Heading into Gameweek 4 of Fantasy Premier League (FPL), two-time Indian FPL champion Lateriser offers advice to those currently using their Wildcard chip.
Our writers are providing regular articles throughout the season, with only subscribers able to access every single one. You can still get 40% off a Premium Membership by signing up here. Once aboard, you’ve locked in the price of your Premium Membership for good, so long as you don’t cancel!
Many FPL managers are pushing their Wildcard button this week. I am saving mine for Gameweek 6 but still thought it’d be worth giving out some tips, based on how I see the season playing out.
HAVE A DEEP SQUAD
Europe is imminent and we have continental fixures for the best clubs that will cause congestion. With that in mind, rest and rotation will not come as a surprise. Scout recently looked into these upcoming schedules and I highly recommend reading it.
Arsenal not only have a Declan Rice (£6.4m) suspension problem for Gameweek 4 but Martin Odegaard (£8.4m) looks injured for a crucial period of consecutive trips to Tottenham Hotspur, Atalanta and Manchester City.
Then, between their tasty home games of Gameweeks 6 and 7 lies an important Champions League match against Paris Saint-Germain.
Liverpool are a big point of consideration but factor in their tough AC Milan visit between Gameweeks 4 and 5. It’s a potential place of rotation for Arne Slot, considering Luis Diaz (£7.6m) will return later than his international compatriots and Darwin Nunez (£7.3m) isn’t there at all because of his ban.
Therefore, starting with the more nailed Mohamed Salah (£12.7m), Trent Alexander-Arnold (£7.0m) and Andrew Robertson (£6.0m) does appear enticing, with a planned pivot to Arsenal players by Gameweek 6 or 7.
Diaz is high up my watchlist though. He looks to have gone up a gear and, based on early evidence, Slot’s system is designed to create space for him and Salah. That risk assessment between choosing him or Robertson as the third Liverpool asset comes down to you.
Keeping rest and rotation in mind, having a deep FPL squad has multiple benefits. For example, if you receive an injury, it won’t need fixing with an immediate transfer. If your eighth attacker (or fourth defender) is playable, you can easily collect a transfer or two before deciding.
The power of making transfers in batches of two, three or four allows significant structural changes should you need them. So if you start with three Liverpool players and one Arsenal, you can easily switch things around before the Gunners’ prime fixtures that start from Gameweek 6.
Building a deeper squad allows a little bit more flexibility, in my opinion. Do it if you can. Cheap enablers like Antoine Semenyo (£5.6m), Morgan Rogers (£5.1m) and Joao Pedro (£5.7m) have already raised their hand. If you’re looking beyond those, Ipswich Town have a nice run of upcoming matches too.
PICK SOME ‘GLUE’ GUYS
Because we won’t be able to have all the big hitters together, one idea is to regularly switch them around based on captaincy and fixture runs. To do that, it’ll help to have some glue guys, the kind of picks where rotation and minutes aren’t an issue and, due to the avenues they have to points, can stay in your team for a while.
They bring stability. I am talking about the likes of Alexander-Arnold, Gabriel (£6.0m), Eberechi Eze (£6.9m) and Bryan Mbeumo (£7.1m). Now you don’t always have to hold onto these picks, especially if similarly priced players like Diaz are outperforming them, but they will always buy you time and prevent panic. Remember, on your Wildcard, you are planning for 15+ Gameweeks, so having a long-term view will help.
KNOW WHAT YOU’LL NEED FROM GAMEWEEK 6
A lot of engaged FPL managers are likely opting for a Gameweek 6 Wildcard, taking advantage of positive fixture swings for Arsenal and Brentford and jumping off the negative Brighton and Hove Albion and Newcastle United ones.
Those activating now might want to practice building a Gameweek 6 draft, to get an idea of what the landscape may look like from that point. It’ll stop you from getting caught up in shorter-term views. Of course, I’m not suggesting staying away from Liverpool and Brighton’s lovely back-to-back home fixtures, just that it might be worth buying the likes of Mbeumo right now, in preparation.
BALANCE THE RISK
If you have a Rico Lewis (£4.7m) in your squad – someone who offers incredible upside – you must make sure he’s the only indulgent xMins punt. If you go for risky picks in your team, they’ll need balancing out with safe options, otherwise your team won’t be far away from a big mess and this time there won’t be a Wildcard to bail you out.
That’s all from me today. I will see you again soon but, in the meantime, me and fellow Pro Pundits Pras and Zophar did a Gameweek 4 podcast that covered such Wildcard usage.
