Updated 18 September 2026. Gameweek 5 is a legitimate Free Hit window because Nottingham Forest, Everton, Manchester City and Newcastle all have attractive one-week fixtures.
Official FPL guidance specifically lists GW5 as a possible Free Hit week, while the official Scout Selection triples up on Nottingham Forest and doubles on both Manchester City and Everton.
That does not mean every manager should activate the chip.
The Free Hit is strongest when your normal XI is far away from the best one-week XI.
OneFPL GW5 Free Hit draft
Formation: 3-5-2
| Pos | Player / slot | Price | GW5 fixture | Why |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| GK | Donnarumma | £5.5m | Sunderland (H) | City clean-sheet route |
| DEF | Tarkowski | £6.1m | Ipswich (H) | Clean sheet + set pieces + DefCon |
| DEF | Murillo | £5.5m | Coventry (H) | DefCon + set-piece threat |
| DEF | Lewis Hall | £5.2m | Hull (H) | Set pieces + attacking full-back role |
| MID | Saka | £9.5m | Brighton (A) | Premium goal threat |
| MID | Gibbs-White | £8.0m | Coventry (H) | Forest talisman + set pieces |
| MID | Mbeumo | £7.9m | Fulham (A) | Elite midfielder shot volume |
| MID | Rogers | £7.7m | Brentford (A) | Returns in each of first four GWs |
| MID | Dewsbury-Hall | £6.5m | Ipswich (H) | Everton attacking route |
| FWD | Haaland (C) | £15.5m | Sunderland (H) | Best captaincy environment |
| FWD | Delap | £5.5m | Coventry (H) | Cheap Forest forward with shot volume |
| BENCH | £4.0m GK | £4.0m | — | Budget slot |
| BENCH | £4.0m DEF | £4.0m | — | Budget slot |
| BENCH | £4.0m DEF | £4.0m | — | Budget slot |
| BENCH | £4.5m FWD | £4.5m | — | Budget slot |
Total structure: approximately £99.4m.
The exact bench names matter less on a one-week Free Hit than the starting XI, but all selected players should still be valid squad members before confirming.
Captain: Haaland
Manchester City host Sunderland.
Haaland has:
- 15 shots in the box,
- seven big chances,
- four goals across the last three league Gameweeks,
- and a complete rest in City's 5-0 EFL Cup win over Norwich.
That final point matters.
The earlier Triple Captain concern was whether Haaland would carry a heavy Thursday workload into Sunday.
He did not play.
That makes him the clear Free Hit captain.
Use Captains for the final live comparison.
Latest FPL news
Why triple Nottingham Forest?
Forest host Coventry.
Official FPL's own GW5 team uses:
- Murillo,
- Gibbs-White,
- Delap.
The logic is strong.
Murillo
He has already collected six defensive-contribution points and adds set-piece threat.
Coventry have struggled badly for goals.
Gibbs-White
He has been directly involved in three of Forest's four league goals.
He also carries set pieces and possible penalty involvement.
Delap
At £5.5m he makes the expensive midfield possible.
Official FPL notes that he is averaging a shot roughly every 23.5 minutes, close to Haaland's rate.
On a normal transfer, you may not want three Forest players.
On Free Hit, you only need the fixture once.
Why double Everton?
Everton host Ipswich.
Ipswich have conceded at least twice in each of their last four matches across all competitions according to official Scout analysis.
Tarkowski
He combines:
- clean sheets,
- set-piece threat,
- defensive contributions.
Dewsbury-Hall
He gives direct attacking exposure without using a forward slot.
If you prefer Thierno Barry, you can swap the structure to 3-4-3.
Why Lewis Hall?
Newcastle host Hull.
Hall gives:
- set pieces,
- defensive-contribution potential,
- attacking full-back upside.
The concern is Newcastle conceding four at Leeds last week.
That is why he sits behind the City/Forest/Everton routes but still makes the one-week draft.
Why Saka despite Brighton away?
Free Hit does not mean every player needs a green fixture.
Saka has:
- three league goals,
- five big chances,
- 10 shots in the box,
- penalty duty evidence,
- and a full midweek rest.
Those are elite FPL signals.
Why Mbeumo over Bruno?
Mbeumo costs much less.
Official FPL data has him on:
- five big chances,
- 11 shots in the box.
That is more shots in the box than any midfielder and joint-top for big chances.
On Free Hit, the £4.1m saving from Bruno can strengthen several other positions.
Why Rogers?
Rogers is the most-bought player of GW5.
More importantly, he has returned in each of Chelsea's first four league matches.
João Pedro remains in contention for Brentford, so Chelsea's final attacking structure is still worth monitoring.
Should you actually play Free Hit in GW5?
Use it if:
- your normal XI has several poor fixtures;
- you have multiple injuries/doubts;
- you are far from Haaland + Forest/Everton exposure;
- your ideal one-week XI is very different from your actual team.
Save it if:
- you already own Haaland, Rogers, Forest/Everton assets;
- two free transfers can solve the main problems;
- you expect blanks/doubles to create a larger future advantage.
The official FPL chip guide also highlights GW9 and GW12 as future possibilities.
Read Best Free Hit Gameweeks.
Free Hit versus Wildcard
Use the Free Hit for a temporary problem.
Use the Wildcard for a permanent squad problem.
If you want most of these players beyond GW5, a Wildcard may make more sense.
The long international break before GW6 also gives Wildcard managers additional injury and price information.
Free Hit versus banked transfers
Managers can bank up to five free transfers.
If three or four normal transfers can create a similarly strong XI without destroying future flexibility, the Free Hit can be saved.
Test both versions in the Transfer Planner.
Final Friday checks
Before confirming:
- Check Team News.
- Confirm João Pedro/Chelsea news.
- Confirm any late flags.
- Set Haaland captain.
- Order the bench.
- Make sure you really want to spend the chip — Free Hit cannot be undone once confirmed.
OneFPL verdict
GW5 is a credible Free Hit, not a mandatory Free Hit.
If you use it, target the fixture concentration:
Haaland + Forest triple-up + Everton double-up + high-ceiling midfielders.
If your normal team already looks similar, save the chip.
