Archive for December, 2007
New Year Scout Picks
If you refresh you’ll see my Scout Picks for the New Year Games. Sadly, I don’t have time to go into detail behind these as I’m racing off down the M4 for a party in 10 minutes. However, I will say that as usual I’ve stuck to the two players per club rule and that the chance of players being rested has played a part in my selection - hence the likes of Kitson get in my eleven over Santa Cruz, Torres etc. As always you can scroll down the right-hand menu to see my weekly player rankings for some more options for these positions.
I’ll leave you to debate the lineup and the players I should have picked over the next 24 hours. I have done an early pass over the team news for these games but I won’t be able to update this further over the next 24-hours.
All that leaves me to do is to wish you a Happy New Year. See you in 2008.
ContinuedWeekend Scout Notes
Berbatov hands some fantasy managers a late Christmas present while Ronaldo reminds a lot more that he’s human after all. Here’s my usual ramble on another wacky weekend in the Premiership…
ContinuedNo New Years Day return for RVP
Robin Van Persie won’t return for Arsenal against West Ham on New Years Day. An article on Soccernet today quotes Wenger and states that the Dutch striker will sit out the West Ham game on Tuesday.
Van Persie returned briefly for Arsenal against Steaua in the Champions League but suffered a muscular injury that was described as “minor” by the Arsenal manager. However that injury has already seen him miss the Spurs game, the trip to Portsmouth and today’s visit to Everton.
Wenger proclaims Van Persie as a new signing for Arsenal when he eventually returns but makes it clear that he will not rush the striker back.
“It is a small injury - but if you want to win a horse race you need your horse to be 100%,” remarked Wenger.
A Premiership return against Birmingham on January 12 would appear to be on the cards then, with Arsenal likely to employ a weakened side against Burnley in the FA Cup next weekend.
ContinuedRoque has niggles according to Hughes
Here’s some alarm bells for you just a few hours before kick-off - Mark Hughes has announced that his in-form striker and Fantasy darling, Roque Santa Cruz, is carrying a string of niggling injuries. In a story on Football 365 today Hughes expresses how surprised he is at Santa Cruz’s form remarking…
“He’s getting his goals and he’s doing it when he’s still not 100% fit. He’s carrying little knocks and niggles but he is going out and doing a job for us”.
That would seem to indicate that a rest for the striker will only be just around the corner with Roberts the obvious replacement standing by for an opportunity. Whether Hughes takes that option today at Derby remains to be seen. If I was to stick my neck out I would say that Santa Cruz will start today and possibly sit out the home game with Sunderland on New Years Day. Hughes wants to get that win on the board after a string of bad results and today is certainly the best opportunity to do that. The warning is there though for those looking to jump on the Santa bandwagon to catch his rich vein of form.
ContinuedThe Weekend’s Scout Picks
Refresh your screen and you should see my new Scout Picks for the weekend’s games. As always these picks are the end product of the Shortlists tables you’ll find in the right-hand menu, so please scroll down to see how I’ve ranked players going into this weekend’s games. Read on for some dubious explanation of my selection…
ContinuedWeekend Team News
Gallas is fit. Knight serves suspension as his appeal fails. Larsson a doubt for Birmingham. Hyypia nursing an ankle injury with Agger lined up for a return. Wheater has the lurgy. The team news section is has been updated with all the early speculation on injuries and potential lineups. I’ll have another pass over this this evening and will update this up until kick-off so keep popping back for updates. Scout Picks to follow soon…
ContinuedCity Vs Rovers Scout Notes
Determined to see his name on a dozen band pun-filled Christmas headlines (Soccernet already posted “Santa Claws it back”), Blackburn’s Santa Cruz sends another couple of goals bulleting off his deadly Paraguayan bonce to peg back City and ruin their 100% record at Eastlands. Here’s my notes on tonight’s game…
ContinuedVan Persie out of Goodison plans
Robin Van Persie has been ruled out of Saturday’s clash with Everton at Goodison by Arsene Wenger.
The Dutchman was due to return to the Arsenal lineup against Spurs last weekend but suffered what Wenger described as a “little muscular problem, but a very minor one”. That minor setback now appears to have worsened.
Van Persie had previously turned out in the Champions League clash with Steaua on December 12 and appeared as a sub against Chelsea in the Premiership. However, his involvement in the Christmas and New Year programme now looks in doubt.
Wenger could now turn to Bendtner to freshen his forward line over the next two games although seems set to stick with the same 4-5-1 formation and team at Goodison. However, Wenger also revealed today that skipper William Gallas is struggling to overcome a knock received in last night’s game at Portsmouth.
“We don’t know about Gallas yet. He got a kick on his foot late in the first half”, remarked Wenger.
Senderos will be on standby to replace the Frenchman should he fail to make it.
ContinuedLampard out for a “few weeks”
A chink of light has been shed on the Frank Lampard injury today with the news that he’ll miss the rest of the Christmas programme with a tear in his thigh muscle. Lampard was subbed before the half-hour mark against Villa yesterday and the midfieder had scans on the injury today. Chelsea’s statement is, true to form, unspecific and vague about the length of absence.
“He will begin his rehabilitation immediately and we hope to have him back playing within a few weeks.”
Some extra research at Physioroom indicates that Lampard will have to go through a period of rest in order repair the tear and that a “grade one” injury of this type will require about 3-weeks of recovery time.
That would see Lampard target a return around the Premiership clash at Birmingham on Jan 19. Lampard’s absence is likely to hand opportunities to Ballack and Sidwell with Chelsea facing three Premiership games, a two legged Carling Cup semi-final and an FA Cup third round tie, before that game.
ContinuedBoxing Day Scout Notes
It started with a morning of insane attacking abandon as the goals and red cards flew around the grounds. It ended in a dire, turgid affair as Portsmouth clung to a point against the Arsenal tide. A funny old Boxing Day then. Let’s take stock…
Continued
