With nine days until the Gameweek 28 deadline, FPL managers finally have a chance to relax and revisit their decisions after a hectic week in the English Premier League. Despite the chaotic fixture congestion, the last few Gameweeks have been brilliant for my team. My rank improved from 735,692 in Gameweek 24 to 384,933 at the tail end of Gameweek 27.

My patience with my Double Gameweek 26 team was rewarded and then some. Liverpool took full advantage of a Leeds side having severe trouble keeping the ball out of the back of their net. Trent Alexander-Arnold netted six points for a clean sheet and Andy Robertson provided 13 points, racking up two assists and a bonus point along with his clean sheet. Finally, the undisputed Fantasy Premier League king, Mohamed Salah, justified my use of the triple captain chip by scoring two and dishing out an assist to go along with two bonus points in the 6-0 rout. This 18 point haul, when combined with his 10 point performance against Norwich earlier in the Gameweek and multiplied by the triple captain chip, meant Salah gave my team a ridiculous 84 points. Despite Arsenal’s Bukayo Saka, Kieran Tierney and Aaron Ramsdale all blanking in their second game, my team totalled 144 points for the Gameweek, justifying the 12-point hit I took to bring in Salah, Robertson and Tierney.

Moving on to Gameweek 27, my free hit team is off to a fabulous start. The squad was tweaked slightly from my initial drafts, and the minor changes have made all the difference. In the back, João Cancelo picked up a clean sheet and all three bonus points in Manchester City’s 1-0 win against Everton. The Burnley duo of Nick Pope and Ben Mee have failed to pay dividends so far. Yet, they still have a game against Leicester to secure a clean sheet. Finally, Manchester United’s Diogo Dalot didn’t play in the team’s 0-0 draw with Watford, so I’ll be getting eight points from Southampton outside-back Tino Livramento off my bench.

In midfield, I entrusted Raheem Sterling, who has been in superb form lately, with the captain’s armband this week—but he failed to deliver. Another mistake that I made was selecting Jadon Sancho, who didn’t start but came off the bench to earn just one point for my team. However, I chose to go against the crowd and picked Phil Foden over Riyad Mahrez this week, a decision that panned out perfectly after Foden scored and Mahrez failed to start, coming on late for a one-point display. Dejan Kulusevski was another huge differential for me. I really liked the idea of picking three Tottenham attackers against Leeds, and the Swede delivered alongside Son Heung-min as both of them scored.

Tottenham striker Harry Kane didn’t miss out on the action either, providing a goal and an assist in a comfortable 4-0 win. Wout Weghorst rounded out my team. Like his Burnley teammates, Weghorst has another chance to get some points after blanking against Crystal Palace. Overall, the free hit has been a huge success, as my team sits on 66 points with three players left to play on Monday.

Looking ahead to Gameweek 28, I recommend waiting until we get closer to the deadline to make any transfers. If Chelsea win their FA cup match against Luton Town this week, they’ll double in Gameweek 28, playing Burnley and Norwich, two teams in the relegation zone. This would make Antonio Rüdiger a great option, along with his teammate Reece James if he is deemed fit enough to play in both games. I’ll also be looking at Aston Villa midfielder Jacob Ramsey, who costs just £4.8 and plays Leeds and Southampton in his double Gameweek.