If all those letters in this post's title make sense to you, then this post is for you. GW34 in the Premier League is the first significant double gameweek (DGW) of the season. 8 of the 20 clubs play two matches that will count toward your GW34 Fantasy Premier League points. Who should you play? Which chips are on the table? Let's dig into it.
Here are the 8 clubs who play twice in GW34 and who/where they play:
- Brighton (at CRY, TOT)
- Tottenham (MCI, at BRI)
- Bournemouth (at LIV, MUN)
- Man United (WBA, at BOU)
- Burnley (LEI, CHE)
- Chelsea (at SOU, at BUR)
- Leicester (at BUR, SOU)
- Southampton (CHE, at LEI)
Note that an All-DGW team for this gameweek will not include players from Manchester City, Liverpool, Arsenal, and nine other clubs. As a result, seeking only players who will play twice is a risky endeavor. You may not need only players with two matches on the schedule in your FPL lineup.
Regardless, here we go. First, let's look at the best players you can buy with a Free Hit or Wildcard chip from the eight clubs with two matches in GW34, using current form as our guide. Prices listed are current as of Monday, 4/9.
Goalkeepers - Kasper Schmeichel (LEI) - 5.1, David de Gea (MUN) - 5.9
If you plan to play DDG in goal, you may not need to make Schmeichel your backup. But that's not the premise of this post, so let's keep going.
Defenders - Chris Smalling (MUN) - 5.5, Ben Chilwell (LEI) - 4.4, Cesar Azpilicueta (CHE) - 6.9, Cedric (SOU) - 4.7, Serge Aurier (TOT) - 5.9
Manchester United have the tastiest matchups in the DGW, so playing Chris Smalling is a must. You may even want to replace the Azpilicueta suggestion based on form for Antonio Valencia, whose price is the same. Aurier is not appealing for his first match against City, but you like him playing at Brighton -- assuming he plays both matches (a big if). Plus, wouldn't you rather own three attacking options from Spurs? Cedric would probably sit on your bench.
Midfielders - Alexis Sanchez (MUN) - 11.5, Dele Alli (TOT) - 9.0, Christian Eriksen (TOT) - 9.4, Paul Pogba (MUN) - 7.8, Son (TOT) - 8.4
Now you have some decisions to make. You can't own all these United players, and we haven't even gotten to Lukaku. You probably also can't spend this much money in your midfield either. You will also want to diversify from all of these Spurs options. So which ones will play and score the most? That is the fun of FPL, isn't it?
Forwards - Jamie Vardy (LEI) - 8.9, Chris Wood (BUR) - 6.3, Josh King (BOU) - 7.0
Based on form alone, these are your best forward options. Now, would you really want to avoid Lukaku and Kane? Probably not. But knowing this, you can find a solid third forward option -- assuming you have the money. Glenn Murray, Ashley Barnes, and Charlie Austin are also possibilities to consider.
The total value of the all-DGW squad based on form is 106.7 pounds, an amount that few FPL owners have available to them. Still, it's fun to see the possibilities, is it not?
It's clear that the challenge will be picking the right three United players to own. Considering Harry Kane's return and his desire to win the Golden Boot, you'll likely want to stick with him, too. After that, though, who are the others you would own from Spurs?
Triple Captain
Another potential option for capitalizing on this 14-match gameweek is to play your Triple Captain chip. In GW34, there are two options that stand out above the rest: Alexis Sanchez and Harry Kane. It's like it's the 16/17 season all over again.
Alexis is in good form right now and has two excellent matchups. You would expect that he will play in both matches, although you can never know for sure.
Harry Kane only has one solid matchup out of his two possible matchups, but remember that he's Harry Kane. He loves ending seasons much more than he loves starting them (see: August curse). Plus, he is embracing the challenge of catching Mo Salah for the Golden Boot. All of that adds up to the chance that he scores four goals over the next two matches.
Of course, you could also think outside the box just a little and go with Jamie Vardy. No one is in better form, and his scoring has been consistent. The downside is that he is only scoring one goal at a time right now. If you want to hit it big, he might not be your guy.
This is where the FPL homestretch begins. You have some difficult decisions to make. How fun is this?
