Fantasy Premier League: Gameweek 3 Preview – Captain pick, “Who’s hot, Who’s not?” and Ones To Watch

With a record 44 goals across the league last weekend, fantasy teams with Everton and Tottenham attackers thrived whereas Man Utd and Chelsea backers (myself included) languished.

Although Gameweek 2 was an outlier for goals scored, there’s certainly an argument for spending big in midfield and up front as shown by the majority of this week’s picks. Gameweek 3 deadline: Saturday 26th September at 11am.

Follow the in-house Yorkshire Post Fantasy Football expert John Mount (@Gameweek38) on Twitter for more FPL insight.

Captain Picks

Who's hot - Tottenham Hotspur's Harry Kane (right) and Heung-min Son (Picture: PA)Who's hot - Tottenham Hotspur's Harry Kane (right) and Heung-min Son (Picture: PA)
Who's hot - Tottenham Hotspur's Harry Kane (right) and Heung-min Son (Picture: PA)

Kevin De Bruyne (£11.6m) vs Leicester (H)

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The PFA player of the year kicked off his campaign in predictable fashion by scoring a goal and providing an assist against a strong Wolves team who could be fighting for a Champions League spot this season.

Taking up the ‘no. 10’ role, no Man City player took more shots than the Belgian and the responsibility of penalty duties makes him an extra tasty pick.

Leicester have confirmed that they are without Wilfred Ndidi for the foreseeable future, which will compromise the Foxes both defensively and going forward.

Who's Hot - Everton's James Rodriguez (Picture: PA)Who's Hot - Everton's James Rodriguez (Picture: PA)
Who's Hot - Everton's James Rodriguez (Picture: PA)

Harry Kane (£10.5m) vs Newcastle (H)

A captain pick should have good form and a good fixture - Harry Kane has both.

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The Englishman bagged 21 points last week via a goal and four assists, scored away in Macedonia on Thursday and has five goals in nine games against Newcastle across his career.

After re-signing Bale and buying a new left back, it’ll be interesting to see how Spurs operate as they strive to make amends for losing their last home game.

Leicester City's Harvey Barnes (Picture: PA)Leicester City's Harvey Barnes (Picture: PA)
Leicester City's Harvey Barnes (Picture: PA)

Mo Salah (£12.1m) vs Arsenal (H)

Although he blanked against Chelsea last weekend, there’s a strong case to captain Salah every time he plays at home.

Last season he scored 79% of his league goals at Anfield (15) opposed to just four goals away from home. The Egyptian scored a brace in this fixture last season and tops the charts for shots, shots inside the box and chances created across the league so far.

The Form Guide - Who’s Hot?

Everton’s Attack

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With the addition of James Rodriguez (mid, £7.6m) who’s creating an average of 3.5 chances per game, Carlo Ancelotti’s new-look Everton team is full of attacking firepower.

Dominic Calvert-Lewin (forward, £7.3m) and Richarlison (forward, £8m) had the most shots in the box across the league last weekend and between the trio, they made 4 goals, 4 assists and 41 points.

With Crystal Palace and Brighton up next, these players show serious value and cannot be overlooked.

Harvey Barnes (Leicester, £7.0m)

Second only to Calvert-Lewin for shots in the box last weekend, Harvey Barnes has started the season as Leicester’s most productive attacker with ten shots inside the box (over three times Vardy’s tally) and five shots on target (over double Vardy).

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No Leicester player has created more chances or had as many touches in the opposition penalty area either, so with West Ham and Villa at home after Man City away this weekend, for £7m, he looks well worth the money.

Aleksandar Mitrovic (Fulham, £6.0m)

Fulham’s talisman scored his first goal of the season against Leeds last weekend and has a good chance to add to his tally against Aston Villa. Villa had the second worst defence in the league last season and were only a penalty save away from conceding vs 10-man Sheffield United last week. No player has had more shots on target than the Serb so far this season.

The Form Guide - Who’s Not?

Anthony Martial (Man United, £9.0m)

A striker taking just one shot in a game is poor but a striker in a Champions League level team taking one shot in a home game against a team that finished 14th last season indicates deeper problems.

Although Man United have happy memories of travelling to Brighton, who they beat 3-0 away from home last season; with games against Tottenham, Chelsea and Arsenal in October, this may already be Martial’s last chance for him to prove his worth.

Southampton’s Defence

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It looks like Ralph Hassenhuttl insists on playing a high defensive line this season, which has brought them nothing but poor form.

Albeit their first two games were against teams who excel on the counterattack, Southampton have conceded the second most big chances so far this season and xG suggests that their goalkeeper should be doing better.

Ones to Watch (Less than 5% ownership)

Daniel Podence (Wolves, £5.6m, 4.5%)

Wolves’ incredible fixture list cannot be ignored. The next time they play a team which finished above the last season is in November so they realistically could win their next five games. As Diogo Jota has left the club, there’s space in Wolvees’ starting eleven for Podence to make his own. Starting the season with two assists in two games, he’s likely to be favoured to play alongside Jimenez.

Edouard Mendy (Chelsea, £5.0m, 0.1%)

Joining Chelsea from Rennes, Mendy follows Petr Cech’s footsteps but does not have his huge boots to fill. The Frenchman is due to replace Kepa as Chelsea’s number one and models show that 99% of top tier keepers are better than the Spaniard, which could mean more clean sheets for the Blues.

The Explainer

Transfers

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After picking your initial squad, you receive 1 free transfer each Gameweek. Each additional transfer you make in the same Gameweek will deduct 4 points from your score.

If you do not use your free transfer, you are able to make an additional free transfer the following Gameweek. If you do not use this saved free transfer in the following Gameweek, it will be carried over until you do. You can never have more than 1 saved transfer.

For example, since you get 1 free transfer per gameweek, if you make no transfers between gameweeks, you will have 2 free transfers in preparation for the next gameweek. You will incur a 4 point hit per transfer over your free transfer allowance.

Point Scoring

During the season, your fantasy football players will be allocated points based on their performance in the Premier League. Remember, every week your captain scores double points, so pick them wisely!

Points Action

1 For playing up to 60 minutes

2 For playing 60 minutes or more (excluding stoppage time)

6 For each goal scored by a goalkeeper or defender

5 For each goal scored by a midfielder

4 For each goal scored by a forward

3 For each goal assist

4 For a clean sheet by a goalkeeper or defender

1 For a clean sheet by a midfielder

1 For every 3 shot saves by a goalkeeper

5 For each penalty save

-2 For each penalty miss

1 to 3 Bonus points for the best players in a match

-1 For every 2 goals conceded by a goalkeeper or defender

-1 For each yellow card

-3 For each red card

-2 For each own goal

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For more information on the rules of the game, visit https://fantasy.premierleague.com/help/rules

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