Jan07

The Midweek-ish Meander

For just a brief period, let’s just forget about the turmoil the weather is causing us and pretend that the weekend fixture list will be untouched, untarnished; that our fantasy weekend will be complete and run according to plan. Hold that thought while I lead you through the games in question then, giving you my thoughts on where I see the points coming from at both ends of the field…

Best For Clean Sheets…

This looks tough again this week. Four of the current in form defences come up against each other with Birmingham facing United at St Andrews and Liverpool hosting Spurs at Anfield. It’s hard to tip clean sheets for any of that quartet then – United would probably be the strongest option of the three if you’re backing an away win.

There are still good alternatives however. Starting with Fulham up against lowly Portsmouth at the Cottage. Hodgson’s men have conceded just a single goal in their last 5 home games and will face Avram Grant’s side who have lost 4 of their last 5 on the road, scoring just 3 goals in the process. To compound matters Portsmouth go into this game without their African contingent which is likely to disrupt them further. Hangeland’s likely absence will hurt Fulham but it still screams a home win with a clean sheet.

Mancini’s City have two consecutive clean sheets in the league under his stewardship and look to have a fixture tailored made to help them record a third. Blackburn visit Eastlands with a record that shows just 4 goals in their last 8 games. Allardyce’s outfit have failed to score in 10 league games so far this term and Monday’s match could well be the latest. David Dunn should be fit to provide at least some creative spark but you have to back City for another shut-out here.

Reluctantly I also have to consider the Chelsea back four, despite a clear lack of confidence, simply because they have a decent fixture away at Hull. The home side have a fairly good record in front of their own fans of late and may nick one, but I can’t help but wonder if Ancelotti will play a tighter game without Drogba and come home with a narrow win and an eleventh clean sheet of the season.

Aston Villa are on their travels this week but pay a visit to a Wigan side who have just one win in their last 8 games. Wigan have six goals in their last 5 home games – no a massive return, while Villa have conceded just 6 goals in their last 8 league games – all of those goals have been away from Villa Park though. A long-ish shot then but Villa appear to present reasonable value for a cleanie.

For other long shots you can look to Burnley against Stoke, although it’s far from clear cut. Burnley are in a state of transition following the Owen Coyle saga but they are up against a Stoke side who have recorded just a single goal in their last 5 away games. Similarly you could consider West Ham at home to a Wolves side who have also struggled for goals. Three strikes in their last 5 away games tells you that Zola’s men have a decent chance of a cleanie here.

Best For Goals…
There are three sides that stand out for me – all of which look ready and able to dish out heavy defeats to their opponents. As mentioned previously, Fulham have the form at the Cottage and are up against a Portsmouth side fighting for Premier League breath and without their African contingent. It’s got to be a home win with two or three goals thrown in, making Murphy and particularly Dempsey strong candidates for your mid-price money this gameweek.

Similarly City look to have the platform to continue their run of form under Mancini with a home fixture against Blackburn on Monday. Tevez is in outstanding form while Bellamy and Robinho are playing for their starting roles. Again, a two or three goal return for the home side looks likely.

Finally you’ve got Chelsea up against a Hull defence who have conceded 9 goals in their last 5 home games. We’re not quite sure how Ancelotti will set his side up without Drogba and much will depend on the availability of Anelka. I suspect that we might see a more conservative approach from Chelsea throughout January but they still look good for a couple of goals at the very least from this game.

I also see goals shared in the Sunderland vs Bolton fixture. Bolton arrive without a clean sheet all season and although Sunderland aren’t flying in terms of form, they are scoring goals again having notched 6 in their last 3 league games. I can see these sides producing three or four goals between them at the very least.

Finally there’s always Arsenal of course. It’s hard to see less than a couple of goals in their encounter with Everton with the visitors still troubled by injuries. Moyes’ side have conceded just 2 goals in their last 3 league games however, while Arsenal, as we know, have been robbed of so much attacking creativity through injury. I’m not backing a big win for the Gunners then – they may well have to sneak this one with a second-half goal if they fail to break through early.

