Our Gameweek 3 differentials column brings a trio of favourably priced midfielders for your consideration.
As usual, we’re only concentrating on Fantasy Premier League (FPL) picks with an ownership of 5% or less.
LEON BAILEY
- FPL ownership: 3.2%
- Price: £6.5m
- GW3-7 fixtures: lei | EVE | WOL | ips | MUN
Morgan Rogers (£5.1m) is playing better and is significantly cheaper than team-mate Leon Bailey (£6.5m), but there’s no denying the Jamaican’s effectiveness under Unai Emery.
In 2023/24, Bailey proved to be one of Aston Villa’s key men, with 10 goals and 11 assists.
He achieved that feat in just 22 starts and 2,126 minutes of football.
Villa’s upcoming schedule bodes well for further returns. In the next four Gameweeks, they visit promoted pair Leicester City and Ipswich Town, in addition to hosting Everton and Wolverhampton Wanderers.
The Foxes, in particular, have been poor at the back this season.
It’s early days, of course, but they’re bottom for shots in the box conceded. They’ve also been weaker down their left flank, conceding 13 key passes on that side of the pitch compared with only six down the right flank.
Above: Leicester City’s chances created conceded map in 2024/25
It indicates Bailey – who also has a share of set-pieces in his locker – can return in Gameweek 3, be it a goal or assist.
Villa are in UEFA Champions League action after the international break, heightening the risk of rotation.
However, Bailey is certainly worth considering for FPL managers eyeing up options in the midfield department, having racked up four attacking returns against the newly promoted clubs last season.
ANTOINE SEMENYO
- FPL ownership: 2.6%
- Price: £5.5m
- GW3-7 fixtures: eve | CHE | liv | SOU | lei
An old favourite, Antoine Semenyo (£5.5m) has already turned in a couple of eye-catching displays this season.
The 24-year-old scored in Gameweek 1, before registering an assist against Newcastle United last time out.
In that time, he’s racked up 12 shots, a joint league-leading tally with Eberechi Eze (£7.0m).
Above: Antoine Semenyo’s shot map in 2024/25
With two big chances created, it may not only be goals that the £5.5m midfielder rewards his owners.
Perfectly suited to Andoni Iraola’s 4-2-3-1, Semenyo started as the central striker against Nottingham Forest, but switched to a more familiar right-wing role in Gameweek 2, with Bournemouth’s record signing Evanilson (£6.0m) leading the line.
The Cherries’ schedule is admittedly tough right up until Gameweek 11, but in the next five, they visit Everton, then face promoted pair Southampton and Leicester in Gameweeks 6/7.
Semenyo has the shorter-term fixtures to enable him to fulfil his attacking potential, then. He’s certainly signalled his intent over the opening two Gameweeks.
SAM SZMODICS
- FPL ownership: 0.4%
- Price: £6.0m
- GW3-7 fixtures: FUL | bha | sou | AVL | whu
Ipswich Town have faced both Liverpool and Manchester City so far, so it’s difficult to assess them.
That said, they’ve made some decent additions over the summer, including former Blackburn Rovers man Sam Szmodics (£6.0m).
The 28-year-old enjoyed the most prolific season of his career in 2023/24, scoring 33 goals across all competitions and earning the Championship Golden Boot.
He also assisted four times.
In Gameweek 2, Szmodics marked his full Ipswich debut with a goal at the Etihad. It was his only shot, but the fact he picked off right where he left off in the Championship is hugely encouraging.
With his ability to exploit spaces and drift into channels, Szmodics’ skill set should perfectly suit Kieran McKenna, who used him in a No 10 role in behind Liam Delap (£5.5m) last week.
“We got off to a fantastic start and scored a great goal in the transition. That was the exact type of goal we wanted to score today, with their line being high and Sammie [Szmodics] and Omari [Hutchinson] making runs in behind. He finishes it off well.” – Kieran McKenna
Easier challenges now await, with the Tractor Boys top of the Season Ticker in Gameweeks 3-10.
First up is Fulham, who Ipswich should be able to open up, especially if Marco Silva persists with Sasa Lukic (£5.0m) as his lone defensive midfielder.
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