In Double Gameweek 24, Liverpool and Everton both play TWICE! Here, The Scout's panel of Fantasy Premier League experts discuss whether it's worth taking a points hit to attack the Double Gameweek.
Sam Bonfield (@FPLFamily)
When taking points hits, I always like to think about if this is something that will make my team better in the long run. With a Blank Gameweek coming in Gameweek 29, planning ahead is going to be important. If you are taking a hit for a player who improves your team or rectifies a weakness in your squad, then it is likely to be worth it. If you are doing it just for Double Gameweek 24 (DGW24), then I would avoid.
Bringing in a player such as Jordan Pickford (£5.1m), Vitalii Mykolenko (£4.4m) or Jarrad Branthwaite (£4.8m) allows you to exploit DGW24 and gives you another guaranteed starter in Blank Gameweek 29 (BGW29), where up to four clubs will be without a match due to the EFL Cup final taking place the same weekend, so that is probably worth it. But if you need to sell the likes of Chris Wood (£7.1m) or Jean-Philippe Mateta (£7.4m) for a hit to bring in Iliman Ndiaye (£5.4m), then I would avoid. I'm already tripled up on Liverpool, but if you aren't, owning three feels important and worth taking a points hit for.
Pranil Sheth (@Lateriser12)
I think points hits for Liverpool players in DGW24 are fine, as they are among the best picks in the league and they are always good to hold in the mid to long term.
With Everton, their fixtures are mixed after DGW24, but they do have a confirmed match in BGW29, so if you are not planning to use the Free Hit Chip in Gameweek 29, I don't mind taking a points hit for them, as long as you can hide them on the bench in the intervening period.
Utkarsh Dalmia (@ZopharFPL)
Everton's fixtures are not great after DGW24, and there aren't many tempting options following the injury to Dominic Calvert-Lewin (£5.4m), so I wouldn't take a hit for any of their players.
With Liverpool, the top three picks are Mohamed Salah (£13.7m), Trent Alexander-Arnold (£7.3m) and Cody Gakpo (£7.6m), in that order. I think a hit for any of those three is worth it, but I wouldn't necessarily take a hit to swap out Luis Diaz (£7.5m) for Gakpo - it could be the Colombian's turn to rack up the points in DGW24.
Nick Harris (@WGTA_Nick)
When it comes to a Double Gameweek, points hits to get more players are always tempting and often it feels like a -2 rather than a -4, due to earning an extra two appearances points as a minimum from the extra match. For DGW24, certainly if you don't own three Liverpool assets, it would be tempting. I wouldn't recommend going overboard when it comes to taking hits to bring in Everton players though, considering one of their fixtures is extremely tough. Just having one player from the Toffees, such as Pickford, should be sufficient.
Gianni Buttice (@GianniButtice)
The first Double Gameweek of a season always comes with huge excitement and the temptation to take points hits to accommodate an extra Double Gameweek player is often there. Owning three Liverpool players feels necessary, but taking hits to bring in an Everton player knowing you might be looking to sell them a couple of weeks down the line feels like it could be a trap.
Everton defenders arguably come with lower risk because of their cheap price points and because you can hide them on your bench in difficult fixtures. Buying Mykolenko this week, for example, could be wise, but if we're talking hits, I would only recommend doing so for Liverpool players like Gakpo, if you're bringing him in for a forward who isn't performing and has a tough fixture this week.
