The World Cup draws ever nearer – hurrah! – and we’ve been around the block Scouting games that may whet your appetite this summer season. Now, though, it’s time to branch into those games even deeper. A few people have asked who we may have regarded as the good under-priced and alternative options in the game, so with that question in our minds we’re going to come back at you with a squad list of the good value choices to fit in your squads around Messrs. Rooney and co.
Working from the Metro and Telegraph games here is a 15 man squad whittled down and priced into a 3-4-3 line-up (my favourite formation) with a few favourable bench options as well for you all to give the once over and add to your World Cup watchlists…
Goalkeepers
Thomas Sorensen – Denmark (Metro 3.8m / Telegraph 3.0m)
Provided he recovers in time from the dislocated elbow he picked up near the end of the regular season Sorensen will be continue to represent a good budget keeping option once more this summer if you are so inclined. Denmark conceded only 5 goals in their qualifying campaign and if they can keep up their tight defense in their relatively promising group (Netherlands, Japan, Cameroon) a couple of clean sheets and progression to the knock-out stages will be very much on the cards.
On the bench: Tim Howard – USA (3.9m / 3.2m)
Coming in at a similar price and guaranteed of starts Howard again represents a good value pick, with a reasonable chance once more of getting beyond the group stages – perhaps all will come down to the sensibilities of whether you can back a goalkeeper entrusted to keep the England strike-force at bay (as well as Slovenia and Algeria).
Defenders
Joan Capdevilla – Spain (5.2m / 3.4m)
An experienced international who plays for the European champions, not much more needs to be said. When you compare the left-backs price to that of the Spanish right-back (Sergio Ramos 7.0m / 4.3m) you can see what kind of good value Capdevilla offers. With a very light looking group on paper (Switzerland, Honduras, Chile) and many expecting Spain to go all the way once more this summer Capdevila looks to be extremely well priced as a long-term buy who will hopefully pick up a few early clean sheets.
Glen Johnson – England (4.9m / 3.3m)
Now backing the England defence isn’t necessarily the wisest move with a managers sanity and temperament already going through the ringer, but Johnson, like Capdevilla before him comes in under-priced compared to the rest of his team-mates and certainly offers the best value for all loyalists out there. Unlike Spain one can imagine England coming under a bit more pressure at the back in their group (USA, Slovenia, Algeria) so in the Metro game particularly Johnson may very well have a greater opportunity to plunder the defensive bonus points with an array of blocks, tackles and interceptions.
Giorgio Chiellini – Italy (4.9m / 3.3m)
Continuing in the vein of the defenders mentioned before him, Chiellini again looks like another under-priced defender in a team with certain levels of promise. The centre-back has instilled himself as a favourite in the Azzurri back-line during qualification and looks set to bring the opportunity of good value in the group games, facing favourable opponents (New Zealand, Paraguary, Slovakia) and beyond to the knock-out stages. Italy are not the force they once were, but Chiellini is a rising star and lest we forget they are also the reigning World Champions so won’t relinquish the crown without a fight.
On the bench: Gregory Van Der Wiel – Holland (4.2m / 3.1m) and Nicolas Otamendi – Argentina (4.9m / 3.3m)
Van Der Wiel is a rising star in Holland and the most recent recipient of the Johan Cruyff Award (Eredivisie’s version of young player of the year), most expect him to be part of the Dutch back-line for this World Cup, and if he is he may prove to be an absolute steal. Otamendi is more of wildcard option to be fair, second guessing how Maradona will line up his Argentina team proves harder by the day, but if you want to capitalise on Argentina’s favourable group (Nigera, South Korea, Greece) then Otamendi should play …hopefully.
Midfielders
Yoann Gourcuff – France (6.2m / 3.0m)
Dinstinctly under-priced is mercurial French midfielder Gourcouff, already linked with Manchester City in the close season – let’s be honest though, who won’t be this summer? – he has caught the eye of many people while at Bordeaux these last two seasons, begging the question as to why AC Milan let him leave so easily with their aging squad. We can argue until the cows come home whether France should be in the World Cup, but as long as the stars align for Gourcouff (quite literally, his manager Raymond Domenech is an avid astrologist and frankly, a bit crazy) he could prove to be a very good budget option this summer. One would expect France should at least make it out of their group alongside one of their opponents (Mexico, Uruguay, South Africa).
Mesut Özil – Germany (5.6m / 2.8m)
Özil is the cheapest option of all of the midfielders highlighted today, but perhaps one of the most promising young European midfielders out there today. Those of you that participated in the fantasy European Under-21 Championships last summer will have already witness the kind of performances Özil can put in and may even remember him being one of the names on the scoresheets as Germany somewhat trounced England 4-0. Now he has moved on to the big leagues and while not a guaranteed starter, one would imagine after the season he has had with Werder Bremen this year and with Germany just recently losing their captain Michael Ballack they dynamism that Özil can provide may be invaluable. Germany will not face any easy games in their group (Australia, Serbia, Ghana) but coach Joachim Löw, and the team as a whole will be expected to show the kind of form and spirit the Germans always bring to the big tournaments – Özil is one to check out in the final German friendlies to be certain of his position, but poses a very tantalising option.
