FPL Injury Update GW3: The Transfer Window Exits Still In Your Squad
Watkins has left the Premier League and 5.2% of squads still hold him. Every GW3 flag, exit and doubt before the Friday deadline, with available replacements.
This post may be outdated. Last updated 3 September 2026. Check FPL Pilot for the latest.
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Data current as of: 3 September 2026, from the official FPL player data Deadline covered: Gameweek 3, Friday 4 September, 18:30 BST Assumptions: Flags move on Friday press conferences. Check team news before you confirm a transfer.
The summer window shut and left a set of players sitting in FPL squads who are no longer at their clubs. They are not injured and they are not rotation risks. They cannot score again this season, and a chunk of them are still owned in five-figure numbers.
Ollie Watkins is the expensive version of this problem. He is priced at £7.8m, he is owned in 5.2% of squads, and he has played 0 minutes this season before joining Al Hilal permanently. Every gameweek he stays in a squad is a gameweek played with 14 players.
Gone from the league
These moves are confirmed in the official FPL data. None of these players will score another point in 2026/27.
| Player | Club | Price | Owned | Minutes | Move |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Watkins | AVL | £7.8m | 5.2% | 0 | Al Hilal, permanent |
| Beto | EVE | £5.4m | 1.9% | 31 | Fiorentina, permanent |
| Scarlett | TOT | £4.5m | 1.9% | 0 | Leyton Orient, permanent |
| Sánchez | CHE | £4.9m | 1.6% | 90 | Como, season loan |
| Dovin | COV | £4.0m | 1.5% | 0 | Leyton Orient, season loan |
| Woltemade | NEW | £5.9m | 1.2% | 19 | Juventus, season loan |
| Kitching | COV | £4.0m | 0.6% | 0 | Sheffield United, season loan |
| Andrews | COV | £4.5m | 0.5% | 0 | Oxford United, season loan |
| Perri | LEE | £4.5m | 0.5% | 0 | Torino, season loan |
Robert Sánchez is the one worth a second look. He played the full 90 in Gameweek 1 for 2 points, did not play in Gameweek 2, and has now gone to Como for the season. A Chelsea goalkeeper who was starting a fortnight ago is a permanent zero from here. If he is your starting keeper, that is a forced transfer rather than an optional one.
Coventry account for three of the nine. A promoted side thinning its squad after two gameweeks is normal, but it means cheap Coventry enablers bought in pre-season need re-checking rather than assuming.
Ruled out for Gameweek 3
Listed at 0% chance of playing.
| Player | Club | Injury | Expected back |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mateta | CRY | Hamstring | 11 October |
| Sarr | CRY | Groin | Unknown |
| Burn | NEW | Ankle | 14 September |
| Doku | MCI | Calf | 5 September |
| Osula | NEW | Foot | Unknown |
| Amad | MUN | Unspecified | Unknown |
| I.Sangaré | NFO | Calf | Unknown |
Mateta is the significant one at 3.0% ownership and £6.4m. An 11 October return date falls after the Gameweek 6 deadline on 10 October, so on current information he misses Gameweeks 3 through 6. That is not a hold, it is a sell.
Crystal Palace lose both Mateta and Sarr for the trip to Fulham, which matters if you were counting on Palace attacking returns.
Doku is the trap. His news line says expected back 5 September and Manchester City play Coventry on 5 September, so it reads like he might make it. FPL still lists him at 0% chance for the round. A player whose return date is the same day as kickoff is not a player to buy on Friday.
The doubts
Listed at 50% or 75%, which is the FPL way of saying the manager has not committed publicly.
| Player | Club | Chance | Injury |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rodon | LEE | 50% | Hamstring |
| Hinshelwood | BHA | 50% | Unspecified |
| Caicedo | CHE | 75% | Unspecified |
| Emersonn | IPS | 75% | Knee |
| Palestra | CHE | 75% | Unspecified |
| Matheus N. | MCI | 75% | Unspecified |
| Sávio | TOT | 75% | Muscular |
| Georginio | BHA | 75% | Unspecified |
| Maddison | TOT | 75% | Shoulder |
| Coyle | HUL | 75% | Unspecified |
| Crooks | HUL | 75% | Thigh |
| Ayari | BHA | 75% | Ankle |
Rodon at 50% is the one to act on rather than monitor. He is owned in 2.9% of squads at £4.5m, and a 50% flag on a defender who is in most teams as a cheap starter leaves no cover if he sits.
Brighton carry three of these doubts into a home game against Leeds. If you own two Brighton players, one of them is likely to be a Friday problem.
Tottenham carry two, both at 75%, for a trip to Nottingham Forest.
Replacements that are actually available
Every player below is unflagged in the current FPL data, has played at least 90 minutes this season, and has a Gameweek 3 fixture.
Forwards, if you are moving off Watkins, Mateta or Woltemade:
| Player | Club | Price | Points | GW3 fixture |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| João Pedro | CHE | £7.7m | 20 | Arsenal (A) |
| Wissa | NEW | £6.1m | 12 | Bournemouth (H) |
| Barry | EVE | £5.5m | 10 | Man Utd (H) |
| Evanilson | BOU | £6.0m | 9 | Newcastle (A) |
João Pedro leads all forwards on 20 points from 180 minutes with 2 goals and 2 assists, though Arsenal away is the hardest fixture on the board. Wissa at £6.1m has a goal and an assist and hosts Bournemouth, which is the softer route to the same problem.
Midfielders, if you are moving off Sarr, Doku or a flagged Brighton asset:
| Player | Club | Price | Points | GW3 fixture |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| B.Fernandes | MUN | £12.0m | 25 | Everton (A) |
| Cherki | MCI | £7.7m | 22 | Coventry (H) |
| M.Sangaré | BRE | £5.7m | 18 | Sunderland (H) |
| Elanga | NEW | £6.1m | 17 | Bournemouth (H) |
Cherki has 22 points from 108 minutes, second only to Bruno Fernandes among midfielders despite playing 72 fewer minutes, and Coventry at home is the fixture the whole game is targeting this week. M.Sangaré at £5.7m with 2 assists is the budget route into a Brentford side hosting Sunderland.
Defenders, if Rodon or Burn is your problem:
| Player | Club | Price | Points | GW3 fixture |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Calafiori | ARS | £5.6m | 20 | Chelsea (H) |
| De Cuyper | BHA | £4.7m | 17 | Leeds (H) |
| Kayode | BRE | £4.6m | 15 | Sunderland (H) |
| Tarkowski | EVE | £6.0m | 18 | Man Utd (H) |
Calafiori has 2 assists and 20 points and is already in 43.6% of squads. De Cuyper at £4.7m is the cheaper attacking option with a goal and an assist, and Brighton host Leeds. Hull’s £4.0m defenders are covered separately in the Gameweek 3 preview.
What to do before Friday
Work in this order. Departed players first, because they are guaranteed zeros rather than probable ones. Then the 0% injuries with return dates past Gameweek 5, which is Mateta and Sarr. Then the 50% flags, which is Rodon and Hinshelwood. Leave the 75% group until Friday team news, because most of them will play.
One transfer spent on removing a player who has left the league is worth more than two spent chasing form. A squad carrying Watkins and Mateta is two players short before the gameweek starts.
Flags move. Check the official FPL site on Friday morning before you confirm anything, and treat every 75% listed here as unresolved until a manager says otherwise.
Get transfer suggestions for your squad or check captain options for Gameweek 3.