Gary Neville has name Chris Wood as the Premier League player who has surprised him the most this season.
The Tricky Trees are currently flying high in fifth place after making a solid start to the new campaign and the goals of Wood have been a vital part of their success so far.
Neville also reserved praise for Liverpool’s Ryan Gravenberch whose performances at the heart of the Reds’ midfield have come as a welcome boost to Arne Slot, especially following the collapse of Martin Zubimendi’s proposed move to Anfield.
Another striker, Liam Delap of Ipswich, meanwhile, has caught Neville’s eye while there were also honourable mentions for Danny Welbeck and Morgan Rogers.
‘[Ryan] Gravenberch is a massive surprise with how well he has played at the start of the season [for Liverpool],’ Neville told The Overlap.
‘I don’t think anyone expected him to be as good as he has been in that position [in midfield]. Curtis Jones has been very good too.
‘Chris Wood with eight goals has got to be in the top three, Liam Delap with six goals for Ipswich. I’m not surprised by Danny Welbeck, he’s very good – his current form is better than any current [Manchester] United front player this season. Morgan Rogers at [Aston] Villa could be top notch.
‘I’d go Wood number one, Delap number two and Gravenberch in three.’
Asked the same question, fellow panelist Ian Wright opted to shine a light on Brentford forwards Yoane Wissa and Bryan Mbeumo.
The Bees were expected to struggle for goals following the departure of talisman Ivan Toney in the summer, but Thomas Frank’s side have been one of the league’s most entertaining outfits.
Wright said: ] ‘I like the way Liam Delap has come up – we should mention Antoine Semenyo at Bournemouth as well. Carlos Baleba at Brighton [& Hove Albion] – he was unbelievable against [Manchester] City.
‘Two years ago, he was at Lille, now Brighton has found another one [player].
‘We also need to mention [Yoane] Wissa and [Bryan] Mbeumo – Ivan Toney’s gone, and they’ve just ploughed through.
‘They’ve not missed him [Toney] at all.’