip from Gameweek 20 onwards. 

The announcement is a reaction to a chaotic last few weeks in which Covid-19 has severely disrupted the football programme, with 10 Premier League fixtures falling prey to the pandemic.

A hastily arranged Double Gameweek 22 (and possibly a Double Gameweek 21, as well) is expected, following Tuesday’s news about FA Cup replays being shelved to accommodate the fixture backlog.

Managers who have not played their Free Hit ahead of Gameweek 20 will not lose their first chip and instead have two available to them.

Free Hits are unable to use in consecutive Gameweeks, however: after the chip is activated, your squad will return to its previous state for the following Gameweek.

READ MORE: Our beginner’s guide to chips and Blank/Double Gameweeks

WHEN TO USE THE EXTRA FREE HIT CHIP?

Thoughts will immediately turn to the much-touted Double Gameweek 22 which, lest we forget, hasn’t actually been confirmed yet.

With 13 Premier League fixtures outstanding (another three have been called off due to a clash with the FIFA Club World Cup or inclement weather), however, the abandonment of the FA Cup replays is effectively as good as confirmation that it will happen.

While we haven’t yet seen the additional fixtures for Double Gameweek 22, playing a Free Hit then will also mean that the decision on whether or not to sell Mohamed Salah (£13.1m) may be made easier. FPL’s leading points-scorer will miss (at least) Gameweeks 22 and 23 while he is representing Egypt at the Africa Cup of Nations, so deploying a Free Hit in the former would mean that he need only be benched in one Gameweek before his return from Cameroon. That, of course, is under the assumption that he doesn’t miss more domestic action at a pre-tournament training camp.

Blank Gameweek 30 will also likely be a popular target for one of the Free Hit chips: there is a clash with the FA Cup quarter-finals that weekend, with no possible chance of postponed fixtures being moved to the following Gameweek as an international break then takes place.

THE FFSCOUT COMMUNITY’S INITIAL REACTION

“Guessing 90% of active managers will be on FH in GW22 now and saving the other for later in the season.” – Revival

“I’ve been on a Free Hit 21/Wildcard (WC) 22 plan for a while.

“This just seals it. FH and Bench Boost (BB) for the major Double Gameweeks (DGWs) from cups, Triple Captain (TC) in the minor DGWs for the likes of Liverpool, City, Son and Chelsea wing-backs.” – Ze_Austin

“Makes sense to go for GW22 if that’s the big DGW. Although sure more thought is needed… could an early WC and BB in 22 be the way to go and use two FHs for the doubles later in the season?” – Pat Bonner

“Clearly good to have extra FH but wondering now how best to use first WC in GW20: whether to set the team up for 22 with an eye on future fixtures (if it’s a double) and have two FHs to use later in the season or set up for longer period post-22 and use FH in 22.” – dunas_dog

“It’s just making the game easier for people who don’t plan. That’s two DGWs handed to everyone on a plate.” – Wild Rover

“Not sure what to feel about this news. I have been badly burned with player no-shows over recent weeks and have been carefully prepping my squad to maximise potential DGWs. All that planning seems a waste now with a 2nd free hit being announced and I feel disadvantaged. Rules should not change mid-season” – MrBadger

“I think it merits discussion: the case for the extra FH actually *helping* those managers who have not already used theirs. The argument hinges on three points:

– Many of the high-scoring players from BGW18 were highly owned anyway. I would argue that there was not much advantage from playing it creatively, it only made sense to play it to make up the numbers, meaning using a hit to put out a template-y team that some managers were lucky enough to be able to field with a FT or a -4. So a lot of managers have played a FH to break even.

– We are almost certain to have more than one DGW between now and the end of the season, especially if more games get postponed. We may get triple GWs. There will also likely be Blank Gameweeks which could hurt more than BGW18. Arsenal, Liverpool and City played in the BGW, what if we had a BGW with not many owned players?

– Extra FHs mean that BGWs and DGWs are less likely to have to be factored into second-half wildcards. This means that those who have not played their FH will be better able to wildcard into teams which will see them through the standard Gameweeks in between blanks and doubles.

Following on from this, then, those with two FHs left have, potentially, more points to play for than those who have already played FH, as long as the possible gains from the future outweigh the average gain from playing FH in GW18 (and I think they do).” – Make Arrows Green Again

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