Fantasy Football Tips: FPL Gameweek 9 Guide and Captain Pick

Q: How many chips do FPL managers get?

FPL managers get eight chips across a season, two each of Wildcard, Free Hit, Bench Boost and Triple Captain. The first set must be used before the Gameweek 19 deadline in early January, after which any unused chips from that set expire and a fresh set becomes available for the second half.

Q: When is the Gameweek deadline?

The Gameweek deadline falls 90 minutes before the first match of that gameweek kicks off. Once it passes, your squad locks completely, so any transfers, captaincy changes or chip plays made after that point simply won't count for the gameweek ahead. This is especially important to know when there are Friday night games.

By Mark Fordham

Oct 27th, 2026 12:36 PM EDT

Fact Checked By Oliver Lines

Our fantasy football tips for Gameweek 9 have to start with the casualty list, and the biggest name on it is João Pedro. The Chelsea forward, owned by around 71% of managers, missed the defeat to Spurs with an injury, and manager Xabi Alonso says he will be out for a few weeks. That rules him out of Saturday’s visit of Manchester United, and he is the most sold player ahead of the deadline. Bukayo Saka and Antoine Semenyo are also out for weeks, Dominik and Szoboszlai is sidelined with a hamstring problem.

Gameweek 8 rewarded defenders, with Arsenal’s Gabriel (17) and Ezri Konsa (14, at £4.7m) leading a week that averaged just 27. Erling Haaland returned 8, or 16 with the armband, which kept most captains afloat.

The deadline is 11am on Saturday 31st October, 90 minutes before Chelsea host Manchester United, so you won’t see that team sheet. Thirteen clubs play in the Carabao Cup first, including Arsenal at Fleetwood and City at home to Brighton, who they face again on Saturday, so rotation could cloud your picks until the last press conferences.

Haaland at home to Brighton is the safe captain, and our Haaland betting odds page tracks his prices. There’s plenty else worth planning around across the weekend too, and not just at football betting sites.

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Three Players to Target This Gameweek

Evanilson - £6.2m vs Leeds, Saturday 31 October 3pm

This felt something like a do-or-die campaign for Evanilson, who probably hadn’t justified his £40m fee in his first two seasons at Bournemouth. However, he has already come up with four goals and three assists in the Premier League this season - just two fewer total goal involvements than he had in the entirety of last term.

He has scored in each of his last three league games for Bournemouth and has only failed to register a goal or assist in two of his eight starts. Leeds aren’t the easiest defence to break down, but they typically concede, and Evanilson looks the most likely candidate to be involved if the Cherries are to score.

You can back Evanilson to score anytime against Leeds at 2/1 with BetMGM.

Antonin Kinsky - £4.4m vs Crystal Palace, Saturday 31st October 5:30pm

Things may finally be turning around for Spurs, who have climbed up the table on the back of two wins. Most recently, they kept a clean sheet at Stamford Bridge thanks to four saves from Antonin Kinsky. Next up is a home game against a Crystal Palace side that’s managed just nine goals in the Premier League so far this season.

This could be the time to get Kinsky into your squad. Spurs play five times between now and a December 6th North London Derby. Four of those five opponents’ goal tallies for the season is currently in single digits.

You can back Antonin Kinsky to keep a clean sheet vs Crystal Palace at 8/5 with BOYLE Sports.

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Victor Lindelof - £4.5m vs Fulham, Saturday 31st October 8pm

To say that Fulham have struggled to score this season would be an understatement. They have eight goals in eight league games and scored more than once just twice so far. The bare stats would suggest that a Villa defender might not be the way to go having conceded 12 goals this season. However, they have conceded just two in their last four games in all competitions and appear to be flying. Lindelof has played every minute so far for Villa.

Back Aston Villa to keep a clean sheet against Fulham at 9/4 with bet365.

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Captaincy Pick of the Week

Morgan Rogers - £8m vs Manchester United, Saturday 31st October 12:30pm

You could choose from almost any of the Chelsea attackers as a good option this weekend, but over the last few weeks pace and power seems to be the one thing above all else the Manchester United backline struggles to handle. Rogers has that in abundance, and his direct running is going to cause them all manner of issues. He just gets the nod over Cole Palmer as he is playing slightly better than his counterpart over the last few weeks.

You can get 21/20 with Betfred on Morgan Rogers to score or assist against Manchester United.

Chip Strategy Watch

The chip clock still isn’t ticking loudly. Your first Wildcard, Free Hit, Bench Boost and Triple Captain all need using before the Gameweek 19 deadline in early January, so there is plenty of time to wait for the right week.

If you own João Pedro, Saka, Semenyo or Szoboszlai, you’re probably looking at more than one transfer. Because those injuries run for weeks, a Wildcard fixes the problem for good, whereas a Free Hit snaps your squad back to the injured version next week. We’d save the Free Hit for a blank or double gameweek.

Triple Captain and Bench Boost both carry rotation risk. Haaland at home to Brighton looks tempting, but City play Brighton in the Carabao Cup on Wednesday, and with so many clubs in cup action, a bench full of players who might not start is a tough sell for a Bench Boost.

Whatever you don’t use by the Gameweek 19 deadline vanishes, so plan around it rather than being surprised in December.

