Gameweek 23 best free hit team

With a new Gameweek upon us we take a look at the free hit chip. Using the Fantasy Football Scout members area we can utilise the season ticker and underlying stats to determine the Gameweek 23 best free hit team.

The free hit chip in FPL allows managers, within the same budget and formational limits, to select a team for one particular Gameweek. Managers can attack any given Gameweek with the free hit whether that be to utilise a good set of fixtures, in-form teams or players or a mixture of it all. However, Experienced FPL managers usually tend to use the chip in blank Gameweeks.

Fixture ticker

Who has the best fixtures?

We can see that Manchester City and Arsenal rank first and second on the fixture ticker as both have a double Gameweek in the round ahead. Fulham, Liverpool and Newcastle make up the rest of the top five teams with the easiest fixtures.

Who has the worst fixtures?

Aston Villa, Everton, Brentford, West Ham and Leicester make up the bottom five teams with the toughest fixtures.

The best free hit team

Using the Live FPL website we can use one of its fantastic tools to plan transfers weeks in advance. Not just this, but we can also create team drafts to plan for using a chip. Take a look at the best free hit team for Gameweek 23:

Goalkeepers

Chelsea are starting to solidify defensively as of late. That is reflected in the fact that amongst all teams in the last six matches they rank the third best for big chances conceded (six) and the joint third best for goals conceded (four). Kepa Arrizabalaga (£4.6m) has kept three back-to-back matches in as many games racking up a huge 29 points, so eases into the free hit.

Leicester’s Danny Ward (£4m) makes a great backup option on the bench in the unlikely event Kepa does not feature.

Defenders

Manchester City rank first on the fixture ticker with a double Gameweek this week. For that reason it could be wise to invest in one of their most reliable defenders in terms of minutes, Manuel Akanji (£5m). Arsenal also double this week so investing in one of their cheaper defensive options in Ben White (£4.7m) could also benefit managers.

Newcastle have the best defence in the league this season. They also face one of the worst attacks in Bournemouth in Gameweek 23. It could be a huge problem for both rank and mini-league position excluding one of the best assets in the game, Kieran Trippier (£6.1m). The full back continues to dominate distribution stats amongst all players in his position.

Everton are improving under Sean Dyche which makes their defensive options more appealing moving forward. It is unlikely he will be needed but James Tarkowski (£4.2m) has attacking threat from set pieces and against a poor recent Liverpool, could do well if needed off the bench.

Wolves defender Hugo Bueno (£3.9m) is one of the cheapest defenders in the game and helps enable funds for the pricier options within our teams.

Midfielders

No midfielder has created more chances or big chances than Kevin De Bruyne (£12.4m) this season. After failing to start the last games but featuring, the Belgian looks set to start both matches in the double Gameweek ahead.

In the last six matches Arsenal rank first for shots in the box (73) and second for attempts on goal (101) so investing in their attack could be key, especially with a double Gameweek ahead. In the same period Martin Ødegaard (£7m) ranks second amongst midfielders for attempts on goal(19), so could be a great addition.

No team has scored more goals than Brighton in the last six games (15). They face a Crystal Palace team who rank the joint second worst for goals conceded (11), the worst for shots in the box conceded (78) and the worst for shots on target conceded (39). Because of this the in-form Kaoru Mitoma (5.2m) should be making every draft.

Marcus Rashford (£7.2m) has had more attempts on goal in the last six matches than any other midfielder (24). He faces a Leeds team who rank the third worst team in the league for big chances conceded (17) in the same period.

Fulham midfielder Andreas Pereira (£4.4m) sits first on the substitute bench and has been one of the best enablers in the game this season. He will only feature if any of the other attackers fail to feature.

Forwards

Erling Haaland (£12.2m) is the highest scoring player in the game, dominates several of the key offensive data points and is the standout captaincy option in Gameweek 23. With two games ahead it could be essential to include him.

Arsenal’s impressive offensive stats and double Gameweek mean it could be beneficial to double up on the front line. Eddie Nketiah (£6.7m) ranks joint second amongst all forwards for shots inside the box (20) and third for big chances total (seven).

No player in the league has had more attempts on goal than Tottenham’s Harry Kane (£11.7m) in the last six matches (28). He comes up against a Leicester team who have conceded more goals than any other side in the same period (12).