GW3 Waiver Wire Targets

With this article being written on Monday (31st Aug), Tuesday's deadline could see a host of new names that we would want to include in our waiver priorities for the week. If your waivers run on the usual default schedule, any new faces arriving late Monday or on Tuesday will process on Friday. Keep an eye out for who may come in as there could be some season-long pickups coming in last minute - I am looking at you Julian Alvarez.

New Transfers

Since we published last week's episode there have been a few transfers involving players that were unowned or had low ownership. Here are thoughts on each.

Liam Delap - 39% - Forest

Liam Delap with Ipswich form is someone you'd want to own. Chelsea's version of Liam Delap is not. If you are a forward-needy team, you could do worse than taking a chance that Delap is the answer for Glasner up top, but we don't think you need to make room by dropping another player you like. Stash if you have the bench space, or grab him and start him if you need a forward - he should be the starter quickly. I prefer other forwards referenced below.

El Hadji Malick Diouf - 6% - Brentford

The low ownership is down to timing as Diouf likely has not cleared waivers in your league since being added to Fantrax. This will be your one chance to get Diouf. He will likely replace Keane Lewis-Potter almost immediately, who is not a natural left-back. Rico Henry is another player that would compete for this spot, but Diouf's ability and impact at West Ham last season make him feel a very trusty pickup. In the Premier League last season Diouf ranked 98th percentile in accurate crosses, 86th percentile in key passes, 90th percentile in defensive contributions and provided 6 assists - all for a struggling West Ham team. This is the exact kind of all-action full-back you want in a fantasy team. One of three priority defender adds this week.

Exequiel Palacios - 1% - Ipswich

Part of Xabi Alonso's Invincibles team at Bayer Leverkusen, the CM joined Ipswich for £19m. He came off the bench on the weekend against Man United and scored 5.5 ghost points in 28 minutes in a game Man United were in full control of. Could be an under-the-radar pickup in most leagues, someone who should ghost well.

Matias Fernandez-Pardo - 0% - Newcastle

As of the time of writing Pardo was not official, but looks all but done. The £55m move brings in the forward from Lille, who spent most of last year playing striker but can play across the front four spots. Whether he plays 9 with Wissa continuing in the 10, we shall have to see. With Osula out injured, Woltemade potentially off on loan and Jaissle's history over the past few weeks of throwing his signings into the line-up right away, Pardo could be in line for a good workload quickly. He could be worth a pickup with Newcastle's forwards showing they can score well.

Defenders

Defence is the strongest position in the waiver wire again this week, as it will likely be all year.

Amar Dedic - 18% - Newcastle

Along with Diouf and Khalaili, Dedic would be the other priority defender add. An assist against Spurs followed a two-assist performance mid-week in the League Cup. Against Spurs, Dedic had licence to push high up the field, with Nico Gonzalez routinely looking for him with quick, long diagonal balls. This almost led to a goal early in the game, and did lead to Elanga's opening goal - Dedic with the assist. 24 points (11 ghost) earned through both attacking and defensive stats - this was the type of performance you draft in the earlier rounds.

Anan Khalaili - 22% - Crystal Palace

With Munoz gone to Forest, the next man up for Palace is Anan Khalaili. He followed 10.75 ghost points in 35 minutes off the bench in GW1 with 7.5 points (all ghost) against City, despite conceding 3 goals whilst he was on the field and receiving a yellow card. That means Khalaili racked up 13.5 points in as hard a match-up as he could get. He leads the league in tackles, 2 above the nearest competitor (Neco Williams). If you can grab Khalaili, do it now. There won't be many more weeks before his ownership climbs.

John Egan - 5% - Hull (and other Hull defenders)

I think it might be time to buy into the Hull defensive hype. We said on the pod after GW1 that Hull defenders are a great add week by week, on the right match-up, when you need a fill-in here and there. I might be upgrading them to longer-term holds. John Egan leads the league in clearances (27) and there is not a close second. Hull had to play their entire Championship season with a solid defensive shape and counter-attacking. Now they are in the Premier League they have not had to change their style of play at all, and it is showing up on the stat sheets. Egan has averaged 9.13 ghost points over the first 2 games and was largely overlooked as people chased the higher scores from Ajayi and Mendy. Those two relied on goals for their big GW1 scores, but Egan is quietly racking up those sweet ghost points. I would be happy to take any of these defenders, especially with Aston Villa at home up next. In order, I would go Egan, Giles, Mendy, Ajayi.

Kristoffer Ajer - 34% - Brentford

Ajer saw a huge increase in ownership last week, as he should. We were big fans of him on our waiver article last week, and remain so. He posted 11.75 points, all ghost, in GW2, with Sunderland and Bournemouth up next. Pick him and play him confidently.

Other targets:

If those players are gone in your league, or you want to look elsewhere, here are a few other names we have been tracking.

