The busy Christmas period of the 2025/26 Fantasy Premier League (FPL) season has now passed, giving managers the chance to take stock and plan ahead for the next block of fixtures.
With managerial changes at Chelsea and Manchester United, the January transfer window underway, and players returning from the Africa Cup of Nations, Gameweek 22 presents a prime opportunity to activate the second FPL Wildcard.
In this guide, we use Fantasy Football Fix’s AI-powered Assistant Manager to build the best FPL Wildcard team for Gameweek 22, designed to maximise points across the upcoming fixtures.
This Wildcard draft focuses on fixture strength, rotation management, and long-term value — offering a clear advantage over managers relying on individual transfers alone.
The AI-powered Assistant Manager tool helps you create a fully tailored FPL team based on your own strategy.
Whether you want to exclude specific players, load up on midfielders, or experiment with different formations, this smart tool adapts to your preferences.
As shown in the image above, managers can easily lock-in or exclude players such as Haaland, Thiago, Gabriel and Palmer, while adjusting the rest of the squad around them.
Once your criteria is set, the Assistant Manager generates an optimised FPL team designed to maximise points.
That said, the below team has been generated without any specific players included/excluded and is purely the best Wildcard squad for Gameweek 22 as per the Fix Algorithm.
Defensive Contribution Points (DEFCON) have been a major source of points for FPL defenders this season, and the Algorithm looks to maximise that by selecting five DEFCON-friendly picks in this Wildcard draft.
As the above image from our Stats Sandbox feature shows, Senesi and Lacroix are in the top three defenders for DEFCON this season. Meanwhile, Alderete (seven), Chalobah (nine) and Gabriel (five) have also hit the DEFCON threshold numerous times this season.
Meanwhile, no defender has been afforded more 'big chances' than Gabriel (six) and Chalobah (102) and Lacroix (98) are also in the top six for FPL points amongst defenders.
As the above image from our Fixture Difficulty Ratings shows, Chelsea, Palace and Sunderland are ranked in the top-three for 'Defence Difficulty' over the next six Gameweeks. Chelsea's fixtures in particular from Gameweek 24-27 meriting the defensive double up with Sánchez.
B.Fernandes is back to full fitness after an injury layoff and buying the Portuguese international early could prove to be a shrewd differential, especially if he is fielded in a more advanced role by their new manager.
As the below image from our Stats Sandbox feature shows, no midfielder has created more chances than his 56 this season.
Saka (7) and Rice (7) have combined for 14 FPL assists this season and are jointly ranked fourth for ‘big chances’ created (9). No FPL midfielder has scored more FPL points than Rice (102).
As the above image from our Stats Sandbox feature shows, Enzo is Chelsea's top FPL asset for both 'big chances' (10) and 'Expected Goals' (xG) this season and he is great value at just £6.4m ahead of Chelsea's great run of fixtures from Gameweek 24.
As the above image from our Player Points Projections feature shows, B. Fernandes, Saka, Rice, Enzo and Rogers are all in the top-six projected midfielders for the next six Gameweeks.
Haaland (163) and Thiago (120) are two of the top-three scoring FPL assets this season and the underlying numbers show that their points are very much merited.
As the above image from our Stats Sandbox feature shows, Haaland and Thiago are the top-two players for 'big chances' (36 and 26) and xG (18.97 and 15.15) by a significant margin.
Meanwhile, the injuries to Kluivert and Unal at Bournemouth should offer Kroupi Jr. opportunities to get gametime, this team will likely set-up in a 3-5-2 formation in most weeks and the Bournemouth forward can be a reliable substitute option when needed.
This Wildcard draft retains three Arsenal players and includes six of the top 10 scoring FPL assets (Haaland, Rice, Thiago, Gabriel, B.Fernandes and Chalobah).
It also includes significant investment in Chelsea for their incredible fixture run from Gameweek 24 on when the London side play West Ham, Wolves, Leeds and Burnley.
The Assistant Manager tool also lets you build your own custom Wildcard draft using FPL AI. You can prioritise certain positions, rotate defenders for fixtures, chase differentials, or tailor the squad to your own management style. Your perfect FPL Wildcard team may only be a couple of smart tweaks away.
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