Gameweek 12 looks set to be a big week for Wildcard usage in Fantasy Premier League (FPL).
While it’s still early days in our on-site poll, many of those with the chip still intact are favouring the November international break as the time to use it.
In this article, we will assess the pros and cons of a Gameweek 12 Wildcard and then provide a few draft ideas.
Don’t forget that you can get your Wildcard team rated via our Rate My Team tool or the Plan FPL planner.
GAMEWEEK 12 WILDCARD: THE PROS
Fixture swings
This is, arguably, the biggest week for fixture swings of the season so far.
Fresh from big-six encounters, Chelsea, Arsenal and Brighton and Hove Albion embark on more appealing runs till at least Gameweek 18.
Having rediscovered their mojo in tricky-on-paper encounters with Arsenal and Nottingham Forest, Newcastle United also have a very decent six-match run coming up – with the exception of Gameweek 14.
There’s the continuation of good runs for Bournemouth and Wolverhampton Wanderers, too.
At the other end of the ticker, high-flying Nottingham Forest‘s schedule looks less favourable.
Tottenham Hotspur also face four teams above them in the table in the next six Gameweeks.
Manchester City‘s upcoming schedule is a mixed bag, too, from league leaders Liverpool and surprise package Nottingham Forest to an as-yet-unknown quantity in Ruben Amorim’s new-look Manchester United.
Time to offload the players, or at least reduce the representation, from these clubs?
Get ready for Christmas…
This is the calm before the storm. Seven FPL deadlines will come in the space of a month, with Gameweek 13-19 tightly packed together.
There are also EFL Cup ties and more UEFA club competition fixtures to squeeze into the calendar.
Some clubs are used to fixture congestion, of course. But take Chelsea as an example: will their ‘B team’ players get the odd Premier League start in December when the midweek fixtures are domestic rather than European?
Over this international break, we’ll be taking a look at recovery times over the festive period. We’ll also be looking back at what the managers did in previous busy months.
But in a nutshell, rotation will increase for most teams. While cameos and one-pointers are perhaps just as probably as/more likely than no-shows, it’ll pay to have a playing bench in FPL.
It’s not just rotation but the drop-off in press conferences over Christmas. We may not get a full complement before the Gameweek 14 deadline. There may not be any in Gameweek 19. Most managers will deliver their Gameweek 18 press conferences at least three days before their fixtures actually take place.
Plenty of scope for a surprise/late injury, then – so having at least two playing substitutes on your bench will be important.
Increase team value
Ideally, of course, the Wildcard would have been activated on Saturday to take advantage of those early price rises. But there is still another 11 nights’ worth of changes to come before the deadline, so plenty of time to boost the all-important team value.
It’s not just increasing team value for team value’s sake, however. It’s also about getting players you want for the longer term who you soon may not be able to afford. The likes of Mohamed Salah (£12.9m) and Yoane Wissa (£6.1m) have already risen once since Saturday and will likely rise again before the Gameweek 12 deadline.
GET MO
Speaking of Liverpool’s free-scoring Egyptian, he’s already been bought by almost 250,000 managers since Saturday afternoon.
He’s not only facing Southampton next but he’s also getting a rare rest during this international break, with Egypt already qualified for the Africa Cup of Nations.
Had enough of seeing him haul? A Wildcard is a chance to belatedly buy him – through the redistribution of Erling Haaland (£15.2m) funds or otherwise.
INTERNATIONAL BREAK INJURIES
A typical international break is silly season when it comes to FPL flags. This one threatens to be even sillier: eight players withdrew from the England squad on Monday, for instance.
While many of these injury ‘doubts’ will rise, Lazarus-like, to feature in Gameweek 12, there will be some exceptions. Trent Alexander-Arnold (£7.0m) isn’t seriously hurt but could miss the trip to Southampton, for example. Given that it’s Manchester City and Newcastle United after that, owners may feel that it’s time to part ways.
We’ll no doubt see other oranger, redder flags added the closer we get to the deadline.
A Wildcard at least allows those concerns to be dealt with in a pain-free, hit-free manner.
GAMEWEEK 12 WILDCARD: THE CONS (OR CONS-IDERATIONS)
YOU MAY NOT NEED IT!
When discussing the Wildcard, plenty of pundits – ourselves included – are keen to discuss optimal windows, fixture swings etc.
But what about simply Wildcarding when your team actually needs it?
We’ve seen a few comments on site this week asking if their perfectly presentable squads, already containing the likes of Salah and Cole Palmer (£10.9m), need to be overhauled.
Don’t get carried away on the Gameweek 12 Wildcard wind without first questioning whether it’s the right decision for your team.
TOO SOON FOR UNITED…?
Ruben Amorim will take charge of Manchester United for the first time in Gameweek 12. Consequently, we’re not quite sure how the Red Devils will set up tactically. Will it be a 3-4-3 a la Sporting? How will Bruno Fernandes (£8.4m) fit into that system? Or is there to be a completely different approach? And will this simply be the latest in a string of false dawns?
We could do with a week or two of eye tests before committing to United players on a Wildcard, although by that point the excellent fixtures take a temporary pause.
… AND TOO SOON FOR ARSENAL?
On closer inspection, are Arsenal’s short-term fixtures that good?
Nottingham Forest and Fulham are both among the four best defences for expected goals conceded (xGC) in 2024/25.
Manchester United, as discussed above, could be buoyed by the new manager bounce.
The Gunners themselves are not in great shape at present, winless in four and without a clean sheet in seven.
It may be that Martin Odegaard‘s (£8.2m) return is the catalyst for an upswing in team form. Forest and Fulham may fall away back to the mid-table mean.
But there is a contrary argument for holding those Gunners double-ups/triple-ups until, say, Gameweek 16, if the urge to Wildcard is prompted by the need to go big on Mikel Arteta’s troops.
COULD CITY RISE AGAIN?
It is, coincidentally, a year to the day that City embarked on a four-match winless run in the Premier League. Defeat to Aston Villa in Gameweek 15 left them six points behind the league leaders. Pep Guardiola spoke to the media to say it didn’t constitute “a crisis”. Sound familiar?
A 23-match unbeaten run then followed as City swept to the title. It’ll be harder to do that this year, without Rodri (£6.3m). But write off the reigning champions at your peril.
Their squad should be fitter and fatter after the international break. Withdrawals for multiple City internationals should give the walking wounded a fortnight to rest up.
A con-sideration rather than a con, then, as Wildcarding City players out without an escape plan may be naive.
GAMEWEEK 12 WILDCARD TEAM IDEAS
These drafts have been put together using the author’s team value of £101.5m.