• Leif Davis (39%, Ipswich) - A goal, 2 SOT and 1 key pass in a bad game for Ipswich. We know Leif can be a useful fantasy player.
• Antonio Silva (27%, Bournemouth) - Outshone by James Hill in GW2, but quietly put up a better showing with 8.5 ghost points after not living up to expectations in GW1. Better options elsewhere right now, but Bournemouth CBs often prove valuable.
• Jorrel Hato (18%, Chelsea) - Had a lovely assist against Brighton, but I'm unsure how secure his hold on that spot is.
• Vitalii Mykolenko (29%, Everton) - Always a good weekly pickup if you need a last-minute starter, averaged 8.5 ghost points over the first 2 weeks. Game-time pickup rather than a waiver wire claim.
• Ethan Pinnock (1%, Coventry) - A DefCon master in previous years in Fantrax - if you were to get anything near that you would love to own Pinnock. Caution here given Coventry do not look solid defensively, so I would much rather have the Hull defenders.

Midfielders

If you missed out on the rush on Brentford midfielders last week, I feel for you. The interesting options this week are far thinner than defenders. Palacios (mentioned above) would be my leading midfield target this week.

James McAtee - 22% - Forest

Don't be put off by McAtee's 5 points in GW2. He played far better than that return suggests, awarded Player of the Match over 88 minutes against a tough Liverpool side that Forest almost beat. He was top 20 in both key passes and corners taken, and seems to have claimed that CM spot left behind by Elliot Anderson. If this is close to his floor, McAtee could be shaping up to be a longer-term claim. The next few weeks will tell us, but I would happily have him on my bench at minimum.

Malick Yalcouye - 3% - Brighton

With the unfortunate injury to Hinshelwood keeping him out for the next few weeks, it was new signing Yalcouye who got the start at the 10 for Brighton. I had expected to see the ghost of Matt O'Riley, but instead Yalcouye got the nod and really performed. Yalcouye played 73 minutes and racked up 20.5 points (11.5 ghost), showing up in every column. Yalcouye's average position was the furthest forward of all Brighton players, and he completed 4 dribbles and led Brighton in SOT. If he can lock down this role until Hinshelwood is back, then he is definitely someone you can throw into your line-up. Brighton have scored 7 goals in their first 2 games (plus 4 midweek in Europe) - you want a piece of this, but predicting the starters, especially at 10, is a difficult task.

Noah Sadiki - 16% - Sunderland

Truthfully I would rather look elsewhere, but there are so few appealing midfielders that are under 60% owned this week. Sidiki could only average 4 ghost points per start in 33 starts last season, but has started this season much better. He is at the top of the charts for successful dribbles over the first 2 weeks, as well as being on corner-taking duties (5 through the first 2 games), something he did not have last year. Spurs, Villa and Coventry up next. If this is a sign of improved ghost performance, he could be a viable pickup.

Forwards

On top of Delap and Pardo mentioned in the new transfers section, there are a few forwards we are targeting this week. This position is always scarce, but there are a couple of longer-term adds this week.

Abdul Fatawu - 49% - Ipswich

If you want on board the Fatawu train, you need to do it now. He won't be available after this waiver period. Another strong ghost-point performance (8.25) with the added assist meant Fatawu racked up 14.25 points in a game their opponents dominated. With 5 key passes through the first 2 games, there is a lot to like in Fatawu's fantasy profile. He is in the 99th percentile for both dribbles and crosses through the first 2 weeks, so grab him now before he is gone.

Dan Ndoye - 31% - Forest

He seems to have secured the second CAM spot alongside MGW in the Forest line-up. Under Glasner, owning one of his starting CAMs has usually been a profitable exercise. With 17 points (8 ghost) against Liverpool and a well spread-out stat line, he could be worth an add this week. With Spurs up next, then Villa, Coventry and Palace, the fixtures look friendly for both Ndoye and Forest.

Taiwo Awoniyi - 18% - Coventry

If you are going to pick up Awoniyi then I would not play him in GW3 away to City. But longer-term, Awoniyi could be an option to own. The #9 role should be his with Wright out injured, and he scored 9.75 points (all ghost) against Hull. If you can grab a 9 that can bring you a decent ghost-point floor, you would be very happy. Minutes will be secure, but we are yet to know whether Coventry will create chances regularly in games against teams around them in the league.

Charalampos Kostoulas - 17% - Brighton

Having scored well in his limited appearances last year, Kostoulas appears to be the option at striker until Rutter is back from injury. Rutter does not appear to be out for long, but for as long as he is out, I want to start the #9 for Brighton, given the number of goals they have scored so far this season. I would happily roll the dice on Promise David if he starts instead against Leeds in GW3.

Honourable Mention

Goalkeeper - Konstantinos Tzolakis - 40% - Hull

We don't normally cover keepers in our waiver wire section, but Tzolakis has the type of profile you would want to pick up and roll with for as long as it continues. Tzolakis has the third most saves (behind Petrovic and Hornicek) and Hull seem to know how to eke out a clean sheet. Well worth picking up. Hornicek would be another keeper I would roll with if Tzolakis is unavailable.