New Rules for 2026/27

A few changes have landed for this season, and you’ll want to be in the know about them rather than half-remembering from a headline.

Gameweek lockdown moved later: Scores used to become final an hour after the last match of a gameweek finished. Now that happens at 9am the following morning instead. It sounds like a small tweak but it gives Opta enough time to finalise bonus points and defensive contribution data, so don’t be hitting refresh on your FPL on the same night unless you want to be disappointed.

The Bonus Points System rebalanced: Full-backs and defensively minded attackers should see a bit more love from the algorithm this season. Be aware, though, Defensive Contributions themselves, the CBIT and CBIRT thresholds, haven't changed. That's a separate system and is staying exactly as it was.

A Price Change Predictor now exists officially: FPL will show you how close a player is to a price rise or fall based on transfer activity, rather than leaving you to guess from third-party sites like everyone's had to do for years.

There's a squad building assistant too: Answer a few quick questions about favourite club, how you like to split your budget, attack or defence, and it'll build you a starting squad. This is handy for anyone starting out, but seasoned managers will probably still want full control.

How to Play Fantasy Premier League

Starting from scratch isn't as difficult as it might seem once you know the shape of it. You get £100m to build a 15-player squad, split as two goalkeepers, five defenders, five midfielders and three forwards. The biggest thing to be aware of is that you can't have more than three players from any single club.

Each gameweek you pick a starting XI from that squad of 15, in a valid formation (any with one goalkeeper, at least three defenders, two midfielders and one forward) and name a captain whose points double for the week. Whoever you don't start sits on your bench as backup, only cashed in if you play the Bench Boost chip, or if one of your starters doesn’t play.

You get one free transfer every gameweek, and if you don't use it, it rolls over, up to a maximum of five banked at once. Anything beyond your free allowance costs four points each, so think carefully before making three panic transfers the week after a bad result.

Deadlines matter more than anything else in this game. Your squad locks 90 minutes before the first match of each gameweek kicks off, and once it's locked, that's it, no late changes, no exceptions for a shock injury news alert five minutes after the whistle. Build the habit of checking your team the night before rather than relying on a lunchtime scramble.

FPL Scoring System Explained

Every action on the pitch translates into points, and the value of that action often depends on which position your player plays. For instance, a defender scoring is going to be worth more points than a striker because of how less likely that is to happen. Here's the full breakdown.

Action	Points
Playing up to 60 minutes	1
Playing 60 minutes or more (excluding stoppage time)	2
Goal scored by a goalkeeper	10
Goal scored by a defender	6
Goal scored by a midfielder	5
Goal scored by a forward	4
Goal assist	3
Clean sheet by a goalkeeper or defender	4
Clean sheet by a midfielder	1
Every 3 shot saves by a goalkeeper	1
10 or more CBIT (defenders)	2
12 or more CBIRT (midfielders and forwards)	2
Penalty save	5
Penalty miss	-2
Bonus points for the best players in a match	1 to 3
Every 2 goals conceded by a goalkeeper or defender	-1
Yellow card	-1
Red card	-3
Own goal	-2

A goalkeeper scoring is worth more than any other position precisely because it happens so rarely. It's the game rewarding a real rarity rather than a typo. CBIT stands for clearances, blocked shots, interceptions and tackles. This is the defenders' route to a defensive contribution point. CBIRT adds recoveries into that mix for midfielders and forwards, since defensive work matters less to their usual job. Therefore, the bar sits slightly higher to compensate.

Your captain's points double automatically, and your vice-captain steps in and inherits that double if your actual captain doesn't play at all that gameweek. Bonus points come from an underlying algorithm weighing up everything a player did in a match. It is based on the player(s) who did best in a given game, no matter whether they scored a goal or not.

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Chips Explained

You get four chips, two of each across the season for a total of eight. Each one does something different to the others, so choose wisely when you plan on using them across the season.

Wildcard: Make unlimited transfers for that gameweek at no points cost. This is a full squad rebuild you'll get without burning through your bank of free transfers one at a time.
Free Hit: Also unlimited transfers, but only for a single gameweek. Once that gameweek's done, your squad snaps straight back to whatever it looked like before you played the chip. This is perfect for a blank gameweek where half your usual squad has no fixture at all or if there's a double gameweek you want to take advantage of.
Bench Boost: Every point scored by your bench that gameweek counts toward your total on top of your starting 11. It is only worth playing when your whole 15 has a decent chance of getting minutes and returning points.
Triple Captain: Your captain's points triple instead of double. Save it for your most explosive player in his single best fixture of the season, not just a random Tuesday because it felt like time to use it.

Fantasy Football Tips FAQs

What is Defensive Contribution scoring?

Defensive Contributions award two points when a defender reaches 10 or more combined clearances, blocked shots, interceptions and tackles in a match, known as CBIT. Midfielders and forwards need 12 or more of the same actions plus recoveries, known as CBIRT, since defensive work is less central to their usual role.

How many chips do FPL managers get?

When is the Gameweek deadline?

About the Author

Mark Fordham

More About Mark

Mark spent over a decade as a sports reporter and editor with Goal.com and Bleacher Report. He is now a Content Manager at Bookies.com covering all manner of sports from the Premier League and cricket to the NBA and NFL. Mark also has years of experience working in the online casino industry and knows how to rate a good one over a bad one.