Chip strategy could prove decisive in the race to be crowned Fantasy Premier League champion for 2023/24.
Today’s world No. 1 Jonas Sand Labakk from Norway has opened a 42 point lead with his team Onkel Blaa after excellent use of his Free Hit chip in Double Gameweek 34 (DGW34).
The Norwegian flyer earned 143 points to climb from third to first, marking the longest Gameweek haul of the season in three places as Jordan Pickford (£4.8m), Ben White (£6.0m) and Jean-Philippe Mateta (£5.1m) each recorded the highest 2023/24 Fantasy scores for a goalkeeper, defender and striker respectively.
Top 10 managers in the world
Class | Club | Grades | DGW37 players | Tokens left* |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Onkel Blaa | 2,437 | 12 | BB |
2 | Pinky and De Bruyne | 2,395 | 12 | BB |
3 | Guta | 2,392 | 13 | BB |
4 | Schorlings Schakaler | 2,391 | 13 | BB |
5 | Alqahs | 2,388 | 12 | BB |
6 | FK Kolonija | 2,385 | 7 | BB, WC |
7 | Holmes XI | 2,381 | 5 | – |
8 | Alexandra the Great | 2,381 | 13 | BB |
9 | Flying without Ings | 2,377 | 8 | BB |
10 | Bayer Trevorkusen | 2,375 | 11 | BB |
*BB = Bench Boost, WC = Wildcard
Former No. 1 Sandeep Jaswal was the leader for nine of 11 rounds between Weeks 23 and 33 with his team Alexandra the Great.
He played his Free Hit in Blank Gameweek 29 (BGW29) and suffered along with a record 1.7 million people using 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 less than Labakk. He has now fallen to eighth place.
Will the delayed Wildcard pay off?
Jaswal will be hoping that his decision to save his second Wildcard until Double Gameweek 35 (DGW35) could help him get those points back.
With Bench Boost still in play, Jaswal has picked 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 is a contrast in the overall chip strategies used to get to this stage.
Three, including Jaswal, played their Free Hit in BGW29 and their Wildcard in DGW35.
On the other hand, four managers, including Labakk, benefited from playing their Free Hit in DGW34 after using their Wildcard in Gameweek 30 or 31.
TWO more chips to play
The only manager with two chips remaining is in sixth place Stefan Josimovicwho has kept his second Wildcard as well as the Bench Boost for his team FK Kolonija.
With only seven DGW37 players in his squad and one injured George Baldock (£3.8m) on his bench, it seems likely that the Serbian manager will use his Gameweek 36 Wildcard to set up his Bench Boost for DGW37.
Delaying the use of his Wildcard until the last possible moment means he can expect more news for DGW37 players like Anderson (£5.5m), who suffered a shoulder injury Manchester City win 2-0 at Nottingham Forest.
Key differentiators
of Scotland Ewan Thompsonsecond overall with his team Pinky and De Bruynehe benefits from playing his Wildcard in DGW35. He currently has 68 points, with Erling Haaland (£14.1m) ready to come off the bench and be replaced Phil Foden (£8.4m) to give him another five points.
Thompson has selected 12 players who have DGW37, plus an Arsenal trio Kai Havertz (£7.5m), Gabriel (£5.4m) and William Saliba (£5.9m). The Gunners only play once in DGW37 but have attractive home fixtures on either side, with AFC Bournemouth and Everton away to the Emirates Stadium in Weeks 36 and 38.
Thompson is one of two managers to hold the updated Havertz, along with fourth Hjalmar Schorling from Sweden, with his team Schorlings Schakaler.
Arsenal’s German has amassed a total of 100 points in his last 11 games, including six double-figure contests. The most popular Bucayo Saka (£9.0m), who is in five of the top 10 teams, has 70 points in the same period.
If Havertz continues to overtake his team-mate, it would give Thompson and Schorling a handy gap as they look to catch up to leader Labakk.
From DGW37 players, Kevin De Bruyne (£10.5m) is a gap between the leaders, who only belong in third place Aurora Folmo Myhr with his team Guta and England Trevor Kay, with his team Bayer Trevorkusen.