Best For Frustration…

Look no further than the aforementioned Birmingham vs United and Liverpool vs Spurs fixtures. In fantasy terms, it’s hard to tip returns here. United have very strong goalscoring form but come up against the best defence in the league on current form. A tight away win looks the most likely result but I’m still hesitant to recommend United investment given Birmingham’s confidence into this game.

At Anfield meanwhile, we have a stuttering Liverpool side, up against Spurs who have struggled away from home. Redknapp’s men have scored 19 goals in their last 8 league games but only 5 goals in their last 5 away trips. On the flipside they have stiffened up considerably in defence, with 5 consecutive clean sheets in all competitions. That new defensive resolve could well frustrate Rafa’s men and lead to a very tight encounter here. I can’t see heavy fantasy returns for either side.

Paddy Says…
Let’s round things off by taking a look at how our friends at Paddy Power are sizing up the gameweek fixtures. In terms of clean sheets, they are offering the shortest odds on Chelsea at Hull, with City at home to Blackburn and United at Birmingham just behind. Fulham and Arsenal come next in their reckoning. Personally, I’m a little surprised that they fancy United over Fulham and I’m also not totally convinced about Arsenal at home to Everton without Song in the midfield.

When it comes to goals, again Paddy likes the look of Chelsea at Hull but they also see goals at Arsenal vs Everton, City vs Blackburn and Liverpool vs Spurs. I’m certainly not sold on that last game – as mentioned I see that one be a tight encounter. I much prefer the Sunderland vs Bolton game and like the look of Paddy’s odds of 10/1 on 4 goals in that one.

As per usual I’ve lined up some Fantasy Football Scout specials with Paddy this week. In the clean sheet accumulator you can get 6/1 on Fulham, City and Chelsea all keeping clean sheets in the gameweek. While in the Scout Picks market, Paddy are offering 9/1 on Lampard, Bent and Tevez all scoring one or more goals this weekend. Dive in if you fancy those odds – Paddy’s offer of a free £20 bet when you register via this site and bet a tenner still stands of course.

About the Author

Mark created the beast. He's now looking to tame it.

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923 Responses to “The Midweek-ish Meander”

  1. statsman says:

    Hey guys, need a little help with my lineup this week:

    Kusczak (Hart)
    Cole, Vermaelen, Evra (Alexander, Dann)
    Dempsey (c), Fabregas, Etherington, Diaby (Kranjcar)
    Bent, Rooney, Torres

    I’m a little unsure about my defence/keeper lineup considering Birmingham are at home to ManU and I have a defender and keeper from each club. Do you think Kuszcak and Evra is the best option or would you hedge your bets and go for a mix (probably Hart+Evra since they would be more likely to pick up points if their team concedes than their counterparts).

    Used my sub this week to bring in Kuszack for Sorenson but then heard Van der Sar is back in training :(

  2. Rambo says:

    milner and dempsey worth a minus 4?

  3. goblinz says:

    team for gw 22: dgw
    hart (sorenson)
    evra dunne scharner (faye)(cahill)
    valencia milner lamps sanli
    rooney defoe roda
    4 pt hit to bring in rooney and valencia for tevez and shavin

    team for gw 23:
    hart
    faye dunne scharner cahill(evra)
    milner lamps dunn eagles (valencia)
    defoe rodallega (rooney)
    no pt hit to bring in dunn for sanli.

    i am able to field 11 players for gw23 by bringing in dunn. but does the team look reasonable? i just thuink that the defence line looks awfully weak. any thoughts on this? or anything i can improve on?

  4. I’m betting on a Gerrard hat-trick, 2 points for Torres.

  5. jarvisob says:

    Hello… who would people play first this weekend over Milner and Diaby? Have Diaby on the bench for now but starting to wonder… cheers

    • No reason to put Diaby on your bench at home to Everton. I think Milner is a good shout v Wigan too. Can’t you drop somebody else? What’s your team?

      • The Rock says:

        yeah both are decent options this week, could you link your team or post it here?

        • jarvisob says:

          Team is….
          Sorenson (Jensen
          Traore, A.Cole, Dunne (Ab Faye Shawcross)
          Arshavin, Milner, Dempsey, Valencia (Diaby)
          Bent, Rooney, Tevez

          • jarvisob says:

            ideally would love to play only 2 defenders to allow both to play…

            • The Rock says:

              hmm yeah thats a tough one. i would bench Milner though.

