26 Mar, 2025

FPL Chip Strategy: Best GWs to use your FPL Chips

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All FPL managers will be looking to close the season strong; and how we all use our remaining chips will be absolutely pivotal to those green arrows and winning those private leagues. Many of us in the FPL world have been looking ahead to what we could dub as chip season – Gameweek 30-37. The way the season’s schedule worked out, many managers planned to and did use our Free Hit in Gameweek 29, and have saved some combination of our Assistant Manager, Bench Boost, Triple Captain and Wildcard chips to use some time between Gameweek 30-Gameweek 37. There are also FPL managers who did not use their Free Hit in GW29 and may still have it available. So there is a lot to plan for!

With Cup competitions resulting in rescheduled games, we already have DGWs scheduled for Crystal Palace and Newcastle in Gameweek 32, and there are more to be scheduled in Gameweek 33 and 36, making this an ideal stretch to make use of and maximise our remaining Chips. We are going to take a look at all of the available strategies and map out how best to use any and all of this seasons chips over the remaining 9 Gameweeks.

Gameweek 30:

Gameweek 30 is a normal Gameweek, with all teams playing a single game.

Wildcard:

• Outside of potentially using your Wildcard, we would advise managers to avoid using any other chips in Gameweek 30 as there is no particular benefit to playing them this week as opposed to later weeks.
• While saving your Wildcard for GW31 is probably optimal, managers that have been hit badly by the injury bug may want to just re-tool their team one week earlier. This would be in order to maximise the return for GW31 while also prepping their teams to attack the Double GWs for teams in GW32 and GW33.
• Managers playing their Wildcard in GW30, who are also planning to use their Assistant Manager chip on Howe or Glasner in GW32 will want to create the budget space for either Manager while re-tooling their team.

Gameweek 31:

Gameweek 31 is also a regular GW with all teams playing once.

Wildcard:

• This is the Gameweek that anyone with their second Wildcard still available should be looking to play it. This is in preparation for Newcastle and Crystal Palace’s Double GWs in GW32, as well as the Double GWs coming in GW33 for the 4 teams that will have qualified for the FA Cup Semi-Finals, and their 4 GW34 opponents (as the Semi-Finals will take place during GW34).
• Fantasy managers will want to have other chips active for those Gameweeks, therefore playing your Wildcard in GW31 allows you to transfer in players from the teams who will likely have those Double GWs. If you plan to play your Assistant Manager Chip, playing your Wildcard will allow you to create the budget space for your AM for free.

Gameweek 32:

Gameweek 32 is a Double GW for Crystal Palace and Newcastle. The two teams face each other at St. James Park. Palace also play Man City (A) while Newcastle face Man United (H).

Assistant Manager Chip:

• If you have your Assistant Manager chip remaining, this is the Gameweek you will want to use it. This is because there is the potential for Eddie Howe and Oliver Glasner to have 4 games from GW32-34 while the Assistant Manager chip would be active. These are the two Assistant Managers FPL managers will want to be targeting in GW32.
• Howe is guaranteed 4 games during this span, facing Man United (H), Crystal Palace (H), Aston Villa (A) and Ipswich (H). Glasner and Palace will have 4 games from GW32-34 against Man City (A), Newcastle (A), Bournemouth (H) and Arsenal (A), if Palace qualify for the FA Cup Semi-Finals. The FA Cup Quarter-Finals take place prior to GW30 so managers will have time to plan accordingly.
• If Palace make the FA Cup Semi-Finals, as well as how the Premier League table looks, along with monitoring these teams form and injuries prior to that Saturday FPL deadline, will have an impact on who you choose between the two Managers.

Triple Captain:

• Gameweek 32 is one of the 2 remaining ideal Gameweeks to play your Triple Captain chip if you still have yours available. With Newcastle and Crystal Palace being the teams with Double GWs, Isak is the clear and obvious number 1 option for your Triple Captain chip.
• Newcastle’s star striker has arguably been the best striker in Europe this season notching 19 goals and 5 assists in 22 starts and could feast on United’s injured and mediocre defence. Coming off the high of League Cup glory, Newcastle and Isak will be feeling confident about a push for Champions League places and will be motivated. Having Gordon back from suspension will also help Isak’s output.
• Mateta is another option but it is hard to make the case for him over Isak, especially with Isak having the better fixtures.

Bench Boost:

• Managers could use their bench boost this week, if you do not plan to use your Assistant Manager or Triple Captain chip and happened to own 4-6 Newcastle and Palace players who therefore have to start, but you also like the outlook and fixtures for the rest of your team in GW32. If you have 3 players on your bench with good fixtures then GW32 may then be the ideal time to play your Bench Boost.

Gameweek 33:

The 4 FA Cup Semi-Finalists and what would be their 4 GW34 opponents, will have Double GWs in GW33 and then subsequently will blank in GW34, which is when the Semi-Finals will take place. We will know who those teams are prior to the Gameweek 30 deadline.

