Much of our recent content has focused on Wildcards and Double Gameweek 33, when Manchester City, Chelsea, Brighton and Hove Albion, Bournemouth, Leeds United and Burnley all play twice.
Yet some Fantasy Premier League (FPL) managers have already used their chips, leaving them in a tricky spot as they attempt to navigate a schedule that also includes Blank Gameweek 34 and a likely Double Gameweek 36.
For that group, here are some of the best players and teams to target for the remainder of the season.
- READ MORE: Gameweek 32 v 35 Wildcard: The pros + cons
- READ MORE: FPL Gameweek 32 Wildcard: 3 drafts to consider
MAXIMISE YOUR FIXTURES
Firstly, it makes sense to maximise your fixtures, so Man City and Crystal Palace, who have one extra match to play compared to everyone else, probably in Gameweek 36, are a decent starting point.
City will ‘double’ in Gameweek 33, ‘blank’ in Gameweek 34, and likely ‘double’ again in Gameweek 36.
As for Palace, they play every week.
| Gameweek | Man City | C Palace |
|---|---|---|
| 32 | che | NEW |
| 33 | bur + ARS | WHU |
| 34 | – | liv |
| 35 | eve | bou |
| 36 | BRE + CRY | EVE + mci |
| 37 | bou | bre |
| 38 | AVL | ARS |
A hit could be worth it for City players like Nico O’Reilly (£5.0m), Antoine Semenyo (£8.2m) and Erling Haaland (£14.4m), as you’ll get an extra fixture that should help compensate for it.
Deciding on your Palace assets is much trickier due to the potential UEFA Conference League semi-finals on either side of Gameweek 35, which would increase the risk of rotation/minute management in the ‘double’.
Nevertheless, at this point, Dean Henderson (£5.1m), Daniel Munoz (£5.8m), Maxence Lacroix (£5.1m) and Ismaila Sarr (£6.3m) currently look like the best options available.
SLOW AND STEADY
You could also pinpoint teams with decent overall fixtures who play every Gameweek, i.e., no ‘blanks’, such as Arsenal, Newcastle United and Nottingham Forest.
This approach would help you navigate Gameweek 34 without any chips, when six teams will ‘blank’.
With so much on the line for Arsenal and Forest, be it the title race or relegation battle, motivation won’t be an issue for any of their players.
The lack of a Double Gameweek 33 isn’t ideal, but perhaps you’d feel comfortable with your Arsenal defender taking on a ‘doubler’, even at Man City, given that Mikel Arteta’s troops have the most clean sheets (15) and fewest goals conceded (22) in 2025/26.
Neco Williams (£4.7m) and Morgan Gibbs-White (£7.4m) carry serious points potential at home to Burnley, too, and it wouldn’t be a huge surprise if they outscored some of the more popular ‘doublers’ at Bournemouth, Brighton and Leeds. That could be another battle worth taking on if you are chip-less.
As for Newcastle, they are out of all cup competitions, both at home and in Europe. Therefore, with some favourable fixtures ahead, they should be solid ‘buys’, including Anthony Gordon (£7.4m), who has scored three goals in as many Gameweeks. On penalties and potentially playing ‘out-of-position’, he presents a compelling option.
The trip to Arsenal is the Magpies’ only meeting with a top-eight club.
GAMEWEEK 32-38 FIXTURE OVERVIEW
Sorted by difficulty, we can see an overview of the fixtures for Gameweeks 32-38, with the match between Man City and Palace yet to be rescheduled but likely dropping in Gameweek 36.
Leeds are top, making them and Man City the two teams that should perhaps be prioritised over the other ‘doublers’ in Gameweek 33.
Behind them are Arsenal and Forest, who look ripe for investment if you have no chips remaining.
Furthermore, Newcastle move up to fourth on the ticker in Gameweeks 35-38, boosting the appeal of Gordon and co for the final phase.
FINAL THOUGHTS
With no chips left, your strategy for the remainder of the 2025/26 season, and particularly Double Gameweek 33, will largely depend on the number of free transfers you have banked.
If they are limited, you should adopt a more balanced approach with a seven-Gameweek outlook, rather than focusing on individual rounds in isolation.
Accept that you probably won’t always have a team full of ‘doublers’, but also try to defend against the key players in each Gameweek, where possible.
Given the fixtures after Double Gameweek 33, you could perhaps steer clear of players from Bournemouth and Brighton, instead focusing on Man City and Leeds picks.
This is because City have eight matches left, including two ‘doubles’, while Leeds have some very decent fixtures in Gameweeks 35-38.
Bournemouth, meanwhile, are 16th on our Season Ticker in Gameweeks 35-38. As for Brighton, their upcoming ‘double’ could be challenging (tot + CHE), and it’s followed by potentially tricky away trips to Newcastle and Leeds, as well as a final-day encounter against Manchester United.
Players such as Gabriel and Bruno Fernandes (£10.3m) should stay in your squad.
But overlooked players could also provide opportunities for a rank boost, and in some instances, it might even prove an advantage. While the majority of Wildcard teams will cherry-pick the best ‘doublers’, they may ignore high-upside, single Gameweek options that could outperform them, and that could be your ‘edge’ during the run-in.