              • jarvisob says:

                Cheers for the opinion…maybe if i put diaby in i might take out traore for one of the stoke defenders to aviod be too arsenal relient…. hmmm

                • The Rock says:

                  actually thats not a bad idea, i cant see them keeping a clean sheet anyway.

                  i would also play Jenson ahed of sorensen, especially now that your gooing to play 1 of you stoke defenders, presumabley Shawcross?

  6. Applebonkers says:

    peeps. need to bench one of the following players and am really struggling, even considered benching arshavin briefly.

    n’zogbia (H ast), lampard (a hul), arshavin (H eve), dempsey (H por), eagles (H sto), rodallega (H ast), rooney (a bir), bent (H bol)

  7. chinmusic says:

    I’ve just read that the 3rd round of the FA Cup in 1963 took 63 days to complete because the winter was so harsh. There was more replays and no undersoil heating back then but nonetheless that is some winter.

    I’m still annoyed Arshavin wasn’t able to do his thing on Wednesday though. Had a feeling the Arctic conditions would suit him.

  8. The Rock says:

    Thinking about making just the one change this week, Faye > Brown. thaughts? i want Valencia but can’t afford him or Giggs and i don’t want any other attcking utd player so i think a defender is the next best thing..

    • Henry Hill says:

      Sounds like a good move but how long is he guaranteed a start?

      BTW just noticed you had Darren bent as a unused sub, sickener man

      • The Rock says:

        yeah man sickening is not the word!!

        not sure how long he will be in the first team but as long as i can get the next 2 GW’s(3 games) out of him i would be happy, i could then sell him GW 23 if it looks likely he won’t play much more.

        really wish i could get Valencia in but it just won’t work! do you think thats the best move i could make this week or something else? would be planning on getting in Dunn for Cohen then next week.

        • Henry Hill says:

          Birmingham don’t really have the most prolific strikers, I’d imagine united should keep a clean sheet. But aren’t you doubling up on Chelsea and United defenders then? Quite the gamble!

          Looks like good move to me, United’s double gameweek at home to Burnley and Hull could see points galore

          • The Rock says:

            yeah i would seriously be counting on Chelsea and Utd clean sheets but it would only last untill there good fixtures are over, then 1 of each will go!

            yeah should be, thats why i want Valencia, can see alot of goals! and i don’t really like the looks of Fletcher,Carrick,Anderson or any of the other ones i can afford. but they should keep 2 clean sheets anyway!

            • Henry Hill says:

              Ya its strange that with Ronaldo gone United’s only midfielders worth getting are Valencia and maybe Giggs. Good thing in a way as he was too expensive and you had to have him in the team, but it made the rest of your team selections harder.

              Good luck with it Rock!

              • The Rock says:

                Cheers Henry, and thanks for the help!

                • Henry Hill says:

                  I just hope it works for you, I still owe you for that time few months back when got me to captain Torres twice and he scored a hatful :-)

                  • The Rock says:

                    lol no problem, i see that were still only a few hundred places apart, i think it was last week you were a few hundred ahead of me, now we have switched!

                    goodluck mate! :)

            • chinmusic says:

              I reckon Faye’s a decent one to keep. Stoke will get a double GW soon enough, although you do have Sorensen.

              If it does end up being a double GW for Man U then maybe it’s worth risking bringing in Brown. If not, maybe an alternative might be to dump Scharner for a Tot def, maybe Dawson?

              I’m really torn about whether to go for three Man U players. They’ve been patchy enough for it to be a questionable move.

              • The Rock says:

                but we still don’t know when there double GW will be, could be weeks/months away! amd i could alwasy get him back in again.

                its a certain that Utd will have a double GW in GW 22, have a look at the scout tweets, the game now moved back to 23rd of Jan,i I would like to get rid of Scharner soon and a spurs defender does look like a decent option.

                i think you should get a third Utd player in, i mean a double GW with Burnley and Hull! where can you go wrong!! the only problem is that they don’t play in GW 23 but if ypu have a strong squad, and use a transfer or 2 thats should’t be a problem, i say go for it!

