If you had a disappointing Gameweek 1 and aren’t satisfied with your FPL team’s setup, it’s perfectly fine to consider activating your wildcard chip this early in the season.
I’m confident that quite a few FPL managers will be on their wildcard ahead of Gameweek 2. If you’re among them and seeking some wildcard inspiration, we’ve got you covered.
In our Gameweek 2 wildcard guide, we’ll share three different wildcard drafts using various strategies. We’ll also discuss alternative chip strategies you might want to consider—like whether using your wildcard in Gameweek 2 is the best move.
FPL Chip Strategy – When To Wildcard
To be honest, there’s no perfect time to use your wildcard—it really depends on each FPL manager’s situation. Your team structure, injuries, suspensions, and the form of your players will all play a role in determining when you should wildcard.
Should You Wildcard in Gameweek Two?
The answer is: it’s up to you. If you assess your team and notice you’re missing out on some in-form players and want to bring them in before any price rises, then wildcarding now could be a good strategy.
However, if you’re only considering a wildcard to make two or three transfers, it might not be the best use of the chip, as you wouldn’t be maximizing its potential.
While the decision to wildcard is ultimately yours, some other wildcard strategies that FPL managers are considering include:
- Wildcarding in GW6: This can be optimal due to the fixture swing for teams like Arsenal and Man City.
- Wildcarding in GW10/11: Another positive fixture swing for top sides makes this a popular choice.
Ultimately, when you wildcard should be guided by the upcoming fixtures of the teams you’re targeting.
Crafting Our Ideal Gameweek Two Wildcard Team
It is now time for us to craft our gameweek 2 wildcard team and to help us do this, we will be making use of a fixture ticker this fixture ticker will help us identify teams with great upcoming fixtures.
Based on the analysis of the fixture difficulty ratings for all Premier League sides from GW2-GW7, here are the sides we will be looking to target in our GW2 wildcard.
GW2 Wildcard Teams and Strategies
1. FPL Gameweek 2 Wildcard Team – Going Big At The Back
This is our first GW2 wildcard draft, and the strategy is simple: go big at the back. We’ve focused on premium defenders from top teams who are likely to contribute both defensively and offensively.
To execute this strategy, we’ve included Trent Alexander-Arnold, Gvardiol, and Munoz in the lineup. To balance the team and maintain a strong overall squad, we’ve mixed premium, mid-priced, and budget defenders.
The defenders, like the rest of the team, have been selected based on their upcoming fixtures and difficulty levels, with long-term planning in mind.
In fact, we’ve already considered some potential transfer strategies. With £0.5 million in the bank, we plan to bring in Watkins in GW3 when Aston Villa’s fixtures improve, which would mean Isak would make way.
If Smith Rowe doesn’t perform as expected, he could be replaced by Morgan Rogers, who is £0.5 million cheaper. However, these moves will be performance-dependent—if Isak is in good form, we’ll reconsider our plans.
While there is no Salah in this team, we are hoping that Jota and Trent are good enough to cover for his absence.
2. FPL Gameweek 2 Wildcard Team – Mo Salah and Erling Haaland GW2 Wildcard Draft
This is our GW2 wildcard team, featuring both Haaland and Salah, along with Isak, Saka, and Diogo Jota. While the starting XI is strong, the bench lacks depth. Although our bench players are budget-friendly options who have started games, relying on them might be risky.
The starting lineup is solid, and you may not need to rely on the bench often. However, I prefer to keep some cash in the bank for flexibility, which is challenging with this setup.
As an alternative, we’ve created a GW2 wildcard team that allows for more budget flexibility. By replacing Wood with Muniz and Rogers with Smith Rowe, we’ve built a team with players who have favorable upcoming fixtures and left some cash available for potential upgrades.
If you’re looking for more budget-friendly alternatives for defenders, midfielders, and attackers, we’ll link to articles that can provide further guidance.
3. FPL Gameweek 2 Wildcard Team – No Premium Draft
Here is our final gw2 wildcard team and this one if for those who do not have any interest in premium assets. In this draft we have gone for mid-priced as well budget options. This wildcard team includes players like Bruno Fernanded, Palmer, Saka, Jota, Watkins, Isak and Havertz.
It is pretty balanced as funds have been spread across the entire pitch every area of this team looks pretty solid. You could reduce Bruno Fernades to a Eze or Gordon and then take Henderson to a Raya for some Arsenal defensive cover. Doing that will leave you with some extra funds which you can use to improve your bench players.
Here are some other articles that you might find helpful as you create your gameweek 2 wildcard team:
FPL GW2 Tips – A Complete Gameweek 2 Guide
FPL GW2 Points Predictions According To AI
FPL Gameweek Two Clean Sheet Odds Prediction
FPL Gameweek Two Playbook – Using GW1 to Navigate GW2
Other Helpful Resources: