Managers in Fantasy Premier League have the opportunity to give their points total a big boost by using their chips.
FPL bosses have been accustomed to having a Wildcard to use in each half of a season for some time.
But this season, for the first time ever in Fantasy, you have TWO Bench Boost, Triple Captain and Free Hit chips to play. Similarly to the Wildcard, you have one for each half of the campaign.
The first batch of chips must ALL be used before the Gameweek 19 deadline on Tuesday 30 December at 18:00 GMT. Any unused chips will be lost, as the chips are reset for the second half of the season.
Only ONE chip can be played in each Gameweek.
What does each chip do and when is the best time to play them?
Free Hit
Make unlimited free transfers for a Gameweek. At the next deadline, your squad is returned to how it was before those unlimited moves were made. Because your team has to return to its previous state following a Free Hit, you cannot play this chip in both Gameweek 19 and Gameweek 20.
The Free Hit chip is played when confirming your transfers. It can’t be cancelled after being confirmed. It’s also worth noting that when playing your Free Hit chip, you will KEEP your banked transfers.
The first Free Hit chip can be used to help you target a Gameweek where the weaker teams in the league play away from home.
For example, playing the chip in Gameweek 13 would allow you to bring in players from Manchester City, Brentford and Aston Villa for their home fixtures against Leeds United, Burnley and Wolverhampton Wanderers respectively. In that Gameweek, Liverpool also play West Ham United, another team struggling this season.
The likes of Phil Foden (£8.0m), Morgan Rogers (£6.8m), Igor Thiago (£6.3m) and Virgil van Dijk (£5.9m) could form the backbone of your line-up. They could replace Chelsea and Arsenal players, who meet in a tough head-to-head at Stamford Bridge.
Another option is Free-Hitting in Gameweek 15. In that week, Liverpool visit Leeds while fellow promoted teams Burnley and Sunderland come up against Newcastle and Man City. A Free Hit would allow triple-ups on all three Champions League clubs.
Finally, Gameweek 16 also offers the option of tripling up on three clubs, with Chelsea hosting Everton, Liverpool playing Brighton, and Arsenal facing Wolves. Perhaps a certain Cole Palmer (£10.3m), whose ownership is now at a lowly nine per cent, will have returned to action by then.
The second Free Hit chip can help you to navigate Blank Gameweeks, when at least one of the Premier League clubs - and usually more - will be without a league fixture.
Triple Captain
Your captain points are TRIPLED instead of doubled.
The Triple Captain chip can be played when saving your team on the “Pick Team” page. It can be cancelled at any time before the Gameweek deadline.
The best time to play the first Triple Captain chip could be on a star midfielder or forward who is at home to one of the promoted clubs.
For example, Haaland faces Leeds (GW13), Sunderland (GW15) and West Ham (GW17) at home before the chip is reset in January.
Similarly to the second Bench Boost chip, the Triple Captain chip has the most upside when played in a Double Gameweek, allowing you to profit from your chosen captain’s two matches.
Wildcard
All transfers (including those already made) are free of charge.
The Wildcard is played when confirming transfers that cost points. It can’t be cancelled once played. When playing a Wildcard, you will KEEP your banked transfers.
A Wildcard is best saved for when your squad most needs an overhaul. This could be if you have multiple players injured, banned, out of form or not starting for their teams. However, it could also be used to target a particular set of fixtures for certain teams.
Many managers often use their first Wildcard quite early in the season to recruit players who have caught the eye over the first few weeks of the campaign. But it should always be played with a longer-term outlook in mind.
Gameweek 13 is one potential Wildcard opportunity, allowing managers to swap around premium midfielders and forwards, and take advantage of favourable fixture runs for Liverpool and Manchester City. Liverpool face West Ham, followed by Sunderland and Leeds, meaning you could build a squad with both Mohamed Salah (£14.2m) and Erling Haaland (£14.8m) WITHOUT using multiple free transfers.
The second Wildcard is typically used in advance of a Double Gameweek, when at least one of the Premier League clubs - and usually more - has TWO league fixtures in one Gameweek.
It allows you to load up players who will have two matches in the Double Gameweek. Then, you can use your Bench Boost chip in the Double Gameweek itself.
Bench Boost
The points scored by your benched players are included in your total.
The Bench Boost chip can be played when saving your team on the “Pick Team” page. It can be cancelled at any time before the Gameweek deadline.
The first Bench Boost chip is most effective when all 15 of your players have a favourable fixture.
Gameweek 12 could be a decent opportunity, with the cheap players from Burnley and Leeds having home fixtures against Chelsea and Aston Villa respectively. While those might look like tough opponents, FPL managers who own the likes of Joe Rodon (£4.1m), Martin Dubravka (£4.0m) and Axel Tuanzebe (£3.9m) could profit from save points and defensive contribution points. Furthermore, Sunderland visit a Fulham side who have lost five of their last six matches.
For managers planning a Wildcard over the coming weeks, Gameweek 14 looks appealing for a Bench-Boost. Bournemouth, Burnley, Wolves and Brighton have favourable home fixtures, and the luxury of a Wildcard means you can spend slightly more on your bench players to maximise the impact of the Bench Boost chip the following week.
The second Bench Boost chip is best kept for a Double Gameweek. If all 15 of your players have two matches, for example, you could potentially gain points from as many as 30 matches.
It’s worth noting that the addition of defensive contribution points could now make budget defenders and midfielders more impactful when playing the chip.