Marek Hamšík – Slovakia (6.3m / 3.2m)
Like some of the aforementioned midfielders Hamšík is in amongst the top band of promising young midfielders currently plying their trade on the continent. The Napoli midfielder will be out to make a name for himself as one of Slovakia’s key figures this World Cup alongside Premier League starlets Vladimir Weiss and Miroslav Stoch. With their group (Italy, New Zealand, Paraguay) wide open for a potential run at the cup Hamšík should be the number one contender to bring home the bacon if and when they go on said march – especially with the expectation that he will have a domination of set-pieces to fall back on, if nothing else.
Alex Song – Cameroon (5.9m / 2.9m)
As we have witnessed him progress and grow these last couple of seasons – this one just gone in particular – Song can be a bit of a menace to say the least to the opposing attacks, marshaling in front of his defences like Gandalf screaming “You shall not pass!” (Nerd alert?). At a relatively meagre price and with all the bounty on offer – in the Metro game particularly – for the work he puts in, if you want to gamble on a midfielder chalking up bonus for their imperious defensive duties rather than in hopes of a goal then Song could be the perfect foil for your fantasy squads this summer. Their group will be a test of whether they can qualify (Holland, Denmark, Japan) with the game against Denmark which must surely have been earmarked in particular as a must win contest.
On the bench: Andrés Guardado – Mexico (6.6m / 3.2m)
Heading on over to central America we plunder a choice from the Mexico squad into our very own merry band of “misfits”. Guardado is a winger and often puts his name in the hat when it comes to taking set pieces for El Tri too. A guaranteed starter in the Mexican line-up, however the team face perhaps the most competitive group this summer (South Africa, France, Uruguay) so there is definitely a risk that his tenure at the tournament could very well be cut short. In the Metro game particularly 1 point per successful pass in the final third may prove to be a profitable source of points. Preparing himself in the right manner Guardado also scored the only goal in Mexico’s friendly victory against Angola recently.
Strikers
Alexander Frei – Switzerland (7.3m / 5.2m)
A Swiss player you ask? And my answer to that is simply yes. Now I know it’s hard to look beyond players like Villa and Messi, they are some of the worlds best strikers in some of the worlds best teams – but if you’re on a budget a player like Frei might be incredibly handy to make sure you can fit all the superstars you want into your team in the first place. Frei comes in at a low-low price and offers you a Swiss record of 40 goals in just 73 international appearances, he is also captain of the side and just as importantly has the experience of many previous big tournaments having been involved In Euro’s ’04 and ’08 as well as the last World Cup in Germany ’06. Frei broke his arm back in February but has recovered in time to lead his country once more; coach Ottmar Hitzfield thinks the injury may even be to his benefit having allowed him to be well-rested ahead of the tournament. Having been knocked out without conceding a goal at the last World Cup (the cruelty of penalties) Switzerland will hope they can go a few steps further this year, and their group (Spain, Honduras, Chile) besides reigning European Champions Spain certainly leaves the possibility open for Frei to have more than enough chance to bag fantasy managers a few goals this summer.
Alberto Gilardino – Italy (8.7m / 6.0m)
While he certainly doesn’t come cheap like many of the names and faces mentioned here, Gilardino provides a more than interesting option if you are searching for a bit of variation in your strike force. As previously mentioned Italy should more than expect to at least get out of their group (New Zealand, Paraguay, Slovakia) and in doing so their best (my personal opinion) striker has a distinct possibilty of notching more than a goal or two along the way – people talk about the likes of David Villa as the go to guy for the Golden Shoe award, Gilardino is my underdog bet to cause a real stir in that competition this summer. In 7 of the last 8 World Cups the top player has needed ‘just’ 6 goals (or less, Miroslav Klose only needed 5 goals in ’06) to walk away with the award, the exception being the remarkable performance of (Brazilian/classic/original/fat) Ronaldo in 2002. If Gilardino can live up to some of the expectation of the fixtures I see before him, he could prove to be a very astute purchase for those fantasy managers willing to join me in having a go.
Nicklas Bendtner – Denmark (7.1m / 5.1m)
He’s more like marmite than marmite itself, people either love him or hate him – his selection here probably shows which way we’re edging here. While we do not love Nicklas Bendtner, his price tag is undeniably low compared to his importance to the team he plays for. While Denmark have other strikers available – captain John Dahl Tomasson will still be kicking about this summer but is no spring chicken, and Soren Larsen has and impressive goals to games ratio in his short time on the international stage, with most however coming against minnows like Malta, Albania and Georgia – it will be Bendtner who, if fit, leads the line for the Danish this summer, and while you can point to his woeful performance against Burnley in the Premier League this season there was also a remarkably consistent points getter in there. Lest we forget he also got his first hat-trick against FC Porto this season as well. What inevitably swings the balance in his favour though is the group (Holland, Cameroon, Japan) he will be plying his trade against – my own personal belief is that Denmark will not only make it to the knock-out stages but that with the teams on offer here there are goals to be scored, so Bendtner is on the watchlist.
There you have it then ladies and gentleman, having barely touched the surface (Kjaer? Bastos? Jovanovic? Simão? Webó? Anelka?…Jong!?) we’ve managed to compile a 15 strong band of footballers more than ready to take on the World Cup; hopefully ready and willing to give their all for more than a few fantasy teams – and lo and behold if there isn’t a Messi or Ronaldo in sight, the World Cup really is a wonderful thing isn’t it?