Early Wildcard Strategy Requires Squad Depth and Long-Term Fixture Planning

Key Quotes

"The key thing that we'll talk about throughout this video is the thing that people fall short with when they play an early wildcard: they then end up having to use a lot of transfers quickly to maybe change squad structure. They don't have depth, they've got to deal with injuries or change for blanks and doubles. So having depth and flexibility is so important when you play a wildcard, but particularly when you're going early, not knowing when the blanks and doubles are going to fall, having depth is really, really important."

FPL Harry explains that a common pitfall when using an early wildcard is failing to maintain squad depth and flexibility. This can lead to a rapid depletion of transfers to address issues like injuries, blank gameweeks, or unexpected double gameweeks. FPL Harry emphasizes that depth is crucial, especially when planning an early wildcard without full knowledge of future fixture complexities.

"I've actually gone with two goalkeepers which are not De Bruyne's. We've gone with Kelleher and we've gone with Verbruggen. Anyone on this rotation over the past couple of weeks has had a lot of points, and they're two goalkeepers that you can trust. They're going to keep their plays, their defenses are pretty solid, they rotate pretty well for the majority of the rest of the season."

FPL Harry details his choice of two goalkeepers, Kelleher and Verbruggen, for his wildcard draft. He highlights their consistent point returns, reliable defenses, and good rotation potential for the remainder of the season. FPL Harry suggests this pairing offers a strong and trustworthy option in goal.

"But we've gone with Gabriel and we've gone with Timber. Gabriel was definitely back, or you wanted to go for Saliba over going for Timber then you could. But the issue is Gabriel keeps picking up injuries, so if you're going for them long term, I think Gabriel and Timber are probably the two that I would go with."

FPL Harry discusses his defensive selections, opting for Gabriel and Timber. He acknowledges that Saliba is an alternative to Timber but points out Gabriel's recurring injury issues. FPL Harry concludes that Gabriel and Timber represent his preferred long-term defensive pairing.

"So moving into that midfield, there is no Bukayo Saka as I said, but there is also no Cole Palmer at the moment. I'm not certain that he is also worth the money. Now it might be worth having a little bit of flexibility to try and get up to Palmer if we see that the new manager opts to play him more in that right-hand side space where we know he's been better before and gives him maybe the license to attack that we saw under Pochettino."

FPL Harry explains his midfield choices, notably excluding Bukayo Saka and Cole Palmer from his initial draft. He expresses uncertainty about Palmer's current value but suggests that flexibility could allow for his inclusion if his role or performance improves. FPL Harry indicates that Palmer's potential resurgence in a more attacking position could make him a viable option.

"So what that leaves you in terms of chip strategy: Free Hit: In one of the blanks, probably the biggest blank one because you don't have the wildcard to set yourself up to it and you can't really predict now how big some of those doubles and blanks are going to be. I'd plan on free hitting one of the biggest blanks that will either be 31 or 34."

FPL Harry outlines his chip strategy, recommending the Free Hit chip for a significant blank gameweek, likely Gameweek 31 or 34. He explains that this is advisable because the wildcard chip may have already been used to prepare for blanks and doubles, making it difficult to predict their exact impact. FPL Harry suggests using the Free Hit when the blank gameweeks are most impactful.

"And then actually, I've had a few comments over the past couple of days particularly because I got a red arrow this week, quite a big one from sort of about 65k up to 88k, about whether I would consider wild carding this week. And I didn't actually discuss it loads in my transfer plans video because I wasn't really considering it and I'm not considering it. And I wanted to explain a little bit more why I'm not planning on playing the free hit this week and I think the plan for me will be to get to Gameweek 24 and reconsider it then."

FPL Harry explains his decision not to use his wildcard in the current gameweek, despite a recent drop in his overall rank. He states that he was not considering it earlier and still is not, planning instead to reassess the situation around Gameweek 24. FPL Harry indicates that he needs more information regarding future doubles and blanks before committing to a wildcard.