Tag: Chip

We have had several fixture announcements today, which confirmed there will be back-to-back double gameweeks in Fantasy Premier League.

After Gameweek 24, which gets underway tomorrow (deadline 11am GMT; 6am ET) and sees two clubs, Liverpool and Everton, playing twice, we’re now also set to have a double in Gameweek 25. Six clubs can be affected in that one and which matches are rearranged for that gameweek depends on the results of the Carabao Cup semi-final second legs next week.

For plenty of FPL managers, this will totally change their chip strategies.

Here, we will fill you in with everything you need to know — so strap in.

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The permutations explained

• If Arsenal progress to the Carabao Cup final by beating Newcastle United, then Arsenal and Chelsea will double in Gameweek 25 and blank in Gameweek 29.
• If Tottenham Hotspur progress to the Carabao Cup final by beating Liverpool, then Spurs and Fulham will double in Gameweek 25. This means they will also blank in Gameweek 29.
• If Liverpool progress to the Carabao Cup final by beating Spurs, Liverpool and Aston Villa will double in Gameweek 25, and also blank in Gameweek 29.

So it’s all eyes on those Carabao Cup semi-final second legs, then.

Arsenal, who are 2-0 down after the first leg, go to Newcastle on Wednesday, February 5, while Liverpool host Tottenham the following day with Spurs leading 1-0 on aggregate.

Arsenal have announced their home fixture against Chelsea currently scheduled for Sunday, March 16 — the same day as the Carabao Cup final — will be moved to Tuesday, February 18 if they make it to Wembley, handing them a double gameweek in Gameweek 25.

The same applies for Liverpool and Tottenham, whose games against Villa and Fulham have been pencilled in for March 15 and 16 respectively, but will move to Wednesday, February 19 if either club reach the Carabao Cup final.

There hasn’t been any announcement of a provisionally rescheduled fixture from Newcastle yet, so we have to assume that if they reach the Carabao Cup final there will be no double for them in Gameweek 25. Eddie Howe’s side not being in Europe means they have more midweek slots to play with, so their postponed fixtures will be easier to rearrange down the line.

At the moment, Liverpool and Newcastle are the strong favourites to get to the Carabao Cup final, which means the likely doubling teams in Gameweek 25 are Liverpool and Villa. But we will know for sure before the Gameweek 25 deadline anyway, so there’s no need to take any blind risks with your transfers.

Why the assistant manager chip is now pivotal

If you were planning on playing your triple captain chip in Gameweek 24, I would recommend changing your plans. Don’t worry if you have already activated the chip as you can still cancel it.

The assistant manager chip is the one to play now, since we have guaranteed back-to-back double gameweeks and it’s not often we get that.

Be wary that if you activate your assistant manager, then not only can it not be cancelled but the manager you originally pick cannot be changed without using one of your free transfers. Therefore, be sure who you want to play it on before you activate it.

You will also have to make sure you have the money in the bank to buy your preferred manager, so you might actually need to free up funds by transferring out a player. Don’t be afraid to take hits if needed. These are going to be inevitable for most FPL managers, given the short notice.

GO DEEPER

FPL: Fantasy Premier League: How to make the most of the assistant manager chip

I think the best route, in isolation, is going for Arne Slot of Liverpool or Everton’s David Moyes as your manager for Gameweek 24.

Slot is the safe pick and could also have another double in Gameweek 25, so you might not need to transfer him out for another manager. Moyes is the upside pick as he has the potential bonus points on offer as he faces Liverpool at home.

In Gameweek 25, if Liverpool beat Spurs to get to the cup final, another option is to make a change and go for Unai Emery, as Villa will then double against Ipswich (H) and Liverpool (H). I like this as it has one ‘banker game’ against Ipswich and then the potential for bonus points against Slot’s men.

If Spurs get to the final, then you can move to their Ange Postecoglou or Fulham’s Marco Silva in Gameweek 25.

At the moment, Fulham are five places ahead of Spurs, so their game against them counts for the table bonus, but this could change in the next gameweek. Manchester United are currently three places above Tottenham, so you won’t get a table bonus for the latter’s second game.

You can also look to move to Silva in Gameweek 25. Fulham play Nottingham Forest and Spurs at home. They will qualify for the table bonus against Forest and should be favourites to beat Tottenham.

I wouldn’t worry about Gameweek 25 too much right now as we need to wait on the results of those Carabao Cup semis, but it’s handy to have a provisional plan in mind.

Don’t forget about the players

Keep in mind that you will also need to use transfers on players from the doubling teams and, as I said before, points hits are going to be inevitable.

A lot of us would have been stocked up on Liverpool or Everton assets, but we won’t know who is doubling in Gameweek 25 until the Carabao Cup final is set next week.

Some of us might get lucky if you already have players from the teams who do end up doubling in 25. But the majority of us will only have a one gameweek notice period. Therefore, those FPL managers who have the most transfers saved up will benefit the most.

You only need to worry about the next gameweek at the moment, as we don’t have the full picture for Gameweek 25 yet.

However, when making your transfers, be wary of taking out players from clubs who could be set to play twice then.

(Top photo: Ian Hodgson/AFP via Getty Images)