The Scout highlights the best times in Fantasy Premier League to play the second Wildcard, which is now available to use until the end of 2023/24.
The most popular approach is to play the Wildcard one or two Gameweeks before a bumper Double Gameweek later in a season.
By loading up on players with two matches on their Wildcard, managers can then play their Bench Boost chip in the Double Gameweek maximising its potential by collecting points from all 15 members of their squad.
Double Gameweeks are typically determined by domestic cup dates, with both Gameweek 34 and Gameweek 37 expected to be Doubles as they take place at the same time as the latter stages of the FA Cup.
Patience, then, is key and by waiting until later in the campaign, managers can get a better idea of the teams to target and exactly when to do so.
At present, there are two matches still to be rescheduled: Manchester City’s home encounter with Brentford and AFC Bournemouth’s home match against Luton Town.
All four sides are expected to be given a Double Gameweek, which further lifts the appeal of Erling Haaland (£13.9m) and Dominic Solanke (£7.1m) in managers’ forward lines.
The departures of Mohamed Salah (£13.2m) and Son Heung-min (£9.8m) on international duties could also make Gameweek 21 an appealing opportunity to Wildcard.
Both Liverpool’s Salah and Tottenham Hotspur’s Son may be absent until Gameweek 25 depending on their nations’ progress in the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) and Asian Cup respectively.
Combined with the recent return of Haaland to training following his foot injury, this has already persuaded 384,000+ to activate the chip. Those managers should also consider Ivan Toney (£7.9m) as a big differential, as the Brentford forward is now available for selection.
Should Salah and Son remain involved in the latter stages of those tournaments, a Gameweek 25 Wildcard can also prove productive.
Managers could not only bring both big-hitters back into their squads, they can also pinpoint other players who are currently involved on international duties.
Bringing in Salah and Son along with Wolverhampton Wanderers’ Hwang Hee-chan (£5.7m) and West Ham United’s Mohammed Kudus (£6.9m) in a new-look midfield can be a very effective plan. Hwang is the fifth top-scoring midfielder on 100 points, while Kudus has three double-figure hauls in 10 outings since securing a starting role.
Finally, once they have decided when to play their Wildcard, managers should look to “dead-end” their squad ahead of using the chip.
This tactic allows them to focus their transfers only on in-form, short-term picks, giving them an advantage over their rivals prior to refreshing their 15 players with the Wildcard.
Also in this series
Part 1: Best replacements for Salah and Son in Fantasy
Part 2: FPL experts' plans for replacing Salah and Son
Part 3: Time to switch to 3-4-3 in Fantasy as Haaland returns?
Part 4: FPL experts: Is 3-4-3 now the best formation?
Part 6: FPL experts: When should you play your second Wildcard?