                • chinmusic says:

                  Fair point about Faye, The Rock.

                  I thought it was not yet certain there will be a DGW in 22? Is it not possible that the game might be played in GW23 instead? That’s what I gathered from reading today’s posts.

                  If MU aren’t missing a game in GW23 I will definitely bring in Valencia – might still if it’s a DGW in 22.

                  • The Rock says:

                    is it not certain? i thaught people were saying it was, i think Andy was even saying it? perhaps not, i must find out, although if it is counted as GW 23 i still think i will bring in Brown, 2 easy games all the same.

                  • jarvisob says:

                    If you buy Man utd players now your still going to get 3 games out of them over the next 3 weeks… so what if 2 are in one week and another week has none… it’s still 3 over 3 weeks ain’t it?

  9. Rambo says:

    sorenson

    dann
    gallas
    cahill
    wilkinson(sub)
    nelson(sub)

    taylor
    arshavin
    fabregas(keeping sub)
    reid (sub)
    valencia

    rooney
    defoe
    tevez

    arshavin and reid -> milner and dempsey, and 1.4mil

    its a minus 4, but im thinking long term and with fab due back the next game seems silly to get rid

    OPINIONS NEED AND WELCOME!

    • The Rock says:

      could you not do the Dempsey move this week and the Milner one next week? not a huge fan of the 4 point hit, but if it must be done then go ahead.

      • Rambo says:

        i only have 0.1 in the bank, so it means arsh goes, and then i’ll have reid AND fab out and dont fancy playing nelson away at blackburn

        could just do reid to gera… but at present i’d fancy dempsey up front v pompey over arshavin up front… theyre guna be long term pt scorers, milner has west ham at home straight after and dempsey has blackburn

        • The Rock says:

          ok i see your point, do the 2 transfers this week so, there going to make it up anyway, thats for sure!

          • Stengo says:

            Hey Rock. You’re from the ROI, right?

            Why you got a blue strip?

            • The Rock says:

              Hey Stengo, yeah sure am, blue strip is just because of my local football team lol.

              wbu? i see you have a red strip yet your from Scotland right? why the red strip?

              i also see were both in FFS H2H 4, your gong alot better than me though!

  10. Rambo says:

    sorry away at man city

  11. chinmusic says:

    Here’s another good reason to contemplate Dempsey after this gameweek. Fulham’s home games are prone to postponement in bad weather, but their next two are both away (admittedly the Spurs game could be tricky) and so there’s a better chance he’ll play through the cold snap. Big risk bringing him in before the Posrtmouth game though. That must be one of the more likely matches to be called off.

  12. Rambo says:

    yep setting the alarm for saturday morning, gotta bday party friday night so hopefully wont be too drunk… hoping it will have cleared up by tommorrow somewhat… are we due another downfall?

  13. EPL Lover says:

    My squad:
    Sorenson
    Evra Gallas Shawcross
    Fabregas Etherington Valencia Lampard (c) Lee
    Bent Rooney
    Subs: Jensen Jerome Carr Scharner
    I have two freebies this week, and was looking at this:
    Gallas => Dawson
    Etherington => Modric
    Tottenham have a decent run coming up.
    I’m really stumped on what my transfers should be. Any help?
    Cheers

    • PM says:

      Modric has never been a huge points getter, and he may be subbed off early until he gest to full fitness or even rotated with his in-form countryman Krancjar. How about Dawson-Dempsey.

  14. IcyNorth says:

    I’m still contemplating a 4 point hit this week. I’ve already sold Drogba for Tevez. Now thinking, given injuries and the upcoming gw23, to sell Tuncay and buy Kranjcar. Worth 4 pts?
    My team:
    Sorensen (Hart)
    Evra Shawcross Dunne (Bramble, RJohnson)
    Milner Eagles Diaby Tuncay/Kranjcar (Fabregas)
    Tevez(c) Rooney Bent

    • Henry Hill says:

      I don’t think its worth a hit personally man, leave it for this gameweek anyway IMO.

