Still Searching: Coventry, Crystal Palace & Tottenham - GW3 FPL Preview & Player Picks
While Manchester City and Hull City celebrate perfect starts, three clubs sit rooted to the bottom of the table without a point to their name: Coventry City, Crystal Palace, and Tottenham Hotspur. All three lost their Round 2 fixtures, but the manner of those defeats varies enormously. This post breaks down what went wrong for each side, whether any of their players are worth a punt in FPL, and which assets are best avoided until form turns around.
Current Premier League Standings (Bottom 4)
| Pos | Team | P | W | D | L | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 17 | Aston Villa | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | -4 | 0 |
| 18 | Coventry City | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | -4 | 0 |
| 19 | Crystal Palace | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | -5 | 0 |
| 20 | Tottenham Hotspur | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | -5 | 0 |
All three teams remain winless, but a closer look at the underlying data shows their struggles come from very different places — one is short on quality, one is short on finishing, and one is arguably the unluckiest team in the league so far.
1. Coventry City: Historic Home Defeat, No Standout Assets
Round 2 Review: Coventry City 0-1 Hull City
Coventry suffered their first home Premier League defeat in more than 25 years, undone by a Liam Millar strike in the 82nd minute. FotMob's extended match stats weren't fully published for this fixture, but the available data paints a clear picture: Coventry dominated territory in their own defensive third (35% low, 32% middle, only 16% in the attacking third) while Hull carved out the more dangerous areas (46% in Hull's attacking third).
Key Stats Breakdown (FotMob)
- Shots on Target: just 2.0 per match — dead last (19th of 19 ranked teams) in the entire league.
- Touches in Opponent's Box: 23 per match — 16th in the league, well below the mid-table pack.
- Total Distance: 113.3 km/match — a modest 15th in the league, suggesting work-rate alone hasn't been the issue.
- Best individual performer: Jay Dasilva (7.4 rating), the lone bright spot on an otherwise disappointing afternoon.
Notable Player Performance
| Player | Pos | Rating | G | A | xG+xA | Min |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jay Dasilva | DEF | 7.4 | 0 | 0 | 0.23 | 90' |
Squad & Injury News
Recent Setup (4-2-3-1):
Rushworth; van Ewijk, Thomas, Amenda, Jay da Silva; Onyeka, Grimes; Tchaouna, Rudoni, Thomas-Asante; Awoniyi
Injuries: Hayden and Woolfenden (knee) are OUT, along with Wright (quad) — described as the club's only first-team absentee beyond those two, suggesting a relatively healthy squad overall despite the results.
Coventry City: Verdict — Avoid For Now
Coventry are the only one of these three teams with zero players on the Fantasy Football Scout expert watchlist. Combined with the league's worst shots-on-target rate, there's currently no statistical or expert-backed case for rostering any Coventry asset. New signing Taiwo Awoniyi up front is one to monitor as he settles in, but there's no data yet to support an early pick. Best to watch from the sidelines until the underlying numbers improve.
2. Crystal Palace: Plenty of Running, Not Enough Cutting Edge
Round 2 Review: Crystal Palace 1-4 Manchester City
A harsh scoreline at Selhurst Park, with Manchester City's superior quality showing through Erling Haaland's brace and a Rayan Cherki double off the bench. Palace's xG of 0.66 against City's 2.21 underlines the gulf in this particular match, though it came against the league's most dominant side.
Key Stats Breakdown (FotMob)
- Shots on Target: 2.5 per match — 18th in the league, part of a wider finishing problem.
- Total Distance: 116.8 km/match — a surprisingly strong 5th in the league. Palace are putting the physical work in; the end product just isn't following.
- Touches in Opponent's Box: 28 per match — 13th in the league, middling but not disastrous.
- Best individual performer: Marc Guéhi (7.9 rating), a rare high point in defense during a difficult afternoon.
Notable Player Performance
| Player | Pos | Rating | G | A | xG+xA | Min |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Marc Guéhi | DEF | 7.9 | 0 | 0 | 0.04 | 90' |
Squad & Injury News
Recent Setup (3-4-2-1):
Henderson; Canvot, Richards, Tomiyasu; Khalaili, Kamada, Wharton, Mitchell; McNeil, Pino; Strand Larsen
Injuries: Jean-Philippe Mateta is OUT (hamstring) — a significant blow given he's the club's primary striker. Riad (knee) is also out, and Ismaïla Sarr (groin) is unavailable and has been separately linked with a transfer away from the club.
Crystal Palace: Verdict — One Cautious Pick
Maxime Canvot (DEF) is Palace's lone representative on the Fantasy Football Scout watchlist. With the team running more than almost anyone in the league (5th in distance covered) but converting few of their chances, defensive assets like Canvot carry less risk than attacking ones right now. Attacking picks should be avoided while Mateta remains sidelined and the team sits 18th for shots on target — there simply isn't enough end product to justify the risk at this stage.
3. Tottenham Hotspur: The Unluckiest Team in the League?
Round 2 Review: Tottenham Hotspur 0-2 Newcastle United
Of the three bottom-placed sides, Tottenham's underlying numbers are by far the most encouraging — which makes their winless start all the more surprising. Spurs actually won the expected goals battle (1.12 vs 0.72) and out-shot Newcastle on target 6-2, yet fell to a second defeat thanks to two clinically taken Newcastle goals.