Bench Boost:

• With 8 teams having Double GWs, it is entirely possible for managers to plan so that the majority of their teams have Double Gameweeks. Managers who have their bench boost remaining should be activating it in GW33 unless you have your Triple Captain or Free Hit still available.

Free Hit:

• Given 8 teams have a Double GW, if managers do still have their Free Hit chip available, then GW33 could be a good week to activate it, especially if there are still 8 or more players in your squad with games in GW34, when 8 teams will blank. If you do activate your Free Hit in GW33, it should go without saying that every player you select should have a Double GW.

Triple Captain:

• Depending on which 4 teams make it to the FA Cup Semi-Finals, GW33 could be the ideal week to play your Triple Captain chip. This would be especially true if Man City made the Semi-Finals.
• This would mean Haaland would have a Double GW in GW33 with games against Everton (A) and Aston Villa (H), making him an ideal Triple Captain choice.
• Managers who own both Isak and Haaland, which could be an ideal template to close out the season, will need to weigh up whether they prefer to Triple captain Isak in GW32 or Haaland in GW33.

Gameweek 34:

8 teams will likely blank in Gameweek 34 – the 4 Fa Cup Semi-Finalists and their original GW34 opponents. These games will have moved to GW33 to create those Double GWs, as we have discussed.

Free Hit:

• Given 8 teams will be blanking (any of Man City, Arsenal, Nottingham Forest, Bournemouth, Brighton and Crystal Palace, among others) playing your Free Hit chip in GW34 is in my opinion the optimum strategy if you still have yours available.
• It is likely that many of our teams will have less than 8 startable players, some teams significantly less. In that case, FH34 is the new FH29 – it will be all the rage.

Wildcard:

• GW30 or GW31 are the ideal GWs to activate your Wildcard in preparation for the Double GWs in GW32 and GW33. However, given there are 8 teams blanking in GW34 FPL managers may want to use their Wildcard chip in GW34 to prepare for that reality.
• Using your Wildcard in GW34 would help managers have a strong team with enough startable players, avoiding the teams with blanks.
• Additionally, using your Wildcard in GW34 can have the added advantage of allowing managers to transfer out any players who might be being rested for the end of the season (older players being given rests in favour of youth for eg) and also allows managers to target a few key players who will likely have Double GWs in GW36.
• Be mindful that we will not know who the FA Cup Semi-Finalists are until after the GW34 deadline has passed, so we will not know who has Double GWs in GW36 when activating the GW34 Wildcard.
• Therefore, this is mostly a strategy to combat the blank Gameweeks for 8 teams in GW34.

Gameweek 35:

There is a very low chance of a Double GW for 6 teams, but in all likelihood GW35 will be a regular Gameweek. There will be no reason for managers to play any of their remaining chips in GW35.

Gameweek 36:

Gameweek 36 is likely to be a Double GW for the 2 teams that reach the FA Cup Final and the finalists Gameweek 37 opponents. The Final is set to be played on the weekend of GW37, and so naturally the 2 finalists and their original GW37 opponent will blank that week. This does present one final opportunity to play any remaining chips, although I would suggest that managers should have found previous weeks to best utilise and maximise the return from their Free Hit and Triple Captain chips.

Bench Boost:

• With 4 teams having a Double GW, saving your Bench Boost until GW36 is absolutely viable strategy. Managers will want to maximise the number of players in their teams with Double GWs heading into GW36. We will find out which 2 teams have made the FA Cup Final during GW34, so Managers will have their GW35 and GW36 transfers to bring in players with Double GWs in GW36.

Free Hit:

• Anyone with their Free Hit remaining, should of course play it here and maximise players from the 2 teams with Double GW’s. However, this is not the optimum use of your Free Hit.

Triple Captain:

• This could end up being a good week to activate the Triple Captain chip, particularly if Man City and/or Nottingham Forest make the Final, as Haaland or Wood become obvious Triple Captain candidates.
• Haaland would face Southampton (A) and one of Bournemouth (H) or Aston Villa (H). Wood would face Leicester (H) and then one of Brentford (H) or West Ham (A).
• With Southampton and Leicester being the guaranteed fixtures of those weeks should either of those 2 teams make the Final, it would be a great Double GW to play your Triple Captain.
• However, the reason this is not the ideal GW to target and plan to use the Triple Captain chip is that we do not and will not know who is going to make the final until we are heading into GW35, and therefore assuming you will have a good choice for your Triple Captain is one managers should not and do not need to make.

Gameweek 37:

This would obviously be a blank Gameweek for the 2 teams playing in the FA Cup Final. We will not know who those teams are until after GW34.

Free Hit:

• Not the ideal use of your Free Hit as there are only 2 teams blanking and there are multiple preferable GW’s to play your Free Hit in order to maximise the return.

There is a lot to plan for in the coming weeks depending on what chips you may have left available, but using this guide you should be able to plan for a successful end to the season by optimising your use of chips. If you do, it is hard not to envision lots of green arrows in your future and maybe winning some of those private leagues! Good luck and may the FPL gods be with you!

Click here for more Game Week 30 Tips.

By: Ahsan Ejaz

Last Updated: 25/03