In our previous article, FPL Legend Activates Wildcard — Here’s What He’s Planning, we looked at why elite manager Mark Mansfield — a seven-time top 10k finisher with a best rank of 227th — activated his Wildcard ahead of Gameweek 13.
Now we’re taking a closer look at his latest Wildcard draft, which already shows signs of refinement and a clear strategic direction.
Mark has leaned heavily into the fixture swings he flagged earlier in the week, going triple Manchester City and double Brentford. As Mark said before activating the chip, “When looking at the next three gameweeks, I'll try to play fixtures and expected minutes heavily,” and this updated draft reflects exactly that approach.
Importantly, this squad is far from final, and with midweek fixtures still to be played, Mark stressed that things can and probably will change.
Make sure you have push notifications enabled on the Elite XI: Team Reveal page so you can see every adjustment — including the final version before Saturday’s deadline.
Pope remains Mark’s preferred choice in goal, benefiting from a favourable run of fixtures and Newcastle’s consistently strong defensive numbers.
He has already kept five clean sheets — the fourth most in the league according to the Opta Stats Sandbox — and continues to deliver solid underlying performances. His 233 BPS is second only to Bruno Guimarães (238) at Newcastle, reinforcing his reliability at a crucial point in the season.
Mark said earlier in the week, “Alongside Haaland I'm locked on defenders from Arsenal and Palace,” and that core remains in place. It’s easy to see why. Arsenal have conceded a league-low six goals and have kept seven clean sheets, while Palace follow closely behind with nine goals conceded and six clean sheets. Unsurprisingly, eight of the top 10 scoring defenders come from these two sides.
However, this section of the squad is not guaranteed to stick. Mark admitted he doesn’t like the idea of benching an Arsenal defender, and is seriously considering downgrading one to free up money elsewhere in the team. This could be one of the final big decisions before the deadline.
✅ Man City’s 2nd-highest FPL points scorer (52)
— Fantasy Football Fix (@FantasyFootyFix) November 26, 2025
✅ 3 attacking returns
✅ Leeds at home next
Will O’Reilly make your GW12 squad? 👀 pic.twitter.com/qwZGlVb9mE
O’Reilly has become a standout option, and Mark clearly agrees. He featured prominently in our Gameweek 13: Who To Target article where he was compared to Muñoz and J.Timber. His blend of steady minutes and involvement in City’s attacking play aligns with Mark’s focus on reliability during the busy run. With a goal, two assists and regular starts, he offers stable access to a Manchester City attack that ranks second for attacking fixture difficulty over the next five weeks.
Foden remains part of the draft despite the minutes uncertainty Mark warned about earlier when he said, “There are some United assets I'd expect to make three starts, and somebody like Saka or Foden who I would be less sure on.”
Mbeumo is one of the players Mark has repeatedly described as “locked,” and the numbers back that confidence up.
A quick look at the Match Centre feature and Brentford’s stats over the last five Gameweeks shows just how central he is to their attack: he’s top for goals (4), expected goals (2.3), and shots on target (8).
Mark has shown unwavering faith in Minteh, and rightly so. The Brighton midfielder has the most assists in the league (7), sits third among midfielders for total points (61), and continues to be one of the most underpriced players available. His steady minutes and attacking output tick every box Mark prioritised when activating the Wildcard.
Mark’s earlier words were emphatic: “Alongside Haaland I'm locked…” There was never any question here. Haaland leads the league with 14 goals and possesses an unmatched xG of 11.83. The home fixture against Leeds makes him the natural captaincy choice for this Gameweek.
Thiago features up front, reflecting Mark’s commitment to targeting Brentford’s fixture against Burnley — a side that has conceded the most goals (18) in away matches this season and has yet to keep a clean sheet on the road. With nine goals already, Thiago offers the ideal blend of strong form and favourable fixtures, making him one of the standout picks in this Wildcard draft.
Mark has deliberately left money in the bank and has already shared part of his plan. He intends to bring in Bruno Fernandes in Gameweek 14, and has kept funds available to upgrade one of the midfielders when the time is right. His earlier reflections still apply: “Do I want two United midfielders against Palace? Can I trust Saka or Mateta's minutes next week?” These questions continue to shape his structure.
With midweek matches still to come, Mark emphasised that this draft is not finalised and could change significantly.
Here's Mark's latest draft from the Future Planner tool. This will look different from the draft currently visible on the Elite XI: Team Reveal page because Mark has value locked in certain players. He won’t move these players out until closer to the deadline, meaning the public version of his Wildcard will shift throughout the week.
Make sure push notifications are switched on so you can see every update — including the final version ahead of the Gameweek 13 deadline.
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