For the past few months, Premier League football has been plagued with COVID outbreaks. Many clubs have been forced to postpone games due to the sheer number of infections in both players and staff. As a result, the wonderful sensation of following a Premier League matchday has been missing. Fortunately, it seems that a return to the norm could well be on the horizon. The PL Association has been working hard under the hood to reschedule all those postponements in the coming matchdays. Therefore, there is an opportunity for FPL managers to use their chip resources, and hence we brought you the FPL Double Gameweek 28 Free Hit Guide to push your rank ahead of common managers.
This is especially good news for the Fantasy Premier League fans, who deserve some excitement after the blank game-week horror shows. We’ve already seen multiple double-gameweeks already, and there are still a good few more to go. The Official FPL board has also done their part to add an extra incentive to play the game in these tough times, after distributing an extra Free Hit chip for all FPL managers. With 8 clubs looking ahead at a double gameweek, it seems like a decent opportunity to activate one if you haven’t already.
In this article, we will analyze the top players to have this game-week, and the best squad of players to build on a Free Hit.
Is it worth using the Free Hit Chip in DGW28?
One of the major questions this gameweek aside from which players to pick is if it is even worth activating a Free Hit. The 8 teams playing the double gameweek are Chelsea, Wolves, Aston Villa, Leeds, Watford, Newcastle, Norwich, and Southampton. A major incentive to Free Hit now is that these 8 teams have not all been popular FPL sources this season.
Other teams have been the focus of attention, which means it is unlikely many FPL managers will have many double gameweek players for this week. According to LiveFPL, the average player has just 3.5 DGW players for GW28 (before any transfers). This could be a very good opportunity to pick some differential DGW players and gain a significant advantage over rivals.
It’s worth noting that this is most definitely not the last eventful week of the season. A big Blank Game-week is expected in GW30, whilst more DGWs will also come around in the future. For those that only have a single Free Hit chip remaining, it is advised to save it for the time being. For those with two, it’s worth noting that using the Free Hit chip for DGW28 is not necessary. It is mostly useful towards getting the differential players, and so for those without the need to take a risk, it could be better to hold on to the Free Hit chips for now.
FPL Double Gameweek 28 Free Hit Team: Goalkeepers
Jose Sa (5.3 million)
The third highest-scoring keeper of the season, Jose Sa, plays twice in DGW28, against Crystal Palace and Watford. With 81 saves (3rd best), 9 clean sheets (4th best), and 11 bonus points (2nd best), Sa is one of the best goalkeepers to own in the game. He’s predicted 8.3 FPL points next GW and is definitely a good player to have on a Free Hit. Chelsea’s Edouard Mendy also has great fixtures, and is a strong alternative, but will be much more expensive at 6.1 million.
Arthur Okonkwo (3.9 million)
Just any goalkeeper priced at 3.9 million, to open up as much of the budget for the rest of the team as possible.
FPL Double Gameweek 28 Free Hit Team: Defenders
1. Lucas Digne (5.1 million)
Lucas Digne‘s impact on Aston Villa has very much gone under the radar. Despite just the 1 assist, the Frenchman has created a whopping 36 chances, generating an xA of 2.54. He’s massively underperforming and should be catching up soon. The upcoming fixtures are good opportunities to do so too, with Villa facing Southampton and Leeds. Digne is predicted to be the 2nd highest scoring defender in GW28, with the bookies expecting 8.7 points from the left-back.
2. Trent Alexander-Arnold (8.5 million)
One of the first names onto the draft. Owned by 46% of managers, Alexander-Arnold is the highest scoring defender in FPL and the 2nd highest scoring across all positions. Not owning the PL’s joint top assister is a risk, regardless of who the opponent is.
3. Reece James (6.2 million)
Reece James looks like he is back from injury, after coming on as a substitute in the last 2 Chelsea games. The Englishman could well be in-line to start and could bring a lot of points too. The Chelsea defense has been fantastic all season, ranking 3rd for xGC amongst all teams. The fixtures for DGW28 look brilliant, to say the least, and a hand in the Chelsea defense is easily a top priority.
James has already proven his worth this season to the FPL community, having tallied 4 goals and 5 assists in the competition. He will be looking to get back to form as soon as possible, and now would be a great opportunity to do so.
4. Antonio Rudiger (6.1 million)
Rudiger looks to be the most nailed Chelsea defender about, having missed just one game this season. With an assured starting place in a very good defense, Rudiger also brings a chance at attacking returns too. He has generated the most xG amongst all Chelsea defenders, and has recorded 2 goals and 3 assists this season. Out of the two Chelsea players in this Free Hit draft, Rudiger is the most necessary, simply due to the fact that he is expected to play both games in the double.
5. Romain Saiss (5.0 million)
Romain Saiss is a great pick to double up on Wolves’ defense in this Free Hit draft. The side have one of the best defences in the league, having conceded just 21 goals this season – 4th lowest in the league. Wolves’ DGW opponents in Watford and Crystal Palace both rank in the bottom half for xG as well.
