With over 200,000 Wildcard chips active ahead of Gameweek 5, Fantasy Premier League expert Sam Bonfield reveals the 15 players she would pick if she was using the chip this week.
Goalkeepers
Ederson (Man City) £5.6m
Manchester City are one of only two teams to have kept two clean sheets so far this season. With rotation rife in the City defence and with the UEFA Champions League group stage about to start, Ederson feels the best pick as City’s kind fixtures continue.
Alphonse Areola (West Ham) £4.1m
The West Ham goalkeeper rotates nicely with Ederson, and at £4.1m he is a perfect budget enabler.
Defenders
Ben Chilwell (Chelsea) £5.8m
Chelsea haven’t been great defensively, but Chilwell is so advanced that attacking returns look likely. He’d be in my team for the next four Gameweeks for Chelsea’s nice fixtures, and I'd then look for an exit route.
William Saliba (Arsenal) £5.2m
Arsenal have a nice run of fixtures and Saliba has shown already this season that he has potential for attacking returns. I think he is worth paying the extra for over Gabriel (£4.8m).
See: Why managers are Wildcarding in Gameweek 5
Matty Cash (Aston Villa) £4.7m
Cash has scored the most goals among defenders, level with Cristian Romero (£4.7m) on two. He has also had the most attempts on goal with nine, seven of them from inside the box. His three big chances are also more than any other defender. Aston Villa's fixtures are very favourable too.
Destiny Udogie (Spurs) £4.7m
All Spurs defenders are viable options. Udogie, Pedro Porro (£5.0m) and Romero all registered attacking returns in Gameweek 4, and with their advanced positions they always look likely to do so. With no European football either, rotation should be less of a worry for Spurs players.
Issa Kabore (Luton) £4.0m
Up until the Double Gameweek announcement, this slot was occupied by Sven Botman (£4.5m) or Kieran Trippier (£6,5m). After the Double in Gameweek 7, I would sell Kabore to bring in one of those Newcastle defenders.
See: How to plan for Luton and Burnley's Double Gameweek
Midfielders
Son Heung-min (Spurs) £9.1m
Playing as a centre-forward fundamentally changes Son's appeal in FPL. He ranks second among Spurs players for both Expected Goals (xG) and Expected Assists (xA), and he played on the left wing in three of the four matches so far. I would expect to see him top those stats if he continues to play as a No 9. He is the perfect out-of-position pick.
Bukayo Saka (Arsenal) £8.7m
Saka has had more touches in the final third than any other midfielder, with 217. He has also created 14 chances and is joint-top along for successful corners taken, alongside James Maddison (7.8m) and Bryan Mbeumo (£6.8m).
See: FPL experts: When is the best time to Wildcard?
James Maddison (Spurs) £7.8m
Since the start of last season, no midfielder has had more Premier League goal contributions than Maddison. He already has four attacking returns for Spurs in four matches.
Phil Foden (Man City) £7.6m
The City midfielder has three attacking returns in three starts and a cameo appearance – only failing to start in Gameweek 3 because of illness. His seven attempts on goal and 12 chances created match that of forward Julian Alvarez (£6.7m).
Moussa Diaby (Aston Villa) £6.6m
The fixtures are really promising for Aston Villa all the way through to Gameweek 14. Diaby has three attacking returns in four starts and his total of nine shots is only one fewer than team-mate Ollie Watkins (£8.0m). Diaby has also created seven chances, with three of those classed as big chances.
See: Budget midfielders offering big value and points in FPL
Forwards
Erling Haaland (Man City) £14.1m
Simply picks himself. Haaland's hat-trick in Gameweek 4 is a reminder to all FPL managers regarding how vital he is to own.
Darwin Nunez (Liverpool) £7.4m
The Liverpool forward has produced nine attempts on goal so far, despite only playing 132 minutes. In that time, he has returned two goals and two assists. Nunez has great fixtures and I would expect him to start in Gameweek 5, with team-mate Luis Diaz (£7.7m) potentially being rested as Colombia are in action in the early hours of Wednesday morning and Liverpool's trip to Wolverhampton Wanderers on Saturday is the early kick-off.
Cameron Archer (Sheff Utd) £4.5m
The budget forward registered 12 points in his first start for Sheffield United after producing a goal, an assist and taking all three bonus points. He's the perfect eighth attacker who can come in from the bench when needed.
Also in this series
Part 1: Why managers are Wildcarding in Gameweek 5
Part 2: FPL experts: When is the best time to Wildcard?
Part 3: FPL experts: Lessons learned from the season so far