Demystifying the Wildcard and Free Hit Chips: An Expert FPL Manager‘s In-Depth Guide

As an experienced Fantasy Premier League manager and data analyst, I‘m often asked by fellow players about the differences between the wildcard and free hit chips and when to use them most effectively over an FPL season. In this comprehensive guide, I‘ll use my expertise to explain everything you need to know about these powerful yet confusing chips.

Whether you‘re a novice or a seasoned FPL veteran, I hope this advice helps you avoid mistakes and maximize your use of the wildcard and free hit to gain an competitive advantage in your mini-leagues and OR rankings!

Wildcard: Total Squad Overhaul

The wildcard chip is like a magic reset button that allows us to completely transform our entire FPL squad. As you probably know, we get two wildcards each FPL season. Smart timing and planning around these valuable chips can make or break our success.

How the Wildcard Works

Let‘s first cover the basics of how the wildcard functions:

• It allows you to make unlimited free transfers in a single gameweek. Go crazy!
• All of the transfers you make are permanent for the rest of the season.
• Using a wildcard cancels any point deductions from transfers made earlier in the same gameweek.
• You cannot play more than one chip in the same gameweek, so no using it alongside other chips.

So in a nutshell, the wildcard gives you a total rebuilding of your 15 man FPL team with no hits taken. It‘s an extremely powerful chip if used wisely.

Optimal Wildcard Strategy and Timing

The key is being strategic about when you choose to redeem your wildcards over the course of the season. After years playing FPL, here are my tips:

• Use the first wildcard between GW 4-8 to fix early issues. Never waste it before seeing teams play a few matches! Leaving it later than GW8 risks having a broken team too long.

• Save the second wildcard for blank and double gameweeks in the spring. These wildcards are too valuable to use early without good reason. Exercise patience!

• Target double gameweeks specifically to load up on players with two fixtures. Wildcarding in GW16, GW25 or GW36 are good options based on historic doubles.

• If your team is in shambles from injuries or poor performers, don‘t hesitate to use the wildcard as a rescue plan. But don‘t panic after just a bad week!

Trust me, I‘ve made the mistake of wasting wildcards on unnecessary early transfers or minor injuries. Learn from my errors and be strategic with your wildcard timing!

Examples of Effective Wildcard Usage

To understand how to maximize wildcards, let‘s walk through some real examples from past seasons where I used them effectively:

GW6 Wildcard to Jumpstart Season

• The issue: My initial GW1 draft picks like Aubameyang and Werner massively underperformed. I had fallen over 100k places in the rankings after just 5 weeks.

• My GW6 wildcard solution: I wildcarded in cheap inform players like Jimenez, Calvert-Lewin and Rodriguez who all had great starts. I also jumped on early bandwagons like James Justin and Grealish.

• Result: The early wildcard propelled me up 500k places in the rankings over the next five gameweeks. It gave me a huge head start on other inactive managers.

GW30 Wildcard to Prep for Doubles

• The issue: I had a decent OR rank but my squad was unprepared for blank GW30 and the big DGWs in GW32.

• My GW30 wildcard solution: I used my wildcard to load up on Arsenal and Liverpool players with doubles in GW32. I also brought in playing subs for the GW30 blank.

• Result: Hits from other managers in GW30 allowed me to gain 200k OR places despite scoring low that week. I then rose over 300k more spots in GW32 from my doubles haul.

As you can see, early and late season wildcards, when timed properly, can provide a massive rank boost compared to inactive managers. Don‘t sit idle and waste these!

Free Hit: One Week Punt

Unlike wildcards, the free hit chip allows us to make temporary one-week changes to our squad. You get one free hit per FPL season. Used properly in a double gameweek, it can give a huge points boost.

How the Free Hit Works

The basics of how the free hit functions:

• Make unlimited transfers for a single gameweek without taking hits.

• Your squad automatically reverts back to how it was before the free hit for the next gameweek.

• You can‘t play it along with any other chips in the same gameweek.

So in a nutshell, it allows you to optimize for just one gameweek without impacting the rest of your season.

Optimal Free Hit Strategy and Timing

The free hit chip is best used in the later blank and double gameweeks:

• Use it when you have multiple players missing a gameweek because of postponements. Fill your squad with 11 playing players.

• Take advantage of double gameweeks by using the free hit to load up on players with two matches.

• If plans for blanks/doubles backfire, use it as a mulligan to reset your squad.

• Play it when multiple injuries or suspensions cripple your team for just one week.

Avoid the huge mistake I‘ve made of wasting my free hit early in low-impact gameweeks. Exercise patience and wait for a time it can truly make an 80+ point difference.

Examples of Effective Free Hit Usage

Let‘s look at a couple case studies of ideal free hit usage:

GW18 Free Hit to Fill Blank

• The issue: Arsenal, Man City and Villa all blanked in GW18. I had 5 players missing that week and faced big hits.

• My GW18 free hit solution: I used my free hit to make unlimited transfers to field a full 11 of playing options. I loaded up on Leeds, Brighton and Spurs players.

• Result: Despite low scoring GW18, my free hit allowed me to score 51 points more than I would have without it. This helped me climb 150k places.

GW25 Free Hit to Capitalize on Double

• The issue: Arsenal and City both had doubles in GW25 but I only had 2 players from those teams.

• My GW25 free hit solution: I used my free hit to bring in 10 DGW players from Arsenal and City take advantage of the extra fixtures.

• Result: My free hit team scored 98 points compared to my original team‘s 41 points. The 57 point gain sent me up over 250k places in the rankings!

Using my free hit strategically like this allowed me to maximize points in blank and double gameweeks when it really counted to climb the OR.

Key Differences Between the Chips

Now that we‘ve covered both chips in depth, let‘s summarize the key differences:

The core contrasts:

• Wildcard – Permanent rebuild for rest of season
• Free Hit – Temporary one-week squad

Understanding when to use each chip is vital to elevate your FPL rank. Don‘t waste them on marginal gains!

Common Mistakes to Avoid

As a seasoned FPL veteran, I‘ve made plenty of mistakes misusing these chips. Learn from my errors:

✘ Using the sole free hit chip unnecessarily early in the season – Be patient and save it!

✘ Forgetting your free hit squad reverts back and taking big hits – The squad only lasts one week!

✘ Wildcarding to make only 1-2 transfers – Use your free transfer instead!

✘ Playing the wildcard when your squad is already strong – Save it for when your team desperately needs an overhaul.

✘ Missing the GW16 first wildcard deadline – Mark your calendar so you don‘t lose it!

✘ Playing wildcard and free hit together – You can only play one chip per gameweek.

Avoid these common pitfalls I see managers make every season. Stay strategic with your valuable wildcard and free hit chips!

Conclusion

I hope this guide has given you an expert perspective into effectively using your wildcard and free hit chips over an FPL season. With these powerful tools, used strategically at the optimal moments, you can gain huge rank advantages over less experienced managers.

My key tips are:

• Make the most of your two wildcards for permanent squad rebuilds.

• Save the free hit for late season blank/double gameweeks when it can make a huge impact.

• Avoid common mistakes like wasting chips early or using them without purpose.

Apply the analysis and advice above, and you‘ll watch your OR rank rapidly climb the leaderboards! Best of luck, and may your arrows stay green.

Your friend,

Terry