Key Stats Breakdown (FotMob)
- Shots on Target: 5.0 per match — tied for 9th in the league, comfortably mid-table and ahead of several "in-form" sides.
- Touches in Opponent's Box: 50 per match — an excellent 4th in the league, trailing only Manchester City, Liverpool, and Everton.
- Possession: 58% in this match, dominating the ball but unable to convert control into goals.
- Total Distance: 112.7 km/match — 18th in the league, the one area where Spurs are genuinely below par physically.
Notable Player Performance
| Player | Pos | Rating | G | A | xG+xA | Min |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan Paul van Hecke | DEF | 7.4 | 0 | 0 | 0.05 | 90' |
Squad & Injury News
Recent Setup (4-3-3):
Kinsky; Porro, van Hecke, van de Ven, Robertson; Tonali, Bentancur, Mateus Fernandes; Savinho, Solanke, Tel
Injuries: A crowded treatment room up front — Kulusevski, Odobert, and Simons are all OUT with knee issues. Kudus (50%), Maddison (75%), and Savinho (75%) are all doubts, meaning the attacking unit could look very different once the doubts are resolved.
Tottenham Hotspur: Verdict — Best Bounce-Back Candidate
Statistically, Tottenham look like the strongest of these three teams by some distance — 4th in touches in the opposition box and tied for 9th in shots on target is genuinely competitive form. Dominic Solanke is worth monitoring as the focal point of that attack once the walking wounded (Kulusevski, Odobert, Simons, and the doubtful trio) start returning to fitness. Antonín Kinsky is the club's only current watchlist representative in goal. Given the gap between performance and results, Spurs look the most likely of the bottom three to turn things around first — just be mindful of the injury list before investing in their attacking players.
League Team Stats: Bottom Three Compared
| Stat | Coventry | Rank | Crystal Palace | Rank | Tottenham | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Shots on Target / Match | 2.0 | 19th (last) | 2.5 | 18th | 5.0 | 9th (tied) |
| Touches in Opp Box | 23 | 16th | 28 | 13th | 50 | 4th |
| Total Distance / Match | 113.3 km | 15th | 116.8 km | 5th | 112.7 km | 18th |
| Watchlist Players | 0 | - | 1 (Canvot) | - | 1 (Kinsky) | - |
The data draws a clear line between these three sides. Tottenham's numbers (4th in box touches, tied 9th in shots on target) look nothing like a bottom-three team and point to a squad that should climb given time and better luck in front of goal. Crystal Palace are working hard (5th in distance) but simply aren't creating or taking enough chances. Coventry, meanwhile, rank at or near the bottom of the league in almost every attacking metric, with zero experts currently backing any of their players.
Final Verdict: Bottom Three — What FPL Managers Should Do
| # | Player | Team | Pos | Verdict |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Dominic Solanke | Tottenham | FWD | Watch closely - best underlying numbers of the three |
| 2 | Antonín Kinsky | Tottenham | GK | Only Spurs watchlist pick - fair budget option |
| 3 | Maxime Canvot | Crystal Palace | DEF | Lone Palace watchlist name - defensive value only |
| 4 | Coventry City assets | Coventry | - | Avoid entirely - zero watchlist support, worst SOT rate |
| 5 | Crystal Palace attackers | Crystal Palace | FWD | Avoid while Mateta is injured |
Of the three winless sides, Tottenham are the clearest case of underlying quality not yet matching results — worth keeping an eye on for a potential turnaround once their injury list clears. Crystal Palace and Coventry both need to see real improvement in chance creation and conversion before their assets become sensible FPL investments.
This wraps up our three-part look at the Premier League table after Round 2: the in-form top two (Manchester City and Hull City), the chasing pack (Newcastle United and Everton), and now the bottom three still searching for a foothold. We'll be back next week with fresh data as the picture becomes clearer.
Frequently Asked Questions
Should I avoid Coventry City players in FPL right now?
Yes, for now. Coventry are the only team among the bottom three with zero players on the Fantasy Football Scout expert watchlist, and they rank dead last in the league for shots on target per match.
Is Dominic Solanke worth picking up as a differential in FPL?
He's worth monitoring closely. Tottenham rank 4th in the league for touches in the opposition box despite sitting bottom of the table, suggesting the underlying chance creation is there once the current injury list clears.
Why are Tottenham still winless despite good underlying stats?
Spurs actually won the expected goals battle in Round 2 (1.12 vs 0.72) and rank well in shots on target and box touches, but inefficient finishing and a costly run of injuries to Kulusevski, Odobert, and Simons have kept results poor.
Is Crystal Palace's Maxime Canvot a good FPL pick?
Canvot is Palace's only representative on the Fantasy Football Scout watchlist. With Palace running more than almost any team in the league but converting few chances, a defensive asset like Canvot carries less risk than attacking options.
Should I avoid Crystal Palace attackers in FPL?
Yes, for now. With first-choice striker Jean-Philippe Mateta out injured and Palace ranked 18th in the league for shots on target, there isn't enough end product to justify rostering their forward line currently.
Data sources: FotMob, Fantasy Football Scout | Published: August 30, 2026
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