The bookies have predicted a 68% chance of Wolves keeping at least 1 clean sheet in either of those games. Saiss has been key to the defensive structure and has contributed offensively as well. He’s scored twice this season, from an xG of 2.3, the most amongst all other Wolves defenders. He is predicted a solid 9.5 FPL points in DGW28, the highest expected tally of all players.
Alternatives
- Joao Cancelo (7.1 million)
- Matty Cash (5.1 million)
- Fabian Schar (4.3 million)
- Tino Livramento (4.4 million)
FPL Double Gameweek 28 Free Hit Team: Midfielders
1. Philippe Coutinho (7.4 million)
The Brazilian instantly made an impact on his return to the Premier League. With 2 goals and 2 assists ever since he joined, Coutinho quickly established his worth to football fans. He has averaged 5.33 FPL points in that period and is currently owned by an impressive 20.5% of FPL players. Aston Villa play twice in GW28: Southampton (H) and Leeds (A), posing decent opportunities for players to score high. Coutinho is expected to start both and is predicted a solid 8.7 points from this week.
2. Mohamed Salah (13.2 million)
Easily the first name onto the draft. 209 points already this season, it’s dangerous not to own him!
3. Ryan Fraser (5.3 million)
Newcastle is currently on an unbeaten streak of 7 games. Weirdly, one of the key players contributing to that streak isn’t a new signing – it is in fact, Ryan Fraser. The Midfielder has started all 7 games ranks top for the most chances created (12) and big chances created (2) at the club. He’s also bagged a goal, as well as 2 assists, making him the 2nd highest FPL points scorer behind Fabian Schar. He will be a massive differential pick, but at 5.3 million, it’s difficult to fault it.
4. Mason Mount (7.5 million)
With such a favorable double gameweek fixture set, Chelsea’s attack is obviously very enticing. There are a few options, but Mason Mount seems a standout option. The Englishman has played the most minutes out of any other Chelsea attacker and has tallied a respectable 7 goals and 7 FPL assists this term.
He has created 34 chances, managed 20 shots on target and 82 touches in the opposition box – all 3 being the most out of any other Chelsea player. His highest points total for a GW this season (24) came in GW9 against Norwich, which happens to be one of the fixtures in DGW28 as well.
5. Raphinha (6.5 million)
Leeds appointing new management definitely brings an element of uncertainty over what game plan the team goes with. However, it is likely Raphinha will be key. The Brazilian has arguably been Leeds’ best player this season, tallying 9 goals and 2 assists this season. They face some favorable fixtures as well, against Leicester and Aston Villa. The former has especially been leaky in defense, with the Foxes ranking 17th for xGC this season. Raphinha is predicted a huge 9.2 points from both these 2 fixtures.
Alternatives
- Heung Min Son (10.7 million)
- James Ward-Prowse (6.5 million)
- Jacob Ramsey (4.8 million)
- Bukayo Saka (6.5 million)
FPL Double Gameweek 28 Free Hit Team: Forwards
1. Harry Kane (12.3 million)
Harry Kane seems to be back on form now after a much slower start to the season. Since GW18, the striker has netted 7 times and assisted a further 2 times as well. In comparison, prior to GW18, Kane managed just 1 goal and 1 assist. Clearly, something has clicked for him and he’s back to being a worthy FPL option again!
Although Spurs don’t play the double fixture, they face a damaged Everton side who sit just 1 point off the relegation zone. Kane is one of the premium players that actually have a decent fixture, and so owning him could prove differential.
2. Armando Broja (5.5 million)
Broja has been impressing football fans this season, during the loan spell at Southampton from Chelsea. He has had 6 goals and 2 assists and has quickly become a key player to Hassenhutl’s side. Although blanking in the last three PL games, Broja scored in Southampton’s midweek FA Cup tie.
Southampton’s 2 fixtures in DGW28 involve Aston Villa and Newcastle, which are both decent opponents for the Saints. Priced at a minuscule 5.5 million, Broja is incredibly cheap and offers a similar level of output to many of the current forwards in FPL right now.
3. Lewis Richardson (4.4 million)
Richardson is the cheapest forward in the game and helps fund the rest of the squad.
Alternatives
- Chris Wood (6.7 million)
- Raul Jimenez (6.5 million)
- Ollie Watkins (7.5 million)
FPL Double Gameweek 28 Free Hit Team: Full Team and Strategy
- Formation: 5-4-1
- Bench Order: Fraser/Broja/Richardson
- Captain Picks: Salah/Kane/Coutinho/Rudiger
So what are you waiting for? Setup your squads and join our very own FPL 2021/22 Fantasy League through this invitation code ehvefg or join from this link and win exciting cash rewards for absolutely free!
Did you find our analysis on the FPL Double Gameweek 28 Free Hit Guide useful? Are you considering anyone from here? Drop your comments in the comment section below!
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