Over 250,000 Fantasy Premier League (FPL) managers activated their Wildcard chip last week, with around 6.5 million still able to use it for Gameweek 13.
They have until the Gameweek 19 deadline to use Wildcard number one. These unlimited free transfers are a chance to fix all mistakes and start planning for the future.
In this article, we’ll assess the pros and cons of a Gameweek 13 Wildcard and 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 13 WILDCARD: THE PROS
A FEARLESS TIME TO SELL HAALAND
Manchester City’s shock 4-0 loss to Tottenham Hotspur continued the bad form of both themselves and Erling Haaland (£15.1m). It’s now five consecutive defeats in all competitions, as the Norwegian’s 21 points between Gameweeks 6 and 12 have been bettered by 83 players.
Of course, underlying stats will always bring a worry that he’s on the verge of a huge haul. The same period of two goals has seen him record 36 shots, 11 big chances and 6.11 expected goals (xG). It was enough to convince several high-profile FPL managers not to sell, with some captaining him.
But for those anxious about ditching Haaland, the tough trip to Liverpool briefly lessens that.
JUMP ONTO BRIGHTON, CHELSEA, ARSENAL
The money gained can then help stock up on teams with strong upcoming fixtures like Brighton and Hove Albion, Chelsea and Arsenal. All three won on Saturday.
Cole Palmer‘s (£10.9m) owners were frustrated that his tap-in was blocked on the line by team-mate Noni Madueke (£6.4m), making it four blanks from five. Yet last season’s top FPL scorer remains up in second this time.
These sides’ other main attackers – Bukayo Saka (£10.2m), Nicolas Jackson (£7.9m) and Joao Pedro (£5.6m) – all racked up double-digit tallies. Meanwhile, the Gunners picked up their first clean sheet since Gameweek 4 but the others were denied in stoppage time.
SQUAD DEPTH
It’s the calm before the storm. This chaotic festive period sees seven FPL deadlines take place over 30 days, with tightly-packed domestic Gameweeks worsened by some further EFL Cup and European encounters.
We’ll be looking at club-by-club recovery times in an article, as squad rotation is expected to increase for most teams. Therefore, having a full playing bench is important, for the inevitable unannounced rests.
GAMEWEEK 13 WILDCARD: THE CONS
YOU MAY NOT NEED IT
Some managers may be in the enviable position of having both a strong squad and an unused Wildcard.
Those with a combination of Palmer, Saka, Mohamed Salah (£13.1m) and Alexander Isak (£8.5m) might not need it. Especially if there’s also someone from Arsenal’s defence and at least one of Joao Pedro and Matheus Cunha (£6.9m).
SOME SALES ARE BETTER FOR GAMEWEEK 14
Another reason to wait is there are a few well-owned assets that have a final good-looking fixture before prospects suddenly become a lot tougher.
Bryan Mbeumo (£7.9m), Chris Wood (£6.6m) and Bruno Fernandes (£8.5m) will be at home to Leicester City, Ipswich Town and Everton in Gameweek 13, meaning a more useful time to Wildcard could instead be Gameweek 14.
GAMEWEEK 13 WILDCARD TEAM IDEAS
DRAFT 1: CHEAP FORWARDS
All three strikers are priced at a level even below Isak and Jackson, so this would be a firm long-term commitment to being Haaland-less. However, fixtures rotate quite nicely for cheap forwards, as Wood and Raul Jimenez (£5.7m) become options again from Gameweek 19.
With lots of cash, it allows three premium midfielders, Trent Alexander-Arnold (£6.9m) and an Arsenal defensive double-up.
Furthermore, Brennan Johnson (£6.7m) is a fine fourth midfielder. Saturday’s rare benching still ended with a goal and last season’s second-biggest xG underachiever (-5.61) is now fourth for penalty area shots (35).
So, why Evanilson (£6.0m)? This number nine has attractive matches coming up, leading the line for a Bournemouth side that’s had the third-most attempts (186). He scored in Gameweeks 9, 10 and 11, before missing two big chances in Gameweek 12.
DRAFT 2: ‘THREEMIUM’ WITH HAALAND
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