      • IcyNorth says:

        Well, I have two injured mid-fielders, so I would have to play RJohnson then. And I’m not sure that isn’t worth 4 points. At the same time, I’m trying to guard my first place (51 points difference).

    • The Rock says:

      Not worth it, you can easily play Bramble instead of Tuncay(he may even play this week) and you can still get rid of him next week.

      although Dempsey would probally be worth the 4 point hit if you can afford him?

    • chinmusic says:

      Hey Icy. Long time no speak. I reckon there’s no need. Kranjcar’s fixture this GW isn’t the greatest.

      • IcyNorth says:

        Howdy, Chinmusic! It has been awhile.

      • chinmusic says:

        And BTW, so many congrats on your lofty position. I remember the last time we exchanged posts you were trailing in one of your leagues (although not to your son!). That’s all changed I see.

        • IcyNorth says:

          Yes, I’ve been pretty lucky. And many, many thanks for a lot of good advice I’ve gotten on here.

          It continues to be soooo satisfying to keep wiping the floor with my son. :) His girlfriend’s brother is also in our league and I’m beating him also (obviously), which is making that fellow grind his teeth!

          • IcyNorth says:

            I have lots of money — oh, the joy. I could buy Dempsey. However, did I read earlier on this thread that the Fulham game may not be played due to weather????

            • The Rock says:

              thats a risk, every game is a risk to the weather im afraid, wait untill tomorrow or even saturday morning to have more of a chance of getting it right. i can see Dempsey do weel this week.

              • chinmusic says:

                Some games are much bigger risks than others though, What keeps you up this late, The Rock? Or do you live in a non-European time zone? My excuse is that I’m at work.

            • chinmusic says:

              Well they don’t have undersoil heating and so that must make the game a risk. I remember one of their home games was postponed last winter. The forecast isn’t dreadful though. I’m planning on bringing Dempsey in but I’ll leave it till the last minute.

  15. mullenlad says:

    How about these transfers for this gw?
    Defoe – Anelka
    Gallas – Cuellar
    Taylor – Dempsey.

    Any thoughts welcome.

  16. PM says:

    After a few flat line weeks, you can feel the dissatisfaction, my side among them…

    Sorensen (Hart)
    Evra-Dunne-Ivanovic-Shawcross (Traore)
    Arshavin-Milner-Diaby (Eagles, Andy Reid)
    Defoe-Tevez(c)-Rooney

    Would you:

    (1) stand pat
    (2) IN: Lampard; out: Arshavin, 4 point hit (wrinkle: Fantasy Cup oopnent has Lampard)
    (3) IN: Dempsey; out: Reid, 4 point hit
    (4) Dempsey and Lampard in, 8 point hit.

    • Seanigula says:

      stand…or just straight transfer out Reid, Defoe (if injured) or another if a game is postponed

      Reid to Dunn, Collison, NZog etc…

  17. Falcon says:

    Doing a Mark/Fran here I have a program which purports to predict results based on past performance, although I reckon any statistically based system while maybe correct on average is likely to miss a lot of DGW effects and fixture congestion. Predicted results for this week however are:
    Match Predicted
    Hul Che 1 1
    Ars Eve 3 1
    Bur Stk 2 0
    Ful Por 3 1
    Sun Bol 2 1
    Wig Avil 2 1
    Bir Mnu 2 1
    Whm Wol 2 1
    Liv Tot 2 1
    Mnc Bla 3 1

