Top three picks for FPL Gameweek 3

Every week David Munday will be sharing his top three picks for the Gameweek with us. Ahead of the first deadline of the season, David shares his top three picks for FPL Gameweek 3.

Gameweek 3 is often one of my favourites of the season. This is because that’s when I really start thinking about transfers, having usually rolled for Gameweek 2. With two rounds of matches in the bank, data is still relatively embryonic at this stage. But we certainly know more than we did at the start of August. That allows for slightly more analysis of the numbers. Anyone who knows me well enough knows it doesn’t that much more exciting than that. So here are my top three picks for FPL Gameweek 3 who have caught my eye so far.

Pascal Gross (£5.6m)

I’ve already talked Pascal Gross (£5.6m) up once this season but I’m going to do it again this week. Firstly, my interest in a Brighton attacker is fairly high based on their fixtures. When you sort the Fantasy Football Scout Fixture Ticker for attacking difficulty over the next six Gameweeks, Graham Potter’s side comes out top of the league. They face West Ham (away), Leeds (home), Fulham (away), Leicester (home), Bournemouth (away) and Crystal Palace (home).

While Gross was unable to follow up his Gameweek 1 double-figure haul against Newcastle, it wasn’t for lack of trying. The German midfielder has already been afforded three big chances this season – only two players in the Premier League have received more thus far.

Among Brighton players, he is behind only Danny Welbeck (£6.5m) for touches in the box, but had more big chances and shots on target than the centre-forward. Furthermore, no Seagull has played as many key passes in the first two matches. This makes him the club’s clear leader for a combination of goal and assist potential.

Annoyingly, I have no clear route to Gross for Gameweek 3 as I had to replace Leon Bailey (£4.9m) with Solly March (£5.0m) on Tuesday night to avoid the price drop. As soon as my team structure allows it, I am sure I will own Gross fairly soon this season.

Rodrigo (£6.1m)

It’s Chelsea up next for Leeds. But I’ve seen enough of Rodrigo (£6.1m) in the opening weeks of the season to back him to get something against the Blues. Thomas Tuchel’s men controlled possession in their London derby with Spurs, which is why the fact they conceded twice suggests to me their clean sheet potential isn’t as high as some might assume.

It is early days, but Chelsea have already given up four big chances so far. This puts them in the Premier League’s bottom seven for that statistic. Meanwhile, only one player has produced more shots in the box than Rodrigo in the first two Gameweeks. The Spaniard has even been playing as a deeper second striker behind Patrick Bamford (£7.5m) in that time and has still recorded more touches in the box than any other Leeds player.

Considering Bamford may miss out on Gameweek 3 thanks to his muscle injury, Rodrigo could play even more advanced against Chelsea. Although it’s worth saying his long-term appeal is actually the main draw here. Between Gameweeks 4 and 8, Leeds face Brighton (away), Everton (home), Brentford (away), Nottingham Forest (home) and Manchester United (away). With players such as this, getting there ahead of the curve can sometimes make the difference when it comes to the size of your green arrow. Many will be put off signing Rodrigo for a match with Chelsea but there’s a chance he could deliver all the same.

Neco Williams (£4.0m)

For all my talk of statistics, my reasons for drawing your attention to Neco Williams (£4.0m) are largely based on the eye test. On my Sunday stream for Fantasy Football Scout’s YouTube channel, I described him as a Poundland version of Trent Alexander-Arnold (£7.5m). I meant without too much disrespect. He has, after all spent a few years as the Englishman’s understudy, has the same desire to get forward, a similar question over his defensive capabilities. However, he is a cheaper price and he now plays for a smaller club. All of that is music to the ears of a Fantasy manager.

Against West Ham, I was very impressed with Williams’ forward runs and willingness to cross the ball. He didn’t get any returns in that match but I don’t think it’ll be too long until he starts delivering. And, of course, the beauty of his price allows for some rotation. After all, Nottingham Forest are going to concede more often than they’re going to keep clean sheets. Even with Dean Henderson (£4.5m) behind him there may not be many clean sheets.

I’ve had Williams since Gameweek 1 and am yet to start him. He goes into my first XI in place of Sven Botman (£4.5m) for Gameweek 3 as Forest travel to face a toothless Everton. Therefore he is one of my top three picks for FPL Gameweek 3, but I’ll bench him again for Gameweeks 4 and 5 when Steve Cooper’s men play Spurs (home) and Manchester City (away). But he may return for Bournemouth’s trip to the City Ground in Gameweek 6.