Which chip strategies and players will decide FPL world title?

Chip strategy could prove decisive in the race to be crowned Fantasy Premier League champion for 2023/24. 

The current world No 1 Jonas Sand Labakk from Norway has opened up a 42-point lead with his team Onkel Blaa after an excellent use of his Free Hit chip in Double Gameweek 34 (DGW34).

The Norwegian high-flier gained 143 points to climb from third to first, hitting the biggest Gameweek hauls of the season in three positions as Jordan Pickford (£4.8m), Ben White (£6.0m) and Jean-Philippe Mateta (£5.1m) each recorded the biggest score of 2023/24 Fantasy for a goalkeeper, defender and forward respectively.

Top 10 managers in the world

*BB = Bench Boost, WC = Wildcard

Former No 1 Sundeep Jaswal was the leader for nine out of 11 rounds between Gameweeks 23 and 33 with his team Alexandra Greats.

He played his Free Hit in Blank Gameweek 29 (BGW29) and suffered along with the record 1.7million people who used the chip that week, as a number of big names blanked.

As such, he was unable to take full advantage of DGW34, and scored 57 points fewer than Labakk. He has now dropped to eighth.

Will late Wildcard pay off?

Jaswal will be hoping that his decision to save his second Wildcard until Double Gameweek 35 (DGW35) could help him claw back those points.

With his Bench Boost still to play, Jaswal has selected 13 players who have two matches in Double Gameweek 37 (DGW37).

Nine of the top 10 managers still have their Bench Boost available, but there’s a contrast in the overall chip strategies employed to get to this stage. 

Three, including Jaswal, played their Free Hit in BGW29 and their Wildcard in DGW35.

On the flip-side, four managers including Labakk profited from playing their Free Hit in DGW34 after using their Wildcard in Gameweek 30 or 31.

TWO chips still to play

The only manager with two chips remaining is sixth-placed Stefan Josimovic, who has kept his second Wildcard as well as his Bench Boost for his team FK Kolonija. 

With only seven DGW37 players in his squad and an injured George Baldock (£3.8m) on his bench, it would seem likely the Serbian manager will use his Wildcard in Gameweek 36 to set up his Bench Boost for DGW37.

Delaying the use of his Wildcard until the last possible moment means he can wait for more news on DGW37 players like Ederson (£5.5m), who picked up a shoulder injury in Manchester City’s 2-0 win at Nottingham Forest.

Key differential players

Scotland’s Euan Thompson, second in the overall standings with his team Pinky and De Bruyne, is benefiting from playing his Wildcard in DGW35. He currently has 68 points, with Erling Haaland (£14.1m) set to come off the bench and replace Phil Foden (£8.4m) to give him a further five points.

Thompson has picked 12 players who have a DGW37, plus an Arsenal trio of Kai Havertz (£7.5m), Gabriel (£5.4m) and William Saliba (£5.9m). The Gunners only play once in DGW37 but have appealing home fixtures on either side, with AFC Bournemouth and Everton the visitors to Emirates Stadium in Gameweeks 36 and 38.

Thompson is one of just two managers to own the in-form Havertz, along with fourth-placed Hjalmar Schorling from Sweden, with his team Schorlings Schakaler.

Arsenal’s German has totalled 100 points over his last 11 matches, including six double-figure hauls. The more-popular Bukayo Saka (£9.0m), found in five of the top 10 teams, has 70 points over the same period.

Should Havertz continue to outscore his team-mate, it would give Thompson and Schorling a handy differential as they look to make up ground on the leader Labakk.

Of the DGW37 players, Kevin De Bruyne (£10.5m) is a differential among the leaders, owned only by third-placed Aurora Folmo Myhr with his team Gutta and England’s Trevor Kay, with his squad Bayer Trevorkusen.