    On that basis:
    Defensively 4 best choices are Arsenal, City, Fulham and Sunderland, each being at home against relatively weak opposition in terms of scoring goals away from home with their opponents Everton, Blackburn, Portsmouth and Bolton respectively scoring on average 1.3, 0.7, 0.5 and 1.2 goals per game and with Arsenal in particular having one of the best home defences in the league. Burnley should feature as a good clean sheet bet against Stoke having an above average home defensive record and Stoke doing poorly away from home scoring just 1 goal per game, but Burnley next couple of fixtures, including Manu and Chelsea preclude them as a transfer option. By all means play them if you already have them and they are available.
    In the midfield the choices are much the same with the exception of Sunderland and Fulham being reversed and Liverpool coming in as a good backup choice. This is a combination of a decent chance of scoring a defensive point and their attacking ability.
    In attack Liverpool indeed edge out Fulham in the top four which might suggest a stronger preference for a Liverpool midfielder or attacker, but Fulham just edge it on following fixtures.
    On that basis I will be making no transfers this weak but do not have the best team by far:
    My Team Ideal Team
    Goal Hart Almunia
    Defense Evra Gallas
    Ivanovic Konchesky
    Steinsson Alexander
    Midfield Diaby Diaby
    Fabregas Arshavin
    Lampard Gerrard
    Arshavin Dempsey
    Attack Tevez Tevez
    Rooney Torres
    Klasnic Bent
    Subs Sorensen Schwarzer
    Cohen Petrov
    Bikey Garrido
    Scharner Hangeland

    You can see why I am making no transfers this week, as I see no real 4pt differentials over the medium term. This will however change next week when I will switch in Valencia for Arshavin for the DGW and Defoe (if fit) for Tevez as City’s fixtures begin to stiffen. Longer term the following week Valencia and Cohen will go to be replaced by Modric and Kranjcar as Spurs run into a nice set of fixtures. Mid season a team based on Arsenal, Man U and Tottenham will be the way to go as Chelsea have a lot of 1-0’s coming up, but switching back to Chelsea for the run in.

    • Falcon says:

      Sorry about that….formatting doesn’t seem to work

    • Seanigula says:

      report back on Monday to let us know if it was further off then Lawro

    • Seanigula says:

      Bikey to Alexander has got to be worth it over the midterm…and Steinsson out for ???

      • Falcon says:

        Agree whole heartedly but more pressing transfers in midterm than sorting out non-scoring subs, such as bringing in some Tottenham players….Bikey’s replacement is weeks away whereas steinsson will be reolaced, probably by Dawson along with Scharner to Ridgewell in about 4 transfers time. The short term always seems more pressing than the midterm

      • Falcon says:

        In case you are interested there were a couple of mistakes in those predictions, although it doesn’t change the team choices:

        Match Predicted
        Hul Che 1 1
        Ars Eve 3 1
        Bur Stk 2 0
        Ful Por 2 0
        Sun Bol 2 1
        Wig Avil 1 1
        Bir Mnu 1 1
        Whm Wol 2 1
        Liv Tot 2 1
        Mnc Bla 3 1

  18. azyet says:

    Need help with transfer!!
    My team
    Kuszczak
    A Cole, Evra, Shawcross
    Lampard, Gerrard, Fab, Cohen, Tuncay
    Bent, Defoe

    Subs: Sorenson, Jerome, Nelson, Ridgewell
    0.02 in bank

    Thinking to trade Shawcross out though might wait one week and trade to dawson (TO)
    or Tuncay to Dunn but will wait and see how he goes this gw?

    Any help would be apprecited, have used 1 of my 2 free transfers this week so that cancels out a free double next week right?

    • Seanigula says:

      Jerome for a cheap striker with better fixtures…or Fab to Valencia, back to Fab GW23

      • azyet says:

        I considered Fab to valencia, but wont be able to get fab back unless he drops to 11.4. Not sure that will happen

  19. TorresMagic says:

    Might be a silly question but can someone rank in order the games most likely to be called off. Top 5 would be nice.

  20. goblinz says:

    team for gw 22: dgw
    hart (sorenson)
    evra dunne scharner (faye)(cahill)
    valencia milner lamps sanli
    rooney defoe roda
    4 pt hit to bring in rooney and valencia for tevez and shavin

    team for gw 23:
    hart
    faye dunne scharner cahill(evra)
    milner lamps dunn eagles (valencia)
    defoe rodallega (rooney)
    no pt hit to bring in dunn for sanli.

    i am able to field 11 players for gw23 by bringing in dunn. but does the team look reasonable? i just thuink that the defence line looks awfully weak. any thoughts on this? or anything i can improve on?\

  21. jarvisob says:

    This from a guy on a sunderland forum who lives near the ground…

    “I’m within walking distance so obviously hope it goes ahead, but with tonight/this mornings downpour of snow it doesn’t seem realistic and would cause problems.

    Not seen much like it even over the past few weeks at 1am”

    http://www.readytogo.net/smb/s.....mp;page=22

  22. EPL Lover says:

    Best option for mids worth around the 7.0-7.4 mark?
    Between: Dempsey, Modric, Kranjcar

  23. The Matrix says:

    1st time post. Good afternoon from sunny Sydney.

    thinking Dempsey this week for captain. is that too much of a risk? should i bite bullet and replace Arsharvin this week or wait till next week and negate transfer points?

    Also do you think Sturridge will play?

    • ykwa09 says:

      I def think Sturridge will play along Anelka, Ancelloti hinted to this already, I am going to bring him in

    • i take it you have sold zamora, arsenal at home to everton is not a hard game, keep arshavin for at least that game,from your squad id captain either arshavin or dempsey.

      if chelsea play 4-4-2 sturridge will play, if they play 4-5-1 with malouda & j cole supporting anelka he wont

  24. The Matrix says:

    cheers…….think i will leave Dempsey as captain. If Sturridge doesn’t play i will have Scharner as sub

  25. Morning Gang, not sure why it hasn’t been tweeted, maybe the tweets are iced up, but Stoke-Man City has be rescheduled to 16 Feb. That should mean DGW GW26 for those 2 teams. It’s even on the BBC site. Here’s the announcement on Stoke’s:

    http://www.stokecityfc.com/pag.....51,00.html

    I reckon both teams fixtures look good from GW24, immediately after they miss GW23

  26. Warky Talky says:

    Morning Guys,

    Still thinking of waiting for tomorrow morning for transfers to see if games are going to be off…but assuming all go ahead i was thinking of:
    Zamora out, TEVEZ in
    Arshavin out, DEMPSEY in

    I know ideally i should keep Arsh for his home game v. Everton…but i have to downgrade him to upgrade Zamora! Also aware Tevez misses GW23 but then Zamora is also definately out!

    There must be a few about with the Zamora problem…any thoughts?

    Cheers

    • I’d say you sound like you’re aware of the downsides and Tevez & Dempsey are good buys.

      • Warky Talky says:

        thanks Teddy…that’s helpful…is a bit annoying though with Tevez going to miss out…

        Other option i can just afford is:

        Zamora out, ROONEY in
        Arshavin out, RAMSEY in

        Ramsey would have to be quite short term but then would have Rooney for Man U’s run.

        Think i prefer the first option (just) but added concerns =
        1. Fulham have no undersoil heating (Dempsey might not play)
        2. Man City’s game is not until Mon…so we’ll have no way of knowing whether it will be on or not!

        • Fulham’s next 2 are away games. Don’t know if the cold will last till Mon.

          Have you considered Rooney then Torres GW24…?

          Ramsey could be a great bet, especially shortterm, but it could also blow up in your face. But it’s a cheap gamble, so I’d probably do it if I didn’t already have my full contingent of Arsenal mids.

  27. Dano says:

    Is Joe Cole going to get 90 mins for the next 5 games?

  28. Anyone else REALLY hoping that the Man U Hull fixture gets put on Game week 23? I know if they play twice in week 22 they will still play the same amount of minutes but it would mean i can field 11 players in GW23 without going mental on the subs.

    Not being an expert at this game my advice may be worth jack but to me the important news this weekend is the weather forcast.
    To all those asking about potential transfers/ line ups i would wait until the last possible minute this week before confirming changes. Whether the game is on is more important than the strength of the opposition or potential for a clean sheet

    • I find it unlikely that they will start moving deadlines around, which they will have to do if they put the game in GW23 am I right?

      • Dano says:

        I don’t understand your reasonaing either. If there’s a DGW then captaining Rooney is a no-brainer, you then captain someone else like Lampard at home to BIR. Therefore you get three captain scores for the price of 2 PLUS if you have even one spare player for GW 23 then you get an extra player playing over that 2 week period. Remember your Man U players still play twice in that 2 week period.

  29. Supersonic says:

    yeah its gonna be in